Part 11 of the “Parable of the Talents” Series – Final Installment
And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. (Matthew 25:30, KJV)
It has been said that you can gage one’s spiritual condition by examining his calendar and checkbook. Indeed the Bible 
has hundreds of verses that deal specifically with money. Jesus himself said that “where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Matthew 6:21). While the amount of your checkbook balance in itself is not indication of one’s spirituality, one’s attitude toward money as well as how we spend it can reveal where our true priorities lay. Consider Jesus’ illustration of the rich fool described in Luke 12:16-20.
The Spiritually Poor Lose (Even) More
Servant #3 (aka “unprofitable servant”) lost everything but, more important, his self-imposed opposition to the Master led to spiritual poverty in addition to his financial losses. Had he tried to emulate his Master, his finances would have benefited as it did with his colleagues. He also dismissed himself from the opportunity to establish a relationship with the Master. Contrary to his conclusions, his Master proved to be generous and inviting.
Often we distance ourselves from God’s blessings by drawing hasty conclusions about Him. We should take time to get to know Him and learn from Him. In doing so we could reap temporal (e.g. financial) as well as eternal (i.e. Heaven) blessings while benefiting from the best friendship we will ever have.
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]]>10Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.
11And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the LORD of hosts. (Malachi 3:10-11, KJV)
Not Just a Regulation …
There are some who say that tithing is a “work of the law” that was no longer necessary after Jesus’ sacrificial death. 
Indeed there are quite a view verses dedicated to tithes and other mandated offerings in the Pentateuch.
However, the first tithe mentioned in scripture was given before the law was given. While the law regulated the manner in which the tithe was given – and received –, the tithe pre-dated the law.
Furthermore, while that first tithe was given sacrificially by Abram (Abraham) to acknowledge God’s role in a military victory, the tithe’s purpose was to provide sustenance to the priesthood.
23“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. (Matthew 23:23, NIV)
Here in Jesus’ denunciation of the legalistic practices of the Pharisees, Jesus brings a moral imperative in connection to tithing (“You should have …”). He shows that while tithing is proper, it should not be at the expense of higher spiritual values.
In an earlier post, I referenced II Corinthians 9:7-8 which posits that giving should not be under compulsion but done in a cheerful manner. Tithing is NOT mandated under our New Testament dispensation. It is encouraged, however, and should be a joyful, natural result of our generous character instead of an unsatisfying completion of a legal checklist.
Investing In Your Church
9And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.
10As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith. (Galatians 6:9-10, KJV)
21For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also (Matthew 6:21, KJV)
As believers, we should be hooked up with a local church. We should be participants and not just occasional attendees. The benefits of church membership can not be overestimated: fellowship, edification, service to others, etc.
It is the Pastor’s job to oversee our souls and to guide us along in our spiritual development. We should see to our church’s temporal needs while they attend to our spiritual needs (1 Corinthians 9:11). While we may debate the requirement of tithing, we can’t debate that pastors still need to be fed and provide for their families. Pastors are scripturally entitled to a steady income (1 Corinthians 9:14)
Our giving to our local church should be ongoing. The tithing of our income ensures that it is. When the Lord blesses our substance over time, the church is rewarded proportionately. It is a fair and reliable arrangement.
While tithing is not a New Testament command, it is a New Testament principle.
Keeping Your Priorities
33“But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. (Matthew 6:33; NASB)
However, don’t stop at 10%! Malachi 3:8 mentions tithes and offerings. Giving should be inculcated into our lifestyle. Giving to the poor, good ministries, righteous causes, etc. over and above your tithe should flow naturally from you as you seek His kingdom. Malachi 3:10God promises to take care of you as you take care of His Kingdom. He even promises systematic increase along the way (Luke 6:38). If give God financial preeminence, your needs will be taken care of, you’ve got His word on it.
Are you up to the challenge?
9 And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. 10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith. (Galatians 6:9-10; NKJ)
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]]>Moses Job Interview with God
6And the LORD said furthermore unto him, Put now thine hand into thy bosom. And he put his hand into his bosom: and when he took it out, behold, his hand was leprous as snow.
7And he said, Put thine hand into thy bosom again. And he put his hand into his bosom again; and plucked it out of his bosom, and, behold, it was turned again as his other flesh. (Exodus 4:6-7, KJV)
Now the focus of God’s demonstration turns inward – into Moses’ character. The supernatural transformation of his 
hands pointed to a future when the supernatural would flow through Moses’ hands. The leprosy shows that the works that would flow through his hand and the authority he would bear literally carry a grave responsibility. In the bible, leprosy often symbolized sin. As a disease, leprosy meant exile from the rest of society. Similarly, sin serves to separate us from God. I think God was warning Moses about the dangers of acting and working on his own. The tucking of his hand into his bosom told Moses to pay particular attention to the issues of the heart.
