Was Jesus a Socialist? A closer look at Scripture

By Easton Martin | Op-Ed | July 2, 2025

Jesus said to him, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.”
—Matthew 19:21

It has long been debated: was Jesus a socialist? Jesus makes numerous statements in Scripture regarding wealth, and all seem, at first glance, not so far off from socialism.

Socialism, according to the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy, encompasses both an economic system and an ideology. In socialism, the people own or control the means of production, rather than individuals or corporate entities. The question for us is: is that what Jesus taught? Did Jesus prescribe an economic system by which we should live, or perhaps an ideology to dictate our economic practices?

Many have attempted to make the case from Scripture that this is indeed what Jesus taught and what the Bible supports as a whole.

Take what Jesus says to the rich young ruler in Matthew 19 and Luke 18. Jesus certainly appears to be telling the man that if he truly wants to follow Him, he must give up all his possessions.

Jesus says in Luke 6:20, “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.” He follows this up in verse 24 with, “But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation.”

Beyond what Jesus says about poverty and wealth, the believers in the early church appear to be practicing socialism. In Acts 2:45–47 we read:

“And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts.”

Again, in Acts 4:34–36, we read something similar:

“There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need.”

Wealth redistribution and no private ownership of property or possessions certainly do sound like socialism, don’t they?

Not so fast.

Let’s examine first what Jesus said in those gospel passages. In Matthew 19, Jesus tells the rich young ruler that if he wants to be perfect and follow Him, he must go and sell all he has. But Jesus’ statement is aimed at this man’s individual heart, not society at large. He isn’t giving a blanket rule for all rich people, but rather addressing one man’s idol.

In Luke 19, Jesus visits the house of Zacchaeus, a wealthy tax collector. Zacchaeus responds by giving away half