The Sins of Our Financial System

Fiat Money, Usury, and the 8th Commandment

In Brief:

The Westminster Larger Catechism’s exposition of the 8th Commandment (WLC Q141–Q142) catalogues the sins forbidden by “Thou Shalt Not Steal” — and fiat money, fractional reserve banking, inflation, and the modern welfare state commit many of them directly. This article demonstrates, through the Reformed tradition, that our current financial system is not morally neutral. It is structurally sinful, and Christians have a duty to understand why.

The 8th Commandment and the Westminster Larger Catechism
How fiat money violates “false weights and measures”
Usury by volume: the truth about APR and long-term debt
The welfare state, Social Security, and receiving what is stolen
Stock market participation as “wasteful gaming”
Our Christian duty under WLC Q141
Frequently Asked Questions

This is Part 2 of a three-part series. Part 1 covers fiat money, fractional reserve banking, and how money is created. Part 3 presents the biblical alternative through the Infinite Banking Concept.

The 8th Commandment and the Westminster Larger Catechism

The 8th Commandment states Thou Shalt Not Steal (Ex. 20:15). Written by God on stone tablets, this command presupposes and establishes the right of personal property. Without the existence of personal property, the prohibition of taking something that does not belong to us would be meaningless.

The Reformed exposition of this short four-word command runs far deeper than a simple prohibition on theft. The Westminster Divines recognized that each commandment included both duties required and sins forbidden (WLC Q99). In their exposition of the 8th Commandment (WLC Q140–142), they catalogued what faithfulness to this commandment actually demands — and what it actually forbids:

Q142: “The sins forbidden in the eighth commandment, besides the neglect of the duties required, are, theft, robbery, man-stealing, and receiving any thing that is stolen; fraudulent dealing; false weights and measures; removing landmarks; injustice and unfaithfulness in contracts between man and man, or in matters of trust; oppression; extortion; usury; bribery; vexatious lawsuits; unjust enclosures and depopulations; engrossing commodities to enhance the price [monopolies or cornering], unlawful callings, and all other unjust or sinful ways of taking or withholding from our neighbor what belongs to him, or of enriching ourselves; covetousness; inordinate prizing and affecting worldly goods; distrustful and distracting cares and studies in getting, keeping, and using them; envying at the prosperity of others; as likewise idleness, prodigality, wasteful gaming [gambling]; and all other ways whereby we do unduly prejudice our own outward estate, and defrauding ourselves of the due use and comfort of that estate which God hath given us.” (Westminster Larger Catechism, 1647)

With that standard in view, consider how many of these sins our modern banking and monetary system commit.

Theft… receiving anything that is stolen… fraudulent dealing… false weights and measures… injustice and unfaithfulness in contracts… usury… engrossing commodities to enhance the price… wasteful gaming.

The list is not incidental. It is systematic.

False Weights and Measures: Fiat Money and Inflation

Fiat money is a false weight and measure (Ligonier, 2007) by definition. Part 1 of this series demonstrated how money created from nothing through fractional reserve lending has no commodity backing — no gold, no silver, no real stored value. Every dollar printed beyond what the economy produces dilutes the purchasing power of every dollar already held by working citizens.

Inflation is not an accident of economic policy. It is the mechanism by which wealth is transferred from those who hold currency to those who control its creation — the banks and their institutional allies. This is injustice and unfaithfulness in contracts: every long-term agreement denominated in dollars is being quietly renegotiated in favor of the debtor-state and against the saver, without the saver’s consent.

Fractional reserve banking compounds this by creating money that does not exist and charging interest on it — driving individuals and their government into perpetual debt which is, by the Westminster standard, man-stealing.

Usury by Volume: APR and the True Cost of Debt

There are no federal usury laws in America. Under a proper federal system this power is delegated to the states — but the states are not exercising it responsibly either. For undocumented loans, interest rates are limited to 5–15% APR. For loans agreed to in writing, there is no limit, on the assumption the debtor has read and understood the terms.

