Business Advice?
What you give is what you get.
“But I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also; and from anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold even your shirt. Give to everyone who begs from you; and if anyone takes away your goods, do not ask for them again. Do to others as you would have them do to you. “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. If you lend to those from whom you hope to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to receive as much again. But love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return. Your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High; for he is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. “Do not judge, and you will not be judged; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven; give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap; for the measure you give will be the measure you get back.” - Luke 6:27-38
I am not sure businesses would do well if they followed Jesus' advice.
How do you make any money if you forgive people's debts and lend to those who cannot pay back?
The whole idea behind a for-profit business is to make a profit, to come out ahead in every transaction. To do that, you need to limit risk taking.
You wouldn't lend to someone who cannot pay back. And if you do choose to lend to them, it is usually with high interest and frequent payments, so you guarantee that you will get something back.
But Jesus isn't advising us on how to make money. His advice would be to avoid storing up money as your treasure and stock up on something that has lasting value.
He wasn't against getting paid for your labor. He simply advised us on what to do with it when we got it.
If you have more than you need, share.
If that is the model we are to follow, then maybe one could build a successful business on that basis.
When the pandemic hit, local restaurants had to close and then when they opened, they could only offer take out for a time. Volumes were down so they would have to lay off employees, stop ordering food from suppliers, and stop paying rent to landlords.
Suddenly, everyone was in need of help. The government offered forgivable loans, but you had to keep paying your employees. This became an opportunity to do something radical.
If you have to pay the employees to cook and there are no customers, why not cook for the poor?
That's what many did, and so the for-profit model shifted into a share the profit model.
It continues to today. Many of the restaurants we partnered with to feed the hungry are still offering us prepared food at cost, making no profit.
So, what do we take away from this?
We can work for our own gain, or we can work to be able to help others. It's a choice, and how we choose matters, not just to those we can help, but to God.
Where our hearts are, so will our treasures be.
Jesus wants us to think like God, and do from the heart, with love. If we all choose to do that, we wouldn't need to rely on government intervention. That doesn't always work anyway.
More to come...