The Economics of Flow-through
Overcoming Consumerism with Redemption Economics

by Benjamin Cheek

The couple joined our group of friends for dinner at a restaurant.  I'm usually late to get into the conversation, but I was even more reclusive than usual.  Something was bothering me about the couple.  I kept wondering what his secret was.  Here he was with this beautiful companion: she was gorgeous, but he was kind of a geek.  He was loud and not very funny.  "He must have money," I thought to myself.

On the train ride home, I was running the scenario through my head again.  There was something wrong -- more than just the couple -- something wrong with my reaction.  Slowly it started to sink in: "why shouldn't this guy have a girl like that?"  "Gee, I'm more of a consumer than I thought."

Consumerism has taught us to view the whole world as a shopping mall.  Even people.  Some people are smart, wealthy, educated, beautiful, or funny, so they have more value than those who are not.  We expect to see people in relationships with people of similar "value" and it bothers us when there is apparent inequality in a relationship.  So there are all these unspoken rules of who you can talk to, who you can date, who can be your friend, who you can marry.  People are reduced to products.  "Don't stand too close to me, you're pulling down my property value."

There is one underlying principle of consumerism: everything has a material value.  Even immaterial concepts have material value: how else could you "spend time" or keep an idea as "intellectual property"?  The point of life is gaining value by acquiring and maintaining resources.  As resources are acquired, a person increases his/her ability for self-actualization -- becoming what he/she ultimately wants to be.  Even people who's mission in life is to help the world in an altruistic way often use consumerism as a way to get there: first gain education, then gain resources from donors who give to self-actualize themselves, then spend these resources in the best way to gain the satisfaction of achieving one's purpose.

Deep in the heart of consumerism there is a festering infection.  Consumerism is built on a fundamental fear.  It believes that there really aren't enough resources to go around.  Now consumerism has various theories as to why this is: Perhaps humanity wastes its resources and there would be enough if only they were better managed.  Or, it could be that the planet is overpopulated and the surplus people are pulling everyone's standard of living down.  It might even be that this is the way of evolution -- some people are less adept at gaining resources so they and their kind will succumb to the "fittest."  Regardless of the reason, the best strategy for survival and prosperity is the same: hold on to what you have, and if you can, gain more.

For those disillusioned by the hallow materialism and alienating individualism of consumerism, there is another option.  Some might call it a "faith-based" economy.  I like to call it "redemption economics" or "flow-through economics."  Rather than material value, redemption economics sees a spiritual value in everything.  Instead of assigning an instrumental value to people based on how they help me achieve self-actualization, this system seeks to find people's intrinsic and potential values as creatures invested with the image of the Creator himself.  Material and immaterial things have a value based on how they help one grow and grow others.  The point of life is to allow resources to flow-through one's life.  As resources move through a person's life, he/she gains a deeper understanding of the source of all resources and participates in the "life of God" -- gaining a mission and identity that is much bigger than any single person.

But flow-through thinking requires a leap of faith.  First, it must assume that there really is enough for everyone.  Problems occur when people horde resources, effectively oppressing those who would benefit from their flow-through -- not because God hasn't made enough resources.  He limits resources when we fasten ourselves to them with a death grip, but causes them to overflow when we allow them to pass through us on to others.  Faith says, "God will supply what I pass on," and this message directly defies the consumerist fear embedded in human nature.  

