The scripture reading comes from Deuteronomy chapter 5. Please follow along in your bulletin.
Verse 1, And Moses summoned all Israel and said to them, Hear, O Israel, the statutes and the rules that I speak in your hearing today, and you shall learn them and be careful to do them.
Then in verse 6,
Visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.
You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.
Observe the Sabbath day to keep it holy as the Lord your God commanded you.
Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath to the Lord your God.
On it you shall not do any work, you or your son or your daughter, or your male servant or your female servant, or your ox or your donkey, or any of your livestock,
or the sojourner who is within your gates, that your male servant and your female servant may rest as well as you.
You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God brought you out from there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm.
Therefore, the Lord your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day.
Honor your father and your mother as the Lord your God commanded you,
that your days may be long, and that it may go well with you in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.
You shall not murder, and you shall not commit adultery,
and you shall not steal,
and you shall not bear false witness against your neighbor,
and you shall not covet your neighbor's wife,
and you shall not desire your neighbor's house,
his field, or his male servant, or his female servant,
his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor's.
This is the word of God.
Great. Thanks, Celeste.
Let's just pray for a second and ask God to speak to us from his word.
Heavenly Father, glorious Son, Holy Spirit,
as we come to your word this morning, God, we want you to speak to us.
Jesus, it really is our belief that you lead this church.
You are the leader of Watermark.
We've gathered this morning to hear from you, to hear your word.
Christ is our king and our leader.
Come and speak to us this morning.
God, we're not here to hear or listen to the opinions of man.
We're here to have your words spoken to us,
and your word to resonate in our hearts.
And so I pray, God, once you prepare our hearts,
speak to us this morning, God.
Draw us to yourself.
Open the eyes of our hearts to see your majesty and your glory, God,
and change us, we pray.
We pray these things in your wonderful name.
Amen.
I'm not sure how many of us here have been convicted of stealing before.
Maybe some of us.
I remember the first time I tried to steal something.
I was about eight or nine years old,
and my friend and I both lived down the road from a supermarket in Johannesburg in South Africa.
And so after school, we'd jump on our bicycles,
ride to the supermarket and hang out and talk about things that nine-year-old boys talk about.
And one day we decided the supermarket's got this whole counter of sweets.
And we decided, let's see if we can go and grab a few and get away with it.
And so we walked into the supermarket and looking very cool,
grabbed a few sweets and tried to put them in my pocket.
And then I remember I felt very convicted that this wasn't a good thing and tried to put them back.
And in doing so, I caught the attention of the shopkeeper.
She saw what I was trying to do,
and she looked at me and scolded me for stealing the sweets,
which I then denied,
which was twice as bad,
because now I wasn't only a thief, I was also a liar.
And so I was like, no, no, I wasn't.
I promise you.
And I got out of there as quickly as I could
and promised to never try that trick again.
This morning we are looking at the Eighth Commandments.
We're working through the series,
Ten Words of Abundant Life,
commonly known as the Ten Commandments.
And we're looking at the Eighth Commandment,
which is do not steal.
Now, I must admit that when earlier this year
we decided we were going to look at the Ten Commandments,
I had no idea that it was going to be so challenging.
I knew kind of the breadth of Scripture
meant that God calls us not just to obey the technical,
no letter of the law, but the spirit of the law.
But over the last few weeks,
I have found this so challenging and so convicting.
And I'm sure most of us have as well.
But what this means, of course,
is that this is where the hope of the gospel comes in.
Because the gospel is not just good advice,
how to live our lives,
it's good news.
The gospel is not just a self-improvement project,
how to make our lives work.
The gospel is the account of how God has come to rescue us
and to save us,
not only to save us from sin,
but also to change us and to redeem us.
What Chris spoke about,
to make us the kind of people who become more like Him,
who live like Him and behave like Him
and act like Him.
And so I just want to say right up front
that every one of us this morning,
from the sweet-stealing preacher in the front
to those of us right at the back
and everyone in between,
all of us have come this morning
and get to receive
and hopefully be flooded
by the good news of the gospel.
