"The Opposite of Stealing"

First Presbyterian Church
October 22, 2006
Peter S. Buehler
Exodus 20:15; 22:1, 4; Matthew 6:19-21

You shall not steal. This is the Commandment we hardly think about at all, and it is the one we think about all the time. Of the Ten Commandments, the one about stealing has nothing to do with us yet every day it concerns us.We know we're not to steal, it was one of the first lessons we learned as children. Don't take what doesn't belong to you, was the message; good kids share, they never steal. Respect other people's property.
And since then we've not disagreed. We're not even tempted.
Maybe we have a cache of pens, pencils and pads that have found their way home from work. Maybe on a U.S. Customs form or two we underestimated ever so slightly the amount we spent on items we brought back with us in our suitcases. But that's not the same thing as stealing. So the 8th commandment doesn't really concern us.Except that it concerns us every day. We hardly go anywhere without locking our doors; we have security systems for our cars as well as our homes; we have passwords and PIN numbers for our accounts; we're cautious if not reluctant to open our doors to strangers; parents rarely let their children wander out of their sight. We're all security conscious. Crime in general and theft in particular is a huge issue in America. The security industry is a multi billion- dollar business; in the 1990s the fastest growing category of housing in the U.S. was prison cells. The cost of employee theft on the American economy has been estimated at $40 billion, a cost we absorb. For us the 8th Commandment is more than a kindergarten lesson we've outgrown.
You shall not steal is about us. Beyond protecting ourselves and having some measure of security, is there anything we can do? Like you, I have been the victim of theft.
I've had cars stolen, one from in front of my seminary in New York, and one from out of a church parking lot in Sacramento -- which says to me that while church buildings may be sacred territory, there is no such place as a sacred parking lot.Insurance covered the losses. Yet I was upset each time that my car -- a very personal possession -- had been broken into and my space invaded. I was annoyed with the inconvenience the theft caused me as well as the intrusion. I realized then, as have you, that our possessions, our personal property, becomes part of us, an extension of us.The ancient Hebrews knew this. They knew as well that crime tore at the fabric of human society, that trust is the glue that holds neighbors together and when it is broken something sacred is violated.
Yet unlike today when punishment comes first -- and victims don't meet criminals, in biblical times the restitution of what was stolen came first. Thieves met their accusers and were forced to pay back from two and five times the value of what they'd stolen -- a punishment as well as a deterrent; it also erased resentment the victim might carry.It's not likely this could happen today. Yet what a difference it would make if we met those who committed crimes against us, if personal property weren't the only thing that was restored, but human relationships.It is what Jesus cared about deeply. He went beyond the law; he cared about people on the wrong side of the law -- not to acquit them, but to change them. After all, Jesus called Matthew the tax collector, the poster boy of white collar criminals, be his disciple. The man who curried favor with the Roman government so he could gouge taxes out of his own people. Yet he didn't change his ways and then follow Jesus, he responded to Christ's call and then found his life changed. So many of us have had the same thing happen, not that we changed our ways and then were called, but the reverse -- Christ called us and then, on our pilgrimage, we discovered we were changed.Which is where the 8th commandment gets personal. Not that we're tempted to steal; that isn't it. What Jesus does when he calls us to follow him is to consider the opposite of stealing and make it part of our faith and our lives.What is the opposite of stealing? Is it not stealing? Is it respecting others' property? Is it living an ethical life, returning everything you borrow and paying back everything you owe?Jesus refers to stealing only twice. Yet in both instances when he speaks of it his words point to its opposite. Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal, Jesus says. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal.
