Does God Want Us To Be Wealthy?

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Ramsey Show Highlights – “Does God Want Us To Be Wealthy?”

Episode Details:

• Title: Does God Want Us To Be Wealthy?
• Host: Ramsey Network
• Release Date: December 22, 2024

Introduction

In this episode of The Ramsey Show Highlights, the Ramsey Network delves into a profound and often debated topic: “Does God want us to be wealthy?” Hosted by Dave Ramsey, the episode features a caller named Joe from Albany, New York, who seeks biblical guidance to align his financial practices with his spiritual life. The discussion is enriched by insights from guest Ken Coleman, providing listeners with a comprehensive exploration of wealth from a Christian perspective.

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Main Discussion: Does God Want Us To Be Wealthy?

1. Caller Inquiry and Initial Response

• Joe's Question (00:25): Joe reaches out to inquire whether God desires his followers to attain wealth. He expresses a desire to harmonize his financial decisions with his spiritual beliefs.

• Dave Ramsey’s Initial Response (00:52): Dave Ramsey addresses the issue by highlighting the misinterpretations present within the Christian community. He identifies two flawed extremes:

  • Prosperity Gospel: Asserts that God wants believers to be affluent, implying that lack of wealth signifies a deficiency in faith.
  • Anti-Wealth Doctrine: Claims that poverty is a prerequisite for holiness, an idea Ramsey labels as Gnosticism—a heretical belief.

2. Dave Ramsey’s In-Depth Analysis

• Wealth Neutrality (03:30): Ramsey emphasizes that scriptural teachings do not mandate wealth or poverty. Instead, God’s primary concern is the state of one’s heart and worship practices.

  • Notable Quote: “God doesn’t care if you’re wealthy or if you’re poor. He doesn’t care one way or the other. All He wants is your heart, all He wants is your worship.” (03:00)

• Stewardship Over Ownership (04:10): He introduces the concept of stewardship, explaining that believers are managers of God’s resources rather than owners. This perspective underscores the responsibility to handle wealth ethically and for God’s kingdom.

  • Notable Quote: “We’re merely managing it. So we're not saying, 'I own this,' instead, 'I'm holding this with an open hand, what do you want me to do with it?'” (05:00)

• Biblical Examples and Responsibilities (05:45): Ramsey references biblical figures like Solomon and David to illustrate responsible wealth management and the importance of leaving an inheritance, both character-based and financial, for future generations.

3. Generosity and Financial Management

• Generosity as a Core Principle (06:30): The discussion shifts to the importance of generosity, highlighting the Biblical mandate to tithe and give cheerfully.

  • Notable Quote: “If you can maintain the distance from [wealth] as a manager instead of an owner... manage it responsibly.” (06:20)

• Avoiding Debt and Building Wealth (07:10): Ramsey reiterates the significance of staying out of debt and building wealth prudently, ensuring that financial success does not hinder one’s spiritual obligations.

4. Addressing Misconceptions and Heresies

• Refuting the Prosperity Threshold (08:00): Ramsey categorically denies that wealth leads to spiritual damnation, countering doctrines that deem wealthy individuals as spiritually inferior.

  • Notable Quote: “A prostitute that comes to Jesus, a murderer that comes to Jesus can go to heaven, but a wealthy person that comes to Jesus can't. And that's what the Gnostics taught.” (06:50)

• Highlighting Scriptural Evidence (09:00): He points to scriptures that encourage faithful management of resources, suggesting that increased responsibility often accompanies financial growth, further supporting the view that wealth itself is not condemnable.

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Supporting Commentary: Insights from Ken Coleman

• Affirmation and Expansion (07:56): Ken Coleman reinforces Ramsey’s message, emphasizing that the essence lies in the believer's heart and their perspective towards money.

  • Notable Quote: “It's about your heart. So whether you have a little money or you have a lot of money, it's about how you view the money.” (08:17)

• Simplifying Theological Concepts (08:21): Coleman appreciates Ramsey’s ability to distill complex theological ideas into understandable principles, advocating for focusing on stewardship without guilt or overcomplication.

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Notable Quotes with Timestamps

1. Dave Ramsey (03:00):

   “God doesn’t care if you’re wealthy or if you’re poor. He doesn’t care one way or the other. All He wants is your heart, all He wants is your worship.”

2. Dave Ramsey (05:00):

   “We’re merely managing it. So we're not saying, 'I own this,' instead, 'I'm holding this with an open hand, what do you want me to do with it?'”

3. Ken Coleman (08:17):

   “It's about your heart. So whether you have a little money or you have a lot of money, it's about how you view the money.”

4. Dave Ramsey (06:20):

   “If you can maintain the distance from [wealth] as a manager instead of an owner... manage it responsibly.”