Friends, if you're here this morning
and you're excited to be here
and you're awake
and you're thrilled to be at church,
or if you're here
and you're slightly hungover
or thinking,
what on earth am I doing at a church this morning?
Welcome.
You and I, all of us,
need the gospel together this morning.
So this morning,
we're looking at this eighth commandment,
do not steal.
And what I want to do is,
I wanted to look at this commandment
under three headings.
The first one is types of theft.
There's varieties of what stealing looks like.
Secondly, the heart or the root of theft.
Where does that come from?
And then thirdly,
how Jesus makes us generous.
Okay?
Types of theft,
heart of theft,
how Jesus makes us generous.
If you're looking for a seat,
there's some seats in the front.
You're welcome to come and grab some.
Don't be shy.
Okay?
Great.
So firstly,
types of theft.
In Hong Kong,
we don't get to experience
a lot of common or petty theft
like other countries in the world.
But that doesn't mean
that it doesn't exist, right?
In fact,
the more modern and sophisticated
a society is,
the more sophisticated
and elaborate
are our means
and the systems
that we come up with
how to steal.
And so there are a bunch
of different types of theft.
And I'm going to run through
four of them
and each of them
are more complex
and more nuanced,
more challenging
than the previous.
So the first one is obvious.
It's taking something
that doesn't belong to you.
Okay?
I'm sure we've all
encountered this
in some way.
Maybe you've had something
taken out of your bag
when you're on the airplane
or at the gym
or something that's taken
from you
that belongs to you.
In South Africa,
which is the country
that our family comes from,
crime is quite a big deal.
And in South Africa,
public transport
isn't a big deal.
And so most people
have cars.
And so our family,
we had two cars.
We had a more nicer family car,
which Claire would drive
with the kids.
And that was parked
in our apartment complex
behind a secure gate.
And then we had this
broken down,
paint peeling,
torn seat,
dented,
kind of student car,
which was yours truly,
my car.
And that we parked
outside on the road,
outside of our house.
And every day,
it was a challenge
to see when I walked
out of the apartment
to go to my car
to see if my car
would still be there.
And amazingly,
every day,
it was still there.
You could hijack that thing
with a pair of tweezers,
I'm sure.
But for some reason,
it was still there every day.
Now the irony is
that the nicer family car,
we really took good care of.
And when we knew
that we were going
to move to Hong Kong,
we decided to take
extra care of it,
got all the dents fixed up
so that we could sell it
for a nice good price
to help us move over here.
And that car
is the one that got stolen
just before we left.
And they left
the student dinged,
beaten,
bashed up car
for us to do
something else with.
But we all know
that feeling of having
something taken from you
that belongs to you, right?
It's not just
the inconvenience of it
or the price,
it's the sense
of being violated.
You feel like
somebody's come
into your sacred space
and taken something
and messed with
your sacred space.
There's a sense
of being violated.
But there's actually
many ways
that we can do this.
Some of the less
obvious ways
are like downloading
illegal music
or movies,
downloading software
or computer games.
Things that don't
actually belong to us
but we take them
as if they do.
Kelvin,
many of them
there's some
chairs in the front
you're welcome
to come and grab some.
Fifteen years ago
the most downloaded
and illegally pirated movie
apparently
was Mel Gibson's movie
The Passion of the Christ
which is all about
how Jesus died
for sinners like us, right?
And so even if it's
a Christian movie
it's still stealing.
So the first kind
is taking that
which is not yours.
That's obvious.
Second kind of this
is withholding
from somebody else
what is due to them.
So in Leviticus chapter 6
God says
if somebody loses something
and you find it
and you don't give it
back to them
you keep it for yourself
that's a form of stealing.
The point here
is that withholding
something that is due
to somebody else
is a form of theft.
Now the most obvious
form of this
is tax evasion, right?
Money that is due
to the government
but we hold on
to it ourselves
because we think
that we'll handle it better.
Now interestingly
Jesus
somebody comes to him
and says
Jesus
should we give money
to Caesar or not?
And Jesus says
give to Caesar
the things that belong
to Caesar.
