Anthony Thiselton has this interesting thing to say about money and power (the context is actually in a discussion on the hermeneutics of the doctrine of what it means to be human. Thiselton proposes that part of being created in the image of God means humanity has a capacity to take responsibility for the world, and such a responsibility will bring with being human the use of power. It is in this context that he discusses on money and wealth):
“The development of civilisation has led to the use of money as our instrument of power and of the quest for the security of the self. The biblical writings abound in warnings against the misuse of wealth. Like power itself, money may be used positively for human flourishing as a unit of exchange in place of goods, land, and property. [Quoting a certain report]… “Money is not the problem; we are the problem. It is not money that defines us theologically or spiritually, but our personal attitudes.” Our problem, especially in our times, is the risk of equating a person’s value or worth with the extent of their financial gain in the system of money.
[…] The most dramatic phenomenon of today is the explosion of credit. In 
moderation, drawing on credit permits the purchase of houses and the expansion of businesses. But today exponential advances of credit promote the use of wealth in the present drawn against future projections that may or may not materialise. The present is becoming increasingly mortgaged to the future, which demonstrates the link between relationality, power, and time. [All this] makes possible […] “the fantasy of a risk-free life,” as if humankind could hold old age, finitude, and mortality at bay.
moderation, drawing on credit permits the purchase of houses and the expansion of businesses. But today exponential advances of credit promote the use of wealth in the present drawn against future projections that may or may not materialise. The present is becoming increasingly mortgaged to the future, which demonstrates the link between relationality, power, and time. [All this] makes possible […] “the fantasy of a risk-free life,” as if humankind could hold old age, finitude, and mortality at bay.Yet there is a core of continuity in the biblical traditions and Christian doctrine. Concern for the poor, the destitute, the fatherless, and the widow is overwhelming in biblical traditions and Christian doctrine. The poor are a special concern of God’s, for they live on the edge of destitution, with no economic security. “You shall not worry or oppress a resident alien, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt” (Exod 22:21). “Because the poor are deported, because the needy groan, I will now rise up, says the LORD” (Ps 12:5). James writes, “Religion that is pure… is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world (Jas. 1:27). Here, once again, we see the importance of the dispositional character of belief. What people do with their pocketbook or purse exhibits in the bodily world of action what his or her faith amounts to; how it is lived out.”
Interestingly, Thiselton shares much common ground with Stephen Green, Chairman of HSBC Holdings plc., who gave a seminar yesterday on ‘Good Value: Money, Wealth and Morality in an uncertain world’. Firstly, both share a common insight to the dangers of the cu
rrent economic system, especially in the area of credit. Credit, when used wrongly, leads to one developing greed; a sense that we can live the future in the present, in the now; and a mistaken idea that this economic dream could hold utopia for us – all the major tenets of consumerism (Stephen Green puts it in a different way, but nonetheless bearing the same concept). Secondly, both Thiselton and Green locate this desire for exchange between humans as a natural occurrence in human nature. Green highlights that since the earliest civilisations, humankind developed the need to exchange goods and services, and locates this urge or desire as a natural one. Thiselton expresses it more within the doctrine of what it means to be human. For him, being human, being created in the image of God means two important concepts will be expressed in our doctrinal horizon of understanding humanity – relationality and along with that, embodiment or ‘bodiliness’. We are created to relate to God and to one another, and this world, and we relate doing so in an embodied context within place, space and time. This desire for exchange between one another could be located in the exercising of power and wisdom for the flourishing of all creation, and the fact that we do so as embodied beings. Thirdly, both have rightly grounded the fault of all things not in the external economic system, but the internal heart condition that governs over the system, and expresses itself in the corrupting of the system. Interestingly, I have always had the thesis that the first mention of ‘city’ in Gen 4:17 must be located along two contexts or horizons arising from Genesis. The first is in light of the creational mandate Gen 1:28, and cities in that sense can be seen as part of a the development of this filling and subduing and ruling of the earth (the development of agriculture, music, and technology from 4:20-22 could further support this view). The second horizon is that of Gen 3 – the Fall. All this development happens in the context of the Fall, and hence we can expect almost a ‘natural corruption’ of this development (for example, we see this in modern cities today. Modern cities can be the place of vibrant culture, where we experience wonderful modern living and multitude cultures and experiences, but yet cities can be a devastating place in terms of alienating and isolating individuals from one another). In another words, as we look at economic cities, urbanisation, globalisation, we must realise these are not perfect structures or systems – they can never be and are not meant to be. Lastly, both Thiselton and Green remind us that in the midst of all these, we must hold onto hope – hope of a future which God alone will bring – and live out our lives in consistency with that hope, in this case, inwardly allowing the Spirit of God to transform our hearts and minds to contentment and wisdom and knowing truly what the (eternal) value of things are, and outwardly looking after the marginalised and oppressed where this fallen current system will naturally exclude them. In another words, how we view money and wealth and economic systems must be located within the horizons of the doctrines of man, sin, and eschatology!
rrent economic system, especially in the area of credit. Credit, when used wrongly, leads to one developing greed; a sense that we can live the future in the present, in the now; and a mistaken idea that this economic dream could hold utopia for us – all the major tenets of consumerism (Stephen Green puts it in a different way, but nonetheless bearing the same concept). Secondly, both Thiselton and Green locate this desire for exchange between humans as a natural occurrence in human nature. Green highlights that since the earliest civilisations, humankind developed the need to exchange goods and services, and locates this urge or desire as a natural one. Thiselton expresses it more within the doctrine of what it means to be human. For him, being human, being created in the image of God means two important concepts will be expressed in our doctrinal horizon of understanding humanity – relationality and along with that, embodiment or ‘bodiliness’. We are created to relate to God and to one another, and this world, and we relate doing so in an embodied context within place, space and time. This desire for exchange between one another could be located in the exercising of power and wisdom for the flourishing of all creation, and the fact that we do so as embodied beings. Thirdly, both have rightly grounded the fault of all things not in the external economic system, but the internal heart condition that governs over the system, and expresses itself in the corrupting of the system. Interestingly, I have always had the thesis that the first mention of ‘city’ in Gen 4:17 must be located along two contexts or horizons arising from Genesis. The first is in light of the creational mandate Gen 1:28, and cities in that sense can be seen as part of a the development of this filling and subduing and ruling of the earth (the development of agriculture, music, and technology from 4:20-22 could further support this view). The second horizon is that of Gen 3 – the Fall. All this development happens in the context of the Fall, and hence we can expect almost a ‘natural corruption’ of this development (for example, we see this in modern cities today. Modern cities can be the place of vibrant culture, where we experience wonderful modern living and multitude cultures and experiences, but yet cities can be a devastating place in terms of alienating and isolating individuals from one another). In another words, as we look at economic cities, urbanisation, globalisation, we must realise these are not perfect structures or systems – they can never be and are not meant to be. Lastly, both Thiselton and Green remind us that in the midst of all these, we must hold onto hope – hope of a future which God alone will bring – and live out our lives in consistency with that hope, in this case, inwardly allowing the Spirit of God to transform our hearts and minds to contentment and wisdom and knowing truly what the (eternal) value of things are, and outwardly looking after the marginalised and oppressed where this fallen current system will naturally exclude them. In another words, how we view money and wealth and economic systems must be located within the horizons of the doctrines of man, sin, and eschatology! 
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