So, have you ever saved any money? Ever, ever saved any money? I think it was Alan Stanwick that said I have saved enough money to live comfortably for the rest of my life. As long as I die next Tuesday, that is, you know, you can save money by rolling it up and in rolls and stick it in coffee cans, in the workshop, outside, in the backyard. You can do that, but maybe a better way to save money would be to save it in such a way that it is earning interest. What does that mean? Well, someone has defined interest as the money that you get paid by a financial institution for parking your money with them, the money that you make from parking your money with them, it's your money making money. I mean, that, that sounds like a pretty good investment. Right. You know what the best investment is? Chocolate, best investment anywhere. You know why you can buy two ounces and it'll give you £2. You know, that's what you gain. Can't be that return when it comes to money investments. Uh, things of, of personal and financial value though. Earning interest is, is one way, it's, it's a type of gain, but there's a greater gain, a greater gain that, that we can have. And, and this greater gain actually comes from us not doing something. What is it we're not supposed to do? Well, we continue our series 10 ways to change the world where we are looking at the universal laws, the ultimate universal laws that are known as the 10 commandments. And as we look at the 10 commandments, we've been asking a question where we're wanting to gain some answers to this question. How would the world be different if we really obeyed the 10 commandments? We've arrived at the eighth commandment today and it is in the eighth commandment that we find this greater gain from not doing something. So what is it that we're not supposed to do? Well, let's find out we're going to be looking in Exodus chapter 20 today. Verse 15. The title of the sermon is Gain Interest. God is, is giving a, a message to Moses for Moses to deliver to the people. And we've arrived at the next part of his message in verse fif 15. And God says this, you shall not steal the greater gain in life comes from not taking someone else's stuff that that's the greater gain. Have you ever seen the 1973 animated movie Disney Classic Robin Hood? There's a little song in Robin Hood, a little theme song by Roger Miller and it goes like this Robin Hood and little John walk running through the forest, jumping fences, dodging, sorry, I'm going to start over. Gosh, it's going to happen. I knew one day it was going to happen and today is the day bless my soul. Hm. It's not even the singing. It's the Glasses man. The song goes like this Robin Hood and little John running through the forest, jumping fences, dodging trees and trying to get away, contemplating nothing but escape and finally making it la la la la golly. What a day. Now, that little last part I have been singing for the last 40 years. I'd say every week, at least once a week just randomly walking down the hall of the church. La la la la. What a day. I, I just say it all the time. Now, now, what was it that Robin Hood and little John were jumping fences and trying to get away from? Why were they doing that? Here's why they were doing it. They broke the eighth commandment. You see, we, we can dress it up in little cartoon ditties and, and we can try to find clever ways to say that what we do at home and what we do at work in school or on the internet is no big deal. But dishonest gain in the eyes of God is still dishonest gain and the commandment of God is, is very clear. You shall not steal. Now, when we think of stealing what do we usually think of when we think of somebody breaking in the back door at somebody's house, stealing their air fryer, their TV, and their lightning mcqueen crocs that are under the table. We think of somebody breaking in and stealing something or when we think of, of stealing, we think of, of somebody walking up to a bank teller with a note that says, hey, this is a, this is a stick up, you know, give me all your money. When we think of stealing. Sometimes we think of people that are pickpocketing or, or shoplifting or, or stealing, you know, from, from campaign donations. We think of, of stealing as something that that other people do. But the sad and sobering truth is that in the average home, the average business, the average school, the average church, there is some form of dishonest gain lurking. Why? Because we're all sinners, we, we're all sinful people. So what kind of dishonest gain is lurking? In other words, how is it that we steal? Well, this time of year, some people are looking for ways to, to steal by cheating on their taxes, right? That's, that's one way we can steal. We can also steal by refusing to care for our aging parents by, by, by stealing the opportunity we have to serve them in the ways that they have served us. We can steal by borrowing something and not returning it at all or maybe not returning it for a long time. We can steal from our families time, energy affection money. We can steal by not providing