Now you may think
yeah but the government
okay maybe you don't
feel like this
maybe in other countries
you feel like
but the government
is not a very
legitimate government.
They corrupt
they steal our money
they're not going
to use it properly
surely we don't need
to pay taxes
to that kind of government.
But think about it
Caesar
was using the money
that people gave
to one
persecute Christians
and two
set himself up
as a rival deity
rivaling Jesus
and yet still
Jesus says
give to Caesar
the things
that are Caesar's.
Another thing
that would fall
under this
is tithing
right?
Giving to God's kingdom
and as scary
as it is
God says
that when the people
of Israel
were withholding
from him
their financial worship
Jesus says
as ludicrous
as it is
that's a form
of stealing
he says
you're robbing
God
because what
God is saying
is that the money
I give you
says God
is actually
his money
it's not mine
it's his money
he's asking us
to steward it
to take care of it
and so when he says
I want you to set aside
a portion of that
a small portion
for something else
for my purposes
and we say
no it's mine
he says actually
you're taking something
that belongs
to me
here's another way
that we can
not give
to people
those that are due
we can
by not paying
fair or adequate
wages
withholding wages
from those
who work from us
and even if it's
legally right
God says in James
he says
the wages
of those
that are being
taken advantage of
cry out to me
they reach my ears
and I will defend
their cause
but the same goes
the other way
right
if we are working
for a company
or organization
and we are
taking a salary
and yet we're
using company
time or company
resources
for our own
means or our
own agenda
enriching ourselves
it's a form
of theft
okay so firstly
taking something
that doesn't belong
to us
secondly withholding
something that is
due to someone else
third thing
is dishonest
or deceitful
dealings
transactions
in the Hebrew
Bible
the word for
stealing
is sometimes
used
for the word
deceit
for being
dishonest
and the idea
here is that
one of the ways
that people
can steal
is not by
taking something
physical
but in their
transactions
and their dealings
being less than
honest or fair
so in the Bible
God
he has this
phrase that he
often uses
how God hates
or detests
dishonest scales
or weights
and it's this
beautiful picture
how in the
marketplace
someone would go
to the marketplace
and the shopkeeper
would sell
something
but be dishonest
in their dealings
so what would
happen is
you'd have
some scales
someone would
say look
I want a
kilogram of
rice
and they'd
put a
kilogram
scale
weight
on the
one scale
and then
put rice
on the
other one
and when
those two
balanced out
you knew
you had
a kilogram
of rice
but what
shopkeepers
would sometimes
do is
they'd bore
out the
middle
or they
would change
it
and put
say a
900 gram
weight
there
and mark
it one
kilogram
so they're
only putting
900 grams
of rice
but they're
selling you
you're paying
for one kilogram
right
it's a way
of cheating
or stealing
from you
by being
dishonest
and there are
many ways
that we've
all experienced
this
how many of us
have bought
something
and you get
home and you
realize it's
defective or
broken
when we first
arrived in
Hong Kong
we didn't
bring a whole
lot of things
from South
Africa
and so we
hit carousel
with a force
and I remember
one day
we just
moved to Hong Kong
and we heard
you've got to
buy these
things called
dehumidifiers
we didn't know
what they were
okay
South Africa
there's no such
thing as
dehumidifier
so I hit
carousel
I find this
guy
he's selling
a good one
for a good
price
I meet him
at an
MTR station
miles up
north somewhere
and I'm very
chuffed with
myself that I've
got such a
good deal
come home
plug it in
and it turns
on but that's
about all that
it does
right
completely
ripped off
how many of
us have
booked an
apartment on
Airbnb and
they say
king size bed
jacuzzi
everything you
could want
and you get
your holiday
destination and
it's nothing like
what they've
described
that sense of
being cheated
of having
been stolen
what about
lying on our
CVs or our
resume
it's a form of
stealing of
taking because
it's being less
than honest
it's taking
advantage of
someone
now the
challenge is
that sometimes
these things
aren't technically
illegal
no one's going
to prosecute you
or put you in
jail for it
but it is
morally dubious
I remember when I
was 12 years old
my family went on
our first overseas
holiday and we
went to Europe
and we were very
excited and we
land in Italy
and my dad goes
to change money
do you remember
the days of
traveler's checks
if you're under
30 you don't
