Money by the Book

Why I Wrote This Book I am the father of two and a grandfather of five. I would could have written this book for their sake alone, because I want them to understand how to be good stewards of God’s money. But they are not the exclusive reason I wrote this book. I wrote this book because most Christians have no idea what the Bible teaches about money. They struggle with their finances because they are following the world’s teaching about money. The format for this book is inclusive. It explores the positive practices, the negative practices, and the questionable practices that are taught in the Scripture when it comes to managing money. I believe you will be blessed and enriched if you follow the Biblical principles set forth in this book. May God receive the glory. Why You Should Read This Book This is not a self-help book. It is a book that puts forth Biblical teachings about money. The book discusses stewardship, money management, the source of riches, the reason for poverty, the problem of covetousness, and the cure of contentment. If you have never made a study of money in the Bible, this book will be a blessing and a challenge for you. I trust God will use the content of this book to help you understand giving, saving, and debt. I have no wisdom of my own to offer you. I want to share with you what the Bible teaching about money is. I trust you will be blessed by reading this book. Money belongs to God. He will hold us accountable for its use, good or bad. MONEY BY THE BOOK Introduction: My first experience with money was at the age of six. My brothers and I were introduced to the game called Monopoly. The game came with money to make purchases and pay penalties. One day I decided to take some of the Monopoly money to the Five and Dime store and buy some candy. I can’t tell you how disappointed I was when the clerk would not accept my Monopoly money. Money can be so disappointing! I once read a self-help author who said, “If you are not rich you should not write a book about money.” I am not rich. I have, however, read about seventy-five books about money. Many of those books were written by secular authors. I read those books, not because I wanted to get rich, but because I wanted to find out how to get rich according to the secular world. I just wanted to understand the world’s way to wealth, in contrast to what the Bible teaches about the subject. I am a Bible School graduate, and I have studied and taught the Bible for fifty-five years. I have come to understand a good deal of what the Bible teaches about money. I have discovered the teaching of the Bible is vastly different than the secular teaching on how to handle money properly. The world teaches that the way to wealth is through investing in the stock market and buying assets. The Bible teaches the way to wealth is through helping others and carefully managing what God has provided. “Give and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.” (Luke 6:38) I trust you will be blessed as you learn how to be a good steward of God’s money through reading this book. I hope you will learn to be content, and how to avoid poverty. My goal is that you will become a giver, like God. Please enjoy the book.