for our families and yet never failing to provide for our hobbies or our sports teams or our addictions. We can steal by spreading gossip about someone because in a way that's, that's stealing their reputation. We can steal by not paying people a fair wage. We can steal by over inflating the value of our product or our services. We can steal by charging excessive interest. We can steal by goofing off at work or at school. We can steal by having some sticky fingers at work or at school, taking too many office and, and school supplies, things that, that we really don't need to have. We can steal by being a little too creative with our expense accounts. We can steal by plagiarizing, we can steal in 1000 other different ways. The point is this, we are tempted to hear you shall not steal and think, oh, that's for the criminals on TV. But the reality is any of us at any time can be a thief. Someone may be thinking, wow, glad I came to church today. So encouraging, you know, I could be a thief at any time. So, so in that, does that mean we should change the way we live? I mean, if we might accidentally steal a pen from work, should we just stay at home? If it's one of those things that we might actually nod off and, and steal some of the teachers time in a lecture, we might steal a look at the, the wagon. Queen Family Truckster, the new one, you know, over in the car lot, we, we might steal something that we didn't even realize we stole. So, so should we just stay at home under the covers watching reruns of Matlock and just never leave the house? No, no, we shouldn't. Whether we're a Christian student or a Christian business owner or a Christian supervisor, whether we're a Christian employee, whether we're a Christian retiree, we should do all that we can to stay above approach in life and kind of follow some simple guidelines when it comes to how we work or play or go to school or even our leisure time. And those guidelines are, are pretty simple, do the best you can at whatever you're doing because of the gospel because of being saved because we've been loved by Jesus. There is fuel in us to do the best we can with whatever it is that we do. We should also speak and act and think in a way that honors Christ. Those, those are hard but they're not impossible. Do our best and speak and act and think in a way that, that honors Christ. And then in, in a general sense, if we're, you know, trying to put together a test or we're playing a sport at school or, or we're in our business world. And what we need to do is make a good product charge a fair price and give good service. Just some simple guidelines, do those things and then leave everything else to the power and the authority and the grace of God because we all fall into the temptation of being a thief doesn't mean we should lock ourselves in the closet and never go anywhere. It means that if we are in Christ, we should seek to honor Christ as we go and that especially comes to the eighth Commandment. You shall not steal regardless of what your religious affiliation is, regardless of what your political party is, regardless of what the color of your skin is or, or what country you were born in or how much money you make. Every single one of us, every man, every woman, every boy, every girl, we all know in the deepest part of who we are that it is wrong to take something that doesn't belong to us. We know that we know it's wrong. But why is it wrong? Just, just some old law and, and some old dusty government rule book on a shelf somewhere. No, it's, it's deeper than that. It's bigger than that. About 2994 years ago, King David was nearing the end of his life and he was giving what was kind of his final state of the union address to the nation. And he used his time in front of the nation to praise God. And this is what he said, first chronicles 29 yours, Lord is the greatness, the power, the glory, the victory, and the majesty. Indeed, everything that is in the heavens and on the earth, yours is the Dominion Lord. And you exalt yourself as head over all, both riches and honor come from you and you rule over all and in your hand is power and might and it lies in your hand to make great and to strengthen everyone. Now. Therefore, our God, we thank you and praise your glorious man. It's, it's all yours. Lord, the king of the nation stood in front of the people and didn't play politics, didn't pump up his own name. He said it's yours. Lord, no one who has ever been elected or ever will be elected ever gets to say that David was not confused. He stood in front of the people and he said it is yours, Lord Majesty, power, glory, authority. It is all yours. How do you have the ability right now to see and to hear? How do you have the ability right now? To think and to speak. How do you have the ability right now? To, to work or to play sports, to save money or to, to earn money? How do you have the ability to breathe and exist? You have it because of what David said? Because it is from God. God and God alone is the creator, the sustainer and the maintainer and giver of life. It is only