Embolden by the resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth and empowered by the Holy Spirit, Peter with not a penny in his pocket commanded the lame beggar to stand and walk. And he did. Praise God for the miracle.
Putting aside the stupendous theological significance of this miracle for now, this incident raises a banal, yet crucially important topic; the vital service money plays in all societies, including ours, throughout history. It may seem ‘unspiritual’ to even consider such a tainted, dare I say sinful topic as money.
But I don’t care if you believe it to be sinful, because the Bible has a lot to say about money. Let’s consider what money is and see what it can achieve both for good and sadly for evil.
What exactly is money?
Economists offer all sorts of definitions of money. The most popular of them being a ‘medium of exchange’. Another is a ‘store of value’. Both of these definitions are helpful, but don’t quite give the full picture.
Here’s the thing, if we go all the way back to the Garden of Eden, and then come forward to the fourth of the Ten Commandments:
‘Six days you shall labour and do all your WORK…’ Exodus chapter 20, verses 8-10
We see the same injunction is embedded in both the creation mandate and in the big Ten. Namely, God wants us to Work. Yeah, it’s that simple, God has told us to work, it’s not optional, it’s his plan.
So, money is the universally accepted token formed by translating your work into something tangible, that can purchase the product of another man’s work. But note, work remains the foundation upon which the value of money is built.
But what about making money without the foundation of work? What would that look like? The answer is Inflation.
What is inflation?
The government and central banks are waving their hands in the air about your audacity for asking for a wage rise to stay abreast of the inexorable rises in the cost of living. You’re to blame. If you didn’t ask for increased wages, if businesses didn’t keep increasing their prices, then inflation would just go away. So, they contend. Hmmm…they’re lying.
Inflation by definition is an increase in the money supply. ‘Quantitative Easing’ as it is affectionately known among the banksters, simply means the central banks, including the Reverse Bank of Australia, oops I mean Reserve Bank, turned on the printing presses.
That’s the real cause of Inflation; reckless central banks and profligate government which is always spending more money than they raise in taxes, in order to win the next election.
Here’s the thing: the trillions of extra dollars they created out of thin area wasn’t founded on work. No extra goods or services were done to earn the money they printed, which results in Inflation and the debasement of the money we own and earn. That is, the purchasing power of your money for another person’s goods or services is diminished every time they print more money.
All this became possible, when President Nixon decoupled the US dollar from the price of gold (1971). Now because our money is backed by nothing (apart from misplaced trust,) central banks can print money into infinity and beyond. Hitherto they were tethered to the value of the gold, which they kept in the vault.
How much money did our beloved Glen Stevens print during covid?
Well, it was lot more than you need to buy a sandwich at the local deli. The RBA created $281,000,000,000.
Here’s how it works: the government issues ‘bonds’ (IOUs), the banksters buy them from the government, then the RBA buys them from the banksters. It’s all done electronically. Just put any number equal to or greater than one and plenty of naughts after it, press the enter key on the RBA computer and Bingo the money is now at the Banks.
There you have it; the banks are awash with cash (paying 0.25% interest to the RBA) and ready to flood the economy with easy money.
Want a cheap loan? There you go, it’s all yours. Now watch the largest house price inflation in Australian history.
But don’t worry, Glen Stevens the arsonist has the fire hose, ready to put to the Inflation fire he started. So, all is well (for some).
Christians and our money
In view of the government’s and the RBA’s collaborative effort insidiously to erode our wealth, through Inflation, what should our attitude toward money be?
Well, Jesus said
‘Don’t lay-up treasures on earth where...but lay-up treasures in heaven’. Matthew chapter 6 verses 19-20.
Interestingly, Paul without the help of the written Gospels elaborates on Jesus’ remark:
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. 18 Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. 19 In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life. 1 Timothy chapter 6 verses 17-19.
Paul explains what it means to ‘lay-up’ treasures in heaven. In essence Christians are enjoined to use their money to help others in need, in so doing they accumulate wealth for the next world.
Here’s where we get slapped in the face by a paradox. On the one hand the value of labour (i.e. our money) is being diminished by government. Yet on the other hand even the reduced value of our money can achieve God’s purposes, when we live generously.
Remember we bought nothing into this world and we’ll take nothing out. Money is just help for the journey, therefore live generously.
Vic Matthews, has three degrees B.Optom, B.Arts & B. Christian Studies. Is available as a Guest Speaker for your next Church conference or camp. He is a fledgling author, and copywriter.
For more information visit http://www.graphw.co/
Vic Matthews' previous articles may be viewed http://www.pressserviceinternational.org/vic-matthews.html
