Thieves Among Us?

The Princeton Religion Research Center has measured the impact of religion on day-to-day work. Comparing the "churched" with the "unchurched" on a wide range of behaviors like pilfering supplies (stealing), overstating qualifications on resumes (lying), calling in sick when not sick (lying and stealing), and overstating tax deductions (lying, stealing, and cheating), the center finds "little difference in the ethical views and behavior of the churched and the unchurched." What differences there are "are not significant or are of marginal significance." (William Hendricks, in Christianity Today, Nov. 25, 1991)

I wonder if these behaviors have changed for the better in the last 20 years?  I doubt it.   These behaviors, like many other moral and ethical behaviors, have become victims of our relative moral thinking culture.  A culture espousing the theme, "There are no moral absolutes." "Truth is relative." "What's right for you isn't necessarily right for me."

The greater tragedy is that those who claim to be "Christians" show no ethical values different than unbelievers.  God has called us to a higher moral standard.  In the Ten Commandments we are told not to steal.  We are not to take any possessions, rob a person's integrity or character, or try to get something for nothing.  In God's eyes, stealing is a failure on our part to trust God for provision and it is robbing someone else of what God has provided them.

Come see us Sunday.  We will be talking about that.
Pastor Jeff