The Way Jesus Views Our Finances

A preacher had conducted a revival and was baptizing his converts in a farm pond not far from his church. One of the converts was a prosperous farmer, known in the community for his tight grip on the dollar.

When his name was called, this farmer, clad in overalls, left the bank to wade slowly toward the preacher. As the water reached his knees he suddenly turned back for the shore.

“Wait a minute, preacher,” he said. “I forgot to take my billfold out of my pocket. I don’t want it to get wet.”

“Leave it where it is and come back out here,” the preacher replied. “Your billfold needs to be baptized too.”

Unfortunately, many a Christian’s conversion and baptism seems never to have reached his pocketbook. In fact, most Christians appear bound by an inadequate concept of the lordship of Jesus Christ in relation to their finances.

By examining the Scriptures about the Lord’s claim on our possessions, we may encourage some to forsake the materialistic stand that “What I have is mine,” in favor of the scriptural stand that man is not owner, but steward of what he has and that “Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful” (1 Cor. 4:2).

Essentially what we seek is to come into a greater realization of the lordship of Jesus Christ over our material possessions. How do we accomplish this? At least three necessary steps seem indicated: (1) We must abandon our selfish ambitions in regard to achieving wealth and property. (2) We must learn to trust in God’s ability to meet abundantly all our material needs, and (3) We must be willing to put all that we have at His disposal.

REORDERING OUR PRIORITIES

First, we said it is necessary to abandon our ambition to achieve wealth. Recognizing the almost universal desire to acquire wealth and property, Jesus said to his disciples in Luke 12:15, “Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man’s life consistent not in the abundance of the things which he possessed.” Then He related the parable of the rich man who stored up his wealth so that he could live in luxury the rest of his life. There was only one problem: he died before he could enjoy it!

Jesus said, God considered the man a fool (Luke 12:20) and then added that so is anyone else who “layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.” Jesus’ indictment of the rich man who hoarded his wealth so he could retire and take it easy is even more striking when we realize that this is the obvious, unabashed goal of most American Christians!

Yet the Bible is replete with warnings against placing top priority on material gain. (See Matthew 6:19–21; Matt. 13:22; Mark 10:23–25: 1 Timothy 6:6–10).

It is no coincidence that when Jesus reprimands everyone who “layeth up treasure for himself” he adds the phrase “and is not rich toward God.” What a man devotes his time to becomes his master and his God, and Jesus knew this when he stated that: “No man can serve two masters. . . .” (Matt. 6:24).

What is required to accomplish this first step of giving up our ambitions for wealth? A decision of the will. We must decide to take the Lord seriously in this matter. Unfortunately, we are bombarded day and night by a multitude of voices insisting that we do the very thing Jesus tells us not to do. We are told to earn! Be ambitious! Acquire wealth! Invest! Earn more!

Re-invest! Acquire more wealth! The so-called “good life” is almost totally equated with the acquisition of money and material possessions. Not one of us has completely escaped the brain-washing of such influences. Not only do television, newspapers, radio and magazines drill such a philosophy into us, but parents, teachers and friends add their voices to the din.

While we would wish hard times for no one, nevertheless our present economic crisis does have one spiritually healthy side effect. It has pressed home to millions the danger of relying on material possessions for ultimate security. With financial investments being steadily devoured by the twin monsters of inflation and recession, many people are confronted with the plight the prophet Haggai describes concerning those who have been preoccupied with their own welfare while forgetting their responsibility to God.

Now therefore thus saith the Lord of hosts; Consider your ways. Ye have sown much, and bring in little; ye eat, but ye have not enough; ye drink, but ye are not filled with drink; ye clothe you, but there is none warm; and he that earneth wages earneth wages to put it into a bag with holes (Haggai 1:5–6).

Our first responsibility then is a re-ordering of our priorities; an adjustment of ambitions in obedience to Jesus’ instruction that we “seek first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness and [then] all these things shall be added . . .” (Matthew 6:33).

TRUSTING GOD TO MEET OUR NEEDS

But in what way are “all these things” to be added? That is the pivotal question, and answering it brings us to our second step: learning to trust God to meet abundantly all our material needs. Strangely enough, over against the clear and repeated warnings of God about preoccupation with material possessions are the equally clear and eloquent promises of God’s desire to bless and prosper us materially.

Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it (Malachi 3:10).

Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom (Luke 6:38).

Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth (3 John 2).

How do we explain what seems to be a contradiction? How do we answer the hard-driving businessman who says, “I believe God wants me to prosper so I’m working as hard as I can to make myself prosperous”? If God is so interested in blessing us materially, why should He object so strenuously to our seeking to acquire those blessings for ourselves?

Basically, the problem is one of motive. God does not object to our being prosperous, or even wealthy. What He objects to is our putting our prosperity ahead of Him! He objects to our relying on our ability to provide for ourselves instead of relying on His ability to provide for us.

We are to seek first (not second or third) His kingdom and His righteousness. Then, “all these things” will be added.

We are to “bring all the tithes into the storehouse” first; then in response to our faithful stewardship, God will “pour out a blessing that there shall not be room enough to receive.”

We are to give (as unto Him) first; then “it will be given unto us.”

We are to prosper first in our souls (i.e. spiritual prosperity which comes from putting God first); then we will “prosper [materially] as our souls prosper.”

All the promises of God’s material provision for us are conditional upon our first acknowledging, worshiping and obeying Him. God and His will are to have preeminence. Then, as a result of our putting Him first, He in turn begins to bless us, even abundantly. Seeking the material abundance first is idolatry; whereas, seeking God first and through faithfulness receiving His abundance, is pleasing to Him.

God knows the deceitfulness of the human heart. He knows that the more materially successful we are without Him, the more independent we become. But God wants us neither independent nor self-sufficient . . . He wants us continually dependent upon Him. To prosper without God can cost you your soul! That’s what the rich man who built bigger barns discovered.

To prosper without God can cost you your soul! That’s what the rich man who built bigger barns discovered.

As a matter of fact, not only does all our material prosperity come from God, but even our ability to make money comes from Him. God spoke sternly to the children of Israel just before they entered the Promised Land, warning them not to forget the Source of all their blessings:

Beware that thou forget not the Lord thy God, in not keeping his commandments, and his judgments, and his statutes, which I command thee this day:

Lest when thou hast eaten and art full, and hast built goodly houses, and dwelt therein;

And when thy herds and thy flocks multiply, and thy silver and thy gold is multiplied, and all that thou hast is multiplied;

Then thine heart be lifted up, and thou forget the Lord thy God, which brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt . . .

And thou say in thine heart, My power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth.

But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is He that giveth thee power to get wealth . . . (Deut. 8:11–14, 17–18). To make Jesus Lord of our material possessions then not only requires recognition of our dependency upon God, but also our acknowledgement that even the very ability to acquire wealth comes from God.

To make Jesus Lord of our material possessions then not only requires recognition of our dependency upon God, but also our acknowledgement that even the very ability to acquire wealth comes from God.

But today, how many wealthy would sincerely give God the glory for their fortune-making ability?

Moreover, how many Christians who profess the belief that God can meet their financial needs actually have little or no personal testimony of God moving sovereignly to meet some personal need of their very own?

One of the most gratifying things which can happen to a Christian is to experience God’s tangible, miraculous assistance in a time of financial need. But countless numbers of God’s people have never experienced such blessings because they never dared to trust God by undertaking service for the Lord in some manner which would require His miraculous grace to supply the money or material they may need.

My own case may not be untypical. For nearly fifteen years I was a denominational pastor whose material provision was supplied every two weeks when the church treasurer handed me my salary check. Although I believed in God’s ability to provide financial help and frequently encouraged my parishioners to look to God as the source of their blessings, neither I nor they were undertaking any kind of spiritual ministry which required us to trust God for finances. We all ran our lives and managed our affairs very well by ourselves, and we didn’t really need God’s help in financial matters, thank you very much!

Then seven years ago, the Lord catapulted me and my family out of the pastoral ministry into what is commonly called a “faith ministry.” I resigned my pastorate to become an itinerant Bible teacher with no regular income. The first three years of my new ministry proved to be the most trying, yet the most amazing years of my life with regard to financial support. I learned to appreciate first-hand the appropriate definition of the “life of faith” as “living in the midst of a miracle on the edge of disaster.”

