A Biblical Perspective on Debt

A Biblical perspective on debt is crucial because the Bible is all we need to figure out how to handle our money. A younger me used to think: “It was written long before our modern society”. Today, I know that there is nothing new under the sun.

“The rich rules over the poor, and the borrower is the slave of the lender”. Proverbs 22:7 ESV

A Biblical Perspective on Debt: Why Debt is Bad

It’s simple:

“No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money” Matthew 6:24 ESV

The ESV says it loud and clear: You cannot serve God and money. The Greek has mammon for money, which is a Semitic word for not only money but also possession. So it actually reads something like this: You cannot serve God and money or possessions. 

“Well, I’m not serving mammon, I’m serving God!” you might be thinking. I used to think like that, especially when I was actually in debt.

My brief experience with debt

It may seem easy for me to be against debt. I’m completely debt free at the moment and have been for years. I’ve never had a debt I didn’t know how to pay off. I’ve never had consumer debt. We don’t even have a mortgage (yet).

So why am I still so sure of my opinion of debt? Because I know exactly how it feels to be a slave to it.

Before I married, I knew I would run out of money while still a student. I knew I couldn’t work enough to save up that money or earn it as I went. So I took out student loans and piled it all up in a savings account for when I would need it. I never spent a single cent of that money, but it was there.

It gave me peace, knowing I wouldn’t be on the streets. Yet, it also made me aware that I was a slave to it and to the state for lending it to me.

When we got engaged, we agreed to pay off the entire debt right before our marriage. It was easy to do since I had all the money in an account and enough savings to cover all the interest as well.

This may not have been the wisest decision. After all, something could have gone wrong in our relationship and I would have been up a creek. Thankfully, it all worked out fine and we were very happy to know we entered marriage debt free.

Good vs bad debt

I am about as debt averse as they come. I know that from my own debt experience. Even though I could pay back that money at any given time, I still felt like a slave. I still felt like I was in chains. Someone else, besides God, was ruling my life.

On my journey to become financially savvy, I’ve heard people talk about good vs. bad debt at times. If you do a quick google search you’ll find this:

“Good debt is an investment that will grow in value or generate long-term income. Taking out student loans to pay for a college education is the perfect example of good debt”. (From How Stuff Works)

If student loans are the perfect example of good debt, then why is there a student loan crisis in America?

Mortgages are another good debt so to speak. For most people, they are more of a necessary evil. I believe all debt creates more risk than any possible advantages. Mortgages may be the one debt I won’t avoid like the plague. But you can be sure I’ll be paying it off as fast as possible.

I encourage you to read the Bible for yourself and examine what it says about debt. Then you can make your own decision about whether being in debt is ever good.

A Biblical Perspective on Debt: It’s not a sin

Nowhere in the Bible does it say that debt is a sin. Think of the cancellation of all debts every 7th year (Deut. 15:1-2; Num. 30:2). Those regulations would not be in place if being in debt was a sin. Countless times, however, the Bible basically says that debt is stupid.

“The rich rules over the poor, and the borrower is the slave of the lender”. Proverbs 22:7 ESV

We know we are only to have one ruler in our life and that is Christ Jesus. This makes debt stupid because we voluntarily become a slave to some else.

While there’s no “thou shalt not go into debt” in line with the ten commandments in the Bible. It’s still very clear what God thinks of debt:

“The Lord will open to you his good treasury, the heavens, to give the rain to your land in its season and to bless all the work of your hands. And you shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow”. Deuteronomy 28:12 ESV

From this verse, it’s clear that the Lord has plenty of blessings stored up for His people. He wants to make His people wealthy enough to lend to many nations. Part of that promise is that His people will have no need to borrow. It’s also very clear that we can’t serve two masters. Remember that verse I quoted earlier?

“No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money” Matthew 6:24 ESV

We will either serve the almighty God or we will serve powerless mammon. If you have debt, there’s no need to freak out. Instead, get mad! Getting mad at the debt is one of the most efficient ways of making sure you get rid of it. Break free from the chains of mammon. Choose to serve the living God instead.

Debt Free idols

It’s easy to turn your finances into an idol. Your financial status has a lot of impact on your life. Always keep in mind who impacts your financial status more than you can ever hope of doing: the Lord.

“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. 13 You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29:11-13 ESV

“Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.” Job 1:21 ESV

The Lord generally have plans for our welfare. We can rely on him no matter if we are in debt or debt free. What we can’t rely on is our money, or credit cards or anything else. We came into this world naked and we will leave naked. Everything we have is from the Lord.

It is equally tempting to serve mammon when we have plenty, as when we are in want. The cure is to remember that everything in your life is a part of God’s provisions.  

What should you do if you are in debt?

Run! No wait, strike that. Hide! No, that’s no good either. The best thing you can do if you have debt is to face it head on and pay it off. No matter if it’s a molehill or a mountain, you can pay it off one cent at a time. One way you can free up money to do that by using a price book to save a fortune on groceries.

In rare cases, you may have to file bankruptcy. Don’t worry, you are still a child of the Most High. There is still a new grace for you every morning, just as there is for me.

Open your Bible. It contains more verses on the topic of money than on any other topic.  

If you feel discouraged, then I would tell you to read More Than Just Making It by Erin Odom (affiliate link).

If you don’t know where to start, then read The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey (affiliate link).

You can actually get both for free with a one month trial of Audible (affiliate link). If you can cancel right away you still keep the books so there’s no risk of spending money you didn’t mean to.

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