“All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts.” (Acts 2:44-46)

“All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they had. With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and much grace was upon them all. There were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned lands or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone as he had need.” (Acts 4:32-35)

“Our desire is not that others might be relieved while you are hard pressed, but that there might be equality. At the present time your plenty will supply what they need, so that in turn their plenty will supply what you need. Then there will be equality, as it is written: “He who gathered much did not have too much, and he who gathered little did not have too little.” (2 Cor. 8:13-14)

“Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” (Matt. 19:21)

Are all of these passages pointing towards communism (at least in some form or another)? “All the believers were together and had everything in common…No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they had…Then there will be equality…go, sell your possessions.” Surely this has to point somewhere different than capitalistic America? I think it does. However, I do not believe it points towards communism.

The first step in unpacking these passages is to note the word “need“. Both passages from Acts state that the redistribution of wealth and propery was for anyone who had need. The passage from Corinthians carries a similar idea–one’s plenty is to cover the other’s need. Even Jesus’ command to sell everything is followed by the command to give it to the poor (or those in need). It must be understood that the primary motivation for these radical economic actions was not redistribution in and of itself, but instead was to cover any need that might exist.

The “equality” Paul speaks of in Corinthians was not equality for equality’s sake, but addressing that one part of the body of Christ had great need, while another part had plenty. The motivation is driven by the recipient’s need not the giver’s necessity for self-denial or redistribution. Not to be “hard pressed” because this is the best or holiest way, but to meet a real and tangible need of the fellow saints (who would be obligated to return the favor if roles become reversed).

The heart of these passages is that Christians with the means to meet needs of other believers have an obligation to do so. Nowhere is this idea more clearly stated than in 1 John: “But whoever has the world’s goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him?” (3:17) Simply put: if the love of God is within us, we must meet the needs of our brothers and sisters if we have the means to do so.

I do not believe these verses support a call to communism. Instead, it calls us to a heightened awareness of the needs of our brothers and sisters in Christ. That we would, like the early church, eagerly lay down all we possess so that a fellow brother or sister may not be in need.

Some other arguments against a biblical mandate for communisim are as follows:

- Giving in the New Testament is voluntary (as the result of a changed heart, not a changed society).

- Money is given to support the work of the gospel and meet the needs of others not for redistributive purposes in and of themselves.

- Giving is described in scripture as a personal decision not a political decision (from the heart not the law).

- Creation itself shows an array of diversity. God makes is clear in His creative design that unity in diversity is to be the theme of life, not uniformity.

In conclusion, Christ said: “My kingdom is not of this world.” While I believe that the scriptures do not instruct us to become a communisitic society, I would not go as far as to say that communism is inherently “unchristian”. The Bible does not endorse one economic theory above another (say capitalism). Instead, we are called to be Christ-like in whatever arena we find ourselves.

An in depth studying of Biblical borrowing should leave believers with mixed emotions.  Borrowing is never forbidden in the scriptures, but according to Burkett- it is always presented in the negative.  The most compelling argument, in my opinion, is that God never once used a loan to accomplish His work.  There is not a single example of God leveraging His work anywhere in the Bible.  Throughout the Bible God always used contributions not credit to fund His work. Why should we assume this model has changed?

In light of these things, Burkett comes up with 5 Reasons Why Churches Should Not Borrow (summarized)

1. Church leaders must study Scripture to see if borrowing is a compromise.
2. Borrowing denies God’s people the opportunity to see His blessings and generosity coming from His people as His provision.
3. Servicing debt restricts a church’s ability to serve.
4. The loan puts pressure on pastors to keep everyone happy and everyone giving.
5. Contributions go to interest payments not the work of the Gospel: “Many major denominations spend more on interest payments than on foreign missions.”

In conclusion, I (along with Larry Burkett) believe that a church that decides not to borrow has taken the higher road.  I believe this for the following reasons.

