by Keith Bassham
Until the Oxford English Dictionary was first published from the late 1800s into the early 1900s, for the previous 150 years there was really only one English dictionary, compiled by Samuel Johnson, usually known simply as Dr. Johnson. He was unique — literate, highly intelligent, devout, and quick-witted. Hear him speak on focus during a crisis: “Depend upon it, sir, when a man knows he is to be hanged in a fortnight, it concentrates his mind wonderfully.”
Crises do that. They force us to determine what we really believe. They cause us to act upon core principles. In a crisis, a sane, thinking person will become a reductionist. What was important when the bank account was full to overflowing will seem a superfluous luxury in the lean times, and matters that were far from our thoughts yesterday will come to the forefront, or as Dr. Johnson says, our minds will be concentrated wonderfully.
I thought about that quote while reading an article on Christians and money the other day. Philip Yancey was recalling the words of an inner-city pastor in Chicago, Bill Leslie, whom he said used to say, “The Bible asks three main questions about money: How did you get it? What are you doing with it? And what is it doing to you?”
How simple those questions are, and yet how they concentrate our thinking, especially in these times. It seems a good time to review what the Bible says about our finances, our attitudes, and our actions.
How do you get money?
When Israel was taken from Egypt to the Promised Land, God did not intend that His people move into an unfurnished house. The land had been inhabited, and it was therefore not an empty wilderness where they would have to scratch out a living. The land was “full of all good things, which thou filledst not, and wells digged, which thou diggedst not, vineyards and olive trees, which thou plantedst not”
(Deuteronomy 6:11). He warned them:
Beware that thou forget not the LORD thy God, in not keeping his commandments, and his judgments, and his statutes, which I command thee this day: Lest when thou hast eaten and art full, and hast built goodly houses, and dwelt therein; And when thy herds and thy flocks multiply, and thy silver and thy gold is multiplied, and all that thou hast is multiplied; Then thine heart be lifted up, and thou forget the LORD thy God, which brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage; Who led thee through that great and terrible wilderness, wherein were fiery serpents, and scorpions, and drought, where there was no water; who brought thee forth water out of the rock of flint; Who fed thee in the wilderness with manna, which thy fathers knew not, that he might humble thee, and that he might prove thee, to do thee good at thy latter end; And thou say in thine heart, My power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth. But thou shalt remember the LORD thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day. And it shall be, if thou do at all forget the LORD thy God, and walk after other gods, and serve them, and worship them, I testify against you this day that ye shall surely perish. As the nations which the LORD destroyeth before your face, so shall ye perish; because ye would not be obedient unto the voice of the LORD your God.
To forget, or to deny, that the Lord is the source of wealth is not mere forgetfulness — it is sin. This makes the issue of money a heart issue, and since the book of Proverbs deals with heart issues (“Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life,” 4:23) and those secret things connected with the heart, we should expect to find something in the documents to guide us. And as expected, the Proverbs confirm the Deuteronomy sermons: “The blessing of the LORD, it maketh rich” (Proverbs 10:22), and several lessons can be drawn from the basic truth.
First, there are legitimate ways to gain wealth, and conversely illegitimate ways to do the same. Not coincidentally, the legitimate ways are connected with wisdom: “Through wisdom is an house builded; and by understanding it is established: And by knowledge shall the chambers be filled with all precious and pleasant riches” (Proverbs 24:3,4). In other words, luck has nothing to do with gaining wealth in the right way. It has to do with the blessing of God as the source.
Second, gaining wealth through the blessing of God is not a passive activity. God promises to bless certain actions. Giving to God is blessed: “Honour the LORD with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase: So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine” (3:9-10). Giving to others is another way to gain the blessing of God:
He that hath a bountiful eye shall be blessed; for he giveth of his bread to the poor (22:9).
He that giveth unto the poor shall not lack (28:27).
He that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto the LORD; and that which he hath given will he pay him again (19:17).
