Running head: ACCOUNTING AND THE BIBLE 1
When Two Worlds Collide.
Liberty University
April 21, 2016
Accounting 212
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Accounting and The Bible
When referring to accounting, one doesn’t naturally connect the subject to our Lords written
word in the Bible. Taking into consideration all his guidance and assurance in all aspects of our lives.
Accounting is used in everyday life, whether it be personal or business. Saving money, having and
controlling debt, budgeting, and seeking God for guidance is a major part of accounting. In today’s
society people rarely refer to the Bible when it comes to finances. When these two worlds work together
as one the Bible helps guide an individual or business with saving money, budgeting, and debt.
One aspect of accounting is budgeting. Budgeting is used for personal and business use. One
example of a budget is the church budget. The church needs to be able to know what funds are coming
in and what funds are available. Budgets help businesses know where they are, what they need to
accomplish and where they can change to improve their financial standing. (Evans, n.d.) The church as a
whole will need to budget, but departments within the church will also need to develop a budget. For
example, the church youth group. The youth group wants to take a trip. A budget needs to be used to
know how much money is needed for the trip; accommodations, food, the cost of the activity, and so on.
God’s Word, the Bible, is filled with principles of sound financial management. (Evans, n.d.) Most
churches have a board of directors. The board of directors will include, the Pastor and the head of each
department. They will need to seek guidance through God’s word for the monthly expenses and the
extras each department may want. God's Word says, "Buy the truth, and sell it not; also wisdom, and
instruction, and understanding" (Prov. 23:23). "Through wisdom is a house builded; and by
understanding it is established: and by knowledge shall the chambers be filled with all precious and
pleasant riches" (24:3, 4). (Fooshee, n.d.) We need to trust God in every aspect of our lives, whether
personal or business. If a business needs new equipment but the income will not allow for new
equipment, the business owner or department head should pray and know God has a plan. Do not stress
and give it all to God.
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Accounting and The Bible
Saving is an important aspect in both personal and business finances. “Savings, according to
Keynesian economics, consist of the amount left over when the cost of a person's consumer expenditure
is subtracted from the amount of disposable income that he or she earns in a given period of time.”
(Savings, n.d.) In the Bible its states God is our provider, and it is important to use the minimum amount
he is providing and save the remaining. Whether the business is saving for new equipment or a family is
saving for a child’s college fund. Proverbs 21:20 states, the wise man saves for the future but the foolish
man spends whatever he gets. This verse provides the assurance that God is expressing the value of
saving. Your savings shouldn’t be out of arrogance or pride it should be for the intent to help an
individual or an organization. Providing for others is a sure grace of God. In Proverbs 21:5 the plans of
the diligent lead surely to advantage, but everyone who is hasty comes surely to poverty. If an individual
or organization to become greedy and selfish with their savings it is going against the word of God.
What is debt? According to Merriam-Webster the full definition of debt is: 1. Sin, Trespass.
2. Something owed, Obligation. 3. A State of owing (Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary). Financial
debt, in regards to accounting can be a bit complex. Debt is associated with words and terms like,
Interest rate, loan note, balance sheet, risk, and liabilities just to name a few. Companies gather
information about a potential borrower and use accounting to decide if the borrower will be a risk. A
business that has more long term debt than it has equity is considered to be a risk. One way this is done
is by computing the debt ratio. The higher the ratio, the bigger the risk the borrower is considered to be
(Wild & Shaw, 2016). We must also consider the spiritual aspect of financial debt. The Lord’s Prayer asks
that God forgive us for our debts and that we should also forgive our debtors (Matthew 6:12, King James
Version). Paul tells us to “owe no man anything, but to love one another, for he that loveth another hath
fulfilled the law (Romans 13:8, KJV). Do not put someone off that you owe. Getting into debt is not the
sin, but to continue in the debt without repaying is. God commands us to help poor people and to lend
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Accounting and The Bible
them what they need (Deuteronomy 15:8, KJV). Excessive borrowing by Christians reveals their lack of
faith in God to provide a way (Reagan, n.d.).
Another one of the key aspects in our lives in our personal relationship with God is making sure
we are seeking him for guidance in all things. This is regarding guidance from God in all things not just
the business world, marketing systems and in business accounting principles. Instead, we should be
seeking God for guidance in every single step of our day, so we make sure that we are doing his will for
us and not meeting our “wants” for the day. In Proverbs 3:5-6 (King James Version) the word states,
“Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways
acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” As Christians in the Accounting field, we need to make
sure that we are acknowledging him at all times, not just through the good times but the trials as well. In
the accounting field, it can be very stressful with all the work that is needed to be done in order to
succeed in your job at your best capability. This is where Proverbs 3:5-6 comes into play, we are told to
trust the Lord with all our heart and not lean on our own understanding. We are also told to
acknowledge him in all our ways and he shall direct our paths. As an example in Accounting, if I was to fill
out a balance sheet, an income statement and record journal entries as well; then later on find out that I
made an error during the recording of the journal entries, instead of stressing out, I need to trust the
Lord, seek him for guidance instead of relying on my own understandings so he will direct my paths and
give me wisdom to fix the errors. Vis-versa, if I am succeeding throughout my job in accounting, I am to
acknowledge him in everything that is done because he is the supply of my wisdom, he is the one
directing my paths. In order to be what God calls us to be, we need to trust in him, lean not unto our
own understanding but to praise the Lord at all times; letting him guide our paths. As well, to be a
successful Christian accountant we need to understand to trust in the Lord always and let him direct our
decisions.
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Accounting and The Bible
God provides us with the path for us to follow, along with the wisdom to be successful in all that
we do. After analyzing the accounting principles; budget, savings, debt and seeking God for guidance it is
clear His word directly contributes to those principle and how Christians should view and engage in our
Lord all aspects of our lives to include financially. 2 Corinthians 9:8: And God will generously provide all
you need. Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others.
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Accounting and The Bible
References
Debt, (2016) In Merriam-Webster.com, Retrieved April 2, 2016 from
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary
Evans, E. (n.d.). Life Hope and Truth. Retrieved from Life Hope and Truth Web site:
http://lifehopeandtruth.com/relationships/finances/christian-budget/
Fooshee, G. (n.d.). Back to the Bible. Retrieved from Back to the Bible.org:
http://www.backtothebible.org/10-financial-principles-that-are-biblical
Reagan, D., (n.d.) Owe no man. Biblebeliever.com, Retrieved from
http://www.biblebeliever.com
Savings. (n.d.). Retrieved from Investopedia: http://www.investopedia.com/terms/s/savings.asp
Wild, J., & Shaw K., (2016) Managerial accounting, fifth edition. McGraw-Hill Education
ISBN 13: 978-1-259-17649-4
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