Thinking Biblically About Socialism (Part 2)

Turn in your Bible to Matthew chapter 25 and leave it open.

Matthew 25 · chapter mention

We're going to come to that passage later on in the message.

It's rather lengthy.

We're going to look at a parable of Jesus,

and it's too long to put on the screen.

So if you would, Matthew 25,

and have it open there when we come to it

a little bit later in the message.

We're going to continue to think biblically

about socialism this morning.

We're going to look and see how,

as we began last week,

socialism is contrary to God's design

for how life is to be lived in this world

and for us to take care of ourselves and our families

and even people who have legitimate needs.

Christian Post columnist Julie Royce

does a good job of pointing out

one of the foundational flaws of socialism

is that it is based completely on a materialistic view

of life or worldview.

Look at this.

To socialists, suffering is caused

by the unequal distribution of stuff,

and salvation is achieved by the redistribution of stuff.

There's no acknowledgement of spiritual issues.

There's just an assumption

that if everyone is given equal stuff,

all the problems in society will somehow dissolve.

Let me just point out here.

How many people who espouse any aspect of socialism

ever talk about other thing than,

ever talk about anything but materialistic problems?

You rarely ever hear anyone mention

anything about a spiritual problem.

She goes on.

This worldview contradicts Christianity,

which affirms the existence

of both a material and non-material world

and teaches that mankind's greatest problems are spiritual.

The Bible says the cause of suffering is sin.

That's the bottom line, cause.

And salvation is found in the cross of Christ,

which liberates us from sin.

As Christians, we need to understand

socialism is not just a political thing.

It's not just a matter of economics.

It is a moral, spiritual, and biblical issue.

And what I want us to do is continue today

to look at it from a biblical perspective.

Let's go ahead.

I'm gonna cover some of the things we did last week quickly.

I'm not gonna show all the scripture

and certainly not gonna go over everything we did last week,

but to make it flow, we're gonna hit some highlights.

Let's begin with defining what socialism is.

Socialism is any economic or political system

based on government ownership and or control

of important businesses, methods of production,

distribution of goods, et cetera.

Socialism, when you boil it down,

replaces private ownership and or control

of property, production, distribution, and so forth.

It replaces it with government ownership

or control of property, production, and distribution.

You know, one of the goal of socialists in this country

is to redistribute wealth.

And what they're gonna do,

what they're talking about doing

is penalizing those who have been the most successful

in producing wealth for themselves and other people

and more government regulations,

which means government control.

These socialists are talking about rewarding those

who have been the least successful

in producing wealth for themselves and other people

and will make these people more dependent

on the government and the government's control.

All of this, everything in a nutshell

that socialism promotes, desires,

gives government more power and control

over everyone and everything.

Now, how is socialism contrary to God's design?

That's the point we're looking at.

It's not a political message.

It's a biblical message.

How is socialism contrary to God's design?

Well, as we saw last week, real quickly,

God created human beings in His image

and we're the only thing in creation

created in the image of God.

He intends for us to be stewards or managers

of all that He created and owns.

We looked at that from Genesis 1,

Genesis 1:26

verses 26 and 28.

Now, as God's stewards,

God has given human beings the privilege

and the responsibility of having earthly ownership

of private property.

Scripture clearly and repeatedly reveals

that God intends for people like you and me

to own things, to have possessions,

to have private property.

In fact, the entire Old Testament system

of giving offerings and making sacrifices

is based on the fact that human beings own something

and can give it.

R.C. Sproul explains it.

The offertory system of the Old Testament

makes no sense when divorced from the system

of private property.

One of the basic stipulations of making an offering

is that you present something which belongs to you.

You can't give an offering with my money.

I can't give an offering with your money.

If we're going to give unto God,

it's got to be something that originates from us.

We are actually giving of ourselves

something we have earned or acquired.

It's an offering.

Sometimes it's a sacrifice.

The right of human ownership, continue with Sproul,

the right of human ownership is something God has assigned

as a part of our covenant partnership with Him in creation.

Another example from Scripture.

Two of the Ten Commandments reveal that God

not only approves of people's right to own property,

God protects that.

Look at this.

The Eighth Commandment.

You shall not steal.

You know what that means.

God forbids anyone from taking what rightfully belongs

to someone else.

