Are Christians Allowed to Build Wealth?
I love the topic of building wealth. Freeing up money through healthy money management, earning more money through the freedom of entrepreneurship, and throwing it all together to grow your wealth and create a financial legacy...what's not to love about that?
However, it's come to my attention over the years that a lot of people DO have a problem with that. Sometimes without even realizing it!
Mindset issues are one thing, but today I want to talk to the Christian entrepreneur who has more than a mental block. I'm talking to the Christian who struggles with reconciling the worldwide encouragement to build wealth with their faith.
For you, it's not just about struggling to believe you can do it or if you "deserve" it. For you, it's a deeply held fear that wealth incurs the wrath of God.
So let's talk about it. Let's address the question: Are Christians allowed to build wealth?
Get the Truth From the Source
First off, know that I'm certainly not a Christian scholar or theologian. I'm just a Bible-loving money-nerd who believes in finding truth at the source, not a blog post.
So just as I have my Bible open as I write this post, I encourage you to do the same as you read it.
Why is that important? Because CONTEXT is important. And you'll find as we continue this article that not only are verses commonly taken way out of context, but they're also misquoted entirely without people realizing it.
Don't ever trust someone just because they say something is Biblical. Verify it yourself, always.
Christians and Money
Christians are real weird about money.
Churches don't want to act like businesses, congregations get uncomfy when pastors preach on money and giving, and individuals don't want to acknowledge that any of us make money in the first place.
What's with that?
I'm sure it's an extremely widespread and complex issue, but today we're addressing the basics.
Let's talk about the two most common passages of Scripture that have freaked Christians out about money.
"Money is the Root of All Evil"
Have you ever heard the bible verse, "For money is the root of all evil?"
I haven't. It doesn't exist.
This verse is quoted constantly as a caution against having too much money and most everyone, Christians and non-Christians alike, have heard of it. But it isn't even a verse at all! Good luck finding it in the Bible.
Oh, perhaps you're thinking of 1 Timothy 6:10?
"For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs." - 1 Timothy 6:10 (NIV)
Hmm, revisit that a second: For the LOVE of money is a root of all kinds of evil.
That changes things, doesn't it?
Money in itself is not inherently good or bad. It's an object. A means of exchange. It can't be anything other than what it is.
But it can mean something different to you, if you let it. It can be elevated into something it's not, if you let it. It can become success, security, joy, self-worth, love...if you let it.
Notice the second, and far less-often quoted, part of that verse. "Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs."
Note #1: SOME people. Note #2: EAGER for money.
The people who did begin to worship money strayed away from God and caused a mess of trouble for themselves.
And this is where we should zoom out a little and take a look at the CONTEXT for this verse.
Go read 1 Timothy 6:3-10.
>> Context:
1 Timothy is a letter written from the apostle Paul to his young mentee, Timothy. Paul had left Timothy to care for the church at Ephesus and this letter contained instructions. At the time, the growing Ephesian church was struggling with heretical teachings that countered the teachings of Jesus. We can see the recurring theme of false teachers throughout the entire book.
When you visit the full context of chapter 6, the theme continues. Verse 5 refers to individuals with corrupt minds "who have been robbed of the truth and who think that godliness is a means to financial gain."
The false teachings in this church were leading the people to believe that if they were "godly" enough they'd be rewarded with riches, success, and prosperity.
Have you ever seen someone who tithes or makes donations because they think they're going to get something back, whether recognition or even more money from God (as if it were an investment!)?
The desire for wealth just for the sake of being rich distorted people's minds and led them chasing after fleeting rewards. They couldn't be content and so their desires only got worse:
"Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction." - 1 Timothy 6:9 (NIV)
Money isn't evil. But when your sense of purpose, self-worth, and happiness gets wrapped up in money, it will only bring you trouble. Part of our mission as stewards is to protect our hearts!
The Rich Man vs. The Camel
Time for the big one.
"Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God." - Matthew 19:24 (NIV)
This one is extra scary because these are the words of Jesus himself.
Matthew 19:24 is quoted often (and more accurately than our previous passage). Even if you go up a verse and read Matthew 19:23, it doesn't get much better.
"Then Jesus said to his disciples, 'Truly I tell you, it is hard for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven.'" - Matthew 10:23 (NIV)
Hmmmmm.
Kinda sucks to think a camel's got a better shot of stepping through a needle than you do of eternity in heaven, huh? Guess we better not get rich.
Except, there are a lot of issues with this interpretation.
>> Who's rich?
At what point are you too rich to get to heaven? What's the income threshold? Does heaven have income brackets just like the government uses for taxes?
Did you know that if you earn an annual income above $32,400 (USD) — that's just $2,700 a month — you're among the top 1% of income earners in the entire world?
This is obviously due to extreme poverty in many regions of the world, but the point still stands. "Rich" is a relative term, and there is no place in the Bible that specifies otherwise.
>> How do we get to heaven?
Most Christians have a pretty solid understanding that we can't get to heaven through good works alone. It's not just about doing good deeds or being a good person.
If you never realized that, here are two verses for you (among MANY) to investigate:
"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast." - Ephesians 2:8-9 (NIV)
"I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose." - Galatians 2:21 (ESV)
So, if good works don't get us into heaven, why would it make sense that bad deeds keep us from heaven? That's what Christ died for. That's what the reconciliation of man is all about.
By grace, and grace alone, we are saved, regardless of what we've done. That goes for good and bad deeds alike.
