The Essentials of Biblical Finance: Intro

This is part 1 of a 4 part series.

The Essentials of Biblical Finance: Intro (Stewardship, Generosity and Contentment)

“We give thanks to God always for all of you…constantly bearing in mind your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Thes. 1:2-3)

The faith of the Thessalonians is inspiring. When speaking of them, Paul explained that the “gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction.” (5) Paul’s letter explains that their faith toward God had gone forth to every place and the power of the gospel in their lives was evident to all. A Biblical approach to finance will testify to the world of power of the gospel to change lives.

The church at Thessalonica was commended for their work of faith, labor of love and steadfastness of hope. Faith, love, and hope: These are the workings of the mature Christian life (1 Cor. 13:13). From this point, we launch our series on the essentials of Biblical finance. Faith, love and hope have a home in the Christian budget as stewardship, generosity and contentment. Stewardship is a work of faith as we seek to live by the principles of God’s economy as instructed from His word and exchange our worldly aspirations for heavenly ones. Generosity is a labor of love when we joyfully sacrifice in the name of Christ for the benefit of others. Contentment is a steadfastness of hope in Christ alone as we learn to find contentment in our convictions not our circumstances. From this point, our finances become a testimony of our devotion to the Lord not a distraction from Him. We must seek stewardship, generosity and contentment understanding that they are not ends in themselves, but fruits of a much deeper walk with Christ. We must allow our hearts to be transformed by the power and conviction of the Holy Spirit, and our wallets will follow suit.

Part 1: Intro, Part 2: Stewardship, Part 3: Generosity, Part 4: Contentment