know what that
means
we used to have
these things
called traveler's
checks and he
went to go change
some traveler's
checks and he
came back
fuming
mad
so what's
wrong
this is
got completely
ripped off
this is the
lady charged
me like 20%
interest or
commission or
something
and he says
to you can't
do that
you can't
charge me 20%
and she says
yes sir I can
legally the
law says I'm
allowed to charge
you know 25%
or something like
that and he
says young lady
it may be
legally right
but it's
morally wicked
that line
became a joke
in our
family
you can do
things that
are legally
right but
morally it's
questionable
right
throughout the
bible God
is often on
this thing about
interest rates
he says that
when somebody in
the church
family in the
church community
is going through
a hard time and
they need to
borrow money
don't charge
them interest
in the old
testament it was
against God's
law to charge
one of your
spiritual family
members interest
because it's
taking advantage
of them when
they fall in
rough times
they're out of
money they have
a medical
condition they
need to go to
the doctor they
need to borrow
money don't take
advantage of them
and enrich yourself
in their state of
poverty
John Kelvin who
was a pastor in
Geneva Switzerland
500 years ago he
was also a kind of
statesman and he
lobbied to say that
the church should
look after the
interest rates in
the city of
Geneva because for
him it was a
justice issue there's
a theological
issue not a
monetary policy
issue and so
this issue of
honest dealings is
really challenging
for those of us who
work in advertising
how do we advertise
something honestly
not overstate it or
hide something that
doesn't work so well
someone once said
that in advertising
I'm sorry if you
work in advertising
this is not a slight
on you but someone
once said advertising
robs you of your
self-contentment and
then sells it back to
you in the form of a
product
very clever how do
we advertise
honorably fairly
honestly lastly what
about corporate
sabotage how many of
us have been tempted
to sabotage a
competitor's deal or
maybe steal a client
from a colleague in an
underhanded way all of
this is dishonest
dealings okay so
taking something that
doesn't belong to you
withholding something
that does belong to
someone else
dishonest dealings and
and then fourthly this
is the most complex
and nuance and we'll
just touch it briefly
is social injustice
and this is when
society is structured
in such a way where
the system is ordered
that it enriches a
certain group of
people at the expense
of another group of
people and one of the
most obvious examples
of this is apartheid
in South Africa where
a certain group society
was ordered or
structured legislation
was put in place that
one group would be
enriched at the expense
of another group and
God says in Micah he
says this woe to those
who devised wickedness
who lie in their beds
at night thinking of
wicked schemes they
execute it because it
is in their power to do
so the system is set up
that they can enrich
themselves and they
take advantage of the
system okay so four
different types of
theft taking that that
doesn't belong to you
withholding that which
belongs to another
dishonest dealings and
social injustice
participating in social
injustice secondly the
heart of theft so what's
behind this my guess is
that many of us here
aren't stealing sweets
from the supermarket or
robbing a bank or
defrauding the
government I hope but
but sometimes we may be
tempted with the more
dishonest dealings maybe
we tempted to just hold
back or not be completely
honest in our CVs or
tax returns what's going
on behind here and the
heart of this is putting
profit or personal
possessions or personal
gain before people it's
looking at a situation
say how can I enrich
myself at the expense of
someone else and behind
that is there's two ways
that this or two things
that's going on in our
hearts the first is just
old-fashioned greed the
excessive desire for more
and more stuff or
possessions taking back
what's not ours keeping
what belongs to someone
else deceitful schemes
comes because of an
excessive lust for more
and more stuff now of
course the problem with
greed is that none of us
think that we're greedy
right we just think of
ourselves as good stewards
or taking care of our
family members but Jesus
is actually very careful
about warning us about our
relationship with money
Jesus never says that
money itself is wicked or
inherently wrong it's not
wrong to be wealthy to
even have a lot of money
but he warns us about the
danger of money because it
does something to our
hearts and the first thing
