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5 Business Principles Taught in the Bible
As a Christian entrepreneur, I look to the Bible to learn all that it has to say about business. I have found that there are a lot of great biblical business principles that can easily be applied to our work as entrepreneurs. These are essential business principles that we can apply in order to be successful as well as faithful to our Creator.
Here we will dive into 5 Biblical business principles we can learn from Proverbs specifically. These are not the only business principles taught from the Bible. There are many more that can be found.
What Does the Bible Say About Business?
As followers of Christ, we need to be implementing our beliefs into all aspects of life. This includes how we work, operate, and run our companies. We must be thinking critically to answer the question, “How can we glorify God in our businesses?”
Now, this doesn’t necessarily mean that all of us need to have an explicitly Christian business (though many of us may be called to that). It does, however, mean that we are to take the business principles taught in the Bible and we are to implement those into our own ventures.
Our faith in God is not left at the door when we enter our offices. No, it needs to come alongside us and guide our decisions throughout the day. It is the biblical way of doing business. This goes for all of us, not just those of us in outwardly faith-based organizations.
If everything in this world belongs to the Lord, this means that our businesses do too. We need to run our companies as if God were the owner.
Biblical Business Principles From Proverbs
1) Be diligent and not lazy
Throughout Proverbs, we see the importance of hard work emphasized. We are taught that we need to be diligent in our endeavors.
The word diligent is defined as “having or showing care and conscientiousness in one’s work or duties.”
Lazy hands make for poverty, but diligent hands bring wealth.
Proverbs 10:4
She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness.
Proverbs 31:27
These two verses from Proverbs teaches us that we need to care about the work we are doing. Through our diligent work, we are to love our coworkers, and customers by doing our work well. Not only that, but our hard work will also provide success to our businesses.
We must not be lazy either. In Proverbs 31, we learn about the wife of noble character. In verse 27, we read that she did “not eat the bread of idleness.” She was keen on the fact that laziness does not provide results. It is crucial to watch over the affairs of our work to see that they are profitable.
2) Practice humility
Humility is one of the leading characteristics taught in the Bible. As Christians, we are instructed to be humble in our daily lives, and this includes our work.
Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.
Proverbs 16:18
When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.
Proverbs 11:2
Humility causes us to listen to others, to hear their concerns, and to address their problems. Whether those people are our clients or our coworkers.
Letting your pride overcome you will not get you anywhere and will eventually lead to disgrace and destruction of your business.
If you make a mistake, own up to it. Make it right so that others don’t suffer from your mistakes. Practicing humility means having wisdom. So let us become humble and take this Biblical business principle to heart.
3) Be a go-giver and not a go-getter
Society tells us to hustle and you will get everything you deserve. The Bible teaches us to be generous and give to those around you and you will be rewarded for your generosity.
A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.
Proverbs 11:25
We honor God with our money when we give without expecting anything in return. Don’t always try to take. Stop asking, “What’s in it for me?” Rather, examine how you can go above and beyond to help those around you.
Offer great products or services, and charge a reasonable price for it. Be an asset to those you work alongside rather than a burden. Give more than you expect to get, and it will be given back to you ten-fold.
To learn more about being a go-giver, I highly suggest the book The Go-Giver!
Related: My Favorite Verses on Giving
4) Make money honestly
Throughout the Bible we see so many examples of how to handle our money biblically, and there are a large handful of Proverbs that tell us how to make money as an entrepreneur as well.
Do not cheat, lie to, or scam people out of their money. Build up your business little by little.
Better is a little with righteousness than great revenues with injustice. Proverbs 16:8
Dishonest money dwindles away, but whoever gathers money little by little makes it grow.
Proverbs 13:11
In fact, God would rather you have little success in business, but remain faithful to him the whole time, than to have you cut corners to make great revenue.
It may be difficult to watch other companies out there cheat the system and be rewarded with monetary success. But do not forget that the Lord will be the one to judge everyone accordingly. Our success comes from our faithfulness to God here on earth.
We need to trust that if we continue to remain faithful through our business practices he will provide for us.
I love the way that Jordan Raynor puts it in his book Called to Create: “Trusting is the difficult yet simple act of recognizing that we are not responsible for producing results through our work—God is.”
Related: Over 100 Bible Verses About Money
5. Be bold
Becoming an entrepreneur and starting a business is already a grand endeavor. God not only wants us to be bold in our faith but in all areas of our lives. This includes our businesses.
The wicked flee when no one pursues, but the righteous are bold as a lion.
Proverbs 28:1
Our boldness shows that we trust God in our work. And, we continue to trust him even if we come across failures. As believers, we have the reassurance that when we take a leap of faith and fail, God will catch us and put us right back on our feet.
In business, boldness can mean creating a new product. It may mean providing the greatest customer service anyone has experienced. We can also be bold in the way that we talk about God to others. We can use our business as a mission field. It can mean overcoming fears and obstacles as we grow our businesses.
Related: Books for Christian Entrepreneurs
Biblical Business Principles for Success
According to Jeremiah 29:11, God wants us to prosper. He wants to see us succeed and achieve our goals.
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11
But in order to become successful, we must first commit our plans to him (Proverbs 16:3). Then we need to apply these biblical business principles into our own work.
Do not let your own productivity become an idol. Yes, put in the hard work that is required in building a business. But trust that God will provide the results.
There are plenty of other Biblical business principles. These are the main ones you can find by reading through the book of Proverbs.
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