172 – Does God Really Care What I Invest In

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Does God Really Care What I Invest In

Bob and Shawn delve into the reasons why God does care what you invest in.

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Join Bob and Shawn as they delve into the topic of Biblically responsible investing, questioning if God really cares where Christians invest their money. Drawing on various scriptures, they argue that Christians should invest in a manner that aligns with their faith and values. There’s a difference between merely doing business with companies and actually profiting from them. Thus, ownership implies a greater level of responsibility.

They also address a common question about whether one can both invest responsibly according to Christian values and have a diversified portfolio. The answer is a resounding yes, noting that there are over 2,500 Biblically responsible companies and a variety of corresponding ETFs and mutual funds. Overall, this episode serves as a guide for Christians who seek to align their financial decisions with their faith.

Mentioned In This Episode

Intro:
Ever wondered if God cares about where you invest your money? What if your investments support things like pornography or abortion? Stick around as we explore why Biblically responsible investing is not just optional for a Christian, it’s essential.

Shawn:
Welcome to another episode of Christian Financial Perspectives. We’re so glad that you joined us today. As always, if you enjoy content on finance, but from a Christian perspective using Biblical principles, we’d love for you to hit that subscribe button and join our growing community of fellow Christians who want to glorify God through their finances. Today we’re going to be covering the topic, “Does God really care what I invest in?” So for example, does God really care if the companies or mutual funds I buy in my IRA or brokerage account support things that are completely against my beliefs as a Christian? The short answer is yes. So end of episode, right Bob?

Bob:
I guess that’s it. Yeah, we have a lot more to share.

Shawn:
We have a lot more to share. So we will go into the why, but as always, I’m joined by my co-host Bob Barber. And Bob, I know this is something that has been near and dear to your heart for many, many years in your chosen field of your profession. So why don’t you take it from here?

Bob:
Okay, I will. So does God really care? That’s a good question. Isn’t it? What you invest in. Does he care if we support companies that are supporting pornography and abortion and destructive behaviors and lifestyles such as the LGBT? You took some of this out.

Shawn:
LGBT+

Bob:
T plus,

Shawn:
There’s a bunch of letters now.

Bob:
Adultery, human slavery, gambling, alcohol addiction, and anti-family entertainment. I believe he does. Does it really matter to God if these companies I invest in support these agendas as long as they’re making a profit? I think it does. Yes, it does matter. And as a Christian, if profit is your only goal, you need to search your heart. And that’s what we’re going to do today. We’re going to search.

Shawn:
That’s right.

Bob:
We’ve got a scripture here.

Shawn:
First scripture for today is 1Timothy6:9-10, which warns us of this by saying, “Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful desires which plunge men into ruin and destruction, for the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil. And some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” I do love that scripture, but I do also understand that many of us have misread or misunderstood that scripture because you hear many times, oh, the love of money is the root of all evil, or the love of money is evil or money is evil. You hear different things like that.

Bob:
Well, you hear money is evil, but it’s the love of money.

Shawn:
Exactly. It’s the love of money. Money is just a tool like a hammer.

Bob:
So what we’re speaking of today is if you put profit above principle….

Shawn:
Right, that’s the problem. And that fits with that scripture as well because it’s the love of money, which is the root of all sorts of evil. So don’t put your love of money ahead of your love of God and what he’s calling you to do and the principles that he has set out for us. So the next scripture.

Bob:
Which comes to investing in companies and what they’re doing.

Shawn:
2 Corinthians 6:17 tells us to, “‘Come out from their midst and be separate,’ says the Lord, “And do not touch what is unclean and I will welcome you.'”

Bob:
Psalms 24:1 says, “The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it.” You know what? That includes our investments, Shawn.

Shawn:
That’s right. I’m pretty sure our investments are in the world, so I would think that would be part of that. Right?

Bob:
Exactly. So when we invest in companies supporting immorality, we’re buying them with God’s money because of that scripture. The earth is the Lord’s. So this is God’s money, and we’re buying those companies that support immorality.

Shawn:
Which leads us to our next scripture.

Bob:
It does.

Shawn:
Which is 2 Corinthians 6:14, which warns us of being yoked together with unbelievers, “For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common, or what fellowship can light have with darkness?” So as a Christian, we are managers and stewards, not owners of God’s property. And when we invest in a company either directly by buying their stock or very common for people is indirectly through say, an ETF or a mutual fund. We are becoming a part owner of that company. And when they profit for supporting immorality, we are participating in it. So I’ve heard this analogy before, Bob, and I think you may have even shared it with me in times past, but there’s a principle here. If someone baked you some brownies…

Bob:
Oh, okay, I know where you’re coming from with this.

