7—The Why of Wealth
"Wealth" can be a dirty word for Christians, but is it?
Many Christians don't like to use the word "wealth." Why? It sounds too " wealthy," which sounds too worldly—greedy, stingy, and snobby.
But wealth is a biblical word often used interchangeably with "riches." Consider these verses from Psalm 112:1-3: “Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who greatly delights in his commandments! His offspring will be mighty in the land; the generation of the upright will be blessed. Wealth and riches are in his house, and his righteousness endures forever” (ESV).
We know that the wealth and riches referred to here don't just mean material things; they also refer to the blessing of knowing God Himself and experiencing his goodness. But his material blessings are also expressions of His goodness.
In this context, I will use the term "wealth" interchangeably with the term "net worth," which is calculated as the sum of your assets (cash, investments, home value, etc.) minus your liabilities (credit card debt, student loan debt, mortgage debt).
Now that we understand wealth, let's discuss its usefulness. If you are reading this in your early 20s, you may envision your future wealth funding a luxurious lifestyle with a big new house, nice cars, and travel to exotic locations. Some of you may even pursue an "early retirement,” participating in the F.I.R.E. movement.
Others (most of you, probably) have more modest goals. Perhaps you'd rather own a home than rent, but you don't want to be "mortgage-poor.” You'd be happy with an economical used car, but you'd rather have one with less than a gazillion miles on it. You'd like to build a nest egg and maybe one day retire with a paid-off home and enough passive income to pay the bills, visit your grandchildren as often as you want, volunteer in your church and community, and take the occasional trip.
And then some of you may want to accumulate as much wealth as possible so that you can give it all (or most of it) away. Using our wealth to honor God and bless others is why God gives it to us. Everyone should give some away, and some will give more than others.
Whatever your reason for wanting wealth, I hope we can all agree that wealth can be both a blessing and a curse. Wealth can be a blessing because we can use it to buy material needs and wants and sometimes "fun" (experiences). Other blessings of wealth include flexibility; it gives you more options in what you do with your life and how you spend your time (which is a finite resource).
If you reach your 30s or early 40s and decide that being an engineer isn't really your life's calling and that you want to be a Llama farmer instead, your net worth at the time could make all the difference in your ability to make a change (you'll need some money to buy the lamas, at least one Adam and Eve).
Building wealth also gives you "margin," which is the ability to withstand financial shocks, such as job loss or a major health crisis. Margin also provides the ability to save and give, one of the greatest blessings. (More on generosity and giving later.)
Wealth can also be a "curse" when it commands too much of our time, energy, and affection. I alluded to this in an earlier article. The Bible warns about money and the dangers of making it an idol. Check out these verses: Matthew 6:24, 1 Timothy 6:9-10, Mark 10:23-25, and Proverbs 11:28.
You may wonder how I can speak out of both sides of my mouth, extolling the virtues of accumulating wealth and simultaneously saying that wealth can be a curse. There is a solution to these seemingly contradictory statements. Wealth can indeed be a blessing from God because He intends for us to enjoy it and use it according to His purposes. This is where stewardship comes in; we use wealth for our benefit, to honor God, and to help others.
But if we manage our finances following biblical values and guidelines, we will prevent ourselves from falling into the trap of "the love of money, which is idolatry.” Okay, with all that said, I'll discuss this concept of wealth (or what I prefer to call "net worth") in more detail in the following article.
For reflection: How can Christians redeem the words “wealth and riches”? What in our hearts’ attitudes and actions have to change? Apply this specifically to your own life.
Verse: “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.” (Matthew 6:24, ESV)