Side note: That's not to say that everyone will go to heaven. An essential element of salvation is your ACCEPTANCE of Christ's sacrifice. Our deeds can only be redeemed when we've given them all to God.
>> Context:
Again, let's zoom out and look at the context of Matthew 19: 16-30. Jesus is teaching to a large crowd in Judea when a man approaches him and asks how to get eternal life.
Jesus tells the man to keep the commandments, and the man basically goes, "Yeah, yeah, I've checked those boxes. What else?"
It's immediately clear that this man has a heart issue. He's treating the commandments like a checklist and salvation like an insurance policy. And he obviously thinks he's doing a great job at it all because he felt zero convictions that he might not have perfected those commands yet.
Jesus saw the heart of this man right away.
If you go and read the actual passage, you'll notice that Jesus only listed six of the ten commandments when the man asked. The ones he listed were the ones that placed special emphasis on loving your neighbor. This is important when you look at the next few verses.
Jesus basically told him, in the Katie Standard Version: "Oh, okay, you've done all that? Well, then the last step is to give up all you have to help the poor and then join me in my ministry to help people. Consider that your security deposit for heaven."
He called this man out by telling him to do the very last thing he wanted to do (because, hello, that's usually what it takes to follow Christ). Basically, he knew this man's problem and he hit him where it hurt.
This is where we find out that the young man was extremely wealthy. This is also where he stopped pestering Jesus and "went away sad."
Sad? "Oh, boo, I'm too rich for heaven. Dangit."
That's a heart problem (and an unhealthy attachment to money) if I've ever seen one. He didn't even consider giving up what he had to help his neighbor and follow Jesus. He just immediately mourned the fact that it wasn't for him. Now that's sad.
Jesus then turns to his disciples and says the words in question from above, verses 23 and 24. Rich Man. Camel. You remember.
The disciples are shocked and ask, "Who then can be saved?"
This question is interesting. It points to a misconception that they held that godliness and wealth were somehow linked. We just saw Paul and Timothy still fighting this problem in the church years later! And it's still a problem that the church faces today.
This is where Jesus reminds them that nothing man does can save him, but "with God all things are possible." (Revisit that discussion about good works in the previous section!)
This story is about keeping your priorities straight and truly surrendering your life to Christ. Jesus didn't shame the man for having wealth, he called out his attachment to it. This man wasn't willing to use his resources for God's purposes, and he wasn't willing to let it go for the opportunity to walk with Jesus. Think about what he missed out on!
Again, the money isn't the problem. It's when we elevate it above all else that it can destroy everything.
The Bible's Celebration of Wealth
So, we've had a few passages of Scripture with some negative talks of money, and I hope you can see a new perspective on what those verses are actually saying to us!
But the fact still remains - isn't it just easier to avoid money? Would it be better?
That depends entirely on you and what you feel called to do. Everyone is different. Some are called to be stewards of billions of dollars, some are called to be stewards of much, much less.
But the fact remains that wealth is not inherently bad. In fact, it is often celebrated and encouraged in Scripture.
"Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life." - 1 Timothy 6:17-19 (NIV, bold emphasis added)
Notice a distinct lack of instructions to "Command those who are rich to sell everything they own."
No, instead, God commands them to use their resources for others and to keep their hope, not in their money, but in God. Keep your priorities straight and remember to take care of those around you.
That doesn't sound like wealth-shaming to me.
Maybe you'd rather look at some Old Testament passages? You'll find plenty of instructions for managing money in Proverbs - many of them encouraging healthy stewardship of wealth, not shaming you for having it!
"Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine." - Proverbs 3:9-10
This particular verse actually promises continued abundance to those who honor God with what they've been given. That certainly isn't telling anyone to burn their fields for fear they'll make too much money from their crops.
"A good person leaves an inheritance for their children’s children, but a sinner’s wealth is stored up for the righteous." - Proverbs 13:22 (NIV)
And we'll end here with an interesting verse. At first glance, this can seem like a call to leave an inheritance for your descendants, but I don't think that's quite right.
Look at the phrasing, and consider the second half. To me, it sounds more like a promise of a reward.
It looks like we have a Good Person and a Sinner who are both building up wealth in some way. The Good Person is living a righteous life in accordance to the will of God (by definition of righteousness), and the Sinner is living for himself and will ultimately lose his wealth.
The Good Person's wealth is rewarded with the promise of a financial legacy passed on to their descendants. If this is the reward for righteousness, how can it be wrong in God's eyes?
So, What Does God Say About Wealth?
Ha, I thought this was going to be a short post. Congrats if you've made it this far! Let's summarize since we covered a lot.
When you look at the above passages of Scripture as well as the gazillion other potential verses you could look at that talk about money, I believe you'll see a common theme surface.
Worship of money leads to ruin, but when money is used to honor the Lord, it is blessed, rewarded, and can accomplish much.
I believe this is the heart of stewardship. Of managing money in a responsible way that enables us to take care of our family, bless our community, and honor God. And always remembering that the money never did and never will fully belong to us.
Some of us will steward money in seasons. Some of us will steward a smaller amount than others. Some of us will be given much (and to whom much is given, much will be required, right? Luke 12:48!).
Wealth is a subjective term and it will look different for all of us. But I hope after seeing what the Bible actually says about money, you won't be so quick to judge or criticize those who have been given much to manage.
And maybe, just maybe, when you free yourself from the limiting belief that wealth is evil, you'll be trusted to manage more money yourself.
"His master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things.'" - Matthew 25:21 (NIV)
Did you learn something new in this post? Share it with me in the comments below!
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Until next time!