Shawn:
And they say, well, I just baked these brownies and there’s a little bit of poop in it. Are you going to eat the brownies? No. Well, they say, well, I only did a little bit. I only did a teaspoon. It doesn’t matter, right? Because whether it’s a lot or a little bit, nobody wants poop in the brownies. Well tie that to the company that you’re investing in, whether you own 100% of it because it’s a company you started, you’re a majority owner of 50% or more, or you own 0.5% or 0.05%. Does it really matter? Because in all those cases, you’re still an owner. And ultimately, if we believe what the Bible says and that we are stewards, that everything belongs to God, what we are involved in and something that we are an owner in, we are ultimately responsible for what that company does. And by being an owner, you are saying, here’s my stamp of approval that I believe in this company and what it’s doing, and I’m okay with how it operates. So if that’s not true, why be an owner?

Bob:
See, this is truly, Shawn, this is a faith walk. And this is a walk of, do you believe that what you believe is really real? Do you trust God with those dollars that he’s given to you? And do you trust them enough even though the companies may be making a profit to say, no, I’m not going to invest in that company if it’s making, just because it’s making a profit. If that company is supporting immorality in any way. And you would be surprised how many are, I mean, it’s about 50% of the S&P 500, but I’m going to point out later how many choices we do have, which is actually a couple thousand. So, we’re still good. So the question that it really comes down to, this heart, your heart. Is it okay for a Christian to profit from a company supporting immorality? And no, never. It’s never okay. But what about doing business with one of those companies? I get this a lot. Well Bob, I’m not investing in them, but how can, I mean, I may be doing business with them. Well, let’s look at it that way. I mean, God’s looking at the heart and I think if we try in every way that we can to not invest in those companies or do business with those companies, that’s what God is looking at. But sometimes that’s not possible. Do you realize that?

Shawn:
I think a good example for that, to try to break it down. When you’re talking about investing, you don’t have a choice of two or three companies. There’s thousands of companies.

Bob:
Right. Exactly.

Shawn:
I mean the S&P 500, there’s still a very large percentage of the S&P 500 that would pass Biblically responsible screens, that would pass the screens that we’re talking about and whether or not you can invest. However, when it comes to the retail side of things, so for instance, you need to get a smartphone. I mean, who doesn’t operate in this world now without some kind of smart device, whether that’s a smartphone, computer, or both. And for many jobs and positions, it’s a necessity. It’s almost impossible. Now, it doesn’t mean you have to get the most expensive fanciest one, but it comes down to you need to have that. It is a requirement on the retail consumer side. I’ll wait for a second, but for those of you watching or listening, can you name the two companies basically that you can pick a smartphone from?

Bob:
We’re not going…

Shawn:
Technically 3.

Bob:
We gotta be careful about that.

Shawn:
But effectively when it really comes down to it, there’s maybe three choices depending on the operating system.

Bob:
And none of them would be Biblically responsible.

Shawn:
And when it comes to computers, there’s effectively…

Bob:
Same thing.

Shawn:
I mean, there’s two operating systems. There’s slightly more companies, but it’s still a handful of companies. So I would argue, here’s the other part, too. It’s not just that there’s a lot less choices for something that’s a necessity, but like you said, Bob, it’s about the heart. And when it comes down to it, when you are the owner of a company, whether a lot or a little bit, that is a very different level of responsibility than you purchased a product one time from a company.

Bob:
Exactly. Because when you buy something from a company, while you may be supporting it, you’re not profiting from it.

Shawn:
And you are not becoming an owner and becoming responsible for what that company is doing.

Bob:
That’s the big difference that you’ve got to associate with this. There’s a difference between investing in the company and buying something from the company. Here’s an example, too. I’ve given this example, and we’ve had Eventide Mutual Funds on here give this example, and I like this example. He says, so I need gas for my car. I’m out in the middle of nowhere, and there’s one of the companies that support some of these agendas that violate Biblical principles. I got to have gas in my car. That same company sells lottery tickets that goes into gambling, of course. And they sell pornographic magazines and they sell some heavy hard liquor, which leads to destructive lifestyles.

Shawn:
But of those four things, the gas is the only one that’s a requirement.

Bob:
Exactly. So I’m getting gas from my car and maybe I’m out in the middle of nowhere and Texas right now it’s a hundred degrees plus and I need some water for my family and some soft drinks and maybe some peanuts. Well, I’m not supporting, like you say, the lottery tickets. I’m not buying the pornography.

Shawn:
And you’re not an owner of the company.

Bob:
Exactly. Exactly. So I’m supporting the good in that company and I’m not an owner in it. That’s an example of how you’ve got to understand the difference between investing and owning it versus needing to support. It’s maybe an essential. That is an essential if you’re out in the middle of the desert, you’ve got to have gas.

