“At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Ps. 16: 11) Growing Dominion, Part 49 One of the fundamental laws of life, and therefore of business, is that you get more of what you subsidize, and less of what you penalize. In every social context, certain behaviors are rewarded (in some way), and other …
Little Ones in the Heavenly Courts
This morning the exhortation is for a particular (and very important) part of our congregation—the little ones. I want to begin by asking all the children who are eight-years-old and younger to pay close attention. Step out in the aisle if you need to, or stand on your chair, or have your mom or dad …
Lower Half of the Class
“At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Ps. 16: 11) Growing Dominion, Part 48 My father-in-law likes to joke that fifty percent of all doctors graduated in the lower half of their class at med school. And if there were a school that all businessmen and retail merchants had to graduate from, then …
Thinking Outside the Cliche
“At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Ps. 16: 11) Growing Dominion, Part 47 Those who are interested in improving their performance in business will find no shortage of books offering to help along the way. The American market is glutted with “guru management” books of all kinds. Those who are interested in …
A Godly Customer
“At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Ps. 16: 11) Growing Dominion, Part 46 One of the best ways for a merchant, tradesman, or businessman to determine if he is thinking biblically about his enterprise when he is managing it is through reflecting on how he behaves when he is a customer. We …
Worship Topples Idols
The fundamental center of all human history is the issue of worship. In the faithful worship of the true God, we contend with the worship of all idols. Idolatrous societies structure everything around their idolatrous assumptions, and their constant ploy is to try to get true worshippers of God to share in those assumptions somehow, …
Rewards
“At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Ps. 16: 11) Growing Dominion, Part 44 Heavenly things drive earthly things. What we assume about ultimate reality is going to dictate how we behave in day-to-day matters. If we assume that the whole idea of “rewards” is somehow less than spiritual, then we have to …
Altruism and Self-Interest
“At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Ps. 16: 11) Growing Dominion, Part 43 A businessman cannot function without a prudent sense of self-interest, and one of the reasons many Christians struggle in their oversight of business is that they do not understand this virtue properly. And the reason they do not understand …
More on Self Interest
“At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Ps. 16: 11) Growing Dominion, Part 42 Self-interest is built into us. We do not have to create it, and it is not possible to annihilate it. It is fixed; it is a given. This means that when I have a toothache, I know instinctively that …
Selfishness and Self-Interest
“At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Ps. 16 11) Growing Dominion, Part 41 No one needs to teach us the arts of selfishness, and the related arts of rationalization. No one has to have special classes for the toddlers in the nursery in order to teach them how to grab for toys, …