Chapter 11
Money: A Biblical Point of View
Money and possessions are a key part of our society. Generally, to lack money and possessions in our society is to be judged as inferior. Sometimes the judgment is overt and sometimes it is subtle. If, for instance, someone attempts to build a trailer park near a “nice” development sparks fly. Those in the development make the point that they don’t have a problem with the people but the house prices will drop and it is the most important investment they have. In effect, they are saying that they are not judging those who need cheap housing they are simply protecting their investment in a society that judges those who need cheap housing. You know some people need cheap housing.
We compete as a society so those who compete well are generally rewarded and those who don’t are not rewarded. I’ve been really poor while working like a dog. I’ve been without a penny after checking all drawers, nooks and crannies. I’ve lived in a trailer and I’ve been treated badly by banks and insurance companies. Sometimes I wasn’t even aware that I was being treated any differently. Now the banks and insurance companies are very nice to me.
Scripture doesn’t call us to be necessarily brilliant money managers but it does have many instructions on our attitudes and handling of money and possessions. We are clearly expected to be competent money managers and to avoid the snare that money and possessions can bring.
I think Morley is right in that we tend to subset scriptures that speak about money if we think of it as any of God’s business at all. Morley begins with Jesus’ statement in Matthew 6:24 but I’d like for us to look at the scriptures that precede it too. The passage below includes verses 19 through 24.
“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full
of light, but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness! “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money. (ESV Mt 6:19-24)
Often we see the statement of Jesus that the eye is the lamp of the body separated and discussed as if the topic changed from material possessions to lust and then back to money. I don’t think Jesus was jumping topics and men are such visual creatures that the reference to the eye is a good thing to “focus” on (pun intended). Our eyes lead us astray from what God intends when we keep our eye on earthly treasures. If you treasure something then you focus on it and love to gaze at it. Where are your eyes? They will turn naturally to your master.
Morley makes a good point about Jesus statement about serving two masters. He doesn’t say “you should not” or “you must not” He simply says that you cannot serve God and money. It is impossible and therefore something to guard our hearts against daily. This is the thorns in the parable that chokes out the good seed sowed by God. God must be master of our money or we’ll find money is our master. If we are sloppy in our walk with God then it can become like a drug. And it is a testimony of our character for good or bad in our checkbooks.
Morley handles three generalizations of theological perspectives of prosperity (Page 171). He classifies most theological presentations of biblical teaching on money into poverty theology, stewardship theology, and prosperity theology. These are all pretty familiar to me frankly. I grew up a bit in the Lord in the western US during the revival in the 70s and poverty theology had a bit of play with the Jesus Freaks. However, most of the people who were pro-poverty didn’t work hard and donate to the needy. That attitude didn’t really give the theology very strong legs. The hypocrisy of someone who didn’t work (in spite of Biblical instruction to do so), criticized others for having “stuff”, and spent any money they could beg or borrow (presumably to maintain their vow of poverty) was so evident that it didn’t attract many followers. Even the claimed humility of poverty is pretty often swallowed up in pride of being poor as a spiritual discipline.
Prosperity theology has a much better play for the average soul. In this theology, if you don’t have “stuff” then you must not be asking or you are in sin. Often, as Morley found out, there is a teaching that you tithe for what you want as an income. You can’t buy God and trying to manipulate God is a bad idea.
The positive solution that pulls Scripture as a whole together is what Morley refers to as stewardship theology. Stewardship is fundamental to our lives in many ways. Stewardship is God’s charge to us with all of our resources and it is a key to financial management. A steward doesn’t possess. As stewards we are managers of what God possesses. God entrusts each of us with varied portions according to His will and it is a privilege to function as a steward and not a right. As we approach money management we want God to guide us so that we’ll have prudence in administering His resources. Prudence is the timely application of knowledge and wisdom and we want to be faithful to do His will as a caretaker of things that are ultimately His.
Chapter 12
The Four Pillars of Financial Strength
The four pillars are simply practices that we as stewards need to adopt to be faithful in what God has called us to do.
Earnings: Little by Little
Quick money is certainly a strong attractor. The promise of quick money can cause serious mistakes. Some sit still and will not pursue a long slow process of making money. Others will try schemes to get rich in a hurry and lose money in the process. Gambling doesn’t just occur in Casinos.
Saving: Little by Little
Compound interest over a 30 or 40 year span is an amazing thing. Even over a decade it is impressive. Our liquid cash makes it possible to respond to emergencies as God leads in our lives and in the lives of others.
The Nest Egg Principle
This is the long term savings program to make sure that you’ll have sufficient to pursue those things that God calls you to when you get older. God can use these funds to expand your ministry as you get older.
Sharing: Where to Store Your Money
Morley’s family set a standard of living that they were comfortable at and then got rid of the money above short-term and long-term savings. This giving should be in secret and done cheerfully. God does call some to sacrificial giving. It is a gift and generally we will not know who has been called in that way.
Morley spends some time discussing debt. Our society makes it easy to use debt to pretend for a while that we are wealthier than we really are. However, at some point, it catches up. I remember back in the 80s when there was an economic downturn in agriculture and the farmers (who had been encouraged by the government to expand rapidly) found that their capital debt overtook them and many were losing their family farms. North Carolina had a group in the extension service to try to keep them from committing suicide. When I first moved here I remember hearing a presentation from one of the local organizations in which they described their program in which they loaned money to kids so they could buy an animal for a project and then learn to pay back a loan. Even in the late nineties I just had a really bad feeling about teaching debt as a way of life. I’m not saying that the Amish have it all figured out but they don’t like debt and avoid it. In our lives, debt takes away freedom as we “service our debt”. Even worse than on a farm, we tend to take on debt without any compelling reason to do so. We need to learn to handle debt like snakes. Like snakes, only pick it up when you really need to pick it up, when you pick it up be sure you know where the biting parts are, and put it down and get away from it as soon as you can.
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