that Jesus says is there's
this unshakable break
unbreakable bond between
what our treasure is what we
hope and trust in and love
and adore and what owns our
hearts what captures our
hearts Jesus says that the
thing that we love and
trust supremely actually owns
our hearts and our hearts is
the control center of our
lives and that's why Jesus
says that what we treasure
actually is what we worship
the New Testament is
constantly warning us not
about the inherent wrongness
of having money or even
being wealthy but the danger
of what money can do to our
hearts it can lead us astray
from what's true and noble
and honest and good and right
and beautiful it can lead us
astray from God himself
but here's the other danger
the New Testament says that
the desire to get wealthy
quickly or easily
okay
often blinds us to reality
and walking around blind is a
dangerous endeavor right
so the New Testament the
Apostle Paul writes this to this
young pastor Timothy says
Timothy
tell those that are in the
congregation
warn them that the desire to get
rich quickly or easily
they're going to fall into all
kinds of temptation
maybe the temptation to fudge
the books
temptation to be less than
completely honest
maybe the temptation to do
what's legally right but
morally questionable
and he says these temptations
cause us to fall into a
senseless trap
into a harmful trap that leads
to ruin and destruction
and I love how he describes that
this desire to get rich quickly
or easily leads to senseless
behavior
and just think about that
how many times have we heard a
story of somebody
who wanted to try and steal
something
and they got caught
and you hear the story and you
think how stupid are you
how do you think you could
possibly get away with that
I mean like that's just the most
ridiculous thing
I remember watching a YouTube
video years ago
some guy goes to rob a store
and he's maybe slightly
intoxicated
and he sees the CCTV camera
and he thinks this is his
moment to shine right
America's got talent
or whatever it is
so he sees this camera
and he starts dancing to the
camera and
dancing to the camera
and then he realizes
oh yeah actually I'm on a
mission and he goes and
robs the store
and obviously his face is on
the camera and they catch him
pretty quickly
and you think how stupid are
you I mean like
obviously you're going to get
caught right
but but what's happening
there
the desire to get rich
quickly or easily leads us
to do senseless
stupid things
it blinds us to
to the reality
of what's going on in life
it blinds us not only to
good sense
but also to our own
hearts
and so the one problem is
just this greed right
this desire to get more
but the other reason why
we are maybe tempted
in this way
is because
we don't
really
while we may know in our
heads what God says about
his faithfulness
God's faithfulness
may not really resonate
with our hearts
friends why is it that
we are tempted to steal
clients from a colleague
it's because we believe
that the life that we can
secure for ourselves
is better than the life
that God is going to
give us
why are we tempted to
exaggerate or lie on our
CVs or resumes
it's because we don't
trust that God
really is able to
provide for us
and take care for us
and so Paul writes to
Timothy and he says
this
tell those who are
financially well off
not to set their hopes
on the uncertainty
of riches
he's not saying that
wealth is a bad thing
he's not saying that
you mustn't be wealthy
he's not saying it's wrong
to be a wealthy person
but he's saying
don't set your hope
your confidence
your trust
in the uncertainty
of wealth
that wealth
is like a
it's like quicksand
if you try and build
your life on it
it's not going to build
and be a solid foundation
for your life
he says
rather
remind these people
of the faithfulness
of God
who richly provides us
with everything we need
to enjoy
he says
Timothy
remind these people
of the faithfulness
of God
remind them that
God is sovereign
remind them that
their hope
is not in their
bank account
or their job
or their bonus
their hope
is in who God is
that he's the sovereign
Lord of all creation
remember earlier
we said God's name
is Yahweh
I am
he has no limitations
he's not the God
of the wealthy
or the God
of the poor
he's not the God
of Israel
the God of America
he is the supreme being
Yahweh
I am who I am
he's the God
who rules and reigns
over all creation
friends
he's the God
who can take
who can take care
of your every need
friends
the God that we worship
in Revelation 4
is the God
before whom
one day
every knee
will fall down
and say
all glory to you
friends
the God of the Bible
is the God
