The Spiritual Value of Business

This week we continue to seek insights come from the book, God is at Work by Ken Eldred.  Sometimes we business people may find it difficult to see the redeeming value of our professions.  But “business is a very noble pursuit to which God calls many committed believers” state the authors of God at Work. 

So what do we business people do?

·         We serve

·         We create

We discover people’s needs and meet them (hopefully profitably).  We create goods, services and wealth and increase our fellow man’s standard of living.  The question is, “In doing so can we bring glory to God?”  I believe the answer is, “Yes.”

The authors pose three questions in assessing the spiritual value of a business:

1.       How is the business fulfilling the Creation mandate to be stewards of the earth by filling it, developing it and keeping it?

2.       In what way is the business serving mankind?

3.       How is the business redeeming its spheres of influence?

We serve customers by providing goods and services that help to solve their problems.  We serve employees by treating them with respect, allowing them to use their gifts and enabling them to grow their abilities.  And we can be salt and light to the business network in our own private world.  Your business can be your ministry.  Your faith is played out in your business.  Thus, your business has spiritual significance.

Remember that a successful business creates value (1 + 1 = 3) and you are allowed to capture a portion of this added value through the profits you earn.  (By the way, that is one measure of whether or not you are truly adding value—is the marketplace rewarding you with profits?)

Profit

Here is a potential inflammatory word (e.g., just think major oil companies).  However, in the parable of the talents (Matthew 25:14-30), a profit was expected.  However, a business must be about more than primarily maximizing profits.  (This gets tricky with publicly held companies.  Don’t you want all those companies within your 401(k) to maximize their profits?) 

But according to the authors of God is at Work, “the redeeming value of business is as a vehicle for serving others through the efficient delivery of goods and services.”  By doing so, there will be an opportunity for profit.  Perhaps it’s similar to the adage that you cannot pursue happiness directly; happiness is a byproduct of helping others find happiness.

In a free-market economy, profit is a sign that your business is truly serving others, not that it is taking advantage of others.  You are creating value; the marketplace recognizes it.

Again quoting the authors, “A profit motive without a sense of God’s participation and responsibility to Him can easily devolve into dishonest dealing…”  Thus, the spiritual value of business lies in its alignment with God’s purposes and so must our profit motive be in alignment. 

Wealth

Successful and profitable businesses can create wealth for owners, employees and partners.  (We’ve all heard the stories of check-out clerks at Home Depot becoming millionaires.)  Regarding wealth, we must be aware of two misguided attitudes regarding the relationship between wealth and righteous living: 

·         Wealth is the enemy of a righteous life.

·         Wealth is the essential evidence of a righteous life.

 Both attitudes fall short of the rich biblical teaching about prosperity.  We must acknowledge that wealth is neither moral or immoral—it is amoral.  Wealth itself is not the problem.  The issue is, “Do you have the wealth, or does the wealth have you?”  Riches can be used for noble purposes or ignoble purposes.  What we do with our wealth is the key question—not the fact that we are wealthy.   

The authors bring out 6 principles from Scripture related to wealth: 

1. Wealth is to be in all areas (not just material wealth; think of things like spiritual wealth, relational wealth, etc.)
2. Wealth is from God; God gives us the ability to produce wealth (Deuteronomy 8:18)
3. Wealth is to be managed; our wealth is not ours—it belongs to God; we are stewards and will be held accountable for what we have done with His wealth.
4. Wealth is to be used for God’s purposes; we cannot be stingy toward God and His work on earth; God loves a cheerful giver and He expects us to give sacrificially (remember the widow’s mites—Mark 12).
5. Wealth is to be enjoyed (1 Timothy 6:17).  God wants us to enjoy our prosperity without going overboard and being indulgent.  Where the defining line between enjoyment and indulgence is between you and God.
6. Wealth is not to be our source of trust (1 Timothy 6:17, Matthew 6:19-21, Luke 12:34).  There is a real danger in being prosperous and forgetting God (Proverbs 30:8-9). 

In conclusion, do you believe that your work has spiritual significance?  Do you believe that your business is adding value?  Does the marketplace believe your business is adding value?  If so, and you have amassed some wealth over time, are you enjoying your wealth as a blessing from God, knowing that He is pleased with your stewardship over His resources? 

Keith

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