Few people see the Bible as a financial guidebook, but Scripture is full of spiritual and practical advice. Here are the top three lessons in which the Bible differs from all other financial advice.

1. Money is not our master. Cash is not king. Becoming a millionaire is not an appropriate life purpose. The Bible makes a clear distinction in Matthew 6:24:

“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”

Serving money means we allow it to control our decisions, our direction, and even our life purpose. As Christians, we must not allow money to usurp God’s leading and control our daily decisions.

2. We are not owners of anything; we are temporary trustees of God’s property. Psalm 24:1 says, “The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.” This changes our purpose from accumulators to managers!

3. The highest and best use of money is to give. God gives us two directives—to take care of our families and to honor Him by giving. These are not contradictory; rather, they are ways in which we reflect our obedience to God, who charged us with caring for our family and others who are in need.

These three principles: Lordship, Stewardship, and Generosity should change our financial plans, our financial purposes, and our financial goals. They have certainly done that for me.