20My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings.
21Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart.
22For they are life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh.
23Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. (Proverbs 4:20-23, KJV)
Guard your heart or suffer the consequences.
God repeats the command. He tells Moses to put his diseased hand back into his bosom. He does so and his hand is restored. God is telling Moses that listening to God’s voice will result in his protection while enabling the work of your hands to succeed. Note also that had Moses not followed God’s direction, his associates may have been calling him “Lefty.” Partial obedience is total disobedience. Moses is rising to a new level with God and to Israel. The importance of relying on God cannot be overestimated.
So it is with us. Sometimes in the course of listening and obeying God, he will take us where we do not want to go. We must rely on God to bring us through. If we do so, he will restore us and will work through us to do what we could not do on our own. We must take the works of our hands, the issues of our hearts, and our reliance on God with utmost seriousness. If we do so, God will work signs and wonders through our very own hands.
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]]>Give Up Your Job
2 So God said, “What’s that in your hand?” “A staff.”
3 “Throw it on the ground.” He threw it. It became a snake; Moses jumped back—fast! (Exodus 4:2-3; Msg.)
God essentially asked Moses to turn his job over to Him. In order for us to have God’s best for us, we have to give it to him. We have to give up control of our professional destiny and turn it over to God.
Look what happened to Moses’ rod when he gave it up: it transformed into a snake. You see Egyptian Pharaohs wore a headdress with the likeness of a Cobra. When God changed the rod into a snake , he was telling Moses that he was going to use Moses’ new position to influence Pharaoh. I believe that the Moses’ rod became a cobra. I think so because when Moses came into the presence of Pharaoh and saw the snake headdress, God was using these occasions to remind Moses of his experience on Mount Horeb. You can bet that over the next few weeks, Moses was on Pharaoh’s mind even more so than that “snake-hat” of his.
The Power to Influence Authority
We have this same ability available to us: we can influence established authority to get God’s will accomplished in our workplace and beyond. We see this all through the bible. In the old testament, Daniel and Joseph had a lot of clout with the rulers of their day. Also Naaman’s healing from leprosy was the result of his heeding the advice of his wife’s servant girl. No matter where you are or what job you have, your influence can further God’s plans here on earth. This is why it’s necessary for you to surrender your job to him in the first place: so that he can have the freedom to work through you in a way that will far exceed your own abilities.
God Respects Authority
This also brings up a very important point: you must submit to the chain of command. Be sure to respect the authority that your boss has over you. You should respect authority because God respects authority. Think about it. God did not just send Moses in and just take the Israelites to the Promised Land. Pharaoh had to release them voluntarily. God had respect for Pharaoh’s authority — and Pharaoh was the anti-Christ! Well, maybe not the anti-Christ but a role mode for the anti-Christ. What the bible scholars call a “type” of the anti-Christ. So if God respects legitimate authority even when a really bad person holds that authority, shouldn’t we be more respectful of our bosses, pastors, and other authority figures even when they rub us the wrong way!
Skill and Wisdom
Serpents also represented wisdom and cunning. In Matthew 10:16 Jesus tells us to be “ … wise as serpents and harmless as doves.” By transforming the rod into a serpent, God was telling Moses that he would have divine wisdom on hand as he fulfilled God’s purpose for his life in his position. Godly wisdom will set you apart from your colleagues. When the prophet Daniel led a godly life, the Lord blessed him with “knowledge and skill in all learning and wisdom.” (Daniel 1:17) As a result, Daniel stood head and shoulders above everyone else in the workplace and, as a result, he had the ear of kings. You see, God doesn’t just want to promote you. He wants you to succeed. This gives you credibility when it comes time for you to step out in faith.
The Wisdom of the World is not Your Father’s Wisdom
God said to Moses, “Reach out and grab it by the tail.” He reached out and grabbed it—and he was holding his staff again. (Exodus 4:4; Msg.)
Note what God tells him: take the snake by the tail. It is generally not smart to take a highly venomous snake by the tail. That’s an invitation for a snakebite! This demonstrates that Godly wisdom sometimes runs counter of what the world expects. In other words, the wisdom of the world is not your Father’s wisdom. From the worldview, it is not considered smart, for example, to lead your group so that a river blocks the escape route against the world’s finest army. God deliberately used this very situation to deliver his people in a stunning victory. As you continue to put your trust in Him, he will lead you to victory.
