By Lynda Keren.
Paul not only taught on how to handle money, he also set an example by the way he lived and ministered.
He worked hard at making tents which provided for his living (Acts: 18:3,4). It must have been a hot, sweaty workshop. Though Paul wrote “a worker deserves his wages”, he never collected money from the place where he ministered.
In 1 Corinthians 9, we read how even though he had every right for financial support, he refused so he could preach the gospel free of charge. While ministering in Corinth, he would accept no support from them but accepted financial support from the churches of Macedonia in northern Greece.
NT Wright, in the biography of Paul writes, “Nobody will be able to buy him, pay the piper and then call the tunes”. Though often in need, Paul was careful not to let anyone control him using money.
Money has a strange way of control and power over the one who receives. We heard the verse from Proverbs 22:7, “the borrower is a slave to the lender”. The lesson we learn from Paul is to trust God and live free, content, godly lives and be careful not to let money or those who use money to control our lives.
Ref: pg:313, NT Wright, Paul - a Biography.