God, the God of Exodus 20. Now, someone may say, well, I don't believe in God. Some would say, you know what? I, I have a pretty meaningful life without God. If, if that's your math on, on the world, then, then here's a very non combative question in your perspective, from your view. What is the explanation for how you have your abilities? What is the explanation about the reality of, of life and death and, and the meaning and purpose of life? What is that fuel in your life? What's the fuel of the who and the what and the when and the where and the how and the why of why you are here or why any of us are here? There, there has to be some kind of fuel that drives what you believe. If it's not God, there's, there's something. So what is the fuel? What is the fuel that drives you? James Anderson said this a person can deny the existence of God and still have a meaningful life. But this fact no more proves that life can have meaning without God than a person who denies the existence of oxygen and still enjoys good health would prove that you can be healthy without oxygen. It only proves that people can hold beliefs at odds with reality. In other words, you can say, look, I don't believe in oxygen, but you still need it to live whether you believe in it or not. So someone can say, I don't believe in God, but, but they still need God to exist whether they believe in God or not as a church. We, we exist because we have discovered in the person of Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of God, the messiah, the risen savior we've discovered in Jesus. There is one true sovereign God and that one true sovereign God longs for you to know Him to yield to Him and to enjoy him forever. God lo he desires for you to know Him. We've discovered that in the person of Jesus. And, and we would long for you to discover that in the person of Jesus. And we would also graciously proclaim that denying that God exists is along the lines of what Cornelius Van til said. And, and that's, it's like a man made of water who lives in an infinite, bottomless ocean of water who's wanting to get out of the water by making a ladder made from water it than work. It can't be done. It, it all just keeps falling through if you don't believe in God. And you say, look, I've, I've got a meaningful life in my family. I've got a meaningful life in my friends. I've got a meaningful life with my hobbies or my job or whatever it may be. Ok. We can agree that it is possible for you to have a meaningful life in other things. However, we must also say this, that that meaningful life. However, it is that you may describe it cannot come from inside or outside of you. It has to come from somewhere else. The existential practical math just doesn't work. Something can't come from nothing. James Anderson says this a meaningful life comes from only one place. It can only come from a transcendent personal creator who made you and the universe around you. And why did this transcendent personal creator make you in the universe around you? This is why for the most spectacular end, his eternal glory and the eternal joy of His people. Look, you can look the whole world over. You can chase after money, you can chase after fame, you can chase after your favorite candidate. You can chase after your favorite car, your your favorite vacation destination, whatever it may be. But you will never find the math that is found in this spectacular end. The spectacular end that God has designed is what your soul actually longs for the most your soul was created to desire this spectacular end and this spectacular end has been planned and is completely wrapped up in the ever as the everlasting glory of God, the everlasting goodness of God, the everlasting greatness of God. And it is wrapped up in the glory of the joy of His people, enjoying him forever. And the only way they are able to do that is through Jesus by believing in and trusting in and, and relying on and yielding to and clinging to Jesus. Any man, woman or boy or girl can discover this spectacular end. So, so the question is for your heart is, are you believing in Jesus? Are you trusting in Jesus? Are you yielding to Jesus? Relying on Jesus clinging to Jesus as the ultimate, meaning, the ultimate purpose, the ultimate joy of your soul. If not, then we plead with you to come to him today. Do not steal from God, meaning don't rob God of the joy he has that you would know Him and that you would enjoy him forever. The spectacular beginning is spectacular end is really a spectacular beginning because this spectacular end is launching us as believers and followers of Jesus into the beginning of life. That will not end of joy, that will not end of satisfaction. That will never end our satisfaction. It'll end here. We'll, we'll have sinking sand here. Our team will lose. Something will go wrong at home, something go wrong at work at school, something go wrong in, in the world, in the country, in the community, there will be sinking sand but not with Jesus. He's solid. He's everlasting. He's satisfying. And the spectacular end in Jesus is a