Building a Matthew 25 Company. Should We Try? Is It Possible?

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This article was originally presented at The Christian Economic Forum 2019.
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The Christian Economic Forum hosts a world-class Global Event each year to connect the top industry leaders and experts from around the world with other individuals who are compelled to act upon the principles of God’s economy. The following paper was presented at CEF 2019.

— by Robert Dickie

My time of service at Crown Financial Ministries was a life-changing experience. Through this I felt the Lord had given me Matthew 25 as my “life chapter” to live out in all areas of my life. As I was about to pivot to my next entrepreneurial venture I felt called to live out the commands in Matthew 25 in business. Was it possible to build a real “Matthew 25 Company” that had foundational principles of lordship, stewardship, and generosity hardwired into the DNA of the organization? How would God call me to live this out? I knew from experience that many “Christian” business leaders I had looked up to early in my career lived segregated lives where business and faith did not intersect; their business practices did not meet what I saw Jesus commanding us to do in Scriptures.

In Matthew 25 Jesus told three compelling stories that highlight the importance of lordship, stewardship, and generosity in a Christ-follower’s life. What struck me is His closing words to His disciples starting in verse 34:

“Then the King will say to those on His right, “Come, you who are blessed by my father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you took care of Me, I was in prison and you visited Me . . . And the King answered them, “I assure you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me.”

I had an intellectual understanding of this chapter in Matthew. I lived a comfortable and segregated Christian life living out these principles with ease but holding on to what I eventually came to understand was an element of pride, arrogance, and blindness to the world around me that prevented me from seeing what Jesus was really saying. In the context of business, my blindness was not only of my own accord but also from the structural societal norms that hinder “brothers and sisters” in our midst from experiencing what Jesus offers all of us: connection, meaning, relevance, acceptance, redemption, understanding, and compassion. I had blindly followed society’s standards until Jesus opened my eyes.  

In business I had been taught that the ultimate job of the CEO is to “increase shareholder value” and profits for the company. In our society this has been the accepted and celebrated role for business at almost any cost. In my journey, I have mentored with successful, highly educated, incredibly gifted, and hardworking captains of industry who through sheer willpower, work ethic, and drive have become titans in their respective fields. Their stories are incredible. Their gifting is unmatched. In casual conversation many will opine their libertarian views, preaching limited government and how anyone in society can achieve success if they work hard enough. The mythological American self-made man with a Puritan work ethic who leans in to achieve success against all odds by hard work and a never quit attitude is the benchmark for all to achieve if they just try hard enough. Our conversations included the virtues of maximizing profits so we could support the church, charity, and those in need, but it was clear that business’ role is not to help in that fashion. “Let government, the church, and charity take care of the needy. I support all three with my tax dollars and donations,” was a statement I heard more than once from some businessmen. I wondered how those statements would be taken by Jesus. We know that Old Testament law required farmers to leave the edges of the fields to be gleaned by the poor. We see a powerful example in the story of Ruth and how this action impacted society. Farming was the most common business of the day and law required it NOT to be 100% efficient or focused on maximizing profits. It was law that business was to help the needy in society. Was this a good law? Have Christian leaders thought about this today as we lead our companies? God started to speak to me about this in a very meaningful way.

Let me state clearly, I do not consider myself as “gifted” like the great leaders I mention above, but do believe I have been given abilities by God. I came to discover that I had developed a pride around the gifts God had given me. I attributed those gifts to personal skills I had developed by my drive, work ethic, and ability to work long hours. As my eyes were opened I understood He had given me these abilities and my job was to steward them for others. Moreover, I came to realize that not everyone was made like me. In fact, my arrogance led me to believe everyone should be able to do what I did and if they didn’t something was wrong with them. I thought a person’s lack of success was due to them not trying hard enough, or perhaps came from their laziness or lack of focus and drive.

