pramsay posted on September 14, 2006 02:15 1050 views

“Since when did taking a few blank CD’s home from work become stealing? I don’t feel a speck of guilt over using them to make a few CD’s for my truck. Listening to music going to work gets me pumped for work. Besides, if my employer wasn’t so cheap, she’d give me a raise; then I might feel differently about things. Right now, my loyalty to the company is zero-zilch! So I do my photocopying for my Sunday School class at work, take a few blank CD’s from time to time and really, to be honest, I don’t feel guilty about taking paper and pens home with me either. Dem are da perks of working for a cheap employer.”

You’re not the only one who thinks that way. A recent study estimates that $1 Billion a week is stolen by employees who take home office supplies like pens, paper and paper clips. The study also found that younger employees are far more likely to see no harm in taking home stuff that doesn’t belong to them.

In Joshua Chapter 7 imagine the thoughts of Achan as he justified looting in the city of Jericho. “Wow!! Look at that cool piece of cloth. Wouldn’t I look good wearing that on special occasions. And those 200 pieces of silver? With a few debts paid off, I’ll be able to concentrate more on serving the Lord. And that gold? I’ll try and give 10% to the Lord. I don’t feel bad about taking this stuff from the enemies of God. Times have been tough for me and I give a lot to the cause, so now it’s my turn to get a break.”

So he stuffs his pockets and his knapsack and carries it home. But then he got scared. He hid it.

The entire nation of Israel experienced weakness in their next conquest and had to retreat. Commander Joshua couldn’t understand why the Lord allowed them to be humiliated by having to retreat. He started to pray. The Lord said: “Stop praying. Get up and deal with the sin. Someone has taken stuff that didn’t belong to them. Until you deal with that sin, you will always experience weakness.” Joshua obeyed and through a tedious process, Achan was exposed as the thief. Achan confessed:

“Indeed, I have sinned against the Lord God…
I saw…a goodly Babylonish garment, and two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold…
then I coveted them and took them;
and behold, they are hid in the earth in the midst of my tent…”

Joshua 7:20-21

Achan was punished.

Any form of stealing is wrong – big or small. It starts by seeing something and then wanting it for yourself and then taking it. If your eyes are open, you will always see things. The first sin is to keep looking at it and thinking how nice it would be to have it. It is called coveting. The next sin is when coveting leads to taking it for yourself. Stealing (direct or indirect) can never be justified or rationalized. Just because you may be underpaid and overworked, does not mean you are entitled to things that belong to your employer. It is called pilfering or stealing and it is always wrong.

Sin always leads to weakness and guilt. As hard as you try to compensate for a covered sin by doing millions of right things, the covered sin will gnaw away inside you and cause weakness and guilt until it is properly confessed.

Exodus 20:15: “Thou shalt not steal.”
Ephesians 4:28: “Let him that stole, steal no more.”

He that covereth his sins shall not prosper:
but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.
(Proverbs 28:13)

Honor the Lord by being a very, very honest employee.

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