2 Tim 2:15 "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth."
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WOULD YOU DEFRAUD A BROTHER?
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 17
1 Thessalonians 4:6
Leviticus 19:9-18
“That no man go beyond
and defraud his brother…”
WOULD YOU DEFRAUD A BROTHER?
To “go beyond” (1 Thess 4:6) has the idea of overstepping your boundaries and desire to have more than what you already have. To defraud a brother then is to covet and take that which is not rightfully yours. It is to greedily steal something at your brother’s expense.
A brother is supposed to be someone whom we are close to. Why then would we defraud him? Is that not a terrible betrayal? Yet, that was the warning that Paul had to make, exhorting the Thessalonian Christians that no one should ever think of doing it. Perhaps there were such cases, so Paul had to address the issue to nip it in the bud. Sadly, such things continue to happen in our world today; yes, even among believers.
The root of the problem is selfishness and a lack of love. The mindset of society is “every man for himself.” We are taught that the single most important person that we should care for is ourselves. The world says we must fight for our rights, and do all we can to get ahead, even if it comes at the expense of someone else. It is most tragic when this same mentality is brought into the church.
In church, we are all supposed to be brothers and sisters-in-Christ. We ought to care for one another as family. Christ’s example was one of selfless sacrifice. He came to this earth not for any personal gain or motive, but simply because He loved us and came to give His life as an atonement for our sins. We are taught to love one another in the same way that Christ loves us. Why would we then turn around and defraud a brother? If we do that, we are no better than Judas Iscariot who betrayed Christ for thirty pieces of silver!
We must ask ourselves: Why do we come to church? Why do we call ourselves Christians? It should be because we love the Lord. Why do we have fellowship? It should be for the good of others, so that we can encourage and edify those around us. If that be the case, then the thought of defrauding a brother should be most abhorrent and repulsive to us.
THOUGHT: Stealing is, in every instance, a sin.
PRAYER: Father, help me to walk in integrity and love.