Last Sunday I spoke on the biblical passage which included the Apostle Paul’s example & teaching: “…Nor did we eat anyone’s bread without paying for it, but with toil and labor we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you. …If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat” (2 Thes. 3:8-10). I pointed out how socialism contradicts Scripture & destroys a strong, biblical work ethic. While socialism is government-forced redistribution of wealth grounded in envy, covetousness & legalized theft with the goal of an egalitarian society, the Bible respects personal property & private enterprise, along with acknowledging everyone will not have the same amount of resources due to their family inheritances, work ethic & financial behaviors. [See that message here.]
But since I didn’t have time to speak to this further, I said I’d write a little more about it here. This is a concerning topic because more Christians are welcoming socialism as the economic system that best fulfills the golden rule. Some try to paint Jesus as a socialist because of his concern for the poor. They think socialism equates with the idea of helping people. But Jesus never advocated any form of forced redistribution. Instead, He said, “The laborer deserves his wages” (Luke 10:7). In His parable of the talents, for example, he showed that healthy ambition is good & should be rewarded (Matt. 25:14-30). Total equality is neither just nor realistic.
In socialism, it doesn’t matter whether you work hard or not, or are productive or not—everybody gets the same. You can see how that discourages work & leads not to prosperity but poverty (except for the elite in charge of the system). The world’s sense may be that profit is synonymous with greed, materialism, & corruption. But every economic system is populated with people who have motives that are less than virtuous. Socialism would be fine if everyone were honest & had a great work ethic. But they don’t. Socialism doesn’t eradicate sinful motives—in fact, it violates moral motives.
Capitalism has its problems & excesses, especially when it gets abused through unfair cronyism, subsidies, political lobbying, tax favoritism, bribery, & regulation to rig the game. Still, it’s the most moral system we have because it encourages the virtue of work & good stewardship. It promotes freedom while producing goods & services for the benefit of others. The rich have often made life for everyone much better with their inventions, employment, & mass-produced products. Capitalism has done more than any other system to lift people out of poverty. Socialism, while claiming to be compassionate, actually increases poverty. Capitalism makes, socialism takes.
A case can be made for a government “safety net” for those who cannot work. But government should not enable those who refuse to work, or won’t work enough. “You shall not steal” applies to individuals, employees who pilfer & don’t give an honest day’s work, companies who cheat employees & customers, & to governments who overtax their citizens & use it for unjust purposes. Socialism concentrates government power & creates dependency & de-facto slavery. It takes away our rights to own property & to fair compensation, & weakens the right of the productive worker to enjoy the fruit of his labor. It also robs people of the freedom to give to the poor voluntarily.
Socialism advocates a progressive income tax. But the biblical principle is that all people should pay the same percentage of income as a “flat tax” (similar to ancient Israel’s theocratic “tithe”). God says not to show favoritism to the rich or poor (Lev. 19:15). If the State didn’t tax us so much, we’d have a greater amount of money to help the poor. Government has proven itself inefficient at best when it comes to alleviating poverty. Actually, governments often claim to be helping us when they offer to fix the problems that they created in the first place! A government that claims to care about the poor should first examine its own monetary policies that drive inflation because devalued money causes prices to artificially climb, which hurts the poor the most.
God has compassion for the special needs of the truly poor, widows, & orphans. He cares that they are not oppressed as victims of injustice. In the days of ancient Israel He made provisions to help them through gleaning fields, no-interest loans, & giving less costly offerings. Christians are encouraged to share & practice charity for those in genuine need (1 John 3:17). The early Church in the book of Acts shared with one another—but it was not by government mandate. It was voluntary charity expressly to help fellow believers (Acts 4:32). If I want to help someone truly in need, I want to reach into my own wallet to do it, not have a welfare state confiscate it from others’ pockets. There’s nothing just or loving about looting other people’s stuff.