God prevents you from taking from me what is mine.

The Tenth Commandment says, or begins,

you shall not covet.

Covenant is an improper desire,

a sinful desire, a selfish desire.

So God even prevents us from having selfish desires

to have what rightfully belongs to someone else.

So the Bible is clear just from these examples

that socialism or any kind of economic or political system

that prevents private ownership

and personal control of property and possessions

is unbiblical.

Since it's contrary to God's design,

it is unethical.

Now another reason why socialism is wrong

is because it fails to follow God's design

for how people acquire possessions.

Look at this.

God calls human beings to take care of His creation

and themselves by working.

We're going to be real quick with this.

We've looked at it before.

Last week, before sin entered the world,

God gave Adam and Eve jobs to do.

Work to be done.

Look at it.

The general statement.

And God blessed them.

And God said to them,

Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth

and subdue it and have dominion.

More specifically, in Genesis 2.15,

the Lord took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden

to work it and to keep it.

Work did become more difficult after the fall.

That's what a lot of people have in mind,

that work is something that happened

after sin entered the world.

Well, that's in Genesis 3.

And after sin, work became more toilsome,

more burdensome.

But work was originally a part of God's good creation

for all human beings.

The Bible is also filled with statements

about the importance of working

to provide for yourself and your family

and not to be dependent on other people.

Look at this.

I want to just look at some highlights

from these verses.

You should mind your own business

and work with your hands

so that you will not be dependent on anybody.

But if anyone does not provide for his relatives

and especially for members of his household,

he has denied the faith

and is worse than an unbeliever.

One more.

For even when we were with you,

we would give you this command.

If anyone was not willing to work,

let him not eat.

Now such persons we command and encourage

the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work quietly

and to earn their own living.

Now we looked at that last week.

If you were not here last week,

I meant to have said this at the beginning.

I would encourage you to go back,

look online and look at this message

because we covered some good things last week,

important things that'll help you to understand

why socialism is contrary to God's design.

If you don't have access to the internet,

call the church office.

We can send you a copy of it.

R.C. Sproul makes an important statement

that ties together what the Bible says about work

and the ownership of private property.

He says,

the sanctity of labor

is the ground basis for private property.

In both the old and new covenants,

the call to labor is an emphatic one,

bringing fruit as its just reward.

The avoidance of labor is regarded as sin.

Paul commands labor as an ethical norm.

Now I want you to notice the second sentence in particular.

Look at it again.

In both the old and new covenants,

the call to labor is an emphatic one,

bringing fruit as its just reward.

Sproul is saying here

that God intends for our work

to be fruitful or to be productive.

And one of the fruits of our labors

is that we acquire things.

We accumulate wealth.

Now, God holds us responsible

to do it the right way.

We'll talk more next week

about the dangers of wealth.

And there are Bibles filled with statements,

warnings about the dangers

of acquiring wealth the wrong way

and using it the wrong way.

So it matters greatly to God

our motivation, our actions,

how we treat people

as we work and accumulate wealth.

But God does intend for us

to be rewarded for being productive.

God intends for us to be rewarded

to experience and enjoy the fruits

of our labor without guilt.

So keep that in mind.

We're going to come to it

in more detail in a moment.

God intends, the next point,

God intends for the work of human beings

to be productive or fruitful and rewarding.

Now, I want us to think about Genesis 128.

Immediately after God created Adam and Eve,

He charged them with this responsibility.

Look at it.

And God blessed them,

and God said to them,

Be fruitful and multiply

and fill the earth and subdue it

and have dominion over the fish of the sea

and over the birds of the heavens

and over every living thing

that moves on the earth.

Several commentators point out

how the command to subdue the earth

means to make the earth productive,

make this world useful for human beings.

Now, I think Wayne Grudem does the best job

of explaining how this works,

what this means and how it works.

Look at this.

He says,

The Hebrew word translated as subdue

means to make the earth useful

for human beings' benefit and enjoyment.

God was entrusting Adam and Eve

and by implication of the entire human race

with stewardship over the earth.

God wanted them to create useful products

from the earth for their benefit and enjoyment.

At first, perhaps,

simple structures in which to live and store food,

later various forms of transportation

such as carts and wagons,

then eventually modern homes,

office buildings and factories,

as well as cars and airplanes,

the entire range of useful products

that could be made from the earth.

