The Immoral Restraint of Money

1 TIMOTHY 3:10
For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

PRINCIPLE
There are different types of money and some types are better at discouraging misuse.

The Immoral Restraint of Money is a concept that I developed after reading Thank God for Bitcoin.  In the book the author(s) make the point that some money is more moral then others.  Since fiat allows more opportunity for government theft, which is immoral, then it is not morally neutral.  I do see their point but I think that this could be a dangerous assumption.

If money is not neutral because there is more potential for bad use, then this can be applied to many other things.  Guns can be used for both good and bad purposes.  Since they are meant to do harm are they then not morally neutral?  I think that the concept of moral neutrality is important to apply to objects.  Objects are not good or bad but what we do with them can be good or bad.  In the same way, fiat money can be use for good and bad purposes.

I always look at the core of the problem, which is the morality of a society and the individuals within.  This is the foundational issue and the one that Jesus Christ came to deal with.  His death on the cross redeemed us.  We have the guidance of the Holy Spirit and the Bible to keep us living a moral life.  Let’s apply this to fiat money.  Even though I use money that has a lot of possibility for bad use, I choose to use it wisely to bless my family, church, community, and those in need.  It is advantageous for me to spend it now to satisfy my immediate desires, but I choose to use it wisely and morally by tithing and investing.  So I, as a moral person, choose to redeem the money that is built on a fiat foundation that encourages immoral behavior..

So instead of the moral neutrality of money, I look at it more as the immoral restraint of money.  Some money, commodity money, provides more constraint to money printing (theft), consumerism, government mismanagement, and endless wars.  In our lifetime, we may see a society that is based on bitcoin. El Salvador is currently the nation closest to achieving this with bitcoin as a legal tender. As bitcoin is a commodity money it inherently discourages the immoral activities we see in fiat. It is exciting to imagine what the future will bring for those countries that adopt the bitcoin standard.

REMEMBER
Money is a tool that can be used for both good or bad, but some types of money encourage better behavior.

This article was written on Veteran’s Day 2023. Thank you for all of the men and women that fought for our freedom.