5. Dave Ramsey (06:50):

   “A prostitute that comes to Jesus, a murderer that comes to Jesus can go to heaven, but a wealthy person that comes to Jesus can't. And that's what the Gnostics taught.”

6. Dave Ramsey (09:00):

   “The 1% are all going to hell. Let me scare you about that one. Oh, if you make $38,000 a year, you're in the top 1% of income earners in the world. Whoops. You're not going to make it if you believe that toxic gnostic heresy.”

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Conclusions and Takeaways

• Heart Over Wealth: The core message underscores that God’s concern lies not in one’s financial status but in the condition of one’s heart and intentions.

• Responsible Stewardship: Believers are encouraged to view themselves as stewards of God’s resources, managing wealth with responsibility, generosity, and ethical integrity.

• Balanced Perspective: The episode dismantles extreme views on wealth within Christianity, advocating for a balanced approach that neither idolizes nor condemns financial success.

• Generosity and Inheritance: Emphasizing the importance of generosity and prudent financial planning, Ramsey and Coleman highlight the Biblical call to give and leave an inheritance that benefits future generations.

• Defusing Guilt and Misconceptions: Listeners are reassured that wealth does not equate to spiritual failure, promoting a healthy, guilt-free approach to financial prosperity within the framework of faith.

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Final Thoughts

The Ramsey Show Highlights provides a nuanced and theologically grounded exploration of wealth, challenging prevailing misconceptions and offering practical advice for integrating financial management with spiritual beliefs. By advocating for responsible stewardship and a heart-centered approach, the episode serves as a valuable resource for Christians seeking to navigate the complexities of wealth in alignment with their faith.

Transcript

[Dave Ramsey]

Brought to you by the Every Dollar app. Start budgeting for free today. Joe's going to start off this hour. Joe's in Albany, New York. Joe, what are you thankful for?

[Joe]

Hey, Dave. I am thankful for God first and my 10 year old daughter.

[Dave Ramsey]

Awesome. What's her name?

[Joe]

My daughter's name is Aubrey.

[Dave Ramsey]

Very cool, very cool. How can we help you today, sir?

[Joe]

So I guess my, my question is kind of centered around God. So main question is, does God want me or us to be wealthy? I kind of wanted to ask you that because I feel like you have a pretty big business and you have ties to people who are in church. So maybe you could offer some biblical insight. That way my finances and my spiritual life can be aligned a little bit more.

[Dave Ramsey]

Yeah. Okay. Well, there's two ends of the spectrum in the Christian world, both of which create an inaccurate teaching of scripture. One end of the spectrum we call the Prosperity Gospel, that God wants you to be rich and if you're not rich, you must not be right with God and all this kind of stuff. And that's not biblical. You can't back that up scripturally. The other end of the spectrum is that God says you have to be poor in order to be holy. And that's actually not scriptural either. That's a form of heresy called Gnosticism. So what actually happens is it's not really a spectrum between those two, but it's maybe a third point on a triangle off in a different direction. I was on a TV show with a pastor one time and he asked me what he thought was an underhand pitch question. Is it okay for Christians to be wealthy? Kind of what you said. And I said, no, we have to all be poor. And it kind of freaked him out because he thought I was going to say, yes, it's okay to be wealthy. But my point. And then I went on and expanded. So here's the true idea, okay? God doesn't care if you're wealthy or if you're poor. He doesn't care one way or the other. All he wants is your heart, all he wants is your worship. And if poverty gets in the way of your worship, that's a problem. If wealth gets in the way of your worship, that's a problem. And that's stated by Paul in the New Testament. As a matter of fact, I've been, well, rich and I've been poor and you know, Lord keep me from having one or the other if it gets in the way. If you remember reading that scripture, Joe, you probably have heard that. And so the point is that those of us that are people of faith, that are people of the book, believe that we don't own anything. We are merely managing it for God. He's the owner, we're the steward is the Old English word that was. Has been Christianized because it was in the King James version of Scripture. So we're merely a manager. So we don't own anything. We're managing it. And managing wealth is a privilege. It is a responsibility, and it's to be managed for the good of God and for his kingdom. The first thing he says to do is to take care of your own household, feed that daughter, or you're worse than an unbeliever. It says, a godly man leaves an inheritance to his children's children. And that's not necessarily just an inheritance of character. It's also an inheritance of money, because Solomon built the temple, but he built the Temple of God in Jerusalem with his father David's money. David was prohibited from building the temple because of Bathsheba and his order of the murder of Uriah. But Solomon used David's inheritance to build the temple with. So a godly man leaves an inheritance to his children's children is fine. And of course, you don't want to leave an inheritance to your kids if they're misbehaving, because you're just going to fund their misbehavior. So, but that's what we're talking about here. So, you know, we've taught our kids that we're managing this money for the good of our family, to eat. Eat the good of our family, to enjoy some of it, to be generous with. God loves a cheerful giver, says in Scripture. So this continuous generosity, there's an indication all throughout New Testament and Old Testament to tithe the 10th of your income as your baseline for your generosity offerings above that. So we've got these. We kind of got. We got a job. When you get money, and your job is to manage money, and then God gives you the directions on how to do that, how to manage his money, you take care of your own household, you're generous, you leave an inheritance, you stay out of debt, you build wealth. But this idea that I'm getting rich for me to be a snotty rich person, no. But are all rich people going to hell? No. That's heresy. Because anything that teaches that the blood of Jesus is not powerful enough to cover any sin is heresy. And so we're suggesting that a prostitute that comes to Jesus, a murderer that comes to Jesus can go to heaven, but a wealthy person that comes to Jesus can't. And that's what the Gnostics taught and that's what some of these people who teach theology on Twitter think.

