Banking and finance is part of God’s design: Pastor Benny Ho presents 5 biblical perspectives on wealth and finance

A biblical theology of banking and finance recognises that money and financial systems as part of God’s design. However, it has been distorted by sin, redeemed in Christ, and ultimately transformed in the new creation. 

Historically, banking and finance has gone through a progressive development. Let me outline the six chronological stages of evolvement. 

6 chronological stages of banking and finance, from the Old Testament to today

A.  Old Testament and New Testament

In the Old Testament, wealth and possessions were seen as gifts from God. 

Deuteronomy 8:18 states: “But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth and so confirms his covenant which he swore to his ancestors as it is today.“ 

But the laws of God recognise that money can be weaponised to oppress the poor and needy. As such, lending was regulated and the Israelites were commanded not to charge interest to fellow Israelites. 

This is seen as a sin of usury. However, charging interest for foreigners was permitted. 

Deuteronomy 23:19-20 tells us this: “Do not charge a fellow Israelite interest whether on money or food or anything else that may earn interest. You may charge a foreigner interest but not a fellow Israelite so that the Lord your God may bless you in everything you put your hands to in the land that you are entering to possess.”

And to prevent generational poverty, the Year of Jubilee was instituted in Leviticus 25 when all debts were released and the economy was given a reset every 50 years. 

Now here we see the heart of God for the poor and needy, the disadvantaged and marginalised. 

And as we move into the New Testament, we can also see from the parables that Jesus told that he assumes the existence of lending and some form of banking system. 

Take, for example, the parable of the talents in Matthew 25:27. Jesus said: “Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers so that when I return, I would have received it back with interest.” So you can see some semblance of banking there. 

The focus of the New Testament seems to move to the issues of the heart like greed, covetousness and trusting in wealth rather than God. 

1 Timothy 6:10, “For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some had wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.”

B. The Early Church and the Church Fathers (1st to 5th centuries) 

The Early Church practiced Kingdom community by caring for the poor and needy. 

Acts 2:44-45 says, “And all who believe were together and had all things in common, and they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need.” 

So the early Church Fathers often condemned any interest on loans as exploiting the poor. The Church Fathers like Augustine, Ambrose, Basil the Great encouraged lending only as charity but not for gain. 

C. The Medieval Church (5th to 15th centuries)

Now during this period, Christians were prohibited by canonical law from charging interest and it was considered as a sin of usury. However, this was the era when economic activity was growing and perspectives towards the creation of wealth were also slowly changing. 

Ps Benny Ho encouraged the Christians who attended Salt&Light’s Christians In Banking and Finance Conference yesterday with biblical perspectives on their work. Image from video.

Now during this time the Jewish community often became moneylenders because they were not governed by Christian canon laws. 

Merchant banking started in places like Venice, Florence and Genoa. Take Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice for example. Now even Christians began to work around the canonical laws with instruments like exchange rates, service fees, financial contracts to circumvent strict usury bans. 

Now in the 13th century St Thomas Aquinas actually allowed the charging of legitimate service fees and for risks that lenders were undertaking. 

This could well be the seedbed for modern banking as we know it today. 

D. The Reformation and the start of the Modern Era (16th to 18th centuries)

Now this was a turning point for the banking industry because a Protestant movement actually brought new shifts in thinking about finance. 

In the 16th century, the great Reformer John Calvin, founder of systematic theology actually allowed for moderate interests when he distinguished between exploitative usury and fair profits. This then opened the way for banking and credit to expand ethically and legally. 

This was when banking families like Medici and later institutions like the Bank of England slowly became the centre of European banking and finance. 

E. The Modern Era (19th to 21st centuries)

Now with the thoughts of economists like Adam Smith and the advent of industrialisation, banking and finance now became foundational to the global economy as an early form of capitalism. 

The Church then developed responses to this whole new phenomenon. The Catholics were critiquing uncontrolled capitalism and they emphasised protection of workers’ well-being and the promotion of justice. 

The Evangelicals, on the other hand, called for stewardship, generosity, ethical investing and the caring of the poor and needy, the disadvantaged and marginalised. 

The Church was greatly used to strongly teach against greed, indiscriminate bordering and usuries lending with high interest rates which cause the poor to become poorer and the rich to become richer. 

And to counter all of this, Christians embrace concepts like micro-financing that provide low interest rate loans to the poor and needy. 

