Paul’s money principles for local believers
Following up on my previous post about Paul’s relationship with money, working, and ministry, this post is seeking to answer this question:
How did Paul encourage the local believers in local churches to interact with money and their personal ministry?
Let’s start with this first category:
Believers with jobs
There were a few people in the New Testament that were known by their occupation.
Romans 16:23 - Erastus the Treasurer
Erastus is the city treasurer. And he sends greetings to the church at Rome. It seems likely that Erastus was the city treasurer of Corinth. This may have been a different guy than the coworker listed in Acts 19:22. Either way, he is clearly listed as a disciple of Jesus, he is recognized by Paul, and he is working a job.
Colossians 4:14 - Luke the Physician
Luke, the beloved physician. It’s funny how commonplace the knowledge that Luke was a doctor has become, all stemming from this one verse. No one ever talks about Luke as a journalist, which is his more lasting contribution to history and Christendom. Did his doctor job ever combine with his ministry job? That is unclear, but his vocation is how he is known, even to this day.
Titus 3:13 - Zenas the Lawyer
There’s some irony that this verse both notes that Zenas had an occupation AND also includes instruction for Titus to help him financially (along with Apollos).
I think Erastus, Luke, and Zenas being named with their occupations probably served more as identifiers than anything else. We know they were not the only coworkers of Paul to have other jobs (Priscilla & Aquila come to mind). I find it encouraging that we can know them by their vocation and that their trade was still a part of their identity even as they were coworkers for the Gospel.
1 Corinthians 7:17-24 - Don’t change a thing
In 1 Corinthians 7:17, Paul says: “Nevertheless, each person should live as a believer in whatever situation the Lord has assigned to them, just as God has called them. This is the rule I lay down in all the churches.”
Let me restate that. The instruction Paul gives in all of the churches is this: However you were, whatever you were like when you were called to follow Jesus, that’s how you should continue to live. Just live out that same life as a disciple who is obeying Jesus.
He then goes on to give the example of circumcision, which if I may offer my opinion, is a much bigger life change than a new job or place to live. Pursuing the mission of Jesus wherever you are isn’t about a major adaptation of your life plans externally, but instead an internal turning over every part of your life to God. If you live the life you’ve been given 100% for Jesus, God will use that to build his kingdom.
Of course, there is space for changes. Paul encourages slaves to seek freedom if they can do so. But again he ends with a charge to remain the same way you were when you started following Jesus. Paul’s general instruction for new believers in new churches was to not leave their normal lives, raise financial support, and hit the road. Instead, he told them to stay where they were. Yes, he did take some leaders along with him, (Timothy in Acts 16:1-3 is one example), but we should see this as the exception that proves the rule, not the normative call for disciples in New Testament churches.
1 Thessalonians 4:11-12 - Work.
Paul instructs the Thessalonians to attend to their own business and work with their own hands. The two purposes he gives for this are so that they will relate well to outsiders and will not be in need.
Please note this does not mean that Paul wanted them to be quiet about sharing the news of Jesus. Paul was encouraged by the good news ringing out from the church of Thessalonica (1 Thessalonians 1:8) and would have wanted that to continue.
2 Thessalonians 3:6-13 - Earn the food you eat.
Paul, as an apostolic worker, saw that he had the right to ask for provision (v9) but chose not to make use of that right so he could set an example to the Thessalonians. It was especially concerning to Paul that some in the church were not working at all (v11).
Acts 20:35 - Help the weak.
Part of Paul’s final challenge to the Ephesian elders is that they should help the weak. We see this throughout Acts: the established local church cares for the needs of the poor in its midst. (Steve Addison has a great section about this in his new book.)
Acts 28:30-31 - What to do when you stay.
In my first post on this topic (link) I focused mainly on what we could learn from Paul’s work as an apostle/missionary. This verse, at the end of Acts, actually speaks to principles for those that are staying. Paul, for two years, was in his own place under house arrest. And he was paying rent. What did he do while he was there? He showed hospitality, preached about the kingdom of God, and taught about Jesus boldly.
Paul himself talks about this time in Philippians 1:12-14 - “Now I want you to know… that what has happened to me has actually served to advance the gospel… it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ.”
Where did he get the money to pay his rent? Philippians 4:18 would seem to indicate that some of his funds were gifts from the Philippian church. And depending on the timing of when the gift arrived, the money could have been exclusively for Paul’s rent. Paul still considers it a gift that is pleasing to God and talks about it like it is money given for a “missions trip.”
So here we have the same mish-mash of ministry and funding as in my original post. Paul paid for his own house… with funds sent by a local church… but while he was there he set an amazing example for any believer that is in a place for a prolonged time… welcome, preach, and teach.
In conclusion, Paul doesn’t provide pages and pages of content for local believers in local churches concerning how they should fund their lives and pursue the continuing growth of the Gospel. However, the norm that he seems to leave them is this:
Work.
Care for the poor.
Share Jesus.
Notes:
Scripture quotations are from NIV.
