Don’t Be a Thief!

(Ephesians 4:28)

Mike Johnson

Ephesians 4:17-32 is one of many passages in the New Testament which speaks of a change that is supposed to occur when a person becomes a Christian.  The Bible tells Christians to put off the old man, i.e., our former sinful conduct and put on the new man in faithful service to Christ.  The focus of this article will be on stealing, one of the sins which Paul wrote to the Ephesians about.  Ephesians 4:28 says, “Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give him who has need.”

The fact that Paul even wrote to Christians about stealing might surprise some.  However, the Gospel can lead to the conversion of people who have engaged in all kinds of sins.  At Corinth, for example, Christians had been guilty of such sins as murder, extortion, and fornication (1 Cor. 6:9-10).  Perhaps, some of the Ephesians had been thieves, and maybe some of it was still occurring.  It may have been that certain ones needed to avoid particular activities, which might have been classified as stealing but would not be looked upon as very serious.

The Bible frequently condemns stealing.  The ten commandments say, “You shall not steal” (Ex. 20:15).  Leviticus 19:11 spells out, “You shall not steal, nor deal falsely, nor lie to one another,”  and verse 13 continues, “You shall not cheat your neighbor, nor rob him.  The wages of him who is hired shall not remain with you all night until morning.”  1 Corinthians 6:9-10 tells us theft was among the former practices of the Corinthians.  Those guilty of stealing and the other sins listed would not be able to “inherit the kingdom of God.”

Stealing can take a variety of forms.  The most obvious would be robbing a bank, breaking into a house, shoplifting, embezzling from an employer, identity theft, or robbing someone on the street.  But there are more passive ways to steal.  Consider some examples of how we can do this.

1. In a routine business exchange, we can steal by allowing someone to give us too much money in a transaction. If you pay, for instance, for something with a ten-dollar bill, and the clerk gives you change as if you had paid with a twenty, would you say anything about it?
2. Not being truthful about a product we are selling is a form of stealing.
3. We can steal from our employer by not working as required.
4. We steal from the government by cheating on our income taxes.
5. Using pirated software is a form of stealing.
6. We steal from the Lord when we do not give as we have been prospered (1 Cor. 16:1-2; Mal. 3:8-10).

In business transactions, some people say things to justify dishonestly, such as, “Well, that is just good business.”  Christians must put integrity over the dollar.

Instead of stealing, what should a person do?  The text says, “but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good”(28b).  Hardworking people are less likely to be dishonest because they know the value of work and wages.

The word translated “labor” in this passage means strenuous work producing fatigue (The Complete Word Study Dictionary).  Paul uses it to refer to manual labor (1 Cor. 4:12, Acts 20:34-35), and he uses the term to speak of spiritual endeavor as we work for the Lord (Rom. 6:12, Gal. 4:11, Phil. 2:16).

A person who steals typically takes what belongs from people who have worked very hard for what they have.  The selfish and lazy thief says, “I’m not going to work as the person I am stealing from did; I’ll just take it for free!”  In one sense, the thief is stealing “time” — the time it took for the victim to earn money to buy what the thief took from him.

The text also tells us that the work must be honest when it says “that which is good.” The ESV says, “doing honest work with his own hands.  For example, you might have a hardworking person who does something dishonest to obtain money.  (A person can be a hardworking thief.)  So, not just any kind of work is acceptable; the work must be honest.

Paul also cites a reason for working at the end of verse 28.  Is it to obtain a lot of money and be wealthy?  The verse continues, “that he may have something to give him who has need” (28c).  We have an essential responsibility to provide for ourselves and our families (1 Tim. 5:8).  But another reason is to have the money to help the needy.  The Bible frequently speaks of helping the needy (Gal. 2:10; 6:10; Mt. 5:7; 25:36).  (By the way, it also talks about not helping those who will not work in 2: Thessalonians 3:6,10-12.)  But, there is legitimate need everywhere, and we must realize that one of the reasons for working is to help the needy.

Undoubtedly, most reading this would not steal from others, for example, by robbing a bank or holding up a gas station, but if faced with such temptations, we need to resist.  However, many may have stolen in more “respectable” ways like those mentioned earlier.  It is essential to work for your money.  By doing so, you can provide for yourself and your family.  Having been blessed by God, you can even help those in need who cannot work.  We must put off the “old man” and put on the new as the Scriptures admonish.