spectacular beginning. Commandment of God is not confusing. It's clear you shall not steel. And in King David's final state of the union address. What he says is the first step toward living in this commandment is by acknowledging that everything we have and everything we own is a reflection of the grace of God that when it comes to what we have and what we own, it is all a reflection of the fact that we don't exist without God. So that means when you steal from someone or when someone steals from you. Technically, it is God's property that is being invaded, not ours because it's all his, all of it. It's, it's the Lord's. So stealing is first and most a sin against God. About 21 years before he gave his final address to the nation. David wrote this in a prayer. Psalm 51 4 against you. You only I have sinned and done what is evil in your sight. What David was doing in Psalm 51 was confessing his sin to God. He was confessing that he had own purpose with full knowledge, pursued and engaged in, in sinful relationship with another man's wife. And then then on purpose orchestrated the killing of her husband in battle. And so what David is doing is he's confessing because he was confronted. God sent someone to him and said, hey, you need to hear about your sin. And David became overwhelmed with his sin so much so that yes, he was acknowledging that he had defiled, defiantly, wronged other human beings. But ultimately, he realized first and most he had wronged God, he had sinned against God. Someone portrayed the the imagery of David's demise like this. David broke the 10th commandment by coveting another man's wife. David broke the ninth commandment by lying and creating a tricky plan to get what he wanted. David broke the eighth commandment by taking what was not his. David broke the seventh commandment by committing adultery. David broke the sixth commandment by arranging the murder of another man. And ultimately, David wrote the first commandment by putting himself and his desires before God see, this is what sin does you think? Hey, no big deal. I'm just, I'm taking this. I'm, I'm stealing this. No one will know. But who knows what that one sin will launch into that. That's what sin does. It lies to us and says, hey, it's OK. No big deal. Don't worry about it. Stealing is ultimately an act of aggression toward the grace of God. It's us saying what I want is going to be primary, not what God has said, not what God wants and not what honors God. Skip. Ryan said this in capitalism, the money is yours to do with it. What you want in socialism, it belongs to the state and the state uses it for what the community needs. At least in theory he says in Christianity, it's gods and it must be used as he directs. So when we begin with, OK, everything is God's, it's not hard to do the math of how we're supposed to function. Doesn't mean we always will. We'll all have moments, we'll all fail, we'll all sin. But at the very least understanding who God is understanding that it's all His is a driving beginning to understanding the reality of how things really are. If you want to use the phrase, well, you don't understand the real world. If you don't believe in God, you don't understand the real world. If you don't honor and acknowledge God, you don't understand the real world because it is all his, all of it. The commandment of God is, is not confusing. It's very clear you shall not steal. So what should we do instead? So we shall not steal. What shall we do? Well, Paul was writing in the church at Ephesus and said this Ephesians 428 the one who steals must no longer steal. In other words, what he's saying is this, if you found Christ, if Christ has found you, if you're saved, if you're a Christian life is supposed to be different, we're not perfect, but we're supposed to speak and think and act and, and do things different. So from time to time, I may meet someone that I grew up with and they're like, oh boy, same old crazy. Do you know? And sometimes that makes me a little nervous. Should I still be same old crazy? Do you know? Or, or should things be, be different. We, we should be different. If we found Jesus, things should be a little different. I'll probably always be crazy. But you know, we, we should be different. Paul says the one who steals must no longer steal, but rather he must labor producing with his own hands. What is good so that he will have something to share with the one who has need. This is great. Don't miss this. Quit stealing. Work hard. Not so you can be a good getter, but so that you can be a good giver, give birth. We were in that unique process of, of starting to, to go through things at mom and dad's home and, and mom just made a very interesting statement to me this week. She said I just don't want anyone to start thinking of the financial value of any of those things in the house or, or in the buildings in the workshops because it's not the financial value that matters. It is the value of our life and our family together in those things that is extremely wise. But as humans, if we're not careful, we look at stuff and