Time and again our finances would dwindle until I had only small change in my pocket. No cash, no money in the bank, and for a while no prospects for ministry which would generate income. In such times, with a wife and five children to support, I had a crash course in trusting God’s ability to provide!

Time after time, God proved Himself faithful, even though He often stretched our faith until we wondered if we had been deserted. At times His provision didn’t appear until what we felt was later than the “last possible moment.” During those testings I discovered that our faith grows the most in that eerie interval between the time we feel God must answer and the time — usually days later — when He finally does answer!

Without fail, we found that He does answer. He never let us down. We never missed a meal (although my wife, on occasion, served some rather unusual menus!) And we never failed to meet all our financial obligations, although I learned during those times of testing that God doesn’t get particularly upset over the second reminder about a utility bill!

For those three years of testing we were like the children of Israel in their journey through the wilderness, where their physical needs were met day by day in miraculous fashion. Often God’s timing in our situation was so precise and the amount sent by Him so specific that we knew beyond question that He was giving intimate, personal attention to our particular need. And the assurance of God’s unfailing love, engendered in our hearts as a result of such providence, became tempered mortar in the foundation of our faith.

All Christians need to learn to trust in God’s ability to provide for their financial needs. We’ll never have the courage for the third step unless we’ve proved Him in the second.

JESUS, LORD OF FINANCES

Beyond letting go our preoccupation with material possessions and beyond learning to trust in God’s ability to meet our material needs, a third, and still more radical step must be taken: we must be willing for God to have His way with all we have. The longer I walk with God and the more I resolve to be faithful to Him, the more I realize that Jesus is not just interested in meeting my needs. He’s determined to end up in complete charge of my life! And that entails being Lord over my finances.

The longer I walk with God and the more I resolve to be faithful to Him, the more I realize that Jesus is not just interested in meeting my needs. He’s determined to end up in complete charge of my life! And that entails being Lord over my finances.

When we teach about learning to trust Jesus to meet our financial needs, we are moving in the realm of His saving ministry. His material provision is included in His ministry to us as Savior. But when we speak of giving over total control of our lives (including finances) to Him, we move beyond His saving ministry into the realm of His lordship. To acknowledge Jesus as Savior is commitment based on grace or what He can do for us. To acknowledge Him as Lord is commitment based on obedience or what we can do for Him.

To acknowledge Jesus as Savior is commitment based on grace or what He can do for us. To acknowledge Him as Lord is commitment based on obedience or what we can do for Him.

Many who are learning to trust Jesus to provide have not yet come to trust Him to rule. When we truly decide to make Jesus Christ Lord, any number of dramatic, unexpected, and often painful things begin to happen. They happen because the Lord quickly sets about to see if we mean what we professed in our commitment. The story of Jesus and the rich young ruler in Matthew chapter 19:16—22 is a profound study in this very principle.

The young man came asking Jesus what was required for eternal life. Jesus’ first answer was more or less perfunctory: “If thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.”

But the young man was surprisingly insistent. He knew he had been largely faithful in the matter of the do’s and don’t’s of ethical behavior, yet some deep hunger in him had not been satisfied by obedience to external commands.

What he was experiencing, of course, was the effects of the divinely-engineered flaw built into each one of us. God made us in such a way that we cannot be saved or satisfied by “what we do.” “Earning our salvation” is the futile attempt to run our own lives satisfactorily; a method which inevitably proves dissatisfactory.

The rich young ruler knew he needed something more. “All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet?”

Although he didn’t understand it, what he was asking for was lordship over his life. He was admitting that his attempts to run his life had failed to produce the right results.

Jesus, sensing his deep heart cry, decided to show him the barrier blocking fulfillment of his heart’s desire. “If thou wilt be perfect [mature], go and sell that thou hast, and give it to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me!” (vs. 21).

This was an eloquent invitation to discipleship: Jesus, offering His rule and lordship in behalf of a man who claimed to be seeking life’s highest good. But spelled out in the invitation was the cost! Jesus was requiring not just the young man’s wealth, but also the right to decide what to do with his wealth. Not just the money but the very freedom to run his life was being required. And the young man turned Jesus down.

