Thou Shalt Not Steal

The Ensign, an LDS magazine, had a great article by Richard D. Draper, called “‘Thou Shalt Not Steal’,” Liahona, Oct 1998, 27 on this very subject that I am going to share with you today. I love the depth it goes into on this subject.

"The Bible emphasizes that stealing belongs to the set of sins that includes murder, adultery, and false swearing. All of these are directly related, and theft is the common link; murder is the unlawful taking of life, adultery concerns the taking of virtue, and false swearing usually involves the taking of reputation, property, or goods.

Stealing is a sin against our Heavenly Father even when motivated by need and poverty. The act dishonors God (see Prov. 30:9). Conversely, the honest person who chooses not to steal, even under stressful circumstances, shows trust in God. He is conscious of a covenant relationship with the Lord and chooses to sustain it.

Stealing is a sin against our Heavenly Father even when motivated by need and poverty. The act dishonors God (see Prov. 30:9). Conversely, the honest person who chooses not to steal, even under stressful circumstances, shows trust in God. He is conscious of a covenant relationship with the Lord and chooses to sustain it.

A student once shared a story with me that effectively illustrated this point about honesty. While he was growing up, his father’s business had failed. By working hard, his father developed a new business that promised eventual returns but provided scant income for the family in the beginning. The student’s mother had gone to work too. This was distressing for the family, especially for the father, but he promised that it would be only for a short time. Within a year, the business had improved enough that the mother was able to quit working. Later the family became quite comfortable.

When my student, a business major, began working for his father, he learned that his parents had paid off all the debts from the earlier business failure, even though the debts had been canceled under bankruptcy laws. His father had begun paying them as soon as he started the new business. This was also one of the reasons his mother had gone to work. When my young friend questioned the wisdom of paying debts that had been legally canceled, his father explained that although he realized many honest people are unable to pay legally canceled debts, he felt his situation might allow him to pay his debts over a long period. His concern over his unpaid obligations forced him and his wife to reexamine their personal commitment to the Lord and to the covenants they had made with him. They felt that morally they owed those debts and that to do anything less than paying them would be stealing. So his father and mother had joined as a team to pay what they felt they owed, and they and their family had been blessed."

O.k. back to me and not the article

This concept of paying back debts owed to others is one that world doesn't value today. I was listening to a money program that talked about how with the housing market being so bad right now, many people are foreclosing on the houses they currently own, and then going down the street and buying a house $100,000 cheaper. They said it was a good business move. When asked morally if it was right or wrong, they mentioned how the stigma attached to it might have been bad awhile ago, but now it's looked on like a business deal when that goes bad, they just file bankruptcy and move on to the next business. THIS IS WRONG! When situations like this happens, it's not like the money automatically goes away, someone is hurt and picks up the slack.

But here's the thing, those that do steal are actually at more of a loss in this circumstance than those they steal from. When you steal, whether an actual good or person's reputation or whatnot, you come in danger of losing your soul. (As you are with any sin.) Peace is not afforded to those that take wrongfully. Peace is actually the one feeling Satan cannot imitate.