Shawn:
Okay. Well, Bob, by that same logic. If you’re listening or watching this and you’re thinking, what else could this apply to? Well, think about movies. There’s a lot of different production companies. They make a lot of different kinds of movies, but you may not be an owner, but you can vote and influence those companies through your dollars on deciding what movies you will and won’t support. So if there’s a movie that is a good movie, it has good values, at the very least, it’s just good, clean, family fun, maybe go support that. But then don’t support the movie that is obviously preaching an agenda that does not align with our values as Christians. Well, that’s one of those things where if the company keeps seeing that they’re not making as much money on certain kinds of movies and they’re making more on the other ones, they’re going to probably make more of the movies they’re making money on.

Bob:
Here’s a question I know people are asking now. I mean, as they’re watching us and as they’re listening to us, they’re going, okay, I want to ask you, Bob, me or you, Shawn, I want to ask, can a Christian invest in Biblically responsible companies and still have a diversified portfolio? Yes. Out of the S&P 500, the midcap index and small cap indexes, there’s over 2,500 Biblically responsible companies a Christian can invest in and many choices of Biblically responsible ETFs and mutual funds across all the asset classes that hold these Biblically responsible companies. So, it is very possible today. Now, when I started this 27, 28 years ago, there were only a few choices. I mean, still there was the markets you could go in, but as far as the mutual funds and the ETFs, there were only a few choices. Now, there’s every choice there is.

Shawn:
And I would just like to say, praise God for that.

Bob:
Amen.

Shawn:
To see how much the industry has changed and realizing that there are a lot of us out there, there is a lot of believers and Christians who want to invest like this. And the market has responded in kind to now have so many more choices where if you just wanted some ETFs and mutual funds, you don’t have to go out and individually pick all these stocks. There are a lot of options now and there didn’t used to be. So I guess to answer that question, you certainly can invest in a diversified portfolio and still remain Biblically responsible. Because the other thing to keep in mind when we say Biblically responsible, we don’t mean that the company is Christian. All we mean is that they are not failing in what we call the negative screens. Abortion, pornography, LGBT+, all those other destructive lifestyles and things like that. And then on the positive side, it’s companies that are doing good through how they treat their employees, how they treat their vendors, the kinds of products they’re producing. So it doesn’t necessarily mean Christian, it just means it passes muster with our principles that we can get behind.

Bob:
So we spent a lot of time back in February of this year, we had a three part series on Biblically responsible investing. What we wanted to cover today is, does God care what you invest in? And he does. I believe he does. It’s all in his word. It’s all about it. Alright. And there’s so much about stewardship in the Bible. So I want to invite those of you who have not listened to the three part series we did on Biblically responsible investing back in February. That was episodes 143, 144, and 145. To go back and listen to those episodes on Biblically responsible investing. We give you the history of it and we give you much more detail about Biblically responsible investing.

Shawn:
And those links will be in the description.

Bob:
Absolutely.

Shawn:
Okay. But if you are driving and listening to this, please stop first before you try to click on this.

Bob:
So we are calling all Christians to basically put their money where their mouth is. Because this is God’s money and to come out and be separate and to really look at Biblically responsible investing and it’s out there everywhere. We can help you put together a portfolio or you can go to www.kingdomadvisors.com and look for a Christian advisor in your area that focuses on Biblically responsible investing. We focus on it here. If you’d more information about it, you can call or text us at (830) 609-6986. Or you can go to www.christianfinancialadvisors.com.

Shawn:
That’s right. And as always, thank you so much for joining us. God bless. And I would also say, if you can, pray for this channel and pray for people who might come across this, we hope that it blesses others and glorifies God in the process. Thank you.

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[CONCLUSION]

That’s all for now.

We invite you to listen to all of our past episodes covering many financial topics from a Christian Perspective. To make sure you don’t miss any of Bob’s upcoming episodes you can subscribe to Christian Financial Perspectives on iTunes, Google Play Music, Spotify, or Stitcher. To learn more about integrating your faith with your finances, visit ciswealth.com or call 830-609-6986.

[DISCLOSURES]

* Investment advisory services offered through Christian Investment Advisors Inc dba Christian Financial Advisors, a registered investment advisor registered with the SEC. Registration as an investment advisor does not imply a certain level of skill or training. Comments from today’s show are for informational purposes only and not to be considered investment advice or recommendations to buy or sell any company that may have been mentioned or discussed. The opinions expressed are solely those of the hosts, Bob Barber and Shawn Peters, and their guests. Bob and Shawn do not provide tax advice and encourage you to seek guidance from a tax professional. While Christian Financial Advisors believes the information to be accurate and reliable, we do not claim or have responsibility for its completeness, accuracy, or reliability.