In this way,

God gave to human beings

the ability to create value

in the world that did not exist before.

Now, I want you to think.

In the beginning,

God created everything.

He created Adam and Eve

and put them in the garden.

And He gave them this command.

Subdue the earth.

Get dominion.

And what Grudem is saying is,

from the beginning of creation

right up till today,

that's what has happened.

Human beings,

by the grace and enabling wisdom

and power of God,

have taken the raw materials of creation

and through thinking

and being creative

and trial and error

and all these kind of things,

have put things together

in a way

that we know them today

as clothes

and cars

and homes

and computers.

This didn't just fall out of the sky one day.

This is how God has worked

through human beings

to make life

in some ways simpler,

some ways more complex,

but to make life easier,

more enjoyable,

more productive

as time has gone on.

Now, you think to yourself,

I wish I could go back in time.

I want to ask you something.

Do you really wish

you could go back

and live in a cabin in the woods

with no running water,

no heat in the winter,

no cooling in the summer,

no way to get around

but to walk or ride a horse,

an outhouse,

and all those kind of things?

I'll be honest with you.

I enjoyed sleeping last night

and getting up this morning

in an air-conditioned house.

Taking a shower with hot water.

I enjoyed getting in my truck

and driving up here

with air-conditioning on.

I'm glad I'm not running around

in a loincloth,

and I know you are too.

This is what has happened.

According to the design of God,

people have

used their God-given,

because we're created in God's image,

ability,

creativity

to make life

advance as it has

and to be where we are right now.

Grudem goes on to point out

how God

is the one who gave us

the desire

to be productive like this.

Look at it.

Because God gave to human beings

the command to subdue the earth,

it is reasonable to conclude

that He also placed in our hearts

a desire to fulfill that command.

We should not dismiss

this innate human drive

for material productivity

and flourishing

as greedy materialism

as many socialists do,

or sin.

It can be distorted

by selfishness and sin,

and we know that it is.

But the drive to create,

produce,

and enjoy useful products

ultimately comes

from a morally good,

God-given instinct

that He placed

within the human race

before there was any sin

in the world

when He commanded Adam and Eve

to fill the earth,

subdue it,

and have dominion

over all of it.

Socialists

like to condemn

prosperity

and the accumulation

of wealth

by saying

it just comes

from greed

or an abuse

of power

and privilege

or a lack

of concern

for anyone

but yourself,

especially the poor

in society.

Well,

that is true

about some people

who are prosperous

and wealthy,

but I want you

to know this too.

That's true

about poor people.

Poor people

can be just as greedy

as rich people.

Poor people

can just be all

about themselves

and care nothing

about anyone

just as much

as a wealthy person.

And a poor person

can take what little

power or privilege

they have

and abuse other people

or ignore other people

with it.

The truth is,

the fact is,

many people

have become prosperous,

have accumulated

wealth

by working hard,

being productive,

and wisely

managing their money.

And I want you

to think,

isn't that what

you have done

to this point

or tried to do?

It's what I try

to do.

Isn't that what

you want to do

right now

to provide for yourself

and your family?

to work,

to be productive,

to wisely manage

what you have,

to let it accumulate,

and then to enjoy it

the right way,

God's way?

that's what

we're talking about

this morning.

And when we do enjoy,

well,

we should be able

to enjoy the fruit

of our labor

without guilt,

and we should be able

to enjoy it

without the fear

of anyone,

including the government,

taking it away

from us

and redistributing

it to people

who may not care

anything in the world

about being productive

or wisely managing

what they have.

Look at the next point.

God wants us

to enjoy the rewards

of faithful labor,

and I want to show you

how that is seen

in two parables

that Jesus told

God rewards stewardship.

The first one

is what we're going

to read

from Matthew 25.

Matthew 25,

beginning in verse 14.

The parable of the talents.

Now, talent

was a huge sum of money,

a monetary unit

worth about 20 years' wages

for a laborer.

You'll see in the footnote

of the ESV translation.

Here's the story

Jesus told.

For it will be like

a man going on a journey

who called his servants

and entrusted to them

his property.

To one he gave

five talents,

to another two,

to another one,

to each according

to his ability.

Now notice that.

In the original distribution

by the master

who represents God,

he doesn't give

the same to each person.