F. The Contemporary Church today

Now today, most Christians recognise banking and finance as neutral tools that can either be exploitative in nature or it can contribute to human flourishing. This distinguishing factors are now measured by principles such as justice, fairness, generosity, and stewardship. 

5 biblical perspectives of the contemporary Church

Here are five biblical perspectives on wealth and finance that the contemporary church today would espouse. 

1. Stewardship and not ownership

God is the owner of everything. We are just stewards but not owners. Psalm 24:1 says: “The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof and the world and all who dwell within.”

Take Haggai 2:8 when the Lord declares: “The silver is mine the gold is mine declares the Lord of hosts.” 

So we are just stewards not owners. 

2. Justice not exploitation

Honest exchange and the fair lending at reasonable interest rates really reflect God’s justice. 

Exodus 22:2 says, “If you lend money to any of my people with you who is poor, and you shall not be like a moneylender to him, and you shall not exact interest from him.” That’s the heart of God. 

Deuteronomy 15:1-4, “At the end of every seven years, you shall grant a release. And this is the manner of the release. Every creditor shall release what he has lend to his neighbor, and he shall not exact it of his neighbor, his brother, because the Lord’s release has been proclaimed. Of a foreigner you may exact it, but whatever of yours is with your brother your hand shall release. But there shall be no poor among you, for the Lord will bless you in the land that the Lord your God is giving you for an inheritance to possess.” 

Now through all these verses, we see the heart of God to uphold justice and to stop the exploitation of the poor and needy. 

Nations can be transformed and thrive, by the power of the Word of God, says Ps Benny Ho. Photo from Depositphotos.com.

There’s a beautiful book written by Loren Cunningham, the late founder of YWAM entitled The Book That Changed Nations. 

In this book, he talked about different nations that were being transformed by the power of God’s Word and one such city is the city of Geneva. 

Geneva is now famous for things like the Geneva Convention. It is the international headquarters of the Red Cross. It is the home of quality Swiss watches like Rolex and Patek Philippe. 

But I want you to note this that it was not like that in the past. The city of Geneva was not famous for all these wonderful things but it was famous for being the smelliest city in Europe. 

Now, if you have ever been to Geneva, you know there’s a river that runs through the city; and along that river in the old days, that’s where the down-and-outs, the criminals, the homeless gather and it and they will do everything there. They do all their businesses there and it became the smelliest city in Europe. The river carried a stench throughout the city and it was just the smelliest city in Europe. Until John Calvin came along. 

Calvin, as you know, was the founder of systematic theology and he was actually born in Geneva. When he began his ministry, he began to teach the Word of God systematically, line upon line, precept upon precept to the people. He taught the city about work ethics, what the Bible has to say about diligence, intelligence, discipline, integrity, things like that. And he taught them that God hated usury. 

As a result, for 20 years Geneva kept their bank interest rates at 4%. Which is a wonderful interest rate to have because it is high enough for those who put their deposits in the bank to get something in return and yet low enough for business people to borrow and be able to make more money. 

The economy began to turn and the city begin to change and evolve to what it is today. But very few people know that it is because of the transformative power of the Word of God. That’s the perspective we need to have. 

3. Generosity and not greed

In Matthew 6:24, Jesus warned against serving money. He said: “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”

The early church modelled radical generosity as an expression of the Kingdom of God. That’s why Acts 2:44-45 says this: “And all who believe were together and had all things in common. They were selling their possessions and belongings, distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need.” 

4. Wisdom and not recklessness

The Book of Wisdom or the Book of Proverbs in the Bible upholds prudence, diligence, saving, planning, and declares war against financial indiscretion. 

Now in Proverbs 6:6-8 says: “Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise. Without having any chief officer or ruler she prepares her bread in summer and gathers her food in harvest.” It speaks to us of prudence and preparation. 

Proverbs 22:7, “The rich rules over the poor and the borrower is a slave to the lender.”

Verses like these call us to be wise, and not be reckless when it comes to financial dealings. 

5. Eternal rather than the temporal

Wealth is earthly and temporal. Our relationship with God is eternal. 

As Billy Graham once said: “When wealth is lost, nothing is lost. But when health is lost, something is lost. But when character is lost, then all is lost.” So we uphold integrity. We uphold the eternal rather than the temporal. 

These are the perspectives that we hold today on wealth and finance. 

This excerpt is taken from a message by Pastor Benny Ho at Salt&Light’s Christians in Banking and Finance Conference, held on October 20, 2025.

Here is the full video:

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