D. Scott Meadows

Pastor John Newton not only preached the gospel but he also exhorted believers to lead morally upright lives. In this letter, he exposes a corrupt practice in his day: smuggling imports into Great Britain without paying the legal customs charges to the government. The guilty merchants could make a great deal of money, not only from not paying this tax, but also from undercutting the market with cheaper goods. Newton solemnly warns Christians, tempted by frugality or greed, against participating at all in these censurable practices, even if they would save only a few shillings on groceries. Below is an abridged paraphrase of the original letter.

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1. It is common knowledge that some people considered Christians conduct illegal business to avoid paying taxes, which reduces tax revenue and hurts the fair trader. Besides, this is against the law.

2. God’s Word so plainly condemns this it is hard to miss it. The same Holy Bible which prohibits murder and adultery (Exod 20.13, 14) requires us to pay taxes. “Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s” (Matt 22.21). “Render therefore to all their due: taxes to whom taxes are due, customs to whom customs, fear to whom fear, honor to whom honor” (Rom 13.7). Common sense recognizes it is only right to support financially the governments we live under which afford us protection, but this duty is especially enforced upon Christians, because doing this is one aspect of the obedience we owe to Christ Himself. The moral obligation of paying taxes applies to all people and times, unless someone is prepared to argue that the Lord Jesus and His apostles sanctioned paying taxes to government of Roman emperors like Nero because they were particularly just and fair!

3. This evil practice is also inequitable. It is not fair to those who play by the rules, paying the required taxes for their wholesale goods, because then they cannot afford to sell them at retail as cheaply as the cheaters do. Consequently, the upright have fewer customers. The cheaters obviously violate the Golden Rule which says we must treat others as we would be treated (Matt 7.12). If they would only put themselves in the place of the honest dealers it would become immediately apparent to them that they would not like to be disadvantaged this way. Therefore, it is unjust, that is, sinful and wholly unbecoming of a Christian, knowingly to buy the goods which are cheaper on account of someone else’s cheating, even in small quantities for one’s own private use. As for those sellers who engage in this crooked practice secretly, afraid they might be caught by a government agent (but not afraid of God), I pray He may grant them repentance, because this is nothing else but a work of darkness. These shady dealings, over the course of time, always require other related acts of fraud and wicked behavior like perjury that would be scandalous if discovered, not only for a professing Christian, but even for an open atheist.

4. Such tax evasion is also inhumane. Tax-evading smugglers are practically forced from society and exposed to situations very dangerous to themselves and others. Fights and murders are often the consequence of illegal commerce. Theirs are ill-gotten gains, and often ill-spent. We should pity them! Their line of work tends to deprive them of a normal, happy, social life, as well as inducing them to become evergreater sinners. They are risking their lives and ruining their souls—but for whom? I hope, dear reader, not for you, if you consider yourself a Christian. If you knowingly participate for your own advantage in any of this, you are partly to blame for the disastrous consequences, and you are encouraging them in sin to their own hurt so you can save a few bucks! Is this the way Christ teaches you to live? Is this how you show yourself an upright person? Is this how you demonstrate your compassion for people? Be done immediately with this dirty business! Don’t imagine for a moment it will give you more to support the church’s ministry, because God hates robbery for burnt offering (Isa 61.8). Forget about gaining wealth for yourself this way, because it will be like a moth to all you possess, and a curse. This is blood money. If you persist in this crime even after admonition, “be sure your sin will find you out” (Num 32.23). If the Lord loves you as His own child, He will not let you prosper this way. Any money you gain by moral compromise will deprive you of the blessing and comfort you might have had from your honest work, from gifts received, and from shrewd investments.

5. If you are dead set on going against civil law, Scripture, equity, and humanity, and you profess to be a Christian, you surely have some excuse to justify yourself and to keep your conscience quiet. But will it be good enough for your dying hour? How could you plead, “there’s just no other way to get by in this dog-eat-dog society?” The wicked way of this world is forbidden to you. God’s command to you is, “Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil” (Exod 23.2). The squeeze you feel is a test for you from God, whether you will deny yourself temporary advantages for His sake from a good conscience toward God. His grace is sufficient for you (2 Cor 12.2). It is the Lord’s blessing that makes one truly rich (Prov 10.22). The best policy, even to thrive as a business person, is to have integrity and diligence and to depend on Providence. But even if you suffer financial loss, you will have the Lord with His blessing. But if you habitually and grossly fail this test of integrity in business dealings because you love the world more than you love God, then you have great reason to fear that you are totally devoid of the Holy Spirit and do not really belong to Christ at all (Rom 8.9).

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While our business circumstances may differ considerably from what occasioned Newton’s letter, the moral principles he raises still apply. “A false balance is abomination to the LORD: but a just weight is his delight” (Prov 11.1). It is unethical to cheat on your taxes, to seize upon the cashier’s mistake, and to work for cash “under the table.” Especially Christians ought to be scrupulously honest about all our business dealings. Ω