Christian banking exists. Is your spending advancing God's Kingdom?
More and more consumers are migrating to businesses that align with their sense of what’s most important, in their own lives and in the world.
Banking should be no exception, though remarkably few believers realize that Christian credit unions or Christian banking exist at all.
However, any Christian who banks is, in their own way, doing Christian banking. In fact, they are called to do so.
The Bible mentions finances and money more than 2,350 times. They reveal God’s priorities for money, and, in so doing, they instruct us as to our priorities for money.
More than 300 verses that address giving. Give back the first fruits to God’s Kingdom. This is the first priority, not the thing we do with what’s left over. Generosity is not secondary to financial optimization. It is our primary calling.
Also, we are called to provide for our family’s needs. We see this articulated quite directly in 1 Timothy 5:8: “Anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially for their own household, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”
Related to this is our calling to meet financial obligations.
“Give to everyone what you owe them,” we’re instructed in Romans 13:7-8. “If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor. Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law.”
Beyond this, God asks us to save for the future — but with a chastened and humble spirit. Joseph took advantage of seven years of abundance to help save the lives of many during seven years of famine, at God’s instruction.
But our provision for the future must be wise, and centrally a response to God’s calling. We must not store riches for ourselves from a spirit of self-reliance or ambition. In the parable of the rich fool, we’re warned of precisely this danger.
“Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions,” Jesus tells a listener who is squabbling with his brother over an inheritance.
He tells the crowd of a rich man whose grain harvest was so abundant that he decided to tear down all of his storehouses and build new ones — aiming to profit from the abundance and live in ease for years to come.
“But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’ This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.”
But in and with God, we can enjoy His abundant blessings — however they appear in our lives, and to whatever extent.
Choices such as determining when to borrow, implementing a biblical investing strategy and deciding how to be generous through charitable giving are essential factors that shape the future for families.
Having a bank or credit union that draws from biblical principles and culture while offering this advice can be a powerful tool as you try to shape your family’s finances — but your own values are just as significant.
Love and honor God. Love and serve others like Christ. Lead with humility and creativity. Empower biblical generosity, in yourself and in others.
These values can and should dictate how you view and shape your finances. By centering God’s call on your life in every little decision you make about what He has given you, you can cultivate deep and abiding financial health.
Financial health in this sense is built through ordinary faithful habits repeated over time — budgeting, avoiding unnecessary debt, saving consistently, giving generously and learning contentment. But these habits are powered by the understanding that God owns and has provided everything you have to manage.
Our finances are a gift from God, to be stewarded wisely for the advancement of His ends. Your bank, whoever they are, is an important part of that work.
This is not to say that finances ought to become the center of your life — far from it. Jesus talked about money because He knew money competes for our hearts and our minds. Without aligning it to God’s purposes, it becomes an idol.
Take time to prayerfully discern the ways in which your everyday financial choices — who you bank with, where you give, how you spend — could help advance God’s Kingdom. Take a little time to make sure the gifts God has given you are serving your family and God’s purpose for you.
Together, we can make everyday choices that have an eternal impact.
Blair Korschun is President / Chief Executive Officer at AdelFi Christian Banking.
