As I Was Saying is a forum for a variety of perspectives to foster faith-related conversations among our readers with the goal of mutual learning, even in disagreement. Apart from articles written by editorial staff, these perspectives do not necessarily reflect the views of The Banner.
*Editor’s Note: This article is the third in a monthly series about oft-repeated cliches. Here are the first and second.
Perhaps you have been told, “God helps those who help themselves.” It was likely said with the encouragement to take action with the abilities and resources God has already given you. Maybe you have said this to someone else. One study showed that 52% of “practicing Christians” (who go to church at least monthly and consider their faith very important in their life) strongly agree that the Bible teaches that God helps those who help themselves.
This saying is not in the Bible. It was popularized by Benjamin Franklin in Poor Richard’s Almanack, but it didn’t start with Franklin. Similar sayings go back to Aesop’s fables, where Hercules tells a man stuck in the mud to put his shoulder to the wheel rather than just pray.
The closest the Bible comes to “God helps those who help themselves” might be 2 Thessalonians 3:6-15, with a warning against idleness:
In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we command you, brothers and sisters, to keep away from every believer who is idle and disruptive and does not live according to the teaching you received from us. … For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: “The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat.” We hear that some among you are idle and disruptive. They are not busy; they are busybodies. Such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and earn the food they eat.
The “idleness” refers to being able but refusing to do any work. The Greek word was used in the military for soldiers who didn’t follow orders as well as for students who failed to do their work. Not only did these idle people of Thessalonica refuse to work, they became “busybodies,” meddling in the business of others. They were busy with the wrong activities.
This was not in keeping with following Christ. The verb for “we command” occurs three times in the Greek text (vv.6,10,12). No question about the emphasis in this passage. These idlers needed to do productive work. Refusing to work and instead meddling in the business of others is not the Christian way.
The Bible holds up diligence. At the beginning of creation, even before the fall into sin, Adam was created to work the Garden of Eden and care for it (Gen. 2:15). God’s command to observe the Sabbath day by not working presumes work on the other six days of the week. Proverbs is all about diligence and condemns laziness (10:4; 18:9; 24:30-34). Colossians tells servants to work hard at all their tasks “as working for the Lord” because “it is the Lord Christ you are serving” (Col. 3:22-24).
Work is not a necessary evil, but a calling from God. This line of thinking is what produced what some economists have called the “Protestant work ethic.” Not only ministry work but all work in every sector is a sacred calling of God to be done with all our might.
The Bible certainly presents great value in diligence. Asking God to miraculously cut the grass or do the dishes for us when we are capable of standing up and doing the work ourselves is ridiculous. Quitting our jobs and expecting God to make paychecks fall out of thin air into our hands is not God’s way. God has already given us life and strength for the tasks of the day. Our responsibility is to use what God has given us to the best of our ability for his glory. Diligence is godliness.
“God helps those who help themselves” could be said with a good intent of encouraging the lazy to be diligent, but the Bible doesn’t encourage diligence in this way. “God helps those who help themselves” is worded in such a way that it’s as if God withholds help until we ourselves act. This is the opposite of grace.
God saves by grace alone and not by any works of ours (Eph. 2:8-9). The Bible is emphatic that our works do not earn salvation (Rom. 3:28; Titus 3:4-5; Heb. 4:3,10). Of course, true believers do not merely claim to be Christians but live out their faith with good works (Eph. 2:10; Titus 3:1-2,8; James 2:14). But even our good works are because of God’s work already in us (Col. 1:29; 1 Peter 4:11). We are to “continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose” (Phil. 2:13).
“God helps those who help themselves” is simply false. The insinuation is that we ourselves are in control and God assists in minor ways. The most generous reading of the saying would be that God helps us when we show initiative. But even with this most generous reading, the saying still doesn’t work. God helps us even when our strength is gone and we have no initiative left (Is. 40:29-31; Rom. 5:2-3; 1 Cor. 1:8-10). God gives us grace to live and move. Every breath is a gift. The fact that we can do anything at all is help from heaven already.