1
Business for the Glory of God
Essay Liberty University
BUS 301: Business
Law Dr. Dragseth
April 19, 2020
In Wayne Grudem’s “Business for the Glory of God”, he discusses and
outlines
2
the different Christian sides of the business world. He shows all aspects of
business, including profit, money, borrowing, etc., but my essay is here to
talk about the ownership aspect of business. Grudem explains how people in
the business world are made to feel somewhat guilty because “very few
people instinctively think of business as morally good in itself” (Grudem).
Many people look at the business world negatively because of scandals that
have happened in the past. Some giant companies have been involved with
dishonesty claims and illegal activities, but this book goes to show that the
business field has good aspects to it, and that these aspects will bring glory
to God in the end.
Business ownership and ownership of possessions is overall
fundamentally good. There are many ways that ownership will give
opportunities to glorify God. Some people think that ownership can become
morally tainted and greedy, but that is only if the power of ownership and
possession is being abused. If it is used properly and for the benefit of
everyone, there should not be room for uncertainty. Grudem goes on to tell
us about the Christian viewpoint of ownership, and it’s positive and negative
aspects. There are many scriptures showing how ownership is given to us by
God, and why he does not have a problem with people having possessions.
There are many advantages of having ownership, specifically of businesses.
Business owners have indepence, financial rewards, learning opportunities,
creative freedom, and personal satisfaction. There are always going to be
negatives in any situation, but in ownership, the positives outweigh the
negatives. There are also lifestyle advantages that business owners will gain.
3
In an article I found, the author tells us “A business owner has the advantage
of choosing when and where you work” (Upcounsel). Grudem goes on to talk
4
about how ownership gives people the ability to give back to people in need,
but explains how to save resources so that there are still some for future
use. He goes on to explain some of the negatives how people could become
greedy, or be ungrateful.
There are many different aspects to the ownership world, and many people
see it in different ways, but overall, God believes that ownership should be
allowed, and there are many positive aspects of it.
One idea that I agree with that Grudem gives us is that ownership lets
us be able to give back to the community and environment, all while
glorifying God. He gives us the example about giving money away, and
trusting in God to be able to give it back to us for future needs. We are not
only giving our property and ownership to someone else who needs it, but
we are also putting our faith and trust in God to help us in the future.
He also goes on to talk about how to use our property to give back to the
Earth. If someone has the possession of tools and equipment, they can use
these to make the Earth more useful for human needs. These owners can
“extract materials from the Earth” (Grudem). In an article, they explain to us
that “business owners need to make sure they are people focused” , and
they also “support other local business owners” (Lisa). This goes to show
that having ownership can go a long way to giving back to the communities
and environment. Another idea that Grudem expresses that I agree with is
that ownership leads some to be tempted to misuse our resources and
become greedy. There are many ways in which the resources that people
across the world own can come back and actually hurt the Earth instead of
5
getting back to it. With owning any kind of property or money, people can
become overwhelmed with the luxuries of this. This is one of the few
disadvantages of having ownership. People can stray from God’s light,
6
and they can take advantage of being able to have their own property and
resources all to themselves. Instead of giving back to the community,
people will forget the main goals and why God wants us to be able to have
ownership of our own things. God tells us in Luke 6:30 “Give to everyone
who begs from you, and from one who takes away your goods do not
demand them back”. He is trying to tell us that when we give back to our
communities, we should not expect something in return. That does mean
that we will not be repayed for what we have done, he just wants us to give
back out of the goodness of our hearts.
One thing expressed that I do not completely agree with is that we
should use our possessions not to make other goods but for our own
enjoyment. I believe that we should be able to use our possessions in any
way we choose. That does not mean that I don’t think we should use them
for our enjoyments, but I believe that we as owners should be able to decide
what we want to do with our possessions. As an owner, mainly a business
owner, you are meant to have your own independence. One quote I found
says that with owning your own business “you do what you want, how you
want, when you want” (Ward). This goes to show that with ownership, you
should be able to choose what you want to do with what you own.
Grudem’s book Business for the Glory of God tells us all of the sides of
the business world, but also goes into depth of a Christian viewpoint. He
explains the positives and negatives of all aspects of the business world. This
essay goes into depth about the idea of ownership, and what all that includes.
Grudem going into great detail about all ideas and aspects of the business
7
world while gloryfying God, and he does a great job doing this. This was
overall a great book to read.
8
References
Lindeskog, M., Clement, M., Pace, B., & Lisa. (2019, November 19). How To Give Back To
Your Community As A Business Owner. Retrieved from https://inspiretothrive.com/how-to-give-
9
back-to-your-community/
Major Benefits of Business Ownership. (n.d.). Retrieved from
https:// www.upcounsel.com/major-benefits-of-business-ownership
Ward, S. (2020, February 4). Why Owning Your Own Business Is Better Than Being an
Employee. Retrieved from https:// www.thebalancesmb.com/the-advantages-of-owning-your-
own-business-2948555
