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Did you know that the Bible has a lot to say about building generational wealth? That’s because we serve a God who deeply cares about family and generations of families. When God formed you in your mother’s womb, He didn’t just see you–He saw the biological and spiritual children you would influence throughout your life. 

Ecclesiastes 3:11 says that God “planted eternity in the human heart.” Your vision and longing to leave a lasting legacy is a part of your DNA. Thankfully, scripture gives us a blueprint of how to build biblical generational wealth. There are key characteristics that separate God’s path to building wealth from culture’s. In this post, we will cover just ten of them:

1. Honor

2. Patience

3. Now & Later

4. Discretion

5. Abundance

6. Wisdom

7. Obedience

8. Generosity 

9. Kingdom Mindset 

10. Eternal Mindset

biblical generational wealth

10 Tenets of Biblical Generational Wealth

1. Honor

The concept of biblical generational wealth starts with honor. First and foremost, we should use our money in a way that honors the Lord. That means earning it and using it in a way that pleases Him. Secondly, generational wealth honors your family, those younger and older than you. 

How we honor the younger generation is somewhat obvious– we leave them an inheritance! However, honoring the previous generation is extremely important to God as well. It’s so important that He listed it as one of the Ten Commandments.

Deuteronomy 5:16 (NLT) says, “Honor your father and mother, as the Lord your God commanded you. Then you will live a long, full life in the land the Lord your God is giving you.” In other words, honor attracts blessings.

As you build your inheritance, you are compounding the investment that the previous generation made in you. Through honor, you can advance and/or redeem your family’s legacy. 

 

2. Patience 

The road to building wealth God’s way involves hard work, diligence, and patience. In fact, God will use the wealth building process to mold and shape your character. He won’t give you a blessing that your character can’t handle. You must learn how to handle wealth (practically and spiritually) before it’s attracted to your life. That takes time! 

As Proverbs 13:11 says, “Wealth from get-rich-quick schemes quickly disappears; wealth from hard work grows over time.” There is a big difference between a quick cash-infusion and wealth that endures the test of time. 

For example, let’s say that you are a real estate investor (which is smart, because it’s the best way to build generational wealth). First of all, you must know how to time the market and wait for the right opportunities. Then, it may take you a while to build your portfolio and even longer for your properties to appreciate. However, you make the big money in real estate through appreciation. If you can hold onto your properties with patience, your grandchildren will enjoy the benefits.

Do you want to start building generational wealth through real estate today? Register for our upcoming Real Estate Workshop, April 5-7th! You will learn how to start and scale a profitable real estate portfolio in any economy. Click here to register.

generational wealth from real estate investing

3. Now and Later

In western nations, most people have a ‘set it and forget it’ mentality about retirement. Meaning, they automate investments into a 401(k) or brokerage account and they never learn how to steward wealth themselves. This is a good component to have in your generational wealth strategy, but it shouldn’t be your whole strategy. If it is, you’ll never really learn how to build wealth for yourself, so you won’t be able to teach the next generation. And, you’ll really limit your earning potential.

Instead, we suggest having a “now and later” mentality about generational wealth. Through acquiring income-producing assets, you can bless your children and grandchildren while you’re alive and after you’re gone. This aligns with the biblical model that our Heavenly Father put into place. He wants to bless us during our lives on earth AND throughout eternity with Him in Heaven. 

4. Discretion

In today’s day and age, it’s customary to give beneficiaries an inheritance based on their relationship to the giver regardless of their ability to handle the wealth. However, The New Testament suggests a different model. In the Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14-30), the Master gives each servant an amount “according to his ability.” Similarly, we should use discretion and wisdom when allocating our inheritance. 

Now, I’m not suggesting that you leave your kids and grandkids who aren’t financially savvy high and dry. However, we need to be mindful of our beneficiaries’ capacities to handle the wealth if we want it to endure. A lack of discretion is why 90% of wealthy families lose their wealth by the third generation. Consider: who has the character and diligence to manage the wealth? How can you teach them while you’re still with them?

5. Abundance 

We serve a God who loves to lavish gifts on His children. So, when we build generational wealth, we are following His example. So, take heart–the desire to spoil your kids and grandkids is in your spiritual DNA! For example, I have four grandsons. Giving them gifts and supplying the resources to set them up for success in their interests (like baseball) is one of my greatest joys in life. 

John 10:10 says, “The thief does not come except to steal, kill, and destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” So, you can’t build biblical generational wealth with a scarcity mentality. Instead, you can walk in God’s abundance by dreaming with Him and believing for big things. He wants to help you take the limits off your life so that you can leave a lasting legacy.

