STE:Being unequally yoked in business  by Ken Smith

   In 1972 I learned a very painful lesson. That was the year I decided
to stop working for someone else and begin working for myself. I had
passed the Virginia bar examination in 1966 and worked for a small law
firm for several years before joining the county attorney's office. By
April of 1972 I felt that I had sufficient experience to justify
striking out on my own.

   While I was considering how to make that move, I was approached by a
practicing lawyer who had strong credentials. He had held local
political office and seemed to be well positioned in the legal
community. His offer of a guaranteed salary as a junior partner looked
attractive and I accepted. To make a long story shorter, the
partnership lasted for six long months. At the end of that time I
rented office space in a different location, packed my files and moved
out one weekend without any fanfare. The "partnership" had been
terminated, and I resolved never again to form another business
partnership. It would be four more years before I committed my life to
Christ, but I had already learned an invaluable lesson: a partnership
limits your freedom to run the business as you see fit.

   Biblical Teaching on Partnerships

   Perhaps the most familiar scripture on partnership is II Corinthians
6:14-15: "Do not be yoked together with unbelievers...what does a
believer have in common with an unbeliever?"

   The point that Paul is making is that believers and unbelievers
operate with two entirely different value systems which can never be
compatible. If we try to combine biblical principles with any other set
of principles, there will be conflict. The question is not WHETHER,
there will be conflict, but what the RESULTS of that conflict will be.

   Counting the Cost

   If the Christian partner is strongly committed to following biblical
principles in operating the business, chances are the relationship will
be short-lived. Why? Because the underlying motive for forming a
business partnership is profit. If both partners are not committed to
biblical principles, the Christian will face constant pressure to do
things to produce that profit that are inconsistent with his faith.

   That's not an accusation. That's just a fact! The unsaved partner
may have a strong commitment to ethics and good business practices, but
without a spiritual commitment to biblical principles, his values will
differ and ultimately there will be friction.

   On the other hand, if the Christian partner is not strongly
committed to following biblical principles in operating the business,
he will be one forced to compromise. Again, the issue boils down to
profit. Very often if the business adheres to biblical principles, it
will not produce as great a profit as if it adheres to established
business practices. Unless both partners share a strong commitment to
doing what God wants regardless of the consequences, it's only a matter
of time before the profit motive emerges as the dominant factor in
business decisions. At that point the Christian had, in effect,
surrendered. He or she may make a lot of money, but at what cost? The
true cost won't be evident until the day we appear before Christ. In
the meantime, there is the cost of the consequences which attach to
spiritual disobedience.

   Now obviously, if a business does not remain profitable, it will not
continue. But whereas in the business world profit is the objective, in
the spiritual world, it is a means to an end, not an end in itself.

   Unequally Yoked Equally

   In my experience the only thing worse than being unequally yoked is
being unequally yoked equally. If you are contemplating forming a
business partnership and don't believe that God looks with disfavor on
joining with an unbeliever, at least avoid the liabilities of an equal
partnership. A 50/50 proposition is a no win proposition. If you are
the believer and own 51%, then you're in a much better position to
prevail on the point that you consider important. You may find,
however, that even though you have the power and authority to control
the decision making. God will not give you the license to exercise that
authority against your partner.

   If you feel you must become yoked to an unbeliever and cannot
control 51% of the business, then choose 49% or less rather than 50%.
Than at least you know going into the relationship that you cannot
control it and that you are subject to the majority owner. In other
words, face up front the likelihood that you will have to compromise
your principles.

   High Cost of Compromise

   A few years ago a good friend of mind from the Midwest asked my
advice on forming a business relationship with an unbeliever. I
counseled against it, and my friend agreed that creating a business
partnership with an unbeliever could not be reconciled to scripture. He
struggled with the question but ultimately formed the partnership.
Since then he and his partner have made a lot of money in real estate
and other investments. Most of their business deals are with
unbelievers. My friend who once talked about applying biblical
principles in the business has grown strangely quiet about his faith.

   Recently an employee in my friend's company called to say he had
finally decided to look for another job. He was a Christian and was so
disappointed in my friend's inability to walk with the Lord, that he
had decided to work elsewhere rather than watch my friend's spiritual
deterioration. My friend has sadly but surely compromised the values
and principles that he felt very strongly about in the beginning. How
he no longer has any significant witness for Christ.

   I pray for my friend regularly. I know that one day God will open
his eyes and enable him to see things as God see them.

   Not Compromising Cost, Too

   An old classmate of mine ran into trouble from the opposite
direction. As a young Christian, he decided to invest in some real
estate with an unbeliever. Again, I counseled against the formation of
a partnership primarily on the basis of II Corinthians 6:14-15. My
friend decided to pursue the partnership anyway, to his great dismay.
He just recently extricated himself from that relationship at a fairly
significant financial cost. He lost some money and endured several
years of painful association, but at least his commitment to biblical
principles remains intact. So, in a sense, the lesson he learned was
cheap.

   All of us can look back and find ways to have done things much
easier than the path we chose. Sometimes we don't even realize we're
being disobedient to God when we make bad decisions. We may read
scripture differently. We may feel that God is directing us in a unique
way. Or we may never even think of the decision in spiritual terms.
Sometimes we know what God is saying, and we decide to do otherwise.

   We get wisdom by learning the lessons God has for us to learn. There
are easy ways to learn those lessons, and there are increasingly
difficult ways to learn those same lessons. It's not a matter of
failure or success. It's a matter of how much pain we impose upon
ourselves in acquiring that wisdom.

   Fixing a Mistake

   What should one do after forming a business partnership and later
realizing that is was contrary to God's will? As an unbeliever, a
friend of mine formed a business partnership with another unbeliever.
Them my friend came to Christ. He had experienced great anxiety and
trauma in the business relationship before he became a Christian.
However, it wasn't until after he became a Christian that he realized
why. The partners were violating biblical principles in conducting
their business.

   I recommended that he get out of the relationship, whatever the
cost. Although my friend was a majority owner of the partnership, I
could not conscientiously advise him to take advantage of that position
and unilaterally impose biblical principles on his partner. He needed
to conduct himself as Jesus would have.

   He agreed that he would seek God's direction and would not throw his
weight around in the course of dissolving the partnership. Shortly
thereafter, his unsaved partner decided he wanted to see his interest.
My friend came out ahead financially, and much wiser spiritually.

   Consulting Your Spouse

   My last bit of advice is for those of you who are married. If you
take advantage of your spouse's counsel, you can avoid many painful
lessons. Make you husband or wife privy to your decisionmaking before
you commit yourself, particularly if you are considering forming a
business partnership. Introduce your spouse to the prospective partner
and carefully consider his or her reaction. You may not agree with his
or her rationale, but if he or she cautions you to change direction or
walk slowly, don't overlook that advice.

   My wife Pat is so often right that I am rarely tempted any more to
proceed when she fells a caution. I know from experience that God will
speak to me through her hesitation, even though I may not understand
why she feel that way she does.

   Appropriate Associations with Unbelievers

   Finally, there are many ways to associate with unbelievers in a
business setting that are not inconsistent with scripture. There may
also be good reasons to associate with unbelievers in a business
setting. I do not want to categorically discourage the formation of
business relationships with unbelievers but to warn against forming
those relationships in a way that is contrary to scripture.

   Reprinted with permission from Christian Stewardship
Ministries'(CSM) newsletter GLAD TITHINGS, Fairfax, VA. MAR 90, Volume
9, No. 1
