Why Excellent Money Management Matters to God | 4 Biblical Lessons on Money

I meet a lot of young professionals who come to me saying that they have no idea what the Bible really says about money and how to manage it because their church hasn’t really taught about finances.

The cool thing is that there are over 2,300 Bible verses that mention money, wealth, possessions, and finances. From those Bible verses, comes a lot of practical money advice, money mindset tips, a foundation to biblical view your money, and much much more!

While I could give you a lot of practical tips on money management that come directly from the Bible; like budgeting, saving, paying off debt, and investing; that is not where we want to start when it comes to learning how to be an excellent money manager of the resources God has entrusted to us.

Where you do need to begin is with your foundation. As a believer, you know that in order to be successful in anything, your foundation needs to be set in Christ. And when the foundation is in Christ, whatever is built on top of it will be unshakable!

There is a time and a place for learning how to budget, save more money, pay off debt quickly, and start investing, in this article we are going to go over 4 biblical lessons on money that I believe are important to know as you learn to become an excellent money manager.

4 Biblical Lessons On Money

Lesson 1

God uses money as a tool to teach you to become trustworthy.

In his book, Redeeming Money, Paul Tripp says that, “Money is a window on what rules your heart.”

Whether you realize it or not, you are always spending money either for your own glory or for the glory of God. Many times God just wants to examine where your heart is at and the way that you spend your money reflects that exact thing.

It was the late Billy Graham who said, “Give me five minutes with a person’s checkbook and I will tell you where their heart is.”

I’m not here to point fingers saying that you’re spending your money right or wrong. I’m simply here to help you reflect on the question, Does the way you spend your money truly align with your faith?

So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches?
Luke 16:11

God wants to see that you can be faithful with the little he has provided you to start with so he knows that you are a trustworthy person with your wealth. Then He will know that he can bless you with more in the future to manage well for his glory.

4 Tips To Help You Discern How To Spend Your Money

Lesson 2

God is our ultimate provider.

Imagine that today, your boss hands you a check for $10,000. You would probably try really hard to impress them with the way that you choose to manage and use that money for the company.

This is the same way that we need to view our own finances. If you are thinking that you were the one who worked hard to get the money you have in your bank account, not God. THINK AGAIN!

There are many Bible verses about God’s provision, that ultimately show us that it is God who is the one who gave you and me the skills, talents, and abilities to produce wealth in the first place (Deuteronomy 8:18). So as you become an excellent money manager remember who it is that provided the money to you, and who it is that you are trying to impress and glorify as you manage it.

The Money Taboo a weekly faith and finance devotional with Katie Jones

Lesson 3

Your money has a bigger purpose than to make you happy

Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.
– Timothy 6:17

Many of us struggle with allowing money to dictate how happy, joyful, or fulfilled we feel. While God does want to abundantly bless you and your family with things that you can enjoy here on earth (Psalm 37:4), that is not the primary purpose for our money.

Our purpose in life is to glorify and bring honor to God above all other things (Matthew 22:37-38) and that is also the purpose for our money! Each of us will live out this purpose according to our unique and specific calling.

Our joy and happiness do not come from how big our bank accounts are, how grand our houses are, or how exciting our luxury vacations are. The greatest source of fulfillment comes from aligning ourselves with God’s redemptive plan for the world with our resources. It is a huge honor that you and I get to partner with God in using our money to further His kingdom. Check out these Bible verses for times of financial struggle.

Lesson 4

Having money in your bank account is not a sin.

The last biblical lesson on money that I want you to walk away with is that having money in your bank account is not a sin.

Money itself isn’t good or bad. It is simply a tool. And just like a hammer, money can be used for good and bad things. It can be used to build others up or it can be used to destroy things.

So when we choose to use money in ways that God didn’t originally intend, we shouldn’t be surprised when there are destructive consequences. That is why the Bible warns us so much about the love of money.

If money is simply a tool God has gifted us, my question to you is, what are you using it to build? Your kingdom or God’s?

The way that we know that we have become great and excellent at managing and stewarding the resources that God has given us is when we can say that our money is going toward the Kingdom of God and furthering the mission of Christ here on earth. And that is going to look so different for each one of us.

So I’m not going to tell you exactly how God wants you to spend your money. Because the way that he is going to ask you to spend your money is going to look different from the way that he asks me to spend mine.

There you have it! These are the 4 biblical lessons on money that I believe are very important for you to learn as you become an excellent money manager.

Now that you have a foundation for your finances, you are ready to take the next step in becoming an excellent money manager. If you are ready to learn the practical skills and pillars of biblical money management I’d love to invite you to check out my signature coaching and mentorship program, Redeeming Your Finances, where I help young professionals learn excellent money management skills that are rooted in the Gospel.