A church committed to avoiding debt demonstrates…

1. Patience as they wait for God to provide the resources.
2. Trust in God to provide what is needed.
3. Submission to the will of God in the event funding does not arrive.
4. A powerful witness that God will provide for His work.
5. The ability to bless others instead of servicing debt.
6. Freedom to follow God’s instruction not terms of contracts.

“Then He said to them, ‘Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions.’ And He told them a parable, saying, ‘The land of a rich man was very productive. And he began reasoning to himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no place to store my crops?’ Then he said, ‘This is what I will do: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, ‘Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come; take your ease, eat, drink and be merry.’ But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own what you have prepared?’ So is the man who stores up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.” (Luke 12:15-21)

“But even if I am being poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I rejoice and share my joy with you all.” (Phil. 2:17)

Perhaps the easiest place to start is to dispell the lies.  It is not sinful for a Christian to build wealth, nor is building wealth necessary for any sort of elevated spirituality.  Wealth building or the lack thereof can be signs of deeper realities for good or ill.  Humanity, with its variance of convictions, circumstances and motivations is nearly impossible to fit into a one size fits all category.  So, I must simply stick to the guidelines outlined in God’s word and allow His Spirit to balance your budget.

How should a Christian build wealth?  First, I must say that it is not a necessary step or sign of spiritual maturity.  Some, like several of the disciples and spiritual giants throughout church history, may choose a life of poverty.  This is noble when done with a motivation from the heart and not an attempt at allowing the external to determine the internal.  However, there have also been “spiritual giants” in the Word and the world that have lived lives of prosperity.  What to make of these extremes?

The answer to these questions, and many like it revolve around a simple question: Why are you building wealth?

The Bible allows for freedom to live in all economic stratospheres, but several warnings must be taken to heart.  First, as Jesus’ parable points about- the Bible is strong in its criticism of what I like to call “Prosperity Without Generosity”.  The parable of the rich fool points out that striving to be rich towards God is to be first and foremost.  Secondly, it reveals that prosperity for the sole purpose of self-indulgence, ease and luxury is ultimately vain. 

Paul, in contrast to the rich fool, saw his life being poured out for the Phillippians.  This gave him a rejoicing and joy of much greater depth than the rich fool’s, “eat, drink, and be merry”.  So…

How should the Christian build wealth?

1. While being rich towards God first and foremost.

2. Constantly asking yourself, “Am I storing or pouring”?  For a Christian’s wealth building to be healthy and not a hindrance, it must be done with an attention and motivation of blessing the work of God in the world and the needs of others before self.  Do you seek to store up treasure for yourself, or pour out blessing on others?  Building wealth for yourself is perfectly acceptable (saving for retirement for example), but should not be the sole source of your aspirations.  This will lead you down a destructive road of dissatisfaction.

If you keep these two rules in mind, you will be rich indeed no matter how much money you have.  “For not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions.”

How Should a Christian View the Welfare System?

The real issue on the table when discussing welfare is helping the poor. It doesn’t take more than a casual glance at the Bible to realize that God’s people are called to help the poor (Prov. 29:7 or 1 John 3:17-18, for example).  From Genesis to Revelation the poor have a special place in the Lord’s heart.  We, as God’s people following His word, must help the poor.  With that in mind, I give you the following thoughts on the welfare system in America.  (The following is more a list of some thoughts and convictions than an official stance or position.)

1. The first thing that concerns me about welfare is what it reveals about our current culture.  It shows that in modern America, the government, not the church, has become the primary care-taker of the poor and needy.  This is to our shame.  If Christians and the church alike gave as much care and attention to the poor as the Word of God calls us to, there would be no need of welfare–or at least nothing like what we face today.  First and foremost, the very need for welfare shows that we, the church, must step up to be the example in today’s world of meeting the needs of those in poverty.  (Whether or not the government should get involved in such matters is a political debate I dare not to enter.  We will keep it simple- the amount of poverty in America simultaneously co-existing with the levels of wealth in the church should challenge us all just a little.)

