Bible and the Blockchain

Jason Lee shared a message titled “Bible and the Blockchain” with the ministry partners of The Navigators, Singapore at the British Club on 29 April. The content has been edited to facilitate reading while preserving the intent of the speaker. 


I strongly believe that the Web3 industry will play a significant role in advancing the Great Commission. As responsible stewards of wealth, it is crucial for us to ensure that wealth serves humanity rather than the other way around.

Blockchain technology serves as a secure and transparent record-keeping mechanism. It operates by linking blocks of information together in a decentralised and shared ledger. This distributed peer-to-peer network enables real-time updates of all transactions. Its appeal lies in its ability to establish trust and address concerns related to data integrity.

An analogy can be drawn between the blockchain and the genealogy of Jesus as mentioned in various passages of the Bible. Just like the genealogy traces the lineage of Jesus through generations, validated by multiple historians, blockchain maintains a chronological chain of interconnected blocks, providing a verifiable record of transactions.

Blockchain technology finds its most powerful application in the realm of cryptocurrency. And Bitcoin is the world’s first successful decentralised cryptocurrency and payment system, where you can buy, sell and exchange without an intermediary.

I am a proponent of its innovation, not speculation.

I am going to share with you our duty as Christians:

Stewardship over Speculation

"For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. 
 

He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master's money.
 

Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here, I have made five talents more.’"

— Matthew 25:14-20 (ESV)

If the Bible were written in 2023, I have little doubt that Jesus would incorporate 'the parable of the bitcoin'. I strongly believe in the need to steward this resource effectively.

However, I know of many people, even in the Web3 industry, who have unfortunately lost faith and a lot of money due to their investments in cryptocurrency.

I want to caution against 3 common mindsets that individuals often adopt when investing in cryptocurrency. And the Bible has warned us against such temptations:

1. Get-Rich-Quick Mentality
 

But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils.
It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.

— 1 Timothy 6:9-10 (ESV)

2. Trap-of-Debt Mentality

 

The rich rules over the poor, and the borrower is the slave of the lender.

— Proverbs 22:7 (ESV)

3. Greed-is-Good Mentality

And he said to them,
“Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness,
for one's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”

— Luke 12:15 (ESV)

Let’s use Blockchain technology as a tool for good, not for evil. And place your identity in your Saviour, not Satoshi*.

Follow Christ, not Crypto!

*Satoshi Nakamoto is the name used by the presumed pseudonymous person or persons who developed Bitcoin.




Jason Lee is the Co-founder of Commune Capital, former COO of Algorand Foundation, and a Board Member of the Lausanne Movement.

He has started a “new wine skin” in Web3, a community known as the Christians in Web3 Movement**, with a mission to pray for God’s work in Web3, gather for fellowship, and innovate for His Kingdom, so that technology leads all generations to Jesus (John 13:35, Matthew 6:33).

**Find out more about the Christians in Web3 movement and join the community at www.cw3.global.