Is it Wrong for Christians to Make Lots of Money?

Last updated on: March 3, 2015 at 11:38 am by Owen Strachan

I tackled a thorny issue in a free-wheeling lecture for The Commonweal Project of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary last week. The full title of the 45-minute lecture (15 minutes of Q&A) was “Is Making a Ton of Money a Moral Problem for Christian Churches?” I answered, in brief, No, but it could be.

This is a tough question that often draws fuzzy or un-nuanced answers. My own response consisted of a biblical-theological overview and a few dives into cultural analysis. Essentially, income inequality has become a “justice issue” today. I look into that from a scriptural perspective and attempt to show that we have theological reasons to prize money-making and gospel philanthropy.

I’m thankful to be a Steering Committee member of TCP, which is affiliated with the Henry Institute (which I lead at SBTS) and constituted by generous funding from the Kern Family Foundation.