go. How much can I get on Facebook marketplace for that? And this mean that's wrong. It just means that value needs to be different. And the greatest value that we need to have is you earned nothing, nothing without the grace of God. But if you get the grace of God what you've earned becomes this precious, glorious gift from him, for him to others. And sometimes even to yourself, quit stealing, work hard so that you can be a good giver. Not just a good getter. I was reading something this week about a selfish, greedy little man named Zachaeus. Some of you know, the story of Zachaeus from the Bible. He was a tax collector, but a tax collector in the time of Jesus were, were not, you know, some of the, the friends and family, we may know that work for the IRS or, or do things with the county. No, the, the tax collector back in the day of, of, of the time of Christ, they would be someone who would take a lot more than they were supposed to take. They would completely lie about it and then they pocket it, they'd give to, to Rome, whatever Rome was asking for, but they'd take the rest of that money. And so Zachaeus was one of those guys. He was, he was a greedy little dude and he was always asking for more and he pocketed whatever he took that was more about 2054 years ago. He heard that Jesus was coming into town and, and he wanted to see him. So he climbed up in a tree so he could get the best view he could of Jesus. Why was he up in that tree? Was he just curious? Was he starting to feel bad about taking people's money. And he heard that Jesus had some get out of jail free cards. And hey, I'm going to go check this guy out. We don't know what we do know is that he and for some reason was so desperate to see Jesus that he climbed up in a tree just to catch a glimpse of, of this one who came to seek and save the least. And the last and the left out and the lost and that little man Zachaeus, he was lost and that little lost man met Jesus and everything changed. Something happened. You see Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem to die for the stealing and cheating that we all have that sometimes we won't even admit to ourselves. Jesus went to die for our sins and along the way, he ran into this guy, Zachaeus. Zachaeus went looking for Jesus. But then when he found Jesus, he was overwhelmed with this notion that Jesus had actually been looking for him. I know some of your stories. I don't know a lot of your stories. I know some of what some of you are dealing with in life right now. I, I don't know all of you but whatever it is that you're in the middle of right now. Can, can I just very graciously say by the very nature of the great good news of the gospel, Jesus is looking for you in all the right ways in the ways that you long to be seen and we all long to be seen. Jesus is, is looking for you like he was looking for Zachaeus. And after just one personal encounter with Jesus, just, just one interaction with Jesus, that greedy little man went from a robber and a thief to a giver e everything changed. Can't you just see this scene? The knock on the door, wife's in the back of the house? Few minutes goes by and she's like, hey, honey, who, who is at the door? Um Zachaeus. Oh, great with that little jerk steal from us. Now, how much money did he take this time? Um, he, he didn't take any money. What he gave us back? Everything he ever took from us plus interest and the sound of a, a body thudding to the floor in the back of the house rang down the hall. What happened? He met Jesus, see what Zacheaus did was he looked in the mirror of the law and went, oh, I don't measure up. I'm looking at the law and I've failed, but it was in looking at the law and looking in the mirror of the law that he realized he was a thief. He was a robber and he had been stealing, he was a sinner, but he didn't just look at the law. Did he see what he really looked at was Jesus. The law helped him see his need for Jesus. And when He looked at Jesus, he found mercy. He found mercy. When he looked at Jesus and when he met Jesus, he knew there was no way he could hold on to Jesus and keep using his hands to steal. And that's true for us. No matter what sin we struggle with, the more we hold on to Jesus, the harder and the greater the struggle will be to chase after the sin that so easily undoes us. He sees that have gained a new interest. His, his new interest became a passionate, glorious obsession. His new interest was the reality of Jesus Christ, the eighth commandment. You shall not steal is, is not just a law for our hands. It's a law for our hearts. It's a law that helps us look into the mirror of the law to, to see who we truly are. But then to see what we truly can have in Jesus. So for all of us, with our hands and our hearts, let us work hard, whatever that work looks like and be good givers and let us gain and gain and gain and keep gaining an interest in Jesus Christ because there is a spectacular end in Jesus and the spectacular end in Jesus, that actually becomes a spectacular beginning will always pay off today tomorrow and forever.