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Episode 5
Opening – Good Day everyone. In my last Episode 4, I spoke about the biblical principle of gleaning coming from the ancient practice in Moses’ Day. Today, Episode 5 titled “Theological Calling of the Entrepreneurial ‘Cause’”.
A “root cause” has the effect on every calling that motivates driving energy to pursue that goal. Entrepreneurship is no exception to that calling. However, secular entrepreneurial calling is different from divine entrepreneurial calling. Their operations (modus operandi) is different. The former goal is a more profit-orientated drive for self-satisfaction, whereas the latter is a social-oriented drive to bring about betterment to a community. With that root effect of cause, purposes will be made rational for actions. Henry Ford (1863 – 1947) said, “If you think you can do a thing or think you can’t do a thing, you are right.” So, a cause is basically an appropriate movement from one individual who stirs up the momentum of a turbine engine to thrust the ideal forward to its destination. In the context of biblical entrepreneurial calling, it carries a far-reaching responsibility in the Kingdom of God. The full understanding of Kingdom things is depending upon the Holy Spirit’s initiatives. Divine-inspired entrepreneurs take almost every step with the consultation of the Lord in Scripture and/or godly counsel of man or woman.
God gave the Patriarch Joseph (Gen. 41) the divine ability to interpret Pharaoh’s two dreams. Through God’s spirit, Joseph interpreted the dreams as a warning of severe famine after seven years of good harvests. From then Joseph knew that God was preparing him to work under the powerful Pharaoh. Sure enough, shortly afterward he was put in charge of Egypt’s agriculture department. With his new found authority under Pharaoh’s influence, he seized the opportunity of divine “cause” to pursue his leadership role. Using some of his entrepreneurial farming skills which he gained when he was tending his father Jacob’s farm in land of Canaan, he cleverly developed an effective irrigation system to increase yield of staple crop production in the Egyptian kingdom. He built enough storehouses to accommodate the abundant harvest, and therefore prepared for the seven years of famine. Not only did he save the entire Egyptian kingdom from famine, but more, he saved all of his long-lost wicked brothers and all of Jacob’s household.
In a similar way, when King Solomon ruled Israelite Kingdom in the beginning, he consulted God and asked for wisdom to operate his kingdom like an enterprise. He was very successful in everything he did because God blessed him in his endeavours. Never before him had any other king received the greatest wisdom that God granted Solomon. He knew the cause to serve God’s will. With God’s wisdom he excelled in both leadership and entrepreneurship to set up trading make with many other nations so as to increase the prosperity and peace in his kingdom. He discovered the purposes of God’s will to pursue that which had the cause of greater things. William Carey (1761 – 1834) might had been inspired by Solomon’s wisdom in God said, “Expect great things from God, attempting great things for God.” With that, it gave birth the first Baptist missionary from the West to the land of Asia (India) to undertake great things from God’s calling. With a pioneering and entrepreneur spirit having limited resources in financial support, William Carey was able to survive before the first Hindu soul conversion happened, after about 8 years after his arrival in Calcutta.
Finding Purposes
By and large, some faith conservatives believe that commercial business and church cannot mixed at all, based on the fifth century view of John Chrysostom, who believed that it is highly unlikely for merchants to pursue their vocation without committing sin of one sort or another. Merchants are perceived as morally deficit in their operations (modus operandi). The pious faith conservative perceives business as evil in nature because profit money is somehow derived through dishonest means, while the church is perceived as holy and incorruptible. Such views not only exist in prejudiced viewpoints, but they are also myths in conservative belief. Whether for commercial or church, business transactions are a daily affair of interaction between organizations. Business transactions are neutral where economic activities flow to bring about legitimate employment and livelihood of human life. On the hand, the pious with their biased views may act in opposing forces against church ministry. But, there is a purpose for the co-existence of commercial business and Ecclesiastes which God designs and permits for His glory. Darren Shearer commented,
Just how often do we pay attention to workplace, the world of business, the arena of economics, as a place for theological reflection and international discipleship? Over the last few years, I have begun wrestling with the workplace as a primary arena ministry for discipleship. Too often ministry has lived on one side of a chasm between “church on Sunday” and “work on Monday”. This post tracks some of the reasons and early efforts … but it also suggests a new starting point for a theology and economics conversation over entrepreneurship. The issue began simply enough in a discussion over “service” at my local church. While most people in the small group checked off their level of “church” service, one lady (who was active in the local congregation) listened pensively and finally lamented “I just wish someone would tell me that my work as an elementary school teacher was Christian service as well.” I was struck by that lament then … and am haunted by it today. I am a big believer in a missional God calling us to be a missional church. How could we ever discount the local workplace (school, business, factory, farm et cetera) as a place where God might be shaping?