All that said, I believe it is still important that we keep our eyes on the blessing portion of these passages rather than the wealth itself. It is entirely possible that a person blessed by God may appear poor — “The rich and poor meet together: the LORD is the maker of them all” (22:2) — and the Proverbs are at pains to point out that appearances may fool us: “There is that maketh himself rich, yet hath nothing: there is that maketh himself poor, yet hath great riches” (13:7).
In fact, given the choice between poverty and riches, choosing the poverty route may be a better choice under some circumstances: “Better is little with the fear of the LORD than great treasure and trouble therewith” (15:16), and “Better is a little with righteousness than great revenues without right” (16:8).
One Bible teacher puts it this way:
There is wealth under the blessing of God.
There is wealth under the curses of God.
There is poverty under the blessing of God.
There is poverty under the curses of God.
What aer you doing with your money?
Securing the blessing of God is one legitimate way of acquiring money. Another is work: “Wealth gotten by vanity shall be diminished: but he that gathereth by labour shall increase” (13:11), and the Lord will bless “he that tilleth his land” (12:11). One should be careful, though, not to make acquisition the goal (“Labour not to be rich” — 23:4), for “riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle toward heaven” (23:5).
Rex Rogers is the president of Cornerstone University of Grand Rapids, Michigan, and the author of Seducing America: Is Gambling a Good Bet? (Baker Book House, 1997). According to Rogers, there are three legitimate ways of acquiring property: as a gift, as payment for labor, or as fair exchange. Any other method is “ill-gotten,” which is the implication of Proverbs 10:2, “Treasures of wickedness profit nothing,” and 1:19, which speaks of one “greedy of gain.” The word gain in that passage has an immoral tone, such as plunder or something gained through covetousness.
Aside from the gambling issue, we have seen just this past year examples of criminal greed writ large. Large investment houses thought unshakable are now memories. Corporate and government figures are being prosecuted. But according to W. Michael Hoffman, executive director of the Center for Business Ethics at Bentley College in Waltham, Massachusetts, you don’t have to go so far as to be a crook in order to go wrong where money is concerned. Selfishness or obsession with wealth may be all that is necessary. He says, “When I hear how much money some people have, I can’t imagine how they can possibly spend it, and they want more, it seems. That’s a point at which it seems to me that we begin to look at others as well as ourselves as King Midas counting his golden coins” (Michael S. James, ABCNEWS.com Moneyscope, August 22, 2002).
Beware of the one who misrepresents the value of the thing he wants to buy, but later brags on what a bargain he got (20:14). There is the one with the ready bribe (17:23), the rigged scale (11:1; 16:11; 20:23), and the friends who only come around when you have money (19:4). Adjust the language a bit and you can see the subprime mortgage mess shine through in these Proverbs passages.
What does money do to you?
First of all, we should get a perspective on the power of wealth, for both good and bad. Although money can go a long way toward relieving certain stresses in this life (“The rich man’s wealth is his strong city,” 10:15), and it’s a nice thing to leave to the kids afterwards (“A good man leaveth an inheritance to his children’s children,” 13:22), not all people can handle all levels of wealth. In fact, those who “hasteth to be rich” (28:20, 22) may feel a sting at the end: “An inheritance may be gotten hastily at the beginning; but the end thereof shall not be blessed” (20:21).
See these wise words from Proverbs 30:7-9:
Two things have I required of thee; deny me them not before I die: Remove far from me vanity and lies: give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient for me: Lest I be full, and deny thee, and say, Who is the LORD? or lest I be poor, and steal, and take the name of my God in vain.
Do you see that? Agur’s prayer is for equilibrium rather than for an excessive amount of wealth. He knows the danger of trusting in what Paul calls “uncertain riches” (1 Timothy 6:17), and how such riches can wreck faith and make one do the unthinkable — deny God. On the other hand, he does not want to be reduced to criminality. Instead, he trusts that God knows what he can handle, and that He will give to him accordingly.