2. The previous point made mention of all the political undertones facing the welfare argument.  I fear that the political issues regarding the system often causes Christians to neglect the needs of the poor or resent the meeting of their needs through a social system.  Sadly, many Christians do not even attempt to give to the poor and needy because they believe that social programs are already meeting all of society’s needs.  This is not the calling of scripture.  Christ calls our hearts to meet the poor in their places of need, not expect someone else to.  All in all, the political, philosophical, social, economic, and spiritual dynamics of the welfare argument often take our eyes off of the real issue- helping the poor.

3. Continuing along the lines of the political debate (noticing a trend here?), welfare turns caring for the poor and needy from a spiritual compassion to a social agenda.  The Bible calls us to be compassionate and generous, finding joy in meeting the needs of our less fortunate brothers and sisters.  Welfare as a social program negates the spiritual dynamics of supporting the needy.  Over the long-term, this is not healthy for the giver or the recipient.

4. Biblical giving will always help the needy not hinder them.  I worked full time with teenagers in poverty for two years.  In my personal opinion, there is no visible restoration in welfare.  Actually, it seems to have quite the opposite effect.  With rare exception, the current system of welfare does not help its recipients in the long term- it cripples them.  Why it does this is a whole different issue.  The reality is that Biblical giving will lead to restoration of the individual, not merely meeting his temporary physical needs.

5. Socially funded welfare makes giving to the poor required not voluntary (taxes).  New Testament giving is to be willing, from the heart and generous.  It is nearly impossible to help a person understand the spiritual gains and joys of generosity when contributions are mandatory.

6. The Bible strongly criticizes those who are able to work but choose not to: “If anyone is not willing to work, then he is not to eat, either.  For we hear that some among you are leading an undisciplined life, doing no work at all, but acting like busybodies.  Now such persons we command and exhort in the Lord Jesus Christ to work in quiet fashion and eat their own bread.” (2 Thes. 3:10-12)  It is the argument of scripture that those who are able to work to provide for their household must do so.  Welfare too often allows perfectly capable individuals choose not to work.

7. Lastly, most Christians frustrations with welfare don’t come from an anger that its recipients aren’t genuinely being helped, but instead a bemoaning of the tax burden it creates.  This brings us back full circle.  If we would rise up to the high calling of God to bless the poor with redemptive, restorational generosity then a situation like the one we currently face would not exist.

In conclusion, the best strategy for the Christian who is not a fan of the welfare system is to get himself and those he can influence in the business of redeeming and restoring the poor out of their poverty.  This will bear much greater fruit in this life and the next than writing letters, voting one way or the other, or signing petitions.  “For you always have the poor with you, and whenever you wish you can do good to them.” (Mark 14:7)

(Some of the ideas above were lifted from an article by Larry Burkett located in Using Your Money Wisely.)

THE PROS

From BibleMoneyMatters.com :  

“I think that in many instances people get offended when you give them money because there is an implied power relationship when it comes to money. For example, If you give me money, then I “owe you”.  I’m now in your debt, and you have power over me because of it.  Even if the money is given as a gift, often it will come with other emotional or relational strings attached – implied ones. 

The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender. Proverbs 22:7

Because of the strong relationship with money and power, people are often hesitant to accept a gift because it means that they are giving up a small piece of their freedom.  Because of that, in some cases an anonymous gift might be a better option.” - BibleMoneyMatters 

From FreeMoneyFinance.com : 

“I think it’s because people are embarrassed to admit that they need help. So they react with anger or act as if they are insulted by a gift. This is why we try to do our giving in secret as much as possible or make the gift part of some other “event” (like a birthday, anniversary, etc.).” – FreeMoneyFinance

From ChristianPF.com : 

“I believe that there is a Biblically appropriate way to receive a gift. It is to receive the gift from the giver in appreciation rather than making the person feel awkward or continually saying “You really didn’t need to do this” etc… As one who previously lived the philosophy of “if you scratch my back, I will scratch yours” I immediately saw a gift given to me as something that I would have to pay back. So, I often didn’t want to receive an unexpected gift, because now I have to figure out how to pay that person back.