Note that the snake reverted to its original rod form. This illustrates the pervasive influence of Godly wisdom into Moses’ position. When God promotes you, He fully integrates your position with the wisdom needed to successfully carry out your commission. He makes available unlimited access to His wisdom (James 1:5) when you need it.
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Are you positioning yourself for His blessings?
Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power
and the glory and the majesty and the splendor,
for everything in heaven and earth is yours.
Yours, O LORD, is the kingdom;
you are exalted as head over all.Wealth and honor come from you;
you are the ruler of all things.
In your hands are strength and power
to exalt and give strength to all.(1 Chronicles 29:11-12, NIV)
God is the owner of EVERYTHING
As trustees of the resources God has provided, He allows us to temporally use our possessions. Our wealth is only temporary. The Lord is the true owner. In Deuteronomy 10:14 this is made quite clear: “To the LORD your God belong the heavens, even the highest heavens, the earth and everything in it.” Not just some things of this earth, but all things. Now if He holds these things and God is the true owner, should we handle things the way we feel they should be handled or the way God would want us to handle them? Of course, we should handle them the way God wants us to handle them. These instructions can be found in His Word.
If we are to follow Christ, we must transfer the ownership of our possessions to God. This entails a mind shift. The world tells us possession is nine tenths of the law and that we alone possess everything. A shift from a cultural view to a Godly view is difficult in an ungodly world. The shift is easy only when your change your perspective. Taking steps to align your thinking with God’s thinking does not happen overnight. The Holy Spirit must have time to work within your heart. I often say there are three conversions:
1) Your mind
2) Your heart
3) Your wallet
It takes time. However once it happens, your financial decisions tend to be viewed much differently than the world’s ways and thus become spiritual in every context.
Here are a few suggestions to begin this change of perspective:
1) Read over the verses I highlighted above and read them two times a day for the next month.
2) Pray, meditate, and memorize these verses.
3) Think of these verses every time you spend or make an investment/saving decision.
4) Constantly refer to your possessions (money, investments, personal items) as the Lord’s items. Say it out loud often. By passing ownership verbally and constantly, you will begin to develop a habit of transferring ownership.
We are ONLY “managers” of what God has given us
God chooses to distribute wealth where he sees fit. God chooses to bless one person more than others. In Matthew 25:15 we see this illustration: “To one he gave five talents of money, to another two talents, and to another one talent, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey”. Why would God discriminate? He gave according to each person based on their abilities. The Lord not only distributes wealth and material possessions but also can take them away as Job learned. No material possessions can be taken to the next world and even Job understood this when he said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away; may the name of the LORD be praised” Even in Job’s darkest hour, he still understood this key principle.
Our purpose in life is to glorify God
The Lord will choose many ways to distribute wealth: inheritance, marriage to a wealthy individual, successful businesses, stock options, and successful stock market investments to name a few. God has entrusted certain levels of wealth to each of us according to our abilities. Handling these assets in a biblical manner is an intended purpose that God has for your life. Above all, our purpose in life is to glorify God and this includes our finances. “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much” Luke 16:10. What are you doing today to show responsibility with what He entrusts to you? How are you positioning yourself for the blessings He has prepared for you?
Whether you have made money mistakes in the past or present, each day is a clean slate. Learn from your past mistakes and move on. Commit to learning more about His principles and how He instructs us to handle money. Commit to educating yourself about financial matters (saving, investing, gifting strategies, insurance, tax planning, etc.). Seek a qualified financial professional who shares your faith and values. Refer to www.kingdomadvisors.org or www.nacfc.com to find a competent Christian advisor in your area. Most of all, commit to doing something! God wants you to take the first step so He can guide and direct your path.
This article was written by Jay Peroni, CFP. Jay is the founder and editor of FaithBasedInvestor.com, a Christian stock investing newsletter. He is an author, speaker, and financial advisor. He’s been featured on Crosswalk.com, TheStreet.com, at ChristianPF.com. Jay started FaithBasedInvestor.com to help investors find investments they can be ?”proud to own”. For a FREE report on how to screen your investments and build a winning portfolio, go to FaithBasedInvestor.com.
