What is Surety

What in the world is surety??

Surety has to be one of the most misunderstood and least taught principles in the Bible. Proverbs alone has a number of passages that warn against surety. By adding Solomon's warnings to the other passages in the Bible, we quickly realize we better pay attention to surety. Proverbs 17:18 says "A man lacking in sense pledges, and becomes surety in the presence of his neighbor"

Webster defines surety as being legally liable for a debt. Larry Burkett used to say it was taking on an obligation without a sure and certain way of paying it. In other words it is owing more on stuff than it is worth.

In today's financial culture, it is basically any debt that you do not have full collateral to satisfy. In explaining what surety is, let us start by explaining what it is not. In most cases, a mortgage is not a debt of surety. If you cannot make your house payments, the bank will take your house as full satisfaction of your mortgage.

However, what happens when your car is only worth $5,000 and you still owe $8000 on your car loan? You have a debt of surety and we have not heeded God's caution.

We must understand this is a principle and not a law. However, statistics tells us that as high as 90% of believers have violated the principle of surety. Let's look at the two most common violations of surety in today's culture.

Cosigning:

Proverbs 11:15 "He who is surety for a stranger will suffer, but one who
hates being surety is secure". NKJV How many times do we as believers
cosign for another's loan? To be a little more specific, how many times do we cosign for our children's school debts or their first car?

Maybe we don't want to disappoint our close friend, or we want our children to get started on their own financial journey as soon as possible. Or maybe we just are not familiar with what the Bible says about cosigning. Regardless of the justification or reason, pledging payment as a guarantor or cosigning for another's loan is not an acceptable practice for God's people.

In most cases, when we cosign for another's loan, we are allowing them to borrow beyond their ability to repay without negatively affecting their financial health. Statistics tell us that a high percentage of those who cosign end up making the payments and becoming responsible for the debt.

Credit Card Debt:

Have you ever gone on a nice vacation and put it on your credit card?
When you come back and get the bill from the credit card company, you start to make monthly payments on the vacation. Guess what, almost all unpaid balances on your credit card are debts of surety. Proverbs 17:18 says "A man lacking in sense pledges and becomes surety......"

Surety is a principle-not a law. Although the violation of the principle does not carry with it punishment-like violating a law of God-its violation does have negative consequences.

Debts of surety are just too risky in God's eyes. Did you know that many of the sub-prime loans that have started the credit crisis our country faces today are debts of surety? God's Word is full of good solid financial principles. - George Hutchison is a financial counselor and instructor with Crown Financial Ministries and a member of the Keswick Board of Trustees

Great Quote: Who stumbles at Christ? All that teach you to do works, instead of teaching you to believe. Those who hold forth Christ to you as a law-maker and a judge, and refuse to let Christ be a helper and a comforter, torment you by putting works before and in the way of God in order to atone for your sins and to merit grace... For if you desire to believe rightly and to possess Christ truly, then you must reject all works that you intend to place before and in the way of God. They are only stumbling blocks, leading you away from Christ and from God. Before God no works are acceptable but Christ's own works. Let these plead for you before God, and do no other work before him than to believe that Christ is doing his works for you and is placing them before God in your behalf. In order to keep your faith pure, do nothing else than stand still, enjoy its blessings, accept Christ's works, and let him bestow his love upon you. You must be blind, lame, deaf, dead, leprous and poor, otherwise you will stumble at Christ. That Gospel which suffers Christ to be seen and to be doing good only among the needy, will not belie you.

This means to acknowledge Christ aright and to embrace him. This is true and Christian believing. But those who intend to atone for sins and to become pious by their own works, will miss the present Christ and look for another, or at least they will believe that he should do otherwise, that first of all he should come and accept their works and consider them pious. Martin Luther, Sermon on Matthew 11