Finances can be one of the most difficult subjects, whether in the church or in the secular world. It can bring up feelings of stress and fear for some while others don’t see any problem with money. But how are we supposed to view finances as Christians?
We Are To Not Love Money
The biggest misconception of money is that it is the root of all evil. People often misquote the verse found in Timothy.
For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. And some people, craving money, have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows. - 1 Timothy 6:10 (NIV)
But it explicitly says that it is the love of money that is the root of all kinds of evil. It is the love of money that can push people into the worst version of themselves. And it is the love of money that people steal and kill for. But even when we’re not that extreme, anything that we love of the world that we put before God is an idol. The love of money is evil because we idolize something instead of trusting God to meet our needs.
We could love money for even “good” reasons. We could say that it is because money allows us to be able to take care of our families and be generous with strangers. But no matter how we justify our love for money, we need to realize that we are not God. God is the one who provides, knowing what we need and knowing what others need. God can certainly use us but we should never turn to money as the source to solving problems.
Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? - Matthew 6:26 (NIV)
Our heavenly Father feeds the birds of the air and we are much more valuable to Him than they. And just as we are valuable to Him, so are our families and the people that we claim we are trying to take care of. We are not to love money, no matter how much we give back. It is not money itself that is evil. Having and making money is not evil. But money cannot be our master while we serve God.
No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money. - Matthew 6:24 (NIV)
We Are To Be Good Stewards Of What God Entrusts Us With
God entrusts all of us with different amounts of money. There are some Christians that have more while others have much less. We may not know why the distribution of wealth seems so uneven, even within the church body. But it is not our place to criticize God for giving a lot to some while only a little to others. We all have our own journeys and purposes. God works in people’s lives differently, including when it comes to finances, in order to teach the lessons we need to learn in each season. We are not to look at others in comparison.
It is like the parable of the bags of gold found in Matthew 25: 14-30. A master entrusted five, two, and one bag of gold to three of his servants while he went away on a journey. When he came back, he asked what each servant did with the bags of gold he left them with. We read that the two servants with the two and five bags of gold doubled the amounts there were entrusted with. Meanwhile, the servant with just one bag of gold did nothing with what he was entrusted with. So his bag was given to the servant that now has ten bags of gold.
What we can learn is that we need to be faithful to what He has entrusted us with, no matter how big or small. How can God entrust us with more wealth if we can’t handle what we have now? What does that mean? If we’re constantly in debt, buying what we cannot afford, we’re not being good stewards. If we’re not investing our money to the best of our abilities, we’re not being good stewards. And if we’re skipping out on the tithe, not only are we not being good stewards, we’re being disobedient.
Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it. - Malachi 3:10 (NIV)
We Are To Be Generous
And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. - 2 Corinthians 9:8 (NIV)
God is able to bless us abundantly because He is the creator of all things. When we look back on our life, we will see how good and generous He has been, starting with the gift of His Son. So we can take His example and be generous with others. Our God looks at the condition of our hearts. When we’re generous with others with our treasures, that says what is in our hearts.
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. - Matthew 6:21 (NIV)
When we honor the Lord with our finances and give back, He blesses us even more so. But we don’t give just to receive the blessing. God sees our hearts and our intentions, we cannot fool Him. We must give with a cheerful heart, not reluctantly.
Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. - 2 Corinthians 9:6-7 (NIV)
Let Us Pray
Heavenly Father, thank you for the provision and finances that You have blessed me with. Help me to never put it above You. Help me to be a good steward and to trust that You know all my needs. I do need some financial breakthroughs for (name what you need). Even though I don’t know how You will make it happen, I do know that You are not limited in the same ways that I am. Help me to walk in faith as You are working to answer my prayers. In Jesus’s name, I pray.
Recommendation
Knowing God starts with knowing His Word. If you don’t already own a Bible, there are many churches that give one for free. You can also download a YouVersion Bible App. Or if you’d like a physical copy, it can easily be found on amazon.