Redemption economics is at the heart of the God-human relationship.  It's based on the fundamental truth that God will care for us if we trust him to provide.  Take a look on the incarnation of God himself.  The Apostle Paul, when writing to his friends in the Greek city of Philippi, writes the following description of the identity and mission of Jesus:

Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? Any comfort from his love? Any fellowship together in the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and sympathetic?  Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one heart and purpose.  Don't be selfish; don't live to make a good impression on others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourself.  Don't think only about your own affairs, but be interested in others, too, and what they are doing.  Your attitude should be the same that Christ Jesus had:

Though he was God, he did not demand and cling to his rights as God.
He made himself nothing; he took the humble position of a slave and appeared in human form.
And in human form he obediently humbled himself even further by dying a criminal's death on a cross.
Because of this, God raised him up to the heights of heaven and gave him a name that is above every other name; So that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth;
And every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Dearest friends, you were always so careful to follow my instructions when I was with you. And now that I am away you must be even more careful to put into action God's saving work in your lives, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. For God is working in you, giving you the desire to obey him and the power to do what pleases him. [Philippians 2:1-13 NLT]

Jesus tells a story that effectively demonstrates the concept of redemption economics:

Again, the Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of a man going on a trip. He called together his servants and gave them money to invest for him while he was gone.  He gave five bags of gold to one, two bags of gold to another, and one bag of gold to the last – dividing it in proportion to their abilities – and then left on his trip.

The servant who received the five bags of gold began immediately to invest the money and soon doubled it.  The servant with two bags of gold also went right to work and doubled the money.  But the servant who received the one bag of gold dug a hole in the ground and hid the master's money for safekeeping.

After a long time their master returned from his trip and called them to give an account of how they had used his money.  The servant to whom he had entrusted the five bags of gold said, "Sir, you gave me five bags of gold to invest, and I have doubled the amount."  The master was full of praise. "Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let's celebrate together!"

Next came the servant who had received the two bags of gold, with the report, "Sir, you gave me two bags of gold to invest, and I have doubled the amount."  The master said, "Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let's celebrate together!"

Then the servant with the one bag of gold came and said, "Sir, I know you are a hard man, harvesting crops you didn't plant and gathering crops you didn't cultivate.  I was afraid I would lose your money, so I hid it in the earth and here it is."

But the master replied, "You wicked and lazy servant! You think I'm a hard man, do you, harvesting crops I didn't plant and gathering crops I didn't cultivate?  Well, you should at least have put my money into the bank so I could have some interest. Take the money from this servant and give it to the one with the ten bags of gold.  To those who use well what they are given, even more will be given, and they will have an abundance. But from those who are unfaithful, even what little they have will be taken away.  Now throw this useless servant into outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." [Matthew 25:14-30 NLT]

A deep question is answered by redemption economics: "what is my connection to God?"  Most spirituality movements and religions have  discovered that a relationship with the Divine is the ultimate goal of life, but what is the nature of that relationship?  Often, in Western thought, we have struggled with conceptions of God based on our understanding of that relationship.  In times when we've understood God primarily as a judge seeking to glorify himself, we have conceptualized our role as the "judged" -- pawns used merely to demonstrate God's greatness.  In other circles, we've seen him as a less involved engineer of the machinery of the universe: a cosmic custodian.  We are left to discover our place in the design like a cog in the gearing.  Still others have seen God primarily as a jovial and loving gift-giver, a kind of all-powerful Santa Claus.  We must be generally good and turn in our Christmas list.

Redemption economics draws a different picture all together.  The Father-Son relationship demonstrated by Jesus speaks of a cooperative mission: the re-creation of the world.  Just as Jesus was the Word through which the world was created in the first place, he became the "Word made flesh" to catalyze a human reaction that would remake the fallen world [John 1:1-14].  Jesus is offering a type of symbiotic relationship with God.  We open ourselves to the flow-through of God's nature, resources, and creative energy and God remakes the world through us.  At the same time, the flow-through transforms us: we grow towards transcendence in unbelievable ways.

Have you ever come across a pond of water with no outlet?  No matter how much fresh water flows into the pond, it's rank and scummy because it has no outlet.  That's the problem with raw consumerism: it inevitably leads to stagnation and death.  Picture a mountain stream on the other hand.  It's beauty comes from the fact that it is always losing water.  Sure more is flowing into it, but the stream is healthy and nurturing because it doesn't hold on to what it's given.  That kind of flow gives life to everything around it.  Simply put, I'd rather be the stream: fresh, clear and clean.