From studying some of the epistles of Apostle Paul, it is recognised that he was a tent maker during his ministry throughout his missional journeys. Since he left his comfortable career life of Pharisaic sect to work for Christ, he had lost all his financial support and privileges from the influential sector of Roman Rule. However, he counted it a joy to serve the living Lord whom he was once opposing, being blinded to the truth. He used his tent making skill as a self-employed entrepreneur to sustain his mission ministry. Darren Shearer has made several observations on Apostle Paul’s choice to continue his skills as a self-made entrepreneur with five purposes.
Why Did the Apostle Paul Choose to Remain an Entrepreneur? (Five purposes for business) The Apostle Paul wrote approximately 14 of the 27 books in the New Testament, and he is considered one of the most influential people in the history of the world. At the same time, he was an entrepreneur who made tents for a living. Like other Jewish men, Paul had been taught this trade as a boy, and he was also taught how to make money with it. Because tents were used primarily to provide housing for the soldiers, it is likely that the Roman army was Paul’s largest customer (that’s a business ethics question for another blogpost). Paul didn’t give up his business venture when he started serving Jesus. Instead, this entrepreneurial, tent-making enterprise was a key element of his apostolic ministry. Referring to his profit-generating endeavours, Paul told the Thessalonians, to “follow our example” (2 Thess. 3:7, 9). He said that it is “a model for you” (2 Thess. 3:9). Why did Paul include this “example” and “model” of entrepreneurship as a key aspect of his ministry? I will offer five reasons. These serve as purposes for being in business as a Christian, all of which are for the sake of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
1 – To be relevant in the culture
Paul was called by God to minister primarily to the Gentiles in the Greco-Roman world – not to the Jews in the Jewish world. Although the Jewish people were familiar with the Old Testament law that the priests are entitled to live off the donations given by those who worked outside the temple. This Jewish cultural practice would have been more difficult for the Gentiles of the Greco-Roman world to accept. I believe this cultural difference is one reason why Paul chose to pay himself primarily from his own business rather than to live off donations from the churches where he preached. Paul writes, “… when I preach the gospel, I may offer the gospel without charge, so as not to make full use of my right in the gospel” (1 Cor. 9:18). Adapting to the Greco-Roman culture in this way is an example of how Paul accomplished his objective to “become all things to all men, so that I may by all means save some” (1 Cor. 9:22). Culturally, today’s Western society is much more like the first century Greco-Roman world than the first century Jewish world. The typical unchurched businessperson in the United States simply cannot relate to live off donations. Because of this, Christian business people are in a great position to minister to other business people in a relevant way in the market place. Our needs are met by own business ventures, so we can use our spiritual gifts free of charge to advance the gospel and build the universal Church.
2 – To provide for other people’s needs
In addition to providing for his own financial needs, Paul used his tent-making enterprise to provide a means for his team members to generate income. Paul writes, “You yourselves know that these hands ministered to my own needs and to the men who were with me. In everything I showed you that by working hard in this manner you must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He Himself said, “it is more blessed to give than to receive.” (Acts 20:33-35) In the passage above, Paul was explaining to the Corinthians that working hard in his business enabled him to financially support, not only himself and his ministry team, but also the poor. Business owners create tremendous value, which provide us with the potential for tremendous generosity.