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.On the one hand his advice is about as easy as it could possibly be: no one can steal what you don't have! If you have a lot of stuff, you have a lot to lose. We might argue that proportionally if we have less stuff and it gets stolen then we have more to lose, so better to have more so it matters less -- but that isn't what Jesus is saying. He is wanting us to think about our treasure, what matters most to us, for our hearts take their marching orders from our choices. We imagine that it's the other way around, that our hearts -- our will power, our good judgment and decision making -- is what matters, yet Christ teaches that the opposite of stealing, of desperate wanting, is gratitude. Knowing where our treasure is.As I was growing up, my mom would often say to me, Peter, enough is sufficient. Usually she'd say it when I was starting to get mouthy, or when I was complaining about something -- Peter, enough is sufficient. It was definitely a warning, which generally I was smart enough to heed. Though as is often the case with things our parents say over and over, I never thought about the expression itself, what the words meant, whether "enough is sufficient" isn't a meaningless redundancy. Though I heard myself say the same thing to my kids when they were growing up, which surprised me. Now however I think the expression is not so much a parental warning as a statement of gratitude, of good Christian stewardship. In short, know that you have enough. Stop and enjoy the sufficiency. Offer a prayer of thanksgiving that God gives us what we need when we need it.
Be mindful of God's amazing generosity. The opposite of stealing is gratitude!We thank the Lord, not only for our material well-being, but for his constant friendship, the ways Jesus comes alongside us and walks with us as he has in these weeks and months; how we are given energy and hope when our reserves are spent; how we are convinced that grace is pure gift, because we've received it when we haven't begun to earn it, even when we've failed.At times like these we realize we're not so different from thieves and tax collectors, and we know beyond a doubt why they loved Jesus so much, and loved being with him. He was their friend. His love was more than enough, and they were grateful.At the end of our lives, it won't be how much we have that matters but how much we love. The opposite of stealing, of desperate wanting, is love.Jesus invites us to take the next step in love. In the second passage where he speaks of stealing, it's in response to the young man who asks Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life? Jesus says, in effect, you don't need to ingratiate yourself with me. You know the answer to your question. You know the commandments: 'You shall not murder; you shall not commit adultery; you shall not steal; you shall not bear false witness; you shall not defraud; honor your father and mother. 'The man said to Jesus, teacher, I have kept all these since my youth.We realize that this was a good man with a good heart. In fact he is our neighbor, he is our friend. We know him well.Jesus looked at him loved him and said, You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me. We know the outcome.
We know that it was his possessions held him back, not his heart.
It wasn't that he distrusted the poor or believed they were undeserving, there is no rationalizing going on. Simply, he was possessed by what he owned and chose not to break lose for Jesus' sake. He had faithfully observed all the commandments from his youth, yet he couldn't bring himself to do what is the opposite of stealing, which is generous giving. And Jesus said nothing further. He didn't persuade or exhort; he left the man with his choice.It has been said that when the Lord chooses us, we must make a choice. I've thought about this, because part of me wants that choice to be once-and-for-all. Yes, Lord, I know you've chosen me, that you have a plan for me, but I chose you years ago -- isn't that sufficient?
I don't have to keep choosing you over and over, do I?The more I think about it, the more I understand the rich young man who felt that he'd done enough. He'd been good enough. No more choosing, no more trusting, no more giving -- at least not at that deep a level. Just let me stay where I am, Lord, and tell me I earned eternal life years ago!But true giving, truly keeping the 8th Commandment, is not avoiding wrongdoing, taking what isn't ours, wanting what isn't ours. True giving is a pilgrimage, a weekly act of trust in the promises of Jesus, a daily choice to give something away. It's why Christian stewardship, even making a financial commitment to the ministry of the church, is not only a matter of contributing but practicing faith and trust. Daily practice, daily trust.I invite you to join me in prayer, to make this prayer your own:
Lord, giving for me is not easy; I want to hold onto things. I know that you call me to go farther and deeper, to trust you with my life.
And I know that you always are giving, that your giving will be enough for me. Help me, then, to give of myself generously, especially to the poor, the least of these, my sisters and brothers. I know that I will have given enough, Lord, because I will feel even more grateful.
Thank you for choosing me; help me once again to choose you.