Is It Okay for Christians To Be Wealthy?
Many things about our natural lives conflict with our spiritual lives. Living by the spirit in a natural and often enticing world isn't easy. Even the apostle Paul confessed, "I don't really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don't do it. Instead, I do what I hate." (Romans 7:15 NLT) One of the challenges we have to contend with is wealth and how we, as Christians, should relate to it.
Is it okay for Christians to be wealthy?
When looking to the Bible for specific passages on the topics of wealth and riches, words that are used interchangeably throughout the Bible, several seem to indicate that wealth and riches should be avoided.
Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you. Your riches have rotted and your garments are moth-eaten. Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. (James 5:1-3 ESV)
For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. (Revelation 3:17 ESV)
These verses suggest that wealth and riches are bad and will lead to horrible outcomes. And, yes, these and other Scriptures do warn us about wealth. You can read more about the danger of wealth here. What we don't find in the Scripture is that riches or wealth in themselves are bad.
God created the world and everything in it, and he called all of it good. When wealth and riches are spoken of negatively in the Bible, the emphasis is always on how a person associates with or manages them.
Biblical Examples of Wealthy People
God doesn't seem to have a problem with people being wealthy. For those chosen by God, wealth is the result of trusting and obeying him. As a Father, God blesses his children when their attitudes and actions align with his desires.
The Bible is filled with such examples. Here is a list of just a few:
Abraham (Genesis 13:2)
Isaac (Genesis 26:12-13);
Job (Job 1:3)
Joseph (Genesis 4:26)
Barzillai (2 Samuel 19:32 )
Joseph of Arimathea (Matthew 27:57-60)
Zacchaeus (Luke 19:2)
The rich man from The Rich Man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19)
Mary, Joanna, Susanna, and many others (Luke 8:1-3)
If God is okay with wealth, why aren't all Christians wealthy?
There are two extreme views in Christianity regarding wealth and riches. One view is that wealth is worldly, unspiritual, and should be avoided. The other is that wealth is the birthright of every child of God. You can see how both views are problematic, leave many questions unanswered, and fail to provide a proper balance.
For example, if wealth is worldly and unspiritual, how do we explain example after example of Bible characters who were wealthy and also approved by God? And if wealth is the birthright of every child of God, why are so many Christians poor and in financial bondage?
There are countless reasons why all Christians are not wealthy. Only God truly knows why some are entrusted with more wealth than others. We do know that God doesn't view wealth as bad and that he didn't promise that every one of his children would be wealthy.
God promised to provide for our needs, not our wants, which reveals, at least in part, why all Christians aren't wealthy. God can fulfill his promise to provide for you without making you rich if he thinks that is best.
I love the proper balanced that Agur, the writer of Proverbs 30, presents regarding wealth and provision.
"…give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with the food that is needful for me, lest I be full and deny you and say, "Who is the Lord?" or lest I be poor and steal and profane the name of my God.” (Proverbs 30:8b-9 ESV)
The Purpose of Wealth for the Christian
In a teaching by the late Larry Burkett, he shares a time when he asked God the question, "God, can I handle this wealth?" Though Larry didn't share the specifics that led to that question, I heard it was around when he sold his business and received a significant profit.
The Lord told him he could not, that this wealth would become a stumbling block and a hindrance to his commitment and service to God. Larry's response was to give it all away. He knew it didn't belong to him, that he was only a manager, and that the amount he was entrusted to manage was up to God.
A Christian's life purpose is to seek after, love, and honor God. All he does is for the glory of God. Whether a Christian is wealthy or not is irrelevant when everything he has is committed to God. He's a manager of whatever resources God deems necessary for his life and purpose, whether many or few.
In the end, the question of whether it's okay for Christians to be wealthy is a poor one because it suggests that wealth belongs to the Christian when it never has and never will. A Christian may be entrusted with wealth, but it belongs to God, and his part is to manage it and use it for God's purposes and glory.
For Further Reading
Will you Inherit the Kingdom of Heaven?
The 2 Most Important Components of Managing Money Well
4 Steps to Being a Successful Saver
Christmas Joy without Financial Misery
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