What the Bible says about money and our attitudes toward it
I had never tackled the topic of money before because it was not always clear to me what the Bible said about it. Part of that was bound up in hearing what others think is the correct attitude toward money versus what the Bible actually says. Part was also due to me needing to read the Bible through multiple times before some level of understanding and consistency sank in to me.
So. The Bible does not say that rich is good and poor is bad; nor that poor is good and rich is bad. What it does make very clear is that it is one's attitude toward money that is important.
Let's take a look:
For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, and in their eagerness to be rich some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pains.
1 Timothy 6:10
This verse says that the love of money is the root of evil. Not money per se, but the love of it. It also explains quite clearly why this is so: because it will cause people to wander away from the faith.
Money can become a false god; just like a golden calf can but in a much more subtle way. If someone is thinking constantly about how they can make more money, but they never spare a thought toward worshiping God, then money has indeed become a false god for that person.
It can happen the other way too. Excessive miserliness and wishing to save money to the extent that the person is focusing on that and not thinking about worshiping God, then that (the miserliness) becomes a false god. I'm not saying that we ought to spend money we don't have. No matter whether we have a small or a large budget, we need to live within our means, otherwise we will run out of money to pay for food and housing. On a small budget, that will by necessity require a lot more careful thinking and planning and saving, so it's normal that a person in this situation will be spending a lot of time and thought on that. I'm not saying that scrimping and saving on its own is a problem. I'm saying that when we are so focused on this that we do not think about God, that's when it's a problem.
There are many examples in the Bible of both rich and poor people who were treasured by God. Abraham, Job, Mary and Joseph, are just a few examples out of many. Job had his fortunes change during his lifetime, going from rich to poor to rich. Abraham was wealthy; while Mary and Joseph were of very modest means. God had huge plans for all of these people. In all of those cases, their faithfulness was much more important than their means.
It is clear from the Bible that we should be spending more time thinking about God than thinking about money.
Not that we should never be thinking about money: it's sensible to use our resources wisely and not squander what God has given us, which requires some thought. Rather, we need to spend more time worshiping God and being grateful for what He has given us, than the time we spend thinking about money. Otherwise, we fall into the trap of money being a false god to us, regardless of how much money we do or don't have.
If you found this post helpful, you may also like these related posts on this blog:
So. The Bible does not say that rich is good and poor is bad; nor that poor is good and rich is bad. What it does make very clear is that it is one's attitude toward money that is important.
Let's take a look:
For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, and in their eagerness to be rich some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pains.
1 Timothy 6:10
This verse says that the love of money is the root of evil. Not money per se, but the love of it. It also explains quite clearly why this is so: because it will cause people to wander away from the faith.
Money can become a false god; just like a golden calf can but in a much more subtle way. If someone is thinking constantly about how they can make more money, but they never spare a thought toward worshiping God, then money has indeed become a false god for that person.
It can happen the other way too. Excessive miserliness and wishing to save money to the extent that the person is focusing on that and not thinking about worshiping God, then that (the miserliness) becomes a false god. I'm not saying that we ought to spend money we don't have. No matter whether we have a small or a large budget, we need to live within our means, otherwise we will run out of money to pay for food and housing. On a small budget, that will by necessity require a lot more careful thinking and planning and saving, so it's normal that a person in this situation will be spending a lot of time and thought on that. I'm not saying that scrimping and saving on its own is a problem. I'm saying that when we are so focused on this that we do not think about God, that's when it's a problem.
There are many examples in the Bible of both rich and poor people who were treasured by God. Abraham, Job, Mary and Joseph, are just a few examples out of many. Job had his fortunes change during his lifetime, going from rich to poor to rich. Abraham was wealthy; while Mary and Joseph were of very modest means. God had huge plans for all of these people. In all of those cases, their faithfulness was much more important than their means.
It is clear from the Bible that we should be spending more time thinking about God than thinking about money.
Not that we should never be thinking about money: it's sensible to use our resources wisely and not squander what God has given us, which requires some thought. Rather, we need to spend more time worshiping God and being grateful for what He has given us, than the time we spend thinking about money. Otherwise, we fall into the trap of money being a false god to us, regardless of how much money we do or don't have.
If you found this post helpful, you may also like these related posts on this blog:
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