He gives one five,

one two,

and one one,

each according

to his ability.

Then he went away.

He who had received

the five talents

went at once

and traded with them,

and he made

five talents more.

So also,

he who had the two talents

made two talents more.

But he who had received

the one talent

went and dug

into the ground

and hid

his master's money.

Now after a long time,

the master

of those servants

came and settled

accounts with them.

And he who had received

the five talents

came forward,

bringing five talents more,

saying,

Master,

you delivered to me

five talents here.

I have made

five talents more.

His master said to him,

Well done,

good and faithful servant.

You've been faithful

over a little.

I will set you over much.

Enter into the joy

of your master.

And he also,

who had the two talents,

came forward,

saying,

Master,

you delivered to me

two talents here.

I have made

two talents more.

His master said to him,

the very same thing

that he said

to the guy with five.

He said,

I lost my place.

His master said to him,

Well done,

good and faithful servant.

You have been faithful

over a little.

I will set you over much.

Enter into the joy

of your master.

Now,

he also,

who had received

the one talent,

came forward,

saying,

Master,

I knew you

to be a hard man,

reaping where you

did not sow

and gathering

where you scattered

no seed.

So I was afraid.

And I went

and hid your talent

in the ground.

Here,

you have what is yours.

But his master

answered him,

You wicked

and slothful servant.

You knew that I reap

where I have not sown

and gathered

where I have scattered

no seed.

Then you ought

to have invested

my money with the bankers.

And at my coming,

I should have received

what was mine

with interest.

So take the talent

from him

and give it to the one

who has the ten talents.

For to everyone

who has,

more will be given.

And he will have

an abundance.

But from the one

who has not,

even what he has

will be taken away.

And cast the worthless

servant

into the outer darkness.

In that place,

there will be weeping

and gnashing of teeth.

Now I want you to note,

the three servants

received three different

amounts of talent.

Five, two, and one.

Two servants were commended

for being productive

even though one

was twice as productive

as the other.

They did not start out

financially equally

and they did not end up

being equally,

being financially equal.

The one who had more

at the beginning

had even more

at the end.

More than the other guy.

But they were both

rewarded for their faithfulness,

their productivity.

The unfaithful servant

was condemned

for his laziness

laziness

and failure

to be productive.

No wealth

was redistributed.

In fact,

what he had

was taken from him

because he was irresponsible.

Jesus told a similar parable

in Luke chapter 19,

Luke 19 · chapter mention

the parable of the minas.

A mina was about

three months wages

for a laborer.

What I want us to do

is look at Matthew 25,

this parable of Talos.

In light of R.C. Sproul's

definition of socialism

from last week.

Look at it.

Sproul said,

socialism seeks

as its premier goal

the equality of wealth

and equality of ownership

within a society.

To accomplish this,

the government must be involved

in the redistribution

of wealth.

That parable

that Jesus told

teaches the very opposite

of what socialism seeks.

There was no intent

in Jesus' story

to bring about

equality of wealth

or ownership.

There was no intent

to redistribute wealth.

Jesus, in fact,

commends those

who are productive

with what they have,

even though their production

is not the same.

And Jesus rewards

each

who are productive

because of their faithfulness.

Not because of their equality,

but because of their faithfulness.

Now,

we're going to come back

next week

and look at some

of the many warnings

found throughout the Bible

about the dangers

of money

and prosperity.

We've got to do that.

We cannot ignore the fact

that money and prosperity

has ruined many people.

Many Christians

have pursued wealth

and as a result

moved away

from their commitment

to the Lord.

So,

while the Bible talks about

it is right and good,

proper,

according to God's design,

to work,

to accumulate things,

accumulate wealth,

wisely manage it.

But at the same time,

there are warning

after warning.

It can be dangerous.

Money can be dangerous.

And wealth

in and of itself

is not something,

it's not a worthy pursuit

for God's people.

But socialists

are wrong

to blanketly condemn

private ownership,

individual productivity,

and the accumulation

of wealth.

That's the point

this morning.

Wayne Grudem

rightfully describes

the value of work,

productivity,

and the enjoyment

of the fruit of our labor.

One of these final points,

look with me.

He says,

the system of personal

ownership of property

that is affirmed

throughout Scripture

is essential

for human flourishing.

