On Christians and Robinhood—the App AND the Storybook Character

Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves. (Matthew 10:16)

So the big news this week comes from the stock market where a group of retail investors using social media have put a huge hedge fund on the verge of bankruptcy. It is interesting to watch, but Christians need to be careful about their moral outrage regarding one side or the other. A few years ago I watched in disbelief as Jim Cramer, a widely regarded CNBC stock analyst spoke with absolute candor about lying, spreading rumors and disinformation to drive down the price of stocks that he shorted when he was a hedge fund manager (here). He actually said this.

“It’s important when you are in that hedge fund mode is to not do anything remotely truthful. Because the truth is so against your view, it is important to develop a new truth—to develop a fiction.”

I learned two things from that.  First, never trust anything Jim Cramer says.  He is a self-admitted liar.  And second, we are living among wolves–everywhere–and they are really hungry. What we have with the Gamestop story is one group of manipulators destroying another group of manipulators and both groups thinking they are the righteous ones.

It has produced strange bedfellows. I never believed that Ted Cruz and A.O.C would agree on anything but on this, they did (here).

When your standard of right and wrong is your own self-interest, everyone who disagrees with you is immoral. Is there any surprise that we live in such a wickedly divided world? It is like the times of the judges where everyone does what is right in their own eyes (Judges 21:25).

Without a king and without the universal acceptance of the law, the nation chosen by God had no moral compass. The result was chaos. This is where our nation is right now. Without a generally accepted moral compass—found in the word of God—we see chaos, violence, and destruction.

Believers will need God’s wisdom to navigate the waters ahead. We must live in this world, and by the guiding and blessing Hand of God, we can prosper in it. I am not talking about economic prosperity—although God can give us that too if He chooses—but rather prosper in the Great Commission to which He has called us. We just have to remember that the unredeemed mind, untouched by the truths of God’s word does not think as we do. We are required by God to be honest, truthful, loving, not repaying evil for evil. We are required by God to as much as possible live peaceably with all men (Romans 12:17-21).

We are NOT required to believe that they will act that way toward us.

There are wolves out there who consider us prey. As He did with the disciples, Jesus sent us into this world, but He did not send us out to just lie down and be victims.

“Be shrewd as snakes and innocent as doves.”

Jesus said that. True wisdom always heeds His instructions.

After all, just because the trading app calls itself Robinhood does not mean all that trade on it are the good guys. Robin Hood was a thief. So was evil Prince John. They all were.