There are plenty of Christian retirement plans out there, but is retirement itself actually biblical? The answer depends on your definition of retirement. We’ll talk about that on this Faith and Finance.
There are plenty of Christian retirement plans out there, but is retirement itself actually biblical? The answer depends on your definition of retirement. We’ll talk about that on this Faith and Finance.
The world’s idea of retirement is saving as much as you can so that someday, you can simply stop working. The world sees work as a negative thing, toiling for years under a mean boss so that one day you have enough cash to kiss work goodbye.
But that is absolutely not a biblical view of work or retirement. God is our true boss.
WORK IS A BLESSING
Colossians 3 tells us, “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.”
Work predated the Fall. The Lord put Adam to work in the Garden of Eden, and nowhere does the Bible say we can quit our service to Him when we have enough money saved up to live a life of leisure.
Further, God Himself is a worker. In John 5:17 Jesus says, “My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I too am working.”
Interestingly, the Bible actually does address retirement one time, but only in a very narrow circumstance. Regarding the Levitical priests, Numbers 8:24-25 reads, “From twenty-five years old and upward they shall enter to perform service in the work of the tent of meeting. But at the age of fifty years, they shall retire and not work anymore.
God’s Word doesn’t tell us why they were to stop their labors, but one thing we can be pretty sure of is that passage doesn’t apply to us.
SO HOW SHOULD CHRISTIANS TODAY THINK ABOUT RETIREMENT?
It’s helpful to realize that the world’s view of retirement (ceasing all work) is a modern concept.
Before the 20th century, people generally worked as long as they could. Then along came Social Security and pensions and retiring at 65 came to be seen as an entitlement.
But as Christians, our service to the Lord never ends.The Apostle John was still writing and preaching in his 90s. Second-century pastor Polycarp testified that he’d served the Lord “eighty and six years” as he was being martyred. Those are two excellent role models for how we should view retirement.
By now you’re probably thinking, “Why are we saving all this money then if we’re not supposed to retire? The simple answer is that it’s a prudent and wise use of God’s resources.
People are living longer now than in previous generations. Many of us will reach a point where we are physically unable to work or work as many hours as we can now. We have to prepare for that. Proverbs 21:20 says— “Precious treasure and oil are in a wise man's dwelling, but a foolish man devours it.
As Christians, ideally, we want to save for the day when we can increase our service to God. Think of it as retiring TO something, not just FROM something.
A good example might be a business person who “retires” and then goes into the mission field or finds another calling to serve God.
Or it could be that your lifelong investing gives you resources later in life to give more generously. The more you have saved from the resources God has entrusted to you, the more time and treasure you can give back to further His Kingdom.
So here at Faith and Finance, when we use the word “retirement,” we’re definitely not talking about ceasing all work. Our goal is to help people be faithful stewards of God’s money so that one day they serve Him more fully.
So start saving for so-called retirement as early as you can to achieve the benefit of compound earnings.
On this program, Rob also answers listener questions:
How can you begin to be a better steward of the money God has entrusted to you?
Should you consider a company that offers to buy your home and then rents it out to you?
Would it be wise to sell precious metal assets to pay off debt?
Remember, you can call in to ask your questions most days at (800) 525-7000. Also, visit our website at FaithFi.com where you can join the FaithFi Community, and give as we expand our outreach.