So many of us are like that. We seek spiritual advice from Jesus Christ (or one of his ministers) and sound counsel is often forthcoming. But because we know Jesus as Savior, or Healer, or Baptizer, or Deliverer, or Provider, but still do not acknowledge His lordship, we feel free to reject His advice. And Jesus reminds us that to reject His counsel is to deny His lordship.

And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say? (Luke 6:46)

ARE WE WILLING TO MAKE HIM LORD?

Any time you say, “Jesus, I surrender my life totally to you,” watch out! You can be certain He will quickly put an authoritative finger on certain areas of your life where, up to this point, you’ve not allowed His lordship; areas where you’ve remained “independent.” (Usually, what we refer to as “independence” the Lord calls “rebellion.”)

“Oh Lord, I surrender everything to you. I want you to be Lord over every area of my life!”

“All right, son; I accept your offer. Now since I’m Lord over all, I’ll take control of your wealth and your property, and all your salary. Quite a bit in that area needs adjusting!”

“But, Lord! That’s not quite what I had in mind. I’m not quite sure I’m ready to . . .”

Is Jesus Lord of all or not? The rich young ruler backed away from discipleship because Jesus would have assumed lordship over his finances. And any concept we may have of the lordship of Jesus Christ over our lives which ignores or slights His right to control our material possessions is a superficial and inadequate concept.

Any concept we may have of the lordship of Jesus Christ over our lives which ignores or slights His right to control our material possessions is a superficial and inadequate concept.

BUT ISN’T TITHING ENOUGH?

Would you have believed we could come almost to the end of an article on the subject of Jesus as Lord of Finance without mentioning tithing even once? Believe me, the omission has been intentional. Tithing (giving 10% of one’s income to the Lord’s work) should be a settled matter for anyone who calls himself a Christian. The mandatory 10% is merely a proper beginning for Christian giving. Certainly as we strive to abandon our preoccupation with material possessions and learn to trust God’s ability to provide for our financial needs, it would be little short of ridiculous to be disobedient at this point.

But one of the deceptions which can come with stressing the necessity of “giving a tithe” is the mistaken assumption that if the 10% belongs to the Lord, the other 90% is “my money.”

Not so! Basic to the concept of stewardship, as we said at the beginning of this article, is recognition that God is the owner, and man is but a steward (servant) responsible for proper use of what he has been given.

So for this article we have by-passed the subject of tithing, not because it is not significant, but because we are considering Jesus as not only the recipient of our 10%, but as Lord of all our possessions.

WILL GOD TAKE AWAY MORE THAN HE GIVES?

Basically, the only reason we don’t want Jesus to be Lord over our finances (or Lord over many other areas of our lives as well!) is because we believe we will end up deprived in some way. We continue to believe one of Satan’s most blatant lies: that God will take away more than He will give.

I want to close this article with a reminder of the loving nature of the God who seeks to be Lord of our finances. Jesus Christ is neither miserly nor pinch-penny. Why should He be? He is Lord over the wealth of the universe! He is the Lord of abundance. He is not in the depriving business; He is in the blessing business.

Once we fully acknowledge Him as Lord, it is His intention, after we’ve been proven and tested to bring us into abundance. His ultimate intention is not just to help us “get by”; He intends to prosper us. God is not glorified by poverty; the glory due His name springs from abundance, both spiritual and material!

In the wilderness the children of Israel were miraculously provided for. All their needs were met on a day-to-day basis. There they had ample opportunity to discover that God was able to deliver them from all their enemies and out of all their need.

But the wilderness was never intended as a place of permanent residence. The destiny of Israel lay not in the wilderness but beyond the Jordan in Canaan, a land flowing with milk and honey; a land of abundance; a land whose bounty was so rich it took two men to carry a single cluster of grapes.

We have an extravagant God. We have a God who desires, yes, who even intends to bring us into a land overflowing with both spiritual and material abundance.

But full inheritance God wisely keeps beyond the grasp of immature, untested hands. It lies on the far side of the wilderness, beyond Jordan, to be appropriated only by those who not only know Jesus as Savior, but who also have covenanted to make Him Lord of all.