Is it wrong for a Christian to want to be rich and famous?

WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?

Being rich and being famous are simply put: having financial abundance and great popularity. Being rich and famous are not wrong in themselves. It is also not necessarily wrong for a Christian to want to be rich and famous. The risk is not in the achieving of wealth or celebrity status but rather in the choice to live our lives worshiping something other than God. If being rich and famous is our goal, then being rich and famous will cause us to be a slave to a master other than God, and this is wrong. If we have a goal of becoming rich and famous so we can give glory to God and give generously to others, then it might be a good goal. But it can be a slippery slope. If we desire to be rich and famous, we should be careful to check our motives first and then continue to check our hearts and the fruit our lives produce if we do become rich and famous.

FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT

• Being rich or well-known is not inherently a sin. God gave men like Abraham, Joseph, David, and Solomon riches. These men did not make obtaining riches or popularity their life goals. Rather, these things were given to them by God, and they eagerly acknowledged Him as the source (Genesis 14:17–24; 50:15–21; 2 Samuel 7:1–29).
• Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived, was also the wealthiest man who ever lived. His wealth was not sinful but he knew it caused more heartache than joy. He said, "Those who love money will never have enough. How meaningless to think that wealth brings true happiness! The more you have, the more people come to help you spend it. So what good is wealth—except perhaps to watch it slip through your fingers!" (Ecclesiastes 5:10–11, NLT).
• The Bible tells us that God looks at our motives including the desire to be rich and famous: "For the LORD sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart" (1 Samuel 16:7). And we learn in Proverbs 21:2: "Every way of man is right in his own eyes, but the LORD weighs the heart." God knows our hearts and motives for wanting to be rich and famous.
• God promises to give us a new heart and spirit that lives to honor Him (Ezekiel 36:26a). Living with this new heart means living a life where a growing relationship with Jesus is our most important goal, not being rich and famous.
• In checking our motivation for being rich and famous, we should ask as the psalmist prays, "Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts" (Psalm 139:23).
• God wants to create in us a clean heart (Psalm 51:10), one that is motivated by trusting and pleasing Him.
• We all would do well to consider the caution that "Whoever is greedy for unjust gain troubles his own household, but he who hates bribes will live" (Proverbs 15:27). God knows the motives of our hearts.

FROM THE NEW TESTAMENT

• Our ultimate goal should be honoring God in all we do, not achieving worldly success, material abundance, or worldly fame (Colossians 3:17; 1 John 2:15–17).
• Jesus, in His teaching called the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5—7), clarifies how our obedience is revealed more by our motives than by our actions. Jesus tells us that intentions and thinking such as anger and lust are just as wrong as evil actions such as adultery and murder (Matthew 5:21–30).
• The Bible warns of the danger of desiring wealth: "But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs" (1 Timothy 6:9–10).
• James warns about how desiring what we do not have can cause quarrels and division (James 4:1–10). He also says, "Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God" (James 4:4). If our desires to be rich and famous are rooted in worldliness, they are sinful.
• Wealth and popularity can provide a false sense of security, easily becoming an idol, but riches and fame cannot save us. In fact, we cannot even count on riches or fame to last. Jesus' parable of the rich fool in Luke 12:15–21 exemplifies this.
• James 4:13–15 warns, "Come now, you who say, 'Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit'—yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, 'If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.'" Putting our trust in our own plans or our own wealth or the way others perceive us is ignorant. If a desire to be rich and famous is a desire to be self-sufficient or to achieve some sense of worth or peace or status apart from God, it is misplaced, sinful, and will ultimately fail.
• One of the many truths that Jesus proclaimed has to do with worshiping anything other than God: "No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money" (Matthew 6:24). Money and earthly things can be an obstacle to our willingness to serve God. More broadly, Jesus is saying that when we pursue a goal, any goal, just because we want to, we run the risk of making the goal more important than God, and that is wrong.
• Our focus should be to honor God in all that we do for His glory and with thanksgiving (Colossians 3:17).

IMPLICATIONS FOR TODAY

Money itself is amoral—it is what we use to make exchanges of goods and services, which is needed in any society. Being rich can certainly be used for good, especially when wealth is wisely stewarded to help others or further God’s kingdom. The Bible tells us to "to share what you have" (Hebrews 13:16), to work so that we "may have something to share with anyone in need" (Ephesians 4:28), and to love to give (1 Corinthians 9:6–7), especially to the poor (Proverbs 21:26; 28:27). We are also called to contribute to those who feed us spiritually and to the broader work of ministry (1 Corinthians 9:3–14; 2 Corinthians 9). Jesus was not wealthy (Matthew 8:20). He and His followers relied on God's provision through the generosity of others to support their ministry (Matthew 10:9–10; Luke 8:1–3). Later in the New Testament we see people contribute to the material needs of others as well as to support the work of the apostles (Acts 2:42–47; 4:34–35; 1 Corinthians 9:4–14; 2 Corinthians 11:7–11; 1 Timothy 5:17–18; James 2:14–17). People need to have money in order to contribute to material needs.

The rich have great opportunity to give generously. For some, their wealth can also free up time for them to serve God and others in unique ways. No matter how much money we have, all believers are called to love others and we are each a needed part of the body of Christ. Every believer is called to care for those in need and to participate in ministry in a variety of ways (Romans 12; Ephesians 4:11–16). Each of us is a steward of the wealth that God has entrusted to us; we should spend it and give it according to His direction. Again, riches are not the problem. The problem comes when we love riches rather than loving God.

While fame can certainly be a trap (John 12:43) and it is often rife with challenges, fame has its merits. People tend to be exposed to the messages of the famous and naturally extend some level of credibility to them. Fame can be a helpful platform for sharing the gospel. Jesus tells His followers (and us) that they are "the light of the world" and that they are to "let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven" (Matthew 5:14–16). Fame can lead to people seeing Jesus and then praising God.

But whether our name is recognized by millions or only a few, we can be lights for Christ. Often the most effective witness is not on a large platform, but through daily one-on-one interactions in which we share the love and truth of Christ. Like Jesus, Christians should "Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others" (Philippians 2:3–4).

UNDERSTAND

• Being rich and famous isn’t inherently sinful.
• Being rich and famous can provide opportunities to glorify God.
• Being rich and famous can also lead us into sin, so we must check our hearts and the motivation for any desire to be rich and famous.

REFLECT

• If you have a desire to be rich and famous, what motivates your desire for wealth or fame?
• How can you ensure that your pursuit of success or recognition aligns with God’s purpose for your life?
• Where in your life are you tempted to idolize wealth, fame, or material success? How can you guard your heart against these temptations?

ENGAGE

• How can we distinguish between a healthy desire to prosper and a sinful craving for wealth or fame?
• How does the example of Solomon’s wealth and wisdom in the Bible help us understand the potential dangers of pursuing riches or fame?
• How can fame and influence be used for God’s glory, and how can we ensure we remain humble when granted such opportunities?