THE SILVER AND GOLD OF THE BIBLE

Acts 3: 6 “Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of
Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk.”
In the song “House of Gold” we hear the lyrics, “I’d rather be in a deep dark grave and know that my
poor soul was saved than to live in this world in a house of gold and deny my God and lose my soul.” Is
it possible to believe this and live in this world?
With the growth of atheism and agnosticism in the world, the point of discussing scriptural economics is
probably like beating one’s head against a wall. But for those of us that hold in very high regard the
Word of God, we readily see, God knows all things and that includes economics.
Did God invent money? Of course not! But He did include a few basic rules and guidelines for us in the
wise use of our resources. We have found the scriptures to be useful in many areas of life and the
lessons concerning money are included.
In the beginning of humanity on earth there was no such thing as money. The barter system of
exchanging goods and services was utilized that all could benefit from the skills and expertise of others.
As logical and effective as the barter system was, as the population grew, it became inadequate. Thus,
the invention of money established an evil medium for humans to manipulate and misuse. The ability to
cheat, lie and steal reached a new level and has accelerated ever since.
Ecclesiastes 5: 10 “He that loves silver shall never be satisfied with silver; he that loves abundance with
increase: this is also vanity.” King Solomon warned 3000 years ago the dangers of loving monetary
substance.
It appears Solomon may have been telling us, monetary substance is no substance at all. If it is only
something to accumulate, what is it worth? I used to hear people speak of “spending money.” Is it not all
spending money? We are encouraged to save but the savings are purposed to eventually spend.
We’ve not known of any person, poor or rich, that was able to take his/her money or anything else
(including their own body) with them once the heart and brain stopped functioning. For many of us, the
notion of “what’s the use in accumulating all that silver” is a pressing question.
If one has accumulated billions in funds and hoards it only to see his neighbors in need, what kind of
person is that? If someone manages appropriately and increases a bank account or portfolio, what’s the
reward?
Many in our world measure success by one’s accumulations. My most precious possessions are my
experiences. For some of us our greatest challenge is to find our next challenge.
If a person invests wisely, others regard him/her as a scrooge and the demeaning remarks are certain to
be voiced. If another refuses to plan and work for the (seemingly) inevitable future, he is seen as lazy
and unmotivated. Human opinion will never cease and perspectives will always be included.
1 Timothy 6: 10 “For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have
erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.” Misplaced priorities have
caused many of us loads of trouble and loving money would be a classic case. Money is a medium of
exchange, not a god to be revered and worshiped.
Notice in Paul’s writing to Timothy he specified “the love of money,” not the money itself. Wise use of
funds would not include such pagan attitudes and to use one’s monetary resources wisely is a precious
gift.

Many in today’s world consider capitalism as evil and the concentration of wealth as discriminatory.
While we understand the shallow attitude, the fact remains, without the movers and shakers, everyone
would starve.
Without the high-dollar management people to keep industry in motion, jobs would be a thing of the
past. Without capitalism we would be eating grubs and tree bark to stay alive.
2 Thessalonians 3: 10 “For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not
work, neither should he eat.” Many see this verse written by Paul as being selfish and cold-hearted. In
the first century, the luxury of keeping up the non-workers was not possible.
Work by everyone was seen as necessary for survival. Also notice, Paul wrote “would not work.” He did
not write “could not work.”
Another concept strongly discouraged in the Bible is that of excessive debt. Proverbs 22: 7 “The rich
ruleth over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender.”
In a western world society, no one wants to be either a servant or a slave (ebed in Hebrew). Yet we place
ourselves (in many cases) in a situation of servanthood to the lenders for many years. Many die in debt
leaving those debts to be paid by their family or not at all.
Once again we find scripture given by God (2 timothy 6: 10) that could tremendously improve our lives
if we would just listen.
Many today believe mankind can eliminate poverty. While that is an admirable thought, it will not
happen. Matthew 26: 11 Jesus said “For ye have the poor always with you; but me ye have not always.”
Poverty is not only finding many people with a shortage of monetary funds; there are many in our world
that are spiritually impoverished.
We must always teach that eternal salvation is attained by a faith based belief (Ephesians 2: 8) in Christ
Jesus crucified (Matthew 27: 35) for the remission of sin (1 John 1: 9) and resurrected (Matthew 28: 6).
Van Yandell is a retired Industrial Arts teacher, an ordained gospel evangelist and commissioned
missionary. His email: vmy2121@outlook.com