Should I​ Be Concerned About Cash?

Recently, there seems to be much concern about cash which is feeding conspiracy theories and creating fears about digital currency. There is even a story, wrongly attributed to Dave Ramsey, circulating on social media listing several “points” as to why it is bad to go cashless- again, feeding conspiracies. How do we as Christians look at this?

Number one, there will always be a form of currency. 

Number two, cash is not disappearing, presently; it is currently legal tender of the United States, and its value is backed by our government. It is not an indicator that we are in the end times. 

In my household, we like to use cash to help stay within budget when going to the grocery store. We stay within budget because we cannot overspend the amount of cash brought. Now there are certain business that are individually choosing to not take cash. This is most likely for reasons of the spreading of the current virus -that’s fine! There is no danger, and we should not look to avoid the digital means of paying for things. 

If you think about it, debit cards have been around for decades. When you swipe a debit card, your money is moved digitally from your account to the account of the vender or company you are doing business with. There are now apps such as Zelle, Apple Pay, and Cash App which allow you to use your phone to send money to this person or that person-that is fine as well.

Understand the application that you are using. I advise that you use reputable companies. You can go online to research them and check reviews. Generally, your own banking institution has one or more of these services. Again, it is simply a matter of your money digitally moving from your account to another party. That concept is not new; nor should we be afraid of it.

When we look at currency in biblical times, depending on the country, there were many forms of currency, and in first century Palestine many of them had the image of Caesar on it. What does that mean to us? Well, we are to be faithful stewards: honoring the Lord with how we handle money and cash, giving to the Lord, paying our taxes, and saving some money. Most of us are not saving money in the form of cash, stuffed in a mattress because that is not safe. Rather, we save money in a bank which, currently, is insured up to $250,000. 

We actually find in the Old Testament, God directing the Israelites to convert some of their currency, which at that time consisted of  other valuables like herds, livestock, and crops, to coin money to make it easier to transport (Deuteronomy 14:23-26). If you think about it, that makes sense today. If cash is burdensome in some cases or even for a “season,” meaning some merchants will not take it, then we have another form of currency. This other form is digital and it is right there on our phones (or our watches in some cases) and it is nothing to be afraid of. Just make sure you’re using a reputable source.