Can A Christian Have Business Partnership With An Unbeliever?
Question : Can a Christian have business partnership with an Unbeliever? Please explain. Thank you.
Answer : Most often this following Scriptures that we think applies to a Christian choosing a marriage partner only within the believing community of Christians and is that which prohibits them to marry outside of it, is read deeply in this broader context as follows, "14 Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? 15 And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? 16 And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will dwell in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they shall be My people.” 17 Therefore “Come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you.” 18 “ I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and daughters, Says the LORD Almighty.”" (2 Cor 6:14-18). Here we see in the above Scriptures that it primarily speaks about marriage, but it also speaks more than that. It speaks about all types of “unequal yokes” like intimate friendships, fellowship, thinking, purpose and partnership which includes business partnership too. The command implies that a great difference exists between a believer and an unbeliever like as between righteousness and lawlessness, light and darkness, Christ and Satan, and your body the temple of God and idols which are lifeless dirt. Because of God's heaven life and character received within the spirit man of all born again believer (2 Cor 5:17), the motivations, goals, and methods of a Christian are incompatible with those of an unbeliever.
The above Scriptures also clearly emphasizes that because we are the temple of God and that God our Lord has promised to reside in our body with His tangible Presence and glory, we should separate our self in this earthly life to live a lifestyle pleasing to God. And that lifestyle cannot be lived uniquely in a righteous and godly way if we have any partnership with an unbeliever whose values of life is never a godly one and righteous. Nearly all unbelievers think in terms of gaining material wealth on earth as long as they live and will not bother about acquiring it in the righteousness way as long as they multiply money and keep acquiring it more and more (Luke 16:1-8; 12:13-21; 16:19-25, 30; Matt 6:31-32). The men of the world keep collecting wealth for themselves and their children and children's children (Psa 17:14). Once unbelievers have enough money on earth, they think that they are settled forever on earth because of the riches they have collected, but little do these people of the world will realize that they will die one day to go in to the grave and cannot take their wealth with them, nor their children too can take their wealth with them when they too die someday (Psa 39:6; 73:3-9, 12, 18-20, 27; Psa 49:6-14, 16-20, NLV). Bad friendship will corrupt the good morals that we hold in faith as a Christian, our values will determine whether we will live a godly life pleasing to God or a worldly life to satisfy ourselves, and therefore it is good not to join in a business venture with a unbeliever just for the sake of gaining profit (1 Cor 15:33).
Yes marriage is one partnership for life in which we share our life, wealth, relationship and intimacy with our partner. But equally like in a marriage agreement, in a business agreement also we invest and share so much of money and resource we have with our partner to multiply it according to the will of God (1 Tim 6:9; 1 Thess 5:16-18), so that we can live for the glory of God (Col 3:23; 1 Cor 10:31). So it is always not right to join and do a business with a unbeliever because the way each business partner [i.e. believer and the unbeliever] will conduct themselves while doing day to day business will be different and cannot go together in their purpose and values (Amos 3:3). For the Christian investor, he would like to do that business for the glory of God in a righteous way through godly means and methods, while the unbeliever will go for the slog mostly and do it just for the sake of the profit and more profit (Prov 13:11), and therefore he will want to increase in wealth whether it is through righteous method or ungodly means he will not care about it as long as the profit comes in abundance (Psa 52:7; Prov 13:11; 21:6; 22:16; 11:26; Jer 17:11; Mic 2:1-5; 6:10-12). The unbeliever who trusts in his riches will fall one day for sure, it is better for the Christian to foresee that future and be wise to not make any kind of sharing and partnership with a unbeliever at a personal level (Psa 11:28). Unlike a rich unbeliever who boast in his riches and profit, a Christian business person will boast in His God because it is for His ultimate glory he or she is doing it (Jer 9:23-24; 1 Cor 1:31). Trusting in riches without having partnership and personal relationship with God is like receiving one's comfort in full in this earth itself and therefore a future life of comfort in heaven with God is an impossibility (Luke 6:24; 16:25; Mark 10:23-25). So the Lord doesn't want His children to live life on earth in self-comfort without them realizing the future purpose they have in eternity with God, and therefore a believer should not in any way extent his hand of partnership with unbelievers in business and as a result of it get shaken in faith because of God's chastisement in their lives, and there by piercing themselves through with many sorrows because of their love of money which is the root cause of all the evils at loose in their lives (Luke 16:13; Heb 12:4-8; 1 Tim 6:9-10). Instead the Lord wants his children to be content with whatever they have and seek His kingdom and the righteous way of doing business for His glory (1 Tim 6:6, 8; Matt 6:33).
Having said about the prohibition not to establish business partnership with unbelievers, I would like to say that it is a pleasure for God and to us too when we as God's children join hands to do business with God's purpose and principles on earth as it is in heaven (Psa 133:1). Get God's plan for your life if you think you are called to business and then be a blessing to the body of Christ first primarily, and even to unbelievers in the society who are in need and seek God truly (Rom 12:6-8; Gal 6:10). God blesses people so that they can be a blessing, those who have the attitude to just store and collect wealth, even though they might have been called by God to do supernatural business through a special gift from God, they will eventually fail in it unless they learn this important lesson to give and keep giving to God and other people in need (Gen 12:2-3). People who will allow God to bless others through them as a channel will also make sure that God's blessing will keep coming to them consistently (2 Cor 9:8). In the kingdom of God, those who give much will receive much more in overflowing measure (Prov 22:9). Give to God and the poor who are in need according to God's direction and guidance freely, it will be given back to you by God in a greater measure more and more (Luke 6:38; Acts 20:35; Mal 3:8-10).
