ROOTED - Tuesday, August 12, 2025
Exodus 20:15
15 Thou shall not steal.
Reflection: Question #68
Written By: Pastor Jesse Caro
Question: What is the Eighth Commandment?
Answer: Exodus 20:15
The Seventh and Eighth Commandments are similar in this respect: in both cases the tendency is to want something that does not belong to you. Stealing is a violation of someone, in that something is taken from them without their consent. I was perhaps 16 years old when I heard that one of the pastors in the church we attended was fired. He was responsible for the finances and had been pilfering funds in some way. At the time I remember thinking, “why would he do that… steal from the church?” I could not believe that someone would dare do such a thing. Of course, the older I get the more jaded I have become, as I realize that people can do all sorts of things the more greed and discontentment settle in the heart. Furthermore, greed and discontentment can become a problem in lay people as well as church staff.
In reference to stealing, Jesus says that you are better off cutting off your hand than allowing your hand to become an issue ((Matthew 5:29, 30). The King James says (I believe) to “gouge out your eye.” Graphic! On the one hand, Jesus’ words warn us against the terrible ramifications of lust and stealing. But, on the other hand, Jesus’ words are (I think) not to be taken literally (otherwise there would/should be significantly more blind and lame people around). Jesus is really calling us to take less drastic actions and deal with the underlying heart conditions. Child of God, know this: God wants us to be content and satisfied in him. We don’t need things to make us happy and content. We don’t need affection from others to be fulfilled. We can be completely content in Christ, who should be our ultimate desire of the heart. I contend that if we saw the value of Christ, his beauty and glory, and came to be satisfied in Him alone… adultery and theft would end among believers.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, may we see your beauty and appreciate it afresh…. filling us with the kind of contentment that satisfies us deeply.