The thought to give accommodations, understanding, and compassion to people not wired like me was not on my agenda. I was running after a goal and people needed to get the job done. If they didn’t we would find someone who would. I understood that a business’s greatest asset is its people, so I looked for, hired, and kept only people who fit the mold I was looking for. My job was to grow the business, maximize value, and increase profits. I gave no thought to how Jesus’ commands in Matthew 25 should impact the way I steward a business. Certainly a company needs to strive to be the best and hire the best but should we also create an element similar to businesses of the Old Testament to help those on the fringes? That thought never crossed my mind. My life was segregated, like the lives of many of my mentors. My Christian walk, generosity, and help to others would come from my “Christian life” by donations, missions, and service in the community with my spare time and the profits I had made in my business ventures. I was effectively ignoring God’s commands in one area of my life to maximize business efficiency, effectiveness, and profits; I was then using those benefits in another area of life to live out God’s commands. Does this work? Is this what Jesus would want me to do? I finally came to a painful awakening as I saw the world around me that I had been blinded to seeing. This happened when I saw through the eyes of my son, Lachlan.

Lachlan has always had a special place in my heart as my firstborn of six children. I placed high expectations on him as a little boy and was excited to watch him grow into a man. He has a kind heart, loves the Lord, and was a naturally gifted runner from the time he was little. A remarkable student who strove to excel in the classroom, he received great report cards all through school. He became one of the best runners in the state of Tennessee, placing third in the state cross country championships, which earned him a full-ride athletic scholarship to Carson Newman University. His work ethic was unrivaled; he would routinely get up at 5:00 in the morning to go with me to the gym to get a workout in before school. I marveled at his commitment and drive. However, during his junior year of high school, my wife Brandi and I began to notice things that did not seem right. Lachlan started to struggle in both the classroom and on the track. His attention and focus waned. He started dealing with depression for no obvious reasons. His behavior was erratic and at times strange with no correlation to triggering events. It started to feel as if he was out of control. Things progressively got worse and after finishing his second year of college, he walked away from his scholarship and returned home. We were dumbfounded and confused. Our son had become a person we almost could not recognize or understand; we had no idea what to do. Through prayer, research, and the help of medical professionals, Lachlan was finally diagnosed with bipolar disorder. In simple terms, we all know what it is like to have our computer or phone crash or lock-up. Imagine the CPU of your life—your mind—doing that to you with no warning. That is the life I began to see unfold with my son. 

Unable to thrive in a college environment, Lachlan decided to stay home, work, take classes at a community college, and work on healing and building a foundation in life that would allow him to have success. He was learning how to deal with this new disorder that could derail him on a moment’s notice. Sadly, my attitude at first was one of, “Snap out of it. Be strong! Just focus, work hard, and don’t let your mind go into negative areas. You can do this. This is a choice. Choose to live your life differently. Come on Lachlan!” This was not helpful and I realized that God was working on me maybe more than on Lachlan through this experience. I understood clearly for the first time how I was blessed by God and that He wanted me to see how many people in life see and experience the world differently from me. I have shed many tears through this entire journey with my son. I have grown in patience, empathy, and compassion. I have been overwhelmed to see how a segment of our society lives and must endure with very few people understanding them. Most people do not know how to respond, help, and support those struggling with mental illness. Lachlan does not want charity. He wants a life of meaning and significance but it will require him to be in a place where people have compassion and understanding.

I have watched Lachlan on his journey these past two years as he threw himself into his work. He won efficiency awards at Honda, worked 50+ hour weeks in hot warehouses to the point of exhaustion, which ultimately led to a breakdown. I have watched him go from job to job, each leading to the same conclusion with a physical and mental breakdown. I realized that as a Christian leader I was being called to address this issue. If a Christian will not provide an environment for “brothers and sisters” in need, who will? I came to understand that living a segregated Christian life is not what Jesus called me to do. I have been blessed with attributes that allow me to work in the area of business and employ others while building and growing companies. It is my job to steward them in a different way to help the marginalized in society.

 I am committed to living out Matthew 25 in my life. I am now committed to trying to discover what it means to build a Matthew 25 company that lives out these values. I am early in my journey. I have more questions than answers and many people who have told me this won’t work. I hold on to the belief that if Jesus commanded it of us it is possible and He will help and provide the answers I need. I ask you: is it possible that Jesus’ commands are not just good but can be profitable as well? Can you build a successful Matthew 25 company? I believe you can.