written by Bob Lotich, CEPF® | Biblical Personal Finance, Debt Help
Before you begin your journey to get out of debt, it is important to know what the Bible says about debt.
You can then use these truths to build your faith since faith comes by hearing the word.
Once you have a solid understanding of what God has to say about the issue, then you can boldly pray about your debt in faith.
What does the Bible say about Debt?
The borrower is slave to the lender. When you are in debt to another, you enter into a slave/master relationship with your creditor. (Proverbs 22:7)
God wants us to lend to others. Obviously, this is difficult if you don’t have anything to lend. (Deuteronomy 15:6, 28:12, Matthew 5:42)
We are required to pay back what we borrowed. It is easy to take this lightly, but if we borrowed it, we should pay it back.
“Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed.” Romans 13:7
“The wicked borrows but does not pay back, but the righteous is generous and gives;” Psalm 37:21
“It is better not to make a vow than to make one and not fulfill it.” Ecclesiastes 5:4
What the Bible does NOT say about debt
That it is a sin to be in debt. Like mentioned above, it is not God’s best for us, but the Bible does not say that it is a sin.
That God will provide through a loan.He provided for His people in many ways but loans were not his preferred method. That is something to think about next time you get tempted to reach for the credit card.
What are the Biblical promises about debt
The way I look at it, Jesus came to set us free from the bondage of sin. We were slaves to sin, until He set us free. If He wanted to set us free in one area, why would He want us to be slaves in another?
I also love Deuteronomy 28:12:
“The Lord will open for you His good storehouse, the heavens, to give rain to your land in its season and to bless all the work of your hand; and you shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow.”
This verse is one of the promises that I stand on when praying about my debt. The prerequisite listed in Deuteronomy 28:1 is that we “diligently obey the Lord your God.”
God can NOT keep us out of debt
I believe God would love to see His children living debt-free lives. But, as stewards of the money that He has entrusted to us, we have a free will to do what we wish with it. We can choose to give it, save it, spend it, or even spend more than we have.
I also believe that God will work on our behalf to help get us out of debt, but we have a big part to play – to stop spending more than we have! It doesn’t matter how much God provides – as long as we are spending more money than we have, we will always be in debt.
It’s bigger than us
As Christians we have the opportunity to use our finances to build God’s Kingdom. Every decision we make with our money may be much larger than we realize.
Speaking for myself, I know it is easy to get caught up in trying to store up treasures on earth, when I know I should be storing them up in heaven.
Every time I do, I get a gentle nudge back on to the narrow path that I am so thankful for. Storing up treasures in heaven is the way to live!
If you liked this article, be sure to check out the5 Bible verses on moneythat has revolutionized my financial life!
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About Bob Lotich, CEPF®
Bob Lotich, CEPF® is a Certified Educator in Personal Finance and has over 15+ years experience writing about Biblical personal finance. He is the award-winning author of Simple Money, Rich Life and has been named a top 20 social influencer in personal finance. Check out his on-demand Christian financial class for couples, small groups and churches called True Financial Freedom.