Much Blessings....
Answer : Most often this following Scriptures that we think applies to a Christian choosing a marriage partner only within the believing community of Christians and is that which prohibits them to marry outside of it, is read deeply in this broader context as follows, "14 Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? 15 And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? 16 And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will dwell in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they shall be My people.” 17 Therefore “Come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you.” 18 “ I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and daughters, Says the LORD Almighty.”" (2 Cor 6:14-18). Here we see in the above Scriptures that it primarily speaks about marriage, but it also speaks more than that. It speaks about all types of “unequal yokes” like intimate friendships, fellowship, thinking, purpose and partnership which includes business partnership too. The command implies that a great difference exists between a believer and an unbeliever like as between righteousness and lawlessness, light and darkness, Christ and Satan, and your body the temple of God and idols which are lifeless dirt. Because of God's heaven life and character received within the spirit man of all born again believer (2 Cor 5:17), the motivations, goals, and methods of a Christian are incompatible with those of an unbeliever.
The above Scriptures also clearly emphasizes that because we are the temple of God and that God our Lord has promised to reside in our body with His tangible Presence and glory, we should separate our self in this earthly life to live a lifestyle pleasing to God. And that lifestyle cannot be lived uniquely in a righteous and godly way if we have any partnership with an unbeliever whose values of life is never a godly one and righteous. Nearly all unbelievers think in terms of gaining material wealth on earth as long as they live and will not bother about acquiring it in the righteousness way as long as they multiply money and keep acquiring it more and more (Luke 16:1-8; 12:13-21; 16:19-25, 30; Matt 6:31-32). The men of the world keep collecting wealth for themselves and their children and children's children (Psa 17:14). Once unbelievers have enough money on earth, they think that they are settled forever on earth because of the riches they have collected, but little do these people of the world will realize that they will die one day to go in to the grave and cannot take their wealth with them, nor their children too can take their wealth with them when they too die someday (Psa 39:6; 73:3-9, 12, 18-20, 27; Psa 49:6-14, 16-20, NLV). Bad friendship will corrupt the good morals that we hold in faith as a Christian, our values will determine whether we will live a godly life pleasing to God or a worldly life to satisfy ourselves, and therefore it is good not to join in a business venture with a unbeliever just for the sake of gaining profit (1 Cor 15:33).
Yes marriage is one partnership for life in which we share our life, wealth, relationship and intimacy with our partner. But equally like in a marriage agreement, in a business agreement also we invest and share so much of money and resource we have with our partner to multiply it according to the will of God (1 Tim 6:9; 1 Thess 5:16-18), so that we can live for the glory of God (Col 3:23; 1 Cor 10:31). So it is always not right to join and do a business with a unbeliever because the way each business partner [i.e. believer and the unbeliever] will conduct themselves while doing day to day business will be different and cannot go together in their purpose and values (Amos 3:3). For the Christian investor, he would like to do that business for the glory of God in a righteous way through godly means and methods, while the unbeliever will go for the slog mostly and do it just for the sake of the profit and more profit (Prov 13:11), and therefore he will want to increase in wealth whether it is through righteous method or ungodly means he will not care about it as long as the profit comes in abundance (Psa 52:7; Prov 13:11; 21:6; 22:16; 11:26; Jer 17:11; Mic 2:1-5; 6:10-12). The unbeliever who trusts in his riches will fall one day for sure, it is better for the Christian to foresee that future and be wise to not make any kind of sharing and partnership with a unbeliever at a personal level (Psa 11:28). Unlike a rich unbeliever who boast in his riches and profit, a Christian business person will boast in His God because it is for His ultimate glory he or she is doing it (Jer 9:23-24; 1 Cor 1:31). Trusting in riches without having partnership and personal relationship with God is like receiving one's comfort in full in this earth itself and therefore a future life of comfort in heaven with God is an impossibility (Luke 6:24; 16:25; Mark 10:23-25). So the Lord doesn't want His children to live life on earth in self-comfort without them realizing the future purpose they have in eternity with God, and therefore a believer should not in any way extent his hand of partnership with unbelievers in business and as a result of it get shaken in faith because of God's chastisement in their lives, and there by piercing themselves through with many sorrows because of their love of money which is the root cause of all the evils at loose in their lives (Luke 16:13; Heb 12:4-8; 1 Tim 6:9-10). Instead the Lord wants his children to be content with whatever they have and seek His kingdom and the righteous way of doing business for His glory (1 Tim 6:6, 8; Matt 6:33).
Having said about the prohibition not to establish business partnership with unbelievers, I would like to say that it is a pleasure for God and to us too when we as God's children join hands to do business with God's purpose and principles on earth as it is in heaven (Psa 133:1). Get God's plan for your life if you think you are called to business and then be a blessing to the body of Christ first primarily, and even to unbelievers in the society who are in need and seek God truly (Rom 12:6-8; Gal 6:10). God blesses people so that they can be a blessing, those who have the attitude to just store and collect wealth, even though they might have been called by God to do supernatural business through a special gift from God, they will eventually fail in it unless they learn this important lesson to give and keep giving to God and other people in need (Gen 12:2-3). People who will allow God to bless others through them as a channel will also make sure that God's blessing will keep coming to them consistently (2 Cor 9:8). In the kingdom of God, those who give much will receive much more in overflowing measure (Prov 22:9). Give to God and the poor who are in need according to God's direction and guidance freely, it will be given back to you by God in a greater measure more and more (Luke 6:38; Acts 20:35; Mal 3:8-10).
Much Blessings....
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