What happens when we place excessive emphasis on the material? Gauge first of all the cost to society. In the Las Vegas, Nevada, telephone directory business section a few years ago, you could find 12 pages of check-cashing services, 14 pages of plastic surgeons, 22 pages of pawn and loan shops, 26 pages of quickie wedding chapels, and 135 pages of attorneys. On the other hand, there were eight pages of churches, one page of mental health services, and a half page of baby- sitting services. Is this a picture of the good life wealth is to represent? Or is it more a sign of sickness, as depicted in Proverbs 25:16: “Hast thou found honey? eat so much as is sufficient for thee, lest thou be filled therewith, and vomit it.”
Sickness and sin — here they are the same! Albert Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, wrote, “[Greed is] a basic sin that is the father of many other evils. Scripture repeatedly addresses greed, covetousness, and avarice as a sin against God, and often with graphic warning of the destruction that is greed’s result. The burning desire for earthly riches leads to frustration and spiritual death.”
In some ways, money is like nuclear power. It does have its uses, and who can argue with the good of having lots and lots of electricity at your disposal. But nuclear power only works well when you surround the reactor with thick concrete walls and a complex system of coolant tubes andvalves and electronic monitoring and tight regulation. Most of us could not handle wealth without contaminating ourselves and others with its consuming power. Previously trustworthy people become connivers under its spell. Formerly good friends become manipulative. Folks once satisfied with just enough find themselves filled with a fear of lack.
What really matters?
I have joked with friends that there have been times when I have had money, and there have been times when I didn’t. Over all, I’d say it’s better to have money. As I said before, money has legitimate uses — providing for your needs and those of your family, giving to the poor, building the work of God — and there are others, of course. But money is not the most important thing.
Wisdom is more important than money. Wisdom is personified (speaking as a person) in Proverbs 8. In one passage, Wisdom has this to say about wealth:
Riches and honour are with me; yea, durable riches and righteousness. My fruit is better than gold, yea, than fine gold; and my revenue than choice silver. I lead in the way of righteousness, in the midst of the paths of judgment: That I may cause those that love me to inherit substance; and I will fill their treasures (8:18-21).
The rationale for this is clear — having money without wisdom to use it properly is of little value: “Wherefore is there a price in the hand of a fool to get wisdom, seeing he hath no heart to it?” (17:16). James 1:5 says to ask God for wisdom, and certainly this is good counsel where money is concerned.
Fearing God is more important than money. One does not necessarily have to make a choice between making money and fearing God, but if the choice arises, “Better is little with the fear of the LORD than great treasure and trouble therewith” (15:16). In fact, God often blesses a right attitude and reverence in such a way that it can lead to acquiring money: “By humility and the fear of the LORD are riches, and honour, and life” (22:4).
Righteousness is more important than money. Proverbs 16:8 tells us, “Better is a little with righteousness than great revenues without right,” and 28:6, “Better is the poor that walketh in his uprightness, than he that is perverse in his ways, though he be rich.” The Lord can provide for His children so that they avoid the trouble that the wicked may undergo: “In the house of the righteous is much treasure: but in the revenues of the wicked is trouble” (15:6).
That righteousness is not theoretical. It is practical. We are stewards, and the Christian calling means everything we are, everything we do, and everything we own truly belongs to God and is to be at the disposal of His purposes. We are to do all, invest all, own all, purchase all to the glory of God.
Brothers and sisters in a congregation may need financial help and counsel. The times present opportunities for Christians “to spend and be spent” on behalf of the Lord and His people (2 Corinthians 12:15). And while I sympathize with retirees who have lost so much in the market’s recent plunge, for some this could mean redeployment back into a world in need of witness. We are taught to be ready to give an answer to every one who asks about our hope (1 Peter 3:15). We earn that privilege when we have a real hope to offer, the true treasure of Jesus Christ.