Preserving financial integrity in the church

Jeff Klick March 10, 2019

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Sadly, many churches are the victims of theft. While a shocking statement, the statistics do not mislead. Consider this quote from one of the leading church insurance providers in the country: 

“According to the Status of Global Mission report from the Center for the Study of Global Christianity, Christians worldwide committed more than $39 billion in church-related financial fraud during the first half of 2014. Compare that to the $35 billion churches spent on worldwide mission work during the same time frame.”

Mind-boggling. Four billion more dollars were stolen than given to missions in the first half of 2014! 

The numbers have not improved since then. What would happen if those numbers were switched? Think how fast the Gospel could be spread if church fraud was reduced, even by a small percentage. While no effort can eliminate human sin, we certainly should not make it easy for people, especially in how we deal with church finances. 

There are multiple resources available for church leaders to consult on how to set up procedures to limit fraud. For example, a colleague and I published a book entitled, Confessions of a Church Felon; Protecting Your Ministry from the Flames of Fraud. Already a required textbook in seminaries, this book explains in detail how to help your church avoid the destruction of theft, and how to deal with it if discovered. 

Church fraud is becoming a national tragedy, and we must learn how to limit and defeat it! Here are a few ideas that every church should implement. These are not limited by church size or budget, and will greatly enhance every ministry in handling kingdom resources.

• Dual Control –No one should ever be alone with the offering. All money should be collected, counted and mail opened with two people present. This limits the temptation to steal cash and also provides protection from accusation to those entrusted with counting. All checks should be restrictively endorsed and a duplicate deposit slip should be made and given to the person responsible for balancing the monthly bank statement.

• Dual check signing —Every check should be signed by two people. In addition, every check, without exception, should have clear, accurate documentation attached to it proving the validity of the expense. The same would be true for credit card purchases. If electronic payments are used, every payment should still have approval and backup documentation. 

• Financial reports —The church should have timely, accurate financial reports. These should clearly show income, expense and cash balances. 

• Bank statements — These should be balanced by someone other than the person writing the checks. This will verify that the deposits have not been changed and no fraudulent checks written. There should also be a limited number of bank accounts. A good accounting system can separate accounts rather than utilize multiple accounts. 

Every church of any size can implement these suggestions and would greatly reduce the risk of fraud, limit temptation and help raise the level of financial integrity in the church. There are others to consider, but even doing this list would help immensely. 

Many times we won’t add these simple steps to our procedures because we don't believe Christians can lie, cheat or steal. I really wonder if we have ever read the Bible! We find it difficult to think of our brothers and sisters being able to steal. We are all sinners and capable of falling.

Any pain experienced by implementing these suggested changes will pale in comparison to having to deal with walking through the discovery of fraud. We can make a difference and we must begin now to do so. 

Please prayerfully consider these thoughts and change what needs to be changed to enhance the integrity of your ministry.

Photo source: istock 

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Dr. Jeff Klick serves as the senior pastor of Hope Family Fellowship, an age-integrated church he planted in 1993. In addition, he is an instructor with The Institute of Church Management and is on the board of The Council for Gospel Legacy Churches. Learn More »

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