[Joe]

Torn between.

[Dave Ramsey]

Yeah. And it ends up, you get this mixed message, like you are spiritually inferior if you become successful, and yet you're not because the Bible says the diligent prosper. What is diligence? It's excellence in the ordinary. You're good at your job, do your work as unto the Lord. Corinthians 3:20 or Colossians 3:23 says, and how would you do your work? You would do it wide open, like, I'm working for Jesus. I'm going to go crazy, man. I'm going to give it, I'm going to leave it all on the field, you know. And so, and if you're faithful with the little things, you're gonna be given more to manage. If God was against wealth, why would he give you more to manage? And that's out of Jesus own mouth. So there's all this biblical evidence that we're not supposed to worship wealth and that wealth can be dangerous because it can become an idol. But if we can maintain the distance from it as a manager instead of an owner, if you don't say, my, my, my, my, my, instead you go, I'm holding this with an open hand, what do you want me to do with it? It's yours. And then, then you're managing it. If you're faithful with the little things, you'll be given more to manage. And so then you don't have to live under this ridiculous communist left wing guilt trip for successful people. And then they try to put a Bible spin on it, which is really hilarious.

[Joe]

Yeah.

[Dave Ramsey]

But on the other hand, you're not, you're not better than someone else. I know some, some of the highest character, smartest people who are not wealthy. And that does, you know, you're not better than them. If you're managing more money than they're managing, you just have more responsibility. Does that make any sense?

[Joe]

Yeah, it makes a lot of sense. I didn't realize that there was two, I guess, crazy sides of each spectrum. And just knowing that God really doesn't care, it just matters where my heart is. That's told me a lot.

[Dave Ramsey]

Yeah, I mean he, he, he wants you. That's what he wants. And go, yeah. I mean like I always tell people, it's like, you know, people get so torqued out about this or that. Listen, you know, I'M I'm giving money to my church. Well, listen, if God wanted your money, he would just take it and there'd be a greasy spot where you were sitting. I mean, you know, it's like he's not worried about the money. You know, this is God. So, you know, so it's. It's almost, you know, you got to think sometimes he's sitting up there, Ken, with Gabriel, just laughing at us.

[Ken Coleman]

Absolutely. And I feel like after that sermon, there's only one thing to do, and I should take an offering right now. That was really good. Three points. We should have a little three points.

[Dave Ramsey]

It was almost a Baptist.

[Ken Coleman]

I could do an altar call and a love offering at the same time. It's. It's a rare talent, but some of us have it because of the amount of hours I've logged.

[Dave Ramsey]

Since you're kind of growing your hair out, you're. You know, that would probably fit. You know, you could probably.

[Ken Coleman]

Oh, are you worried that I'm heading over to the health and wealth crowd with the longer life?

[Dave Ramsey]

And I'm. No, no. You keep slicking that on back there. I'm telling you.

[Ken Coleman]

Well, it's a new toupee. I'm trying to get it figured out.

[Dave Ramsey]

The glue. The.

[Ken Coleman]

The glues. It's obnoxious. You know, you got to really work it out. But, yeah, I think that's a good word. Dave and I love that he locked on to really, I think the simple thing. If anybody's grasping this for the first time, I think what you said in one line really captures the whole thing. And that is. It's about your heart. So whether you have a little money or you have a lot of money, it's about how you view the money. And that's just really good theology. And it just. It cannot be, by the way. That's not debatable. It's about managing the money. There's too much scripture that just lays it out that we're stewards of everything he gives us. And so that's just a beautiful answer to that question. So no guilt, no overthinking. Just lock in on what Dave said there, because that's about as strong a teaching on that as you'll get.

[Dave Ramsey]

The 1% are all going to hell. Let me scare you about that one. Oh, if you make $38,000 a year, you're in the top 1% of income earners in the world. Whoops. You're not going to make it if you believe that toxic gnostic heresy. This is the Ramsey Show. Create your free every dollar budget today the simplest way to budget for your life.