Wicked, Lazy Servant: Managing Your Money for God

Note: The Essay Collection is composed of a series of formal writings done over the past couple of years for a variety of different courses. The third is the beginning of what I wrote for my Corporate Finances. Used resources will be noted at the end for further information.
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Throughout this section of reading, the most important topics all revolve around one main principle: managing your money efficiently. When looking over concepts like investing in stock and learning to build your capital, nothing is more relevant. There is a reason that the book includes several equations and charts. Investment is not a thoughtless process. It requires time, energy, and devotion. If you do not know what you are doing, you can either end up not taking any sort of risk or utilizing your resources poorly. This matters regardless of your reasoning for investing because the positive and negatives are the same without considering the motives. Both Christians and non-Christians have some reason to care about properly investing. In prior papers, I compared the Christian and secular viewpoints of different finance principles and hope to do the same here.

Before, I discussed the concept of money being something that does not necessarily belong to us, but that God has given us to use in his name and for his glory. Therefore, when deciding what to do with your finances, at least for Christians, it is important to keep this in mind when considering the many options available. Faith and finances are not a separate thing. They are especially important given how many times wealth and money are mentioned in the Bible. One author from the Jubilee Center, Paul Mills, recognizes what an important concept this is and breaks it apart in his article entitled “Investing as a Christian: Reaping Where You Have Not Sown”. He starts off by returning to the fundamentals of stewardship. This is something I have talked about in the past and is relevant once more when specifically talking about investments. Even when investing to seek a growth in capital, we must consider doing it in a way that honors our duty to the stewardship of resources.

While he breaks down many of the different things the Bible has to say about money management, a specific section of Mills’ work stuck out to me the most: The Cultivation of Relationships. I believe this to be the important link between Christianity and the financial world and another concept too often forgotten. The article reads, “Scripture is unequivocal in preaching the subjugation of wealth to the cultivation of loving relationships. Not only does it teach the ever-present duty of supporting one’s dependents but Jesus specifically urges the use of this world’s wealth to develop friendships, since the good done to others will be the only return on investment that will ultimately last (Luke 16:9)” (Mills). A fundamental part of the Christian faith is the connection between its members. As it says in the Biblical narrative “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these” (Mark 12:30-31). It is straightforward in saying, there is no commandment greater. If we have our hearts and minds aligned in these purposed, then our thoughts are guided towards proper money management and investment. Our investments should be relationally-centered in the long-run, which spurs on connections and ultimately a successful fulfillment of the Christian call to investment.

After discussing the principle of relationships in investment and the direct command in the Bible, I want to specifically look at something a little more indirect, specifically one of the parables of Jesus’ ministry. Matthew 25, verses 14-28, tells the story of a master who gave three of his servants. One of them received five, another two, and the last one. Each doubled their return, including the servant who got one bag, meaning he only had what he had gotten to begin with. Recently, given my focus on the management side of the business, I took a course on leadership in change. Because of this, my opinion on this concept might be a little different. But, I firmly believe that the reasoning behind the equal amount of proportional success and rate of return is rooted in the competence of the master. He gave the biggest portion of the gold to the servant who had proven to be the most trustworthy and the least to the one with the least potential. I think the reasoning behind this is that he was a person who was attuned to the ability of his workers. Due to this line of thinking, I would say that I believe the master knew what level of investment they would each make. Since Jesus uses the parables to make a point, he likely included this as a way to show the difference in the investment of his followers. Going back to the relational aspect, Matthew 25, if running under the assumption that the master truly knew his servants, God again emphasizes the place our relationships and faith have in the business world.

As we continue down the line of thought for business managers, this passage leaves a big impression, one that I already talked about. Not only does it have a commentary on how to relate in the people underneath you, but also the general principle of investing and putting your money to work. While a realistic set of numbers isn’t applied, the concept is there. The more you are willing to invest, instead of hoarding away your money, the higher the rate of return. Of course, there is a risk attached to this, but in the context of our parable, we are only going to focus on the generic positive. Another thing to consider is again the relationship between the master and his servants. It is his duty to properly manage the people underneath them. I talked about it above but would like to reiterate that the relational aspect is emphasized. Human capital is another resource God has given managers to utilize. Leaders need to see their human capital as actual people, get to genuinely know them, and treat them in a way that honors both God and them. Again, the passage does elude to this kind of relationship. If the master had given the untrustworthy servant the five bags of gold, he would have been less wise and gained less than the loss of just one the one bag. And the parable would have not been as successful in sharing its message.

An article from the theology of work talks about this very principle by discussing the difference between each individual. They discuss less of the aspect of the manager, but rather more of the servant by saying, “Like the three servants, we do not have gifts of the same degree. The return God expects of us is commensurate with the gifts we have been given. The servant who received one talent was not condemned for failing to reach the five-talent goal; he was condemned because he did nothing with what he was given” (TOW Project). Every person was created for a specific reason and given gifts to further the kingdom of God. Disregarding and not using these gifts is not only detrimental to ourselves but the overarching goal God has put into place. Those who do their duty will see more success over time. Both sides of this business relationship are given their own responsibility. The master, or employer, is to know his people in order to better lead and manage them. Those who work under or follow that leader need to be aware of using their talents in response to the tasks given by the leaders. These two parties play off of each other in order to maximize the relationship, the business, and any potential investments. This is applicable in the general business world, but I would say is more specifically grounded in those who follow a Biblical model of business. It also speaks on the concept of a trust within a business between employers and employees, but I won’t go too much into that now.

The last thing I want to touch on is the concept of budgeting as discussed in the book. Given this is not one of my strong suits at the moment for a variety of reasons, saving, investing, and budgeting really stuck out. I was inspired to consider the long-term benefits and consequences of long-term and large-scale money management. Since this unit, I have begun investing with the help of easy investment apps. Overall, the chapter discusses what parts go into considering capital budgeting. The entire concept is incredibly helpful for making sure a company utilizes and plans the use of its resources wisely. By using several different methods, managers can determine how their decisions can affect the company by considering what the outcomes and opportunity costs will be of said choices. As a follow-up to my reading, I sought out further information on corporate budgeting which led to something written by the Harvard Business School. It was the title which really stuck out to me: “Why Budgeting Kills Your Company”. How is it that something so vital could be a harm to the company? Inside the text, it discusses continuous action planning can be more beneficial than setting a yearly budget limits the companies options if something changes within the market (Gary). This can help to abolish many restraints and potentially decrease costs. However, seeing it in actions would probably create a better picture of potential risks. I can see the benefit of both sides and hope to look more into this as I prepare to eventually own and management own business.

References

Cagle, C. (2018, January 22). 5 Lies Christians Tell About Money. The Gospel Coalition. Retrieved from https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/5-lies-christans-tell-money/

Darling, D. (2014, January 1). 7 Financial Facts All Christians Should Know. Lifeway Christian Resources. Retrieved from https://www.lifeway.com/en/articles/financial-facts-all-christians-should-know

Francis, K. (n.d.). The Importance of Funding for Business. Chron. Retrieved from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/importance-funding-business-59.html