What The Bible Says About Money
Believe it or not, the Bible has a LOT to say about money!
While money wouldn't appear to be a "spiritual" topic, it can have a profound effect on our lives, whether we have very little or an overabundance of it.
The way we handle our money, or lack of it, can seriously alter the path our life takes, with or without God playing a part.
Let's start by taking a look at an often-misquoted scripture that talks about money
(1 Timothy 6:10 NKJV) For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
More often than not, we hear people saying that "money is the root of all evil". They rattle these words off like they know exactly what they're saying, very sure of themselves as they say it.
Sadly, they are very wrong. Money is not the root of all evil. The Bible says that the LOVE of money is the root of all evil. There's a big difference there!
Now, we need to always remember that chasing after wealth and putting everyone and everything else second is also a bad idea. Again, this is where a lot of people get confused.
Having wealth isn't wrong, immoral or against Biblical truths. But making it our sole focus causes it to become an idol. Remember what God says about idols?
(Lev 26:1 NKJV) 'You shall not make idols for yourselves; neither a carved image nor a sacred pillar shall you rear up for yourselves; nor shall you set up an engraved stone in your land, to bow down to it; for I am the LORD your God.
So now you're probably saying "so God must not want us to be wealthy if loving money is wrong and chasing after it makes it an idol".
Well, not exactly. God loves to see us prosper, but only if we are mature and wise enough to handle it properly and not make it our focus in everything we do. We have to stay balanced!
Let's see if God wants us to prosper or not.
(Deuteronomy 30:5 NKJV) "Then the LORD your God will bring you to the land which your fathers possessed, and you shall possess it. He will prosper you and multiply you more than your fathers.
(3 John 1:2 NKJV) Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.
These are just a couple of examples where God's word tells us that He wants us to prosper.
So now that we have that established, how do we go about prospering and gaining wealth without falling into the trap of idolatry?
It all comes down to our priorities. If we keep our priorities in order, this will set the stage for us to grow financially.
(Deuteronomy 6:5 NKJV) "You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.
Jesus reiterated this in Matthew: (Matthew 22:37-38 NKJV) Jesus said to him, " 'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' {38} "This is the first and great commandment" .
So if we can learn to put God first, before everything else, and then put our family next, we can work toward gaining wealth. We just need to make sure that it doesn't become our "god".
So it should be pretty clear now that God doesn't have a problem with us prospering and having money, as long as we don't make it an obsession.
Once we have worked and reached our goal of gaining wealth, we also need to be sure to handle that money with wisdom!
Go ahead. Set financial goals and work toward them. Be diligent and seek godly counsel as to the best ways to increase your financial stature. But always seek God when it comes to how to handle your money once it's in your hands.