As I’ve grown in my knowledge of God, I am better understanding that He loves to give gifts to His kids and wants us to receive them rather than leaving them sit on the shelf. Jesus dying for us is a perfect example. I will never understand why God loved me so much that He would give such a ridiculous gift to me, but that doesn’t matter. The best thing I can do is just graciously accept the gift He has given to me and use it to bless others. “…From everyone who has been given much, much will be required…” Luke 12:48

Just as we should receive from God with a thankful heart, I believe we should do the same from those around us. I have had to work on my “receiving” skills as I have been given some gifts from people that challenged me. But a very appreciative “thank you” makes the other person feel so much better than awkwardly acting like they shouldn’t have gotten it for you, or not accepting it.” – ChristianPF.com

From ProvidentPlan.com : 

“Great question.  As far as the why behind people being offended, it’s hard to tell.  It depends on the individual.  It could be pride/self-reliance – the I can take care of myself mentality.  It could be jealousy at the fact that you have the ability to be generous while they don’t.  Or it could be that the recipient feels they must be poor if you’re trying to help them (or you think they’re poor) while they don’t think of themselves that way (or don’t want to).I think you need to be tactful when giving.  Your attitude and approach matter a lot when it comes to how others will receive your gifts.  There may be some people you can never give to without offending them.  If you still want to give to that person, my suggestion is to do it anonymously.  Givinganon.org is a great way to do that.” – ProvidentPlanning

From OneMoneyDesign.com :

“Great question! I’ve actually experienced this situation so I’m excited to give you my thoughts. My wife actually helped me see the light here.In short, I had an extra ticket to a sporting event. I took it to the stadium hoping to give it to someone who needed it (perhaps save some money for a family). When I gave the ticket away, the person took it but seemed unappreciative. At least they weren’t as appreciative as I had wanted them to be.And that was the problem. I was focusing on me in my giving. My job, whether giving a sports ticket or helping someone in need is to extend a gift out of love. That is what Jesus did for us. He loved us and He gave. We are to do the same. We shouldn’t expect anything in return for the gift. Our joy should come from giving and not the reaction. So, my approach from now on is to be as prayerful in my giving as possible. Perhaps it’s a small prayer at the sporting event to find the right person. They may seem ungrateful or even offended by the gift. Maybe some won’t take it, but that’s okay. Again, my job is to extend the gift and then trust God to take it from there.” -OneMoneyDesign

From DebtFreeAdventure.com :

“I would wager to say that the offense people take is directly related to the approach taken by the giver. If the giver gives anonymously, or in secret (so that only the receiving party is aware of the transaction) there is much less like to be any ill feelings toward the gift.” – DebtFreeAdventure

REGULAR JOES 

“That is why we are instructed to keep our giving a secret.” – Stuart

 ”I know what you mean.  I have had this happen more than once.  I guess it is because people feel like you think you are better than them.  As if, somehow, giving a ‘gift’ to someone puts you above them on the social ladder.” – Jennifer

 I believe that God does this for two reasons:  1. He desires us to seek Him, His wisdom, His word, and His presence in a living and active relationship to gain insight for our financial decisions.  2. He desires our heart to follow His Spirit in our decisions not a lifeless, legalistic submission to any sort of “formula.”

While the New Testament does not give nearly as concrete instruction regarding financial decisions as the Old, it does give clear instruction.  A Christian is called to be radically generous, content in all circumstances, free from the love of money, and so on and so forth.  We should not let the New Testament’s lack of “formula” be an excuse to live thoughtlessly, irresponsibly, or irrationally.  Instead, it should drive us to prayer–to a living relationship with Christ that sharpens all facets of life, not merely the financial.