The Truth in Lending Act’s Misdirection

Under the auspices of consumer protection, the Truth in Lending Act mandated disclosure of the Annual Percentage Rate in a standardized format. But APR alone is not enough information — and it deliberately shifts attention away from what matters.

A 5.3% APR over one year is not usurious. But 5.3% over 30 years means paying $300,000 for a $150,000 house. That is usurious interest when considered by volume. Would the American consumer make the same purchasing decisions if they understood the true cost? At minimum, those earning $50,000 a year would not be financing $50,000 vehicles on 84-month notes.

Keynesian Economics and Debt Slavery

The demand-side economics encouraged by Keynesians actively discourages frugality and promotes debt as a virtue. The so-called “paradox of thrift” — the notion that saving is economically harmful — is central to the Malthusian, anti-Christian philosophy of John Maynard Keynes. The government, enraptured by these ideas, issues stimulus checks and suppresses interest rates to “stimulate” the economy. Both cause inflation, transferring wealth from citizens to bankers and their mercantilist allies.

The Welfare State: Receiving What Is Stolen

Inflation is not the only mechanism of financial theft in the modern system. The welfare state takes from one citizen by threat of force and redistributes to another — some as individual welfare, some as corporate welfare.

Social Security as Ponzi Scheme

Social Security tax is not held in a trust fund. The Social Security tax withheld from every paycheck is not set aside in an account against your Social Security number, growing at interest, to fund your future retirement. Money is fungible — those tax dollars are spent on any government program Congress chooses. Benefits are not withdrawals from a fund; they are direct transfers of wealth from current workers to current retirees.

Today, for every person receiving Social Security benefits it takes the “withholding” of 2.8 workers to fund them — down from 5.1 workers per recipient in 1960, and projected to reach 2:1 by 2050 (Peterson Foundation, 2022). The “trust fund” is projected to be insolvent by 2035 (Paul, 2025). This is the definition of a Ponzi scheme.

Government Welfare and WLC Q142

Social Security and every form of government welfare amount to “withholding from our neighbor what belongs to him, or of enriching ourselves” by the power of the vote. All while encouraging “idleness and prodigality” instead of the responsible stewardship scripture requires for our own provision. It also fosters “inordinate prizing and affecting worldly goods” — discouraging private charity because citizens assume the government mandate has replaced their personal obligation. As James Madison noted, charity is no part of the legislative duty of government.

Wasteful Gaming: The Stock Market

Even the approved instruments of “saving” fall under the Westminster condemnation. Stock market participation, broadly promoted as responsible investing, is more accurately described as wasteful gaming.

What “Wasteful Gaming” Means

Gerhardus Vos, in his commentary on the Westminster Larger Catechism, writes that the catechism’s phrase “wasteful gaming” denotes all forms of gambling — activities characterized by a balance between winning and losing, governed by a mixture of skill and chance. True Investing, by contrast, involves allocating resources with the expectation of generating income or profit over time through productive enterprise. Stock market participation, despite being framed as investing, frequently aligns with gambling’s dependence on unpredictable outcomes rather than with the diligent, controlled resource management scripture demands.

The Speculative Reality

Conventional financial wisdom promotes 401(k)s, IRAs, and 529s as tax-advantaged savings vehicles. Yet their benefits come with a hidden cost: the government taxes earnings later, offsetting initial relief, while inflation erodes what remains. Individuals surrender control — locking funds into vehicles they cannot access without penalties — and many end up reliant on credit for emergencies because their capital is inaccessible.

Every prospectus carries the disclaimer: “Past performance is not indicative of future results.” This is not legal boilerplate. It is an admission of the speculative nature of the enterprise. Contrary to Warren Buffett’s counsel to buy businesses, retail investors buy stocks hoping prices rise — driven by market sentiment rather than business fundamentals. Many opt for mutual funds believing that expert management reduces speculation. It does not. If someone gives their equestrian friend $100 to bet on races on their behalf, they are still gambling. The expert placing the bet does not absolve the one who funded it.

