Can Christian businesses borrow money?
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The borrower is servant to the lender.
– Prov. 22:7b
Years ago I asked some successful Christian executives their opinion on the Scriptural validity of borrowing money to grow a business. I was torn between Dave Ramsey's no-debt approach to personal finance, and on the other hand the opportunity cost of never leveraging corporate growth.
Here are a few notable answers to the question "Is borrowing money to make an acquisition within biblical bounds?"
- I think Romans 13:8 would say no ("Let no debt remain outstanding"). Whether or not that is reality in today's business world, I do not know. My only advice would be for you to consider carefully counting the cost … and then lay it all out before God and ask him for an answer.
- I would think that it is OK to borrow for growth. The difference is between borrowing for consumption vs. borrowing for investment. There is, of course, still risk, and so prudence is required, but I don't think borrowing for acquisition would be inherently sinful.
- My understanding of the biblical position is that borrowing is permitted but should be done cautiously and prudently. The two definite prohibitions of borrowing are (1) if it enslaves the borrower; and (2) if usurious interest is paid.
The Bible doesn't teach that debt is wrong, just that it's dangerous, and something to be forgiven when conscience requires (God forgave our debts, didn't he?) Interesting that the longest debts in ancient Israelite communities lasted only seven years before they were forgiven (see Deut. 15:1).
So the counsel of these leaders and of Scripture is that we should avoid debt if we can, and when we do decide to employ other people's money, we should seek fast freedom before the chains of debt tighten.
Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law (Romans 13:8).
Excerpted from Servant Leader Strong: Uniting Biblical Wisdom and High-Performance Leadership, by Tom Harper (DeepWater Books, 2019).
 | Tom Harper is publisher of BiblicalLeadership.com and executive chairman of Networld Media Group, a business-to-business publisher and event producer. He has written five books, including Servant Leader Strong: Uniting Biblical Wisdom and High-Performance Leadership (DeepWater Books, 2019) as well as the Christian business fable Through Colored Glasses and its sequel Inner Threat (DeepWater, 2022). Learn More » |
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