Money and Wealth (Part 3) - Employees and Employers (Part A)

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Money and Wealth (Part 3) - Employees and Employers (Part A) 1. Being an employee or an employer A. Your income is your greatest wealth-building tool. i. “I believe with everything within me that your most powerful wealth- building tool is your income. Ideas, strategies, goals, vision, focus, and even creative thinking are vastly important, but until you get control and full use of your income to build wealth, you will not build and keep wealth. Some of you might inherit money or win a jackpot, but that is dumb luck, not a proven plan to financial fitness. To build wealth, YOU will have to regain control of your income.” (Dave Ramsey, The Total Money Makeover, p. 109) ii. “You’ll hear this from me a lot: your income is your most powerful wealth- building tool. But you’ll only build that wealth and security if you free your income from accidental, careless spending and an endless cycle of debt payments.” (Dave Ramsey, Dave Ramsey’s Complete Guide to Money, p. 64) iii. Managing your income to build wealth will be covered later. B. Employees are called laborers in the Bible. i. Laborer n. – 1. One who performs physical labour as a service or for a livelihood; spec. one who does work requiring chiefly bodily strength or aptitude and little skill or training, as distinguished, e.g., from an artisan (often with defining word prefixed, as agricultural, bricklayer’s, dock, farm, mason’s labourer, etc.). 2. gen. One who does work of any kind, a worker. ii. Laborers earn wages (Joh 4:36). (i) Laborers are hired for an agreed upon wage (Mat 20:1-2). (ii) A laborer’s pay is called his hire (Deut 24:14-15; Mat 20:8). (iii)Hire n. – 1. Payment contracted to be made for the temporary use of anything. 2. Payment contracted to be made for personal service; wages. (iv) A laborer is worthy of his wages (Luk 10:7; 1Ti 5:18). iii. Employees have the right to negotiate their pay with their employer (Gen 29:15-18; Gen 30:25-34). iv. There is nothing wrong with being a laborer. v. There is no such thing as a “base” job (Pro 14:23) as long as it is honest work and a man does it diligently (Rom 12:11) as unto the LORD (Col 3:23-24) with all his might (Ecc 9:10). vi. Any man who works honestly, diligently, and as unto the LORD will not have a “base” job for long. (i) He that is diligent in his business is going places (Pro 12:24; Pro 22:29). (ii) Diligent adj. - 1. Of persons: ‘Constant in application, persevering in endeavour, assiduous’, industrious; ‘not idle, not negligent, not lazy.’ 1. Assiduous adj. - 1. Of persons or agents: Constant in application to the business in hand, persevering, sedulous, unwearyingly diligent.  2. Industrious adj. - 1. Characterized by or showing intelligent or skilful work; skilful, able, clever, ingenious. 2. Characterized by or showing application, endeavour, or effort; painstaking, zealous, attentive, careful. (iii)He that works diligently will prosper (Pro 10:4; Pro 13:4; Pro 21:5). (iv) Consider the following people in the Bible who were diligent in their business and were promoted for it. 1. Joseph (Gen 39:1-6; Gen 41:39-43). a. Prosperous adj. – 1. Having continued success or good fortune; consistently successful; flourishing, thriving. b. Prosper v. – 1. a. intr. Of a person, community, etc.: To be prosperous, fortunate, or successful; to flourish, thrive, succeed, do well. c. Joseph was successful in whatever he did because the Lord was with him, and he obviously worked diligently at it. (v) David (1Sa 18:5). (vi) Jeroboam (1Ki 11:28). (vii) Daniel (Dan 6:3). (viii) Paul the apostle (1Co 15:10 c/w 2Co 11:5 & 2Co 12:11). vii. If you are faithful in your current job, your boss will know that you will be faithful with more responsibility and you will be promoted (Luk 16:10). (i) If you are not faithful in your current position, why would anyone want to promote you to a higher one (Luk 16:11). (ii) If you are not faithful with your employer’s equipment, money, and customers, why would God give you your own business (Luk 16:12).