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]]>The Lord gave the word; Great was the company of those who proclaimed it (Psalm 68:11 NKJ)
Bob from ChristianPF.com will assume the management of WealthFromTheBible.com effective immediately. Many of us have enjoyed the ministry of ChristianPF while saving a buck or two in the process.
You may also have noticed that I have not been adding content as of late. There are multiple reasons for this but the bottom line is that I do not have the resources to maintain this ministry with the quality that it deserves. While I will no longer manage WealthFromTheBible.com, I still believe in its ministry and know that Bob will do an outstanding job in providing the solid Bible-based content that will enable us to apply divine wisdom to our temporal resources.
Bob has been an enthusiastic supporter of WealthFromTheBible.com since before day one. I remember emailing him for some advice as I began to assemble this humble blog. He has the vision and the expertise to take WealthFromTheBible to the next level while, at the same time, maintaining its integrity.
I’m excited about this transition and look forward to following Bob’s progress. Please join me in welcoming Bob to WealthFromTheBible.
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]]>Gold was an extremely precious resource in Old Testament times. It was the symbol of wealth and was used as an 
offering to God on many occasions (Numbers 31:50). Why did it have this value? Why did Abraham amass gold as a result of his uprightness in the eyes of the Lord (Genesis 13:2)? Why did the Israelites carry gold out of Egypt (Exodus 12:35)? Why was it brought as a gift by the Queen of Sheba to King Solomon (2 Chronicles 9:1)?
The answer is not what one might expect. It is not simply for its use in jewelry or its luster and beauty. It was because gold was an incredibly useful material. In the Bible we see the many ways that gold was useful. For early metalworkers, gold was a very easy metal to work with (Number 8:4). It was malleable and could be hammered into sheets or plates (Exodus 37:16). It could be beaten around carvings to protect and decorate them (Exodus 30:5). Its ductility meant it could be drawn into wires which could be used in chains (Exodus 39:17) and finer wires to add weight to cloth (Exodus 28:6), and secure many things. Gold did not rust or deteriorate. It could be recycled and reused (2 Kings 18:16). Gold was a valuable commodity because it was so useful to the craftsmen of the Old Testament world. Gold jewelry originated as a way to conveniently carry, and perhaps display, one’s wealth. Similarly gold coinage has its origins in gold’s value as a practical material and not because of its color, shine or scarcity.
Gold continues to be useful today and has many hundreds of uses in medicine, sciences, space exploration, and electronics. Every cell phone produced has about 50 cents worth of gold in it. Not much you may think, until you realize that there are over 1 billion cell phones produced each year. Gold’s use as an efficient and reliable electrical conductor ensures its continued demand in the computer industry. It is used as a lubricant in satellites and other space technology. It is increasingly being used in glassmaking processes. Most of the ways gold is used today have only been discovered in the last two or three decades. Like the craftsman of the Old Testament, we will continue to discover even more uses for gold. As the number of these uses increase, so will its value.
In the current economy we can see how important it is for our investments to have real worth. Many of our current economic woes come from the fact that we gave value to things which had no intrinsic value. The mortgage bubble was just that: a bubble of empty and worthless investment. Gold, however, just as it did in the times of the Old Testament, has true value. It is a precious material given to us by God so that we can use in many ways and, as a result, we accord it considerable value. The lesson we can learn from the Bible about investing is that when something serves a good and true purpose, we should give it value according to that worth. Gold meets that standard and has no room for the moral deviation and false values that shares and bonds can sometimes have.
Related: Selling your gold for Cash
This post was written by Marc Lubaszka. Marc is the founder and CEO of Aurum Advisors. has dedicated his professional career to helping people understand the complexities of the precious metal market and then aiding them in utilizing that knowledge. His website, www.goldmadeeasy.com, walks people through the gold acquisition process and enables them to enjoy the security that comes with gold ownership today.
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]]>Where no wise guidance is, the people fall, but in the multitude of counselors there is safety. (Proverbs 11:14; Amp.)
It is our great pleasure to announce that WFTB’s recent post Staff Meeting With God: You Can Learn A Lot From A Snake is a part of the 202nd Carnival of Personal Finance – Lao Tzu Edition. Follow the link to get some great information on a variety of subjects. This chapter of the carnival is hosted by Fire Finance. Fire (Feel the Financial Independence & Retire Early) has done a great job with this carnival by offering a lot of good posts grouped by several topical areas.
We are honored to be included with such good company!
