Your Spiritual Check-Up Using the 10 CommandmentsSample

"I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.” (Exodus 20:2, ESV)

“You shall not steal.” (Exodus 20:15, ESV)

Not steal – Am I justifying my actions by telling myself “I deserve it”?

This command is pretty straightforward. To steal is to take from someone else what is not yours. There is an underlying assumption of deception that goes with this. Usually to steal, we also deceive another to get away with it. The problem with this is it breaks trust, relationship and community. When you steal and deceive, you are untrustworthy.

The most obvious form of stealing is taking physical objects. There has to be care that we don’t expand the legitimate use of resources our work provides for fulfilling our job to taking advantage of those benefits in ways that were never intended. We also need to be careful to not steal time. To say we worked more hours than we really did is a form of theft and is deceptive.

If we ever find ourselves saying or thinking the words, “Well, I deserve it,” we need to recognize the huge red flag that this is. We can do it with a belief in fairness or equity. But life is never equal and is rarely fair.

Do what is right because it is right. And let Biblical truth be your guide to what is right.

Questions to Consider

- Are you justifying any actions by telling yourself that you deserve it?

- Are you doing everything as unto the Lord? (Colossians 3:23)

Actions to Take

- Check your heart for an attitude of entitlement.

- Make restitution if possible and necessary.

Prayer to Make

Heavenly Father, you are the provider of all things. You own the cattle on a thousand hills and you are able to provide what I need when I need it. Put in me a heart that commits to honoring you and treating others with honor and respect. Amen.