Because without the ability

to own and enjoy

something of the fruit

of his labor,

a person will have

little motivation

to create

and produce.

You think about it.

If you work

and you're productive

and you are rewarded

justly, rightly,

you accumulate wealth,

but then the government

starts intervening

and taxes everything

you make,

prevents you

from accumulating wealth,

are you going to continue

to work like you have?

Are you going to continue

to work

to give it all away

so it can be redistributed

to people who don't work?

No.

You wouldn't.

It would not be wise

to do that.

Look at what he says

at the end.

We glorify God

by understanding

and ruling

over the creation,

then by producing

more and more

wonderful goods

from it

for our enjoyment

with thanksgiving

to the God

who richly provides us

with everything

to enjoy.

Let's close it out

like this.

Are you seeking

to glorify God

by your productive work?

Or,

are you seeking

to glorify yourself

with your hard,

productive work?

Are you enjoying

the fruits of your labor

and acknowledging it

as one of God's

good gifts?

Or,

are you enjoying

the fruit of your labor

with no thought

that it's a gift

from God?

Are you giving thanks

to God

as the source

of everything

that you have?

Or,

are you patting yourself

on the back

because of what you

have earned,

achieved,

been able to do?

I want us to close

with an important word

about wealth

in 1 Timothy 6.

Paul writes,

as for the rich

in this present age,

charge them

not to be haughty

nor to set their hopes

on the uncertainty

of riches,

but on God

who richly provides us

with everything

to enjoy.

You see the balance

of Paul's statement?

As for the rich

of this present age,

charge them

not to be haughty

because it's easy

to become prideful

if you become wealthy.

Nor to set their hopes

on the uncertainty

of riches.

We forget about

the uncertainty

of riches.

But set our hopes

on God

and think about this,

who richly provides us

with everything

to enjoy.

They are to do so

to be rich

in good works,

to be generous

and ready

to share,

thus storing up

treasure for themselves

as a good foundation

for the future

so that they might

take hold

of that

which is truly

life.

It is good

for us

to work

and save

and have something

for the future,

for the rainy day,

for retirement.

But it's even

more important

that we be storing

up treasures

in heaven

through our

faithfulness

to God

with what He

has given us

in every way,

time, talents

and treasures.

And you know

there's going to

come a day

for most of us

if we live long enough

we're going to want

to lay hold

of that

which we have

saved,

invested.

We're going to

lay hold of

retirement funds

hopefully.

A retirement life

maybe.

But what's

most important

is that we

be prepared

to take hold

of that

which is truly

life,

eternal life.

And that only

comes through

a right relationship

with Jesus Christ.

It's vitally

important in this

day and time

living in this

country that we

understand that

socialism

is contrary

to the teaching

of the Bible.

It's unethical.

It's immoral.

But at the same

time

we must not

make the focus

of our life

acquiring,

possessing,

owning

anything.

The goal of our

life is to glorify

God,

to serve His

purpose,

enjoy His

blessings,

thanks.

But to walk

with Him,

to walk with

Christ,

as Mainline was

singing,

step by step

through faith

with Jesus,

through this

world,

that's the only

way we'll be

ready to enter

the next world,

as Paul says,

which is truly

life.

Let's pray

together.

Father,

show us

now how

we need to

respond to

You in light

of what You

said to us.

Father,

help us to

understand

that working,

being responsible,

being productive

is the way You

created us to be.

Help us to see

that being

rewarded for

faithfulness is

also a part of

Your design,

and we

shouldn't feel

guilty.

We shouldn't be

made to feel

guilty.

Lord,

help us to

make sure

that our

work,

our accumulating,

our wealth

has taken

place for

the right

reason and

in the right

way.

If it

hasn't,

help us to

confess that

as the

sin that

it is

and turn

from it.

Help us

to make

sure,

dear God,

that Jesus

is the

Lord of

our life,

not money

or not

things.

And

Father,

if there's

anyone in

this room

who does

not know

Christ as

their Lord

and Savior,

call them

now to

turn from

their sin

to trust

Jesus as

absolute

Lord,

boss,

owner of

their life.

that's

just in

an attitude

of prayer

to listen

to the

Lord and

respond to

him personally.

Just make

this a time

of commitment,

recommitment,

whatever it is

you need

right now.

Thank you.