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]]>7The LORD said, “I have surely seen the affliction of My people who
are in Egypt, and have given heed to their cry because of their taskmasters, for I am aware of their sufferings. 8“So I have come down to deliver them from the power of the Egyptians, and to bring them up from that land to a good and spacious land, to a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanite and the Hittite and the Amorite and the Perizzite and the Hivite and the Jebusite. 9“Now, behold, the cry of the sons of Israel has come to Me; furthermore, I have seen the oppression with which the Egyptians are oppressing them. 10“Therefore, come now, and I will send you to Pharaoh, so that you may bring My people, the sons of Israel, out of Egypt.” (Exodus 3:7-10; NASB)
In these passages, we see God’s will for Moses: deliverance of God’s people from captivity. As God speaks to us more often then not the topic of the conversation is service to others. This is the purpose of promotion from above. God uses people as a source of blessing to others. While the vocational worldview emphasizes the corner office, hefty salaries, and other perks; God focus is on transforming peoples’ lives so that He can enjoy fellowship with them.
Where You Are Does Not Hinder Where You Are Going
And the LORD said unto him, What is that in thine hand? And he said, A rod. (Exodus 4:2; KJV).
If God is omniscient, why would He ask this question? God knew perfectly well what was in Moses’ hand. He was setting Moses up for a demonstration of His miraculous power through the tool of the shepherding trade: the rod. The rod tangibly symbolized Moses’ authority as a shepherd. Rods were used to protect the flock from animals that would inflict harm. Shepherd boys would often hold contests to determine who could throw their rods most accurately over the greatest distance.
The shepherd’s duties required keeping the sheep moving toward suitable grazing fields. It was therefore necessary to carry a minimum of equipment. The rod was the most important “tool” in the shepherd’s toolbox. The rod was often used to inspect individual sheep in order to part the wool and check for bugs or injuries. The rod was also used to keep track of the herd: the shepherd would count sheep that passed under his rod.Apprentice shepherds would carefully choose the tree limbs that they would ultimately use as their rod. Once chosen, they would carve these limbs into an instrument that would precisely fit their hands and match their stride. Such meticulous attention to detail took into account the fact that this rod was often the shepherd’s only defense against predators, rustlers, and trespassers.
God brought Moses’ attention to his rod. In effect, he was saying, “I understand you and your situation. Where you are will not hinder where you are going for I AM going with you. As you use the rod to protect the sheep, so you will receive my protection. As you use the rod to minister to the sheep and keep track of them so I will minister to your needs and keep my eye on you.” God was about to give Moses an object lesson that would serve to demonstrate an incredible vocational change with new God-infused abilities, provisions, and responsibilities.
The Lord was also giving Moses a foretaste of his new vocation. Instead of sheep, Moses would shepherd a nation. His divinely turbocharged rod would protect, correct, and keep track of people – lots of them! The skills that he learned in backwater Midian would be magnified by God to liberate a people while changing the destiny of the whole world.
What has God been saying to you about your job? What is teaching you through your present job? What lessons have you learned from past employment?
What is that in thine hand?
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]]>When Moses encountered God at Mount Horeb (Exodus chapters 3 and 4), the course of history was changed forever. In the midst of the burning bush, God directed Moses’ on a path that would directly affect the immediate future of nations. What is not often emphasized in Bible commentaries, however, is that during this discussion God is revealing His plan, purpose, and tools as they relate to our vocation.
God Visits Moses at Work
1. Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb.
2. And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.
3. And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt.
4. And when the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I. (Exodus 3:1-4; KJV).
During the time of God’s appearance, Moses was in his exile from Egypt (Exodus 2:11-15). He had fled from a position of privilege among Egyptian royalty to the wilderness of Midian where he tended the sheep of his father-in-law for 40 years. His flight arose because of his intervention on behalf of a Hebrew that resulted in the death of an Egyptian. Moses professional sacrifice as a result of taking a principled (if, perhaps, overly zealous!) stand against his oppressed kinsmen did not go unnoticed by God. The Lord used the intervening period to prepare Moses and to set in place the circumstances that would result in the liberation of a people and the beginnings of a nation that would be the source of blessing to the entire world (Genesis 12:2-3).
When Moses encounters the presence of God, he makes a determined effort to draw closer to Him (“I will turn aside …”) and makes himself available (“Here am I”). Also noteworthy is that Moses was not seeking a job change but it came to him. God has designed you on purpose for a purpose. You are uniquely qualified to do His will in a mind-blowing way here on Earth even in an ostensibly dead-end job.
Seek God and make yourself available to Him. Who knows? As in the case of Moses, you may be setting yourself up for the ultimate job interview.
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