The Christian Economy

The Christian Economy

This article is not about money. It is about “household rules,” which
is what the Greek word, transliterated, economia, means in the
New Testament. Oh, it might have a bearing on what money is and
how it is used. But it is about the way that a family, in this case, the
family of God, conducts itself.

Jane and I listened to a podcast while driving. A man interviewed is
participating with others in seeking to construct an alternate
economy where the products are home-grown, and thus the
purchases benefit local people and thus our own society.

But what struck me is how this speaker is seeking to do what
Christians have always been meant to do: living as Christians in
an ungodly world. We are to carefully adopt Christian values
using Christian patterns of speech and utilizing Christ-like
relationships to accomplish lives and service that glorify Christ.

We have been very sloppy about this. There seems to have been too
much to gain by imitating the world in the pursuit of “the good
life” for us to diligently follow the Christian text and Spirit and
marry it with distinctively Christian practices, or, to pursue “the
God-life.” Now, when I say that we have been very sloppy, I
understand “sloppy” is not a Biblical term. The Bible doesn’t say
“sloppy.” It says “sinful.” When we are more intent in profiting from
the world’s economy than living according to God’s
“economia,” we are guilty of being involved in, as the Old
Testament says, spiritual adultery.

Humility rather than arrogance. That’s part of God’s economia.
Love the things that God loves, and hate the things that He hates.
Be bold in faith, but show restraint in how we express ourselves,
being careful to live pure and holy lives. Serve the Lord before or
instead of serving self. Love people even when they do not love
back. Forgive, and forgive again. Repent, again and again. As you can
see, God’s economia is different from the world’s economy.

Titus 2:11-14 instructs Titus how to lead a group of Christians on the
ungodly island of Crete: “For the grace of God has appeared,
bringing salvation to all men, 12 instructing us to deny ungodliness
and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and
godly in the present age, 13 looking for the blessed hope and the
appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus, 14
who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed,
and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession,
zealous for good deeds.”