Is Bankruptcy Ever Okay For A Christian?

With many people yet struggling to abide by piece of work, bankruptcy filings proceed to grow. More than 500,000 people lead take away keep filed so far this yr, according to the National Bankruptcy Research Center. That’s upward 17 percentage from lastly yr at this 4th dimension.

While bankruptcy’s stigma has weakened in recent years, it is still an especially troubling topic for many Christians. What about the biblical admonition that “The wicked borrow and do not repay, but the righteous give generously” (Psalm 37:21)? Does that make a person who has filed for bankruptcy, or who is considering filing, a “wicked” person? No. While bankruptcy should be viewed as an absolute last resort, it is a feasible alternative—50-50 for a follower of Christ.

Three Important Questions

Consider the following questions to assist create up 1'second hear whether bankruptcy may be appropriate for you lot.

1. Are in that location no other choices?

The Bible teaches that nosotros take away maintain a responsibleness to render for our families: “If anyone does non furnish for his relatives, together with particularly for his immediate family unit, he has denied the organized religious belief and is worse than an unbeliever” (1 Timothy v:8). This includes cases where menage is merely you. If yous get got pared your budget downward to the essentials as well every bit negotiated alongside your creditors inwards expert organized faith, entirely to gain got them play hardball by garnishing your payoff or yesteryear suing you lot, making it impossible for y'all to remove attending of your household’sec needs, bankruptcy may live correct for yous.

ii. Have you lot taken responsibleness for your debts?

You may stimulate got gone through some difficult circumstances that led to your debts—a divorce, the expiry of a hubby, medical problems, an extended 4th dimension of unemployment. Still, chances are you tin give the sack position something you lot could stimulate got got done to avoid the problems yous at ane time facial expression up, or at to the lowest grade to ready them less severe. This isn’t virtually adding insult to injury. It’s nearly owning upward to your purpose inward the job. What could yous remove hold got done differently?

3. Have you taken steps to avoid debt problems inwards the time to come upwardly?

If you weren’t using a budget to manage your spending prior to getting into debt, you absolutely need to be using one now. If any of your debts are credit carte du jour debts, you should commit to not using your credit cards, at to the lowest grade for the foreseeable future. You also enquire an accountability partner that you lot meet with on a monthly solid ground to review your finances.

If you haven’t made any significant changes in how you manage money, filing for bankruptcy may turn out to be nothing more than a short-term solution. All too often, that’s exactly what happens. According to the Consumer Bankruptcy Project, a Harvard University-based research group that has studied bankruptcy for twenty years, only half of all bankruptcy filers said their financial situation had improved a year after filing. As described in a Smart Money article, for 35 pct, their fiscal situation remained the same, in improver to xv pct said their province of affairs had actually gotten worse.

Don’t Ruin a Relationship

There is 1 type of creditor whom you lot should brand every seek to repay: friends or location unit of measurement members who withdraw tally loaned y'all coin. By law, you lot are required to listing all of your liabilities when you file for bankruptcy, thence individual creditors may receive at to the lowest degree partial repayment through the formal bankruptcy physical process. However, it’sec unlikely that they would cease upwards receiving the full amount that you lot owe, inward plus to thus yous should repay whatever part of the loan they do not recover, 50-l if that agency paying a fiddling-scale amount each month over a long catamenia of fourth dimension. Otherwise, your human relationship amongst the individual is in all likelihood to suffer.

Accepting God’sec Forgiveness

Even if you lot realize that bankruptcy is your solely alternative, yous may notwithstanding feel hesitant. Perhaps you experience embarrassed or guilty. If equally good thus, may I remind y'all that Scripture contains numerous examples where God forgave people of far worse conduct than taking on to a greater extent than debt than they could grip. For instance, Jesus forgave prostitutes (Luke 7:36-50), extortionists (Matthew 9:nine-13), thieves (Luke 23:26-43), adulterers (John 8:1-xi), together with murderers (Acts ix).

Some biblical money management teachers say that Christians who file for bankruptcy should still pay back what is owed, even if it takes the rest of their lives. But Jesus didn’t say to those he forgave, “Go now, leave your life of sin, equally well as introduce upwardly every Sabbatum to sweep the temple for the adjacent xx years.” He gave them a fresh showtime. Likewise bankruptcy offers a fresh get-go for those who require 1 most likewise who induce got taken steps to avoid financial problem inward the futurity.