before whom
all angels
all angelic beings
fall down
on their knees
and say
worthy
holy
are you
to receive
glory
and honor
and might
and majesty
and praise
friends
the God
that we worship
is the God
who tomorrow
can drop a million
dollars in your lap
or the God
who can allow
some calamity
some disaster
to come
and wipe out
all your financial
savings
friends
the God
of the Bible
is a sure
and steady
foundation
and so Paul
writes and says
do not put your hope
in the uncertainty
of riches
in the uncertainty
of your bank account
in the uncertainty
of the stock market
because it's a lousy
foundation to build
your life on
set your hope
on God
set your hope
on who God is
his nature
his character
his faithfulness
his steadfast love
his unfailing
and unshakable
love
friends
banking our life
on our bank
accounts
is like
taking refuge
in a straw hut
during a T10
typhoon
it's not going
to save you
and so Paul
writes and he says
remind us
not to put our hope
in riches
but in the faithfulness
of God
and so what happens
when we hope
and trust
in the uncertainty
of riches
first our hearts
tend to drift away
but secondly
in order to feel
safe and secure
in order to feel
successful
we find it easier
and easier
to make decisions
that 10 years ago
we thought
we'd never make
to take endeavors
that we thought
we would never do
to maybe just
be not 100% honest
on our tax returns
to maybe just
slightly exaggerate
our current salary
on our resume
or CV
when applying
for a job
we do things
that are not illegal
but it's
maybe quite
slightly cutting
corners
and we find
ourselves
being the kind
of people
that we never
thought we would be
friends we find
ourselves putting
profits and possessions
personal gain
ahead of people
so how do we change
how does Jesus
make us generous
friends the good news
of the gospel
is that in the gospel
we discover
that abundant life
fruitful life
meaningful life
the life that we
long for
is not found
in profit
it's not found
in possessions
it's not found
in personal gain
it's found
in a person
friends in the gospel
we discover
that a person's
life and identity
and self worth
are not found
in their net worth
or the abundance
of their possessions
but found
in relationship
friends in the gospel
we discover
the one person
who though he had
all the power
all the privilege
all the prestige
of the world
came to us
in poverty
allowed himself
to be sold
for 30 silver coins
allowed himself
to be sold
so that someone else
could be enriched
so that he could
not only save us
but has set us free
from the slavery
of our heart's desires
friends in Jesus
we see
that God
who is infinitely rich
became unfathomably poor
so that we can become
eternally rich
in him
friends in Jesus
we find
that the king
of all creation
became a servant
so that we
who are slaves
to our desires
can be set free
friends in the gospel
we come to face to face
with the problem
of our sin
and the problem
of our heart
but we also come
face to face
with the extravagant
generosity
and the riches
of God's grace
in Jesus
and do you know
what happens
when we encounter
Jesus and his grace
when that penny drops
when the extravagant
generosity of Christ
to us
when that penny drops
from our heads
to our hearts
it changes us
and it makes us
the kind of people
that don't need
a grasp for more
but instead
love to be generous
towards others
in fact we see this
throughout the New Testament
in the book of Ephesians
the book of Ephesians
is this incredible book
about the riches
of the gospel
and Paul writes
and he says
once we were dead
in our sins
but because of Jesus
we are alive
in Christ
once we were
slaves to our desires
but because of Jesus
we now live lives
of purity and grace
and Paul writes
about the incredible
riches of the gospel
and then in chapter 4
he shows
how the riches
of the gospel
actually change
the way that we
live our lives
and so this is
what he says
he says
because of who Jesus is
because of what you
have in him
put away falsehood
and speak truthfully
to one another
put away anger
and reconcile
with your neighbor
and then he says this
tell the thief
to no longer steal
but rather let him
work hard
doing honest work
with his hands
so that he may have
something to share
with those in need
you see that
see the gospel
doesn't just come
and say
stop stealing
work hard
you lazy bum
the gospel comes
and says
work hard
stop stealing
so that you may have
an abundance
that you may have
something to share
with those
that are in need
and isn't this what we see
with the story of Zacchaeus
remember Zacchaeus
in Luke 19
he's a Roman tax collector
which meant
that he's legally
authorized