6. Wisdom

You’ve probably heard of Solomon, the richest man who ever lived. He provides a good example of how to attain wealth (though, as we will read later, not how to keep it for generations.)

In 1 Kings 3, God appeared to Solomon in a dream and urged him to ask for whatever he wanted. In response, Solomon asked for wisdom. 

God replied, 

“Because you have asked for wisdom in governing my people with justice and have not asked for a long life or wealth or the death of your enemies– I will give you what you asked for! I will give you a wise and understanding heart such as no one has had or ever will have! And I will also give you what you did not ask for–riches and fame! No other king in all the world will be compared to you for the rest of your life.” (1 Kings 3:11-14)

King Solomon is an iconic example of this tried and true biblical finance principle: money is attracted, not pursued. Aim for wisdom rather than wealth, and wealth will follow! 

Solomon’s wisdom was a magnet for wealth. People from all over the world traveled to hear his wisdom, including The Queen of Sheba. They brought extravagant gifts in exchange for his wisdom and insights. Similarly, as you grow in wisdom, the right people and resources will be attracted to your life as well.

biblical generational wealth

7. Obedience 

Even though Solomon was the richest man who ever lived, his family lost the majority of their wealth by the second generation. Wisdom will get you wealth, but it takes obedience to keep it. 

Here’s what happened: Solomon had seven hundred wives, and the women from other tribes influenced him to worship other gods. Because of his idolatry, God took the kingdom, and therefore a good measure of his wealth, away from Solomon. 1 Kings 11:10-11 (NLT) says, “He (God) had warned Solomon specifically about worshiping other gods, but Solomon did not listen to the Lord’s command. So now the Lord said to him, ‘Since you have not kept my covenant and have disobeyed my decrees, I will surely tear the kingdom away from you and give it to one of your servants.’” 

So, Solomon’s wealth split between his son, Rehoboam, (who ruled the tribe of Judah) and one of Solomon’s own officials, Jeroboam (who ruled 10 tribes). Like his dad, Rehoboam was disobedient. Under his poor leadership, Jerusalem was invaded.  

1 Kings 14:26 says that King Shisak of Egypt “ransacked the treasuries of the Lord’s Temple and the royal palace; he stole everything, including all the gold shields Solomon had made.”

So, it makes sense that Solomon wrote Ecclesiastes 6:2 later in his life: “God gives some people great wealth and honor and everything they could ever want, but then he doesn’t give them a chance to enjoy these things. They die, and someone else, even a stranger, ends up enjoying their wealth! This is meaningless–a sickening tragedy.” 

Wisdom will get you wealth, but it takes obedience to keep it.

8. Generosity 

You cannot separate biblical generational wealth from generosity. As Christians, our motivation to build wealth should stem from what we can give, not what we can get. In fact, generosity has a significant role to play in the longevity of your legacy. Psalm 112: 5-6 & 9 (NLT) says:

“Good comes to those who lend money generously and conduct their business fairly. Such people will not be overcome by evil. The righteous will be long remembered.” […] “They share freely and give generously to those in need. Their good deeds will be remembered forever. They will have influence and honor.” 

 

9. Education

If you want to keep generational wealth in your family, education is key. As Proverbs 22:6 says, “Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it.” If you take the time to learn and teach your beneficiaries biblical finance principles, they have a much higher chance of keeping the inheritance you give them. This makes education the responsibility of a wise steward. It’s your job to pass the torch to the next generation.

That’s why we love the Young Entrepreneur and Young Investor networking sessions at all of our WealthBuilders events (including our upcoming Real Estate Workshop– sign up HERE). These are opportunities for young people to get support and hear wisdom from experienced Christian wealth builders. Whether you are a young adult or you have one in your life, we encourage you to invite them to one of our upcoming WealthBuilders events or webinars.

biblical generational wealth

10. Kingdom Mindset 

A Kingdom Mindset is crucial for building wealth God’s way. Our salvation isn’t just a ticket to Heaven, and our wealth is more than a safety net. Rather, generational wealth is best put to use when it’s actively engaged in Kingdom activities. 

My trademarked Triple X Factor provides details on how to reinvest passive income into Kingdom causes. In short, here are some ways you can continue building generational wealth with a Kingdom mindset:

  • Engaging in biblically-responsible and pro values investing 
  • Kingdom Impact Investing
  • Starting businesses and nonprofits
  • Purchasing and using real estate to bless others

We hope this blog inspired you to build generational wealth. Are there any more tenets of biblical generational wealth that stand out to you? Let us know in the comments!

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