The Mathematics of the Financial Industrial Complex

There is a myth that investing can be reduced to an automated, mathematical exercise in diversification (Cook, 2025) — “evidence based investing”, the capital asset pricing model, Monte Carlo simulations of portfolio performance, probability-of-success calculations from proprietary software. These are the gambler’s fallacy wearing a lab coat. They are marketing designed to make the client forget the previously mentioned disclaimer.

The house always wins. In the stock market, the house is the financial industrial complex. John Bogle, founder of Vanguard, described the arrangement plainly in a 2009 interview with Steve Forbes:

“It turns out that you [the retail investor], who put up 100% of the capital, you took 100% of the market risk, are getting about 25% of the market’s return. And the croupiers, who of course put up 0% of the capital and took 0% of the risk are getting 75% of those compounded, long-term returns.” (Bogle, 2009)

The stock market was designed to allocate capital to productive enterprises — not to provide passive income or retirement wealth for individual investors. The financial industry, aided by government policy, has repurposed it for that use. Individuals tethered to this system see their access to capital shrink and their dependence on banks increase.

If these things harm ourselves and our neighbors, is it loving our neighbor to participate without question? Are those who participate not at least partially complicit? And if there is a way to resist these evils, is it not our Christian duty to pursue it?

Our Christian Duty Under WLC Q141

What standard should govern our financial management? The Westminster Divines answered that question in the same breath they condemned the financial system’s sins — in the duties required by the 8th Commandment:

Q141: “The duties required in the eighth commandment are, truth, faithfulness, and justice in contracts and commerce between man and man; rendering to everyone his due; restitution of goods unlawfully detained from the right owners thereof; giving and lending freely, according to our abilities, and the necessities of others; moderation of our judgments, wills, and affections, concerning worldly goods; a provident care and study to get, keep, use, and dispose of those things which are necessary and convenient for the sustentation of our nature, and suitable to our condition; a lawful calling, and diligence in it; frugality; avoiding unnecessary law-suits, and suretyship, or other like engagements; and an endeavor, by all just and lawful means, to procure, preserve, and further the wealth and outward estate of others, as well as our own.” (Westminster Larger Catechism, 1647)

Gerhardus Vos summarizes the scope of this commandment: “The general scope of the eighth commandment is respect for the sanctity of property… Property or wealth is created by God and entrusted to man for his use in glorifying and serving God. It is therefore a stewardship committed to man and for this reason must be respected. Thus, the eighth commandment requires not only that we refrain from stealing our neighbor’s property, but that we acquire and take care of our own.” (Vos, 2002)

This standard is comprehensive. It is not enough to avoid stealing. We have a positive duty to protect our neighbor’s property as well as our own. To give and lend freely according to our abilities. To procure, preserve, and further the wealth and outward estate of others as well as our own. That duty means we must not contribute to their loss of purchasing power through inflation caused by fiat money and fractional reserve banking — even passively, through unthinking participation in a system designed to extract wealth from them.

If our current financial construct is inherently sinful as the Reformed tradition demonstrates, an alternative is not merely desirable. It is required. Part 3 of this series presents that alternative: the Infinite Banking Concept as a biblically consistent method of taking private control of the banking function (storage, movement, and repayment) in your own family economy.

Ready to take the first step toward a financial system consistent with your values? Book a free call with William Fullington to learn how IBC applies to your situation.

Semper Reformanda

Is participating in the stock market sinful?

Not necessarily in every case, but the conventional approach to stock market participation — buying and holding diversified funds in a tax-advantaged account and hoping for long-term growth — has more in common with gambling than with the biblical model of stewardship. The Westminster Larger Catechism (WLC Q142) condemns “wasteful gaming” as a sin forbidden by the 8th Commandment. Gerhardus Vos defines this as activities governed by chance rather than skill and controlled stewardship. Retail investors who have no knowledge of the businesses they own, no control over outcomes, and no productive relationship with the enterprise are speculating, not stewarding. The question every Christian should ask is: do I have knowledge, skill, and control over this investment, or am I depending on chance?

