In this final episode of Season 1 of ‘Where Your Treasure Is...’, Simon and Bex discuss the topic of Investing: what it is, what the Bible says about it and how to go about doing it wisely.

The following points are among those covered by Simon and Bex in their discussion:

• Simon starts off by referring to the Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25.14-18) - also known as the Parable of the Bags of Gold - to illustrate the fact that the Bible describes money as a tool which needs to be used well. [01:12]
• However, Simon also goes on to acknowledge that our attitude towards money can be a major obstacle to faith, as can be seen from Jesus’s comment that, “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God” (Matthew 19.24; Mark 10.25); this point of view is reinforced by a passage in 1 Timothy 6 (verses 9-11), which includes the statement, “the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil”. [04:09]
• Bex asks whether investing money is therefore incompatible with the Christian faith because its aim is to increase how much money a person has. Simon responds by suggesting that the key issue is a person’s attitude, with generosity and obedience to God being crucial, as illustrated by 1 Timothy 6.17-19, with its exhortation to “those who are rich in this present world” to “be generous and willing to share”. This principle is reinforced in Acts 4.34-35, which describes an ongoing pattern of generosity: “from time to time those who owned land or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone who had need.” [05:15]
• Simon also mentions that the Bible indicates that it is right to provide for our families (both now and in the future) but, again, the crucial point is to ensure that wealth and money do not get in the way of following God. [06:54]
• Moving on from the theological perspective to practical matters, Simon explains that his aim is to provide a framework for understanding how we can, and why we should, put our money to work by investing it. The points that he covers when outlining this framework are as follows: Inflation [08:14]; Bank Accounts [09:52]; Shares and Shareholders [11:27]; and Pensions. [13:30]
• Simon then goes on to explain the following key terms and factors that are important to understand in connection with Investing: Asset Classes [15:16]; Tax Wrappers (including ISAs and salary sacrifice arrangements) [18:07]; Investment Funds (including the principle of diversification, to which there is a reference in Ecclesiastes chapter 11!) [20:55]; Risk [21:48]; Time [22:57]; Cost and Fees. [24:01]
• Bex notes that the points covered in this episode will be taken up and expanded in one of the two new podcast seasons that will be running after the break being taken over the summer: Season 2 will go into greater detail on matters relating to financial planning for each key life stage, with an episode being devoted to each life stage, while Season 3 will focus on practical tasks associated with financial planning. [24:55]

Thank you for listening to Season 1 of ‘Where Your Treasure Is…’

We will be back after a short break, but look out for at least one bonus episode from us in the meantime!