I believe that if all Christians followed the financial advice found in the Bible, we all would have financial security.  Today, we live in a culture that tells us that having more is better. Our tendency as sinful human beings is to want more money, a bigger house, a fine car, and more expensive possessions. If we’re trying to find our happiness in money, we’ll never be satisfied.  We read in 1 Timothy 6:10, “For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”  Notice that money is not evil.  We all need money to live in society.  We go to work to earn money so that we can pay for our necessities.  However, there are those who absolutely LOVE MONEY.  Their desire is to accumulate money and all it can buy.  They obsess about how to get more.  The end result is a moving away from the Lord, and that leads to sorrow.  We are exhorted in 1 Timothy 6:8, “And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.”  We need to learn to be content, or happy, with the basic needs in life.  When we can do that, we are free to use our time to serve the Lord and seek to minister to others.  We are warned in Ecclesiastes 5:10, “He that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver; nor he that loveth abundance with increase: this is also vanity.”

The scriptures warn us about going into debt.  Romans 13:8 says, “OWE NO MAN ANY THING, but to love one another…”  Rather than go into debt to buy the things we want, we are much better off saving for those things.  We have an excellent illustration in nature.  Proverbs 30:25 says, “The ants are a people not strong, yet they prepare their meat in the summer.”  In preparation for a cold winter, the ant will gather food in warmer weather so that it might have food in the winter when it is not plentiful.  One who is wise will prepare for future needs by saving and storing up…not to the point of money binging, but responsible enough to save part of what they earn.  We read in Proverbs 13:16, “Every prudent man dealeth with knowledge: but a fool layeth open his folly.”  By properly saving, that will eliminate the need to borrow money when the car needs repair, the washing machine breaks down, the kids need braces, etc.  A wise older man counselled me when I was young that no matter how much you earn, you should budget your money so you can always save a little bit of that money.

Luke 14:28 says, “For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it?”  Before we build or buy a larger item, we need to be careful that we can actually afford the item, that it will serve a good purpose, and that it is worth the price that is being asked.  My wife and I have a custom that if we need to buy a large item, we do not buy it immediately.  We shop for the best value.  Once we believe we have found it, we wait at least one day before buying it to pray about it, and to make sure it is needful and affordable to us. 

Proverbs 3:9-10 tells us, “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.”  How important it is for us to realize that ALL our money properly belongs to the Lord.  He gives us a job, He gives us the ability to perform our job, so that as we work hard, promotions and raises will come to us.  We should realize that and seek to give back to the Lord part of the substance He has given us.  When it comes to giving to the Lord, we read in 2 Corinthians 9:6-7, “But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully. Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.”  When we cheerfully seek to give to the Lord, He will reward us by supplying all our needs…physically, emotionally, and spiritually.

We could go on and on with examples in the Bible of how the Lord expects us to live financially stable.  It is possible, and for the believer, we have the council of God to help us live sensibly and productively.  Search the scriptures for more knowledge about how to properly handle your finances.  It will truly dishonor the Lord if we are wasteful and irresponsible with our money.  We show immaturity and a desire to have the world’s goods. Can we live financially secure?  My friend, the Lord’s honor demands that we live financially secure.  (CC)  (619.2)