by the Roman government
to overcharge
his own citizens
in taxes
and then he can pocket
the difference
so Rome says
listen we want to
collect a thousand
denarii this year
you can charge
150,000
and the difference
is for your pocket
and so Zacchaeus
as a tax collector
is ripping off
his own countrymen
his own nation
in order to get rich
and he's a social
outcast because of it
but he doesn't mind
because he's got rich
in the process
who cares if you don't
have friends
as long as you're rich
right
and so Zacchaeus
is a tax collector
but one day
Jesus comes to him
and Jesus
showers him
with the grace
and the mercy
of God
and at the end
of their lunch
Zacchaeus is a changed man
and this is what
Zacchaeus says
he says
Jesus
I'm going to give away
half of my possessions
to the poor
and if I have stolen
from anybody
I will pay back
to them four times
what I've taken
friends
when we encounter
the grace of God
and Jesus
do you know
what happens
the grace of God
so hits our hearts
it will transform us
from being the kind
of people who think
what can I accumulate
to being the kind
of people who think
how can I give away
how can I bless others
and that's actually
what Paul says
to Timothy
straight after
in that passage
where he says
tell those that are wealthy
not to trust
the uncertainty of riches
but to trust
in the faithfulness
of God
he goes on
to say this
tell those who are
economically empowered
that they are to do good
to be rich in good deeds
and to be generous
and ready to share
with everyone
friends
imagine living
that kind of life
imagine going to work
tomorrow
and
with the attitude
of how you can share
a potential client
with somebody
who's new
or starting out
at the firm
friends
imagine going to work
and asking the question
how can I be
100% honest
about the potential dangers
of this investment
to these potential clients
friends
imagine going to work
and at promotion time
putting in a good word
with your boss
about your colleague
telling your boss
what an asset they are
to the company
knowing that they may get
promoted ahead of you
friends
imagine going to work
and asking the question
what's not just
not just what's legally right
but how can we be
absolutely honest
and fair
in all our transactions
and our dealings
friends
imagine going to work
and walking away
from a deal
that's going to make you
a ton of money
and get you a massive bonus
because you know
that downstream
somebody else in society
may suffer
even though you can
enrich yourself
our friends
the question is this
why would you do
such a thing
who would do
such a thing
and the answer
is those
that have encountered
the unfathomably
wonderful
gracious
incredible
generosity
of Christ
it's those
who have encountered
the God
who became
unfathomably
rich
poor
so that we can
become eternally
rich in him
friends
it's those
who have had
our worlds
turned around
because the
magnificent
faithfulness
and the
awesomeness of God
has not just
hid our minds
but penetrated
our hearts
and turned our lives
around
friends
it's those
who once
lived for themselves
but as a result
of his infinite beauty
have now
decided to live for him
and live for others
and so friends
I want to ask us
this question
as we close
do you know him
like that
do you know him
like that
friends
has your world
been turned around
like that
like Zacchaeus
friends
maybe you've been
a Christian
for many years
maybe you've been
part of this church
for a long time
do you know him
like that
has he turned
your world
upside down
friends
do you know
the one
who though rich
for your sake
became poor
on the cross
so that you
could become rich
and become a
different kind
of person
friends
do you know him
let's pray together
heavenly father
thank you
for
not just
god thank you
for the way
that the gospel
is not just
good advice
you don't just
come to us
and say
stop stealing
be a better
person
pull your
socks up
and sort
your life
out
you come
to us
for the
extravagant
good news
that you
Jesus
came to us
in poverty
that we
might be
enriched
at your
expense
Jesus
thank you
that you
didn't put
your own
personal gain
before us
but you
put us
before your
personal gain
Jesus
won't you
come and
change our
hearts
won't you
come and
write the
gospel
not just
in our
heads
but in our
hearts
Jesus
won't you
come and
transform us
I pray
Christ
come and
make us
a different
kind of
people
make us
the kind
of people
Lord
that walk
to a
different
drumbeat
that have
a different
ethos
and motive
in life
those who
live for a
different cause
because we've
encountered
the magnificent
and sovereign
God
oh God
come and
do that
in our
hearts
we pray
amen
down
to
time