Does the Westminster Larger Catechism address the modern financial system?

Not directly — it was written in 1647, before central banking and fiat currency existed in their modern form. But the Westminster Divines’ exposition of the 8th Commandment in WLC Q141–Q142 establishes principles that apply directly: prohibitions on false weights and measures, injustice in contracts, usury, man-stealing through perpetual debt, and receiving what is stolen. When those principles are applied to fractional reserve banking, fiat money, and inflation, the verdict is clear. The Westminster standards do not name Fiat Money the Federal Reserve, but they describe what they do.

Is Social Security consistent with Christian stewardship?

No — for two reasons. First, Social Security is a Ponzi scheme by structure: there is no trust fund, benefits are paid through direct wealth transfers from current workers to current retirees, and the system is projected to be insolvent by 2035. Second, mandatory participation through payroll taxation involves receiving the fruits of wealth taken from neighbors by the coercive power of the state — which the Westminster Larger Catechism (WLC Q142) identifies as receiving what is stolen. Christians are not individually responsible for the system’s existence, but understanding its nature is part of faithful stewardship and the motivation to build provision outside it.

Is usury illegal in the United States?

Federal usury law does not exist in the United States. The states have authority over interest rate limits, but those limits apply narrowly: for undocumented loans, most states cap rates at 5–15% APR. For loans agreed to in writing — meaning virtually every mortgage, car loan, or credit card — there is no legal ceiling because the debtor is presumed to have read and understood the terms. The Truth in Lending Act requires disclosure of the Annual Percentage Rate, but APR alone obscures the true cost of long-term debt. A 5.3% APR over 30 years on a $150,000 mortgage results in paying over $300,000 — usurious by volume even if technically legal.

References

Bogle, J. (2009, January 12). With all thy getting, get understanding. (S. Forbes, Interviewer). Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/2009/01/09/intelligent-investing-bogle-transcript-Jan12.html

Cook, V. (2025, February 28). Trump’s slush fund. Mises Institute. https://mises.org/mises-wire/trumps-slush-fund

Ligonier Ministries. (2007, September 14). Money and inflation. Ligonier Ministries. https://learn.ligonier.org/devotionals/money-and-inflation

Paul, T. (2025, January 23). Will Social Security run out? Here’s what could happen to your benefits. CNBC Select. https://www.cnbc.com/select/will-social-security-run-out-heres-what-you-need-to-know/

Peterson Foundation. (2022, August 4). The ratio of workers to Social Security beneficiaries is at a low and projected to decline further. https://www.pgpf.org/article/the-ratio-of-workers-to-social-security-beneficiaries-is-at-a-low-and-projected-to-decline-further/

Vos, J. G. (2002). The Westminster Larger Catechism: A commentary. Presbyterian & Reformed Publishing Company.

Westminster Assembly. (1647). Westminster Larger Catechism. https://thewestminsterstandard.org/westminster-larger-catechism/

William Fullington is the founder of Reformed Finance LLC and an Authorized Infinite Banking Practitioner with the Nelson Nash Institute. He is a licensed life insurance producer and retired Air Force officer who helps Christian families understand the Infinite Banking Concept, whole life insurance policy design, biblical stewardship, and the importance of controlling the banking function in their family economy.

All content on this site is intended for informational purposes only and is not meant to replace professional consultation. The opinions expressed are exclusively those of Reformed Finance LLC, unless otherwise noted. It is not individualized investment, tax, legal, securities, or estate-planning advice. While the information presented is believed to come from reliable sources, Reformed Finance LLC makes no guarantees regarding the accuracy or completeness of information from third parties. It is essential to discuss any information or ideas with your Adviser, Financial Planner, Tax Consultant, Attorney, Investment Adviser, or other relevant professionals before taking any action.