Previous Post: A Look in the Mirror: Are You a Borrower, a Consumer, or a Keeper
Biblical Financial Lesson from the Book of Galatians
I try to read and study a chapter from my Bible each day. And since I’m doing that, I thought it would be interesting to pull out any financial principles that I come across for BFN. I just finished reading Galatians, and I found a few interesting statements that are related to how we should use our money.
Galatians is the first of Paul’s letters
The main theme of Galatians is the justification of a Christ-follower by faith alone. He is writing to the church to defend his apostolic authority as well as the gospel of Jesus Christ as he preached it. Basically, he is saying that the only way a person can be saved and make it into heaven is by faith alone in Jesus.
You said this would have something to do with finances
Yes, you are quite correct. Starting in verse 6 of chapter 6, we see the following passages:
Anyone who receives instruction in the word must share all good things with his instructor. Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers. Galatians 6:6-10 (NIV)
Your pastor should be fairly compensated
Paul starts this passage by mentioning the believer’s responsibility to share financially (and in other ways as well, but I’m focusing on the finances here) with his/her teacher. By providing for his financial needs, a church frees its pastor to focus on the teaching and leading instead of working through my 45 ways to earn some extra money! Just like any job, that person working should be compensated for his/her efforts.
You reap what you sow
Paul also encourages us to sow our financial resources into the kingdom of God. In other words, if you use your resources for God and His kingdom, you will gain benefits associated with His kingdom. On the other hand, if you use your resources selfishly to indulge your self only, this will lead you down a bad path.
I do not think this means you can buy eternal life by sowing "to please the Spirit." We tend to put our money into the things that we care most about. So, sowing our money into selfish desires does not directly lead us to destruction, rather it just shows that we are already headed down that path. Similarly, directing finances towards the church does not earn us eternal life but is a tangible expression of the fact that we already understand the importance of God in our lives.
Remember to do good to all people
Finally, we are reminded to help out others as the opportunity arises and to truly view it as an opportunity. Helping others should not be seen as a burden; there are benefits (both immediate and eternal) to the one doing the helping. (I think this is an awesome way to look at this)
Two parting questions (and I’ll answer one for you!)
Take a look at where you are spending your money – where you are sowing. Are the places it is going a good representation of you as a person? Let me answer that question for you – it is a very accurate representation. The real question is, "are you satisfied with what your money is saying about you?"
photo credit: DrGBB
Related Posts:- Weekly Bible Verse – Check your Motivations...
- Financial Peace University Lesson 1 – Super Saving...
- Financial Peace University Lesson 2 – Relating With Money...
Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.
If you found this post informative or entertaining (or both), please subscribe to my RSS feed or subscribe via email to receive future Borrow From None posts.
Thank you for visiting!
Comments
3 Responses to “Biblical Financial Lesson from the Book of Galatians”
Leave a Reply
Subscribe to Borrow From None
Affiliates
-
Social Networking
Links of Interest
What is RSS?
Great post and Blog! I have started on my goal to read through the Bible each day. It is amazing the read and discover hidden finding each day. I have started to get my finances in order and nice to see so many references on how to control finances and how to live life throughout the Bible even in books you would never expect to find them.
@Brian – thanks for stopping by and thanks for the kind words. I think it is a great goal to read through the Bible – keep it up! I agree, there are so many references to money and finances throughout the Bible – it’s very interesting to see where they pop up.
Great article. The parting question is a good one. I’ve asked that to my wife and she said there will always be a need for more money, such as school tuition, vacations, etc. Another words, it’s always good to have more.
When people say they’re corrupted by lots of money, it’s probably true, but I think if one has the discipline to manage it, it will be used for good. An example is Bill Gates – he’s a billionaire who gives his money away. That’s commendable. Something we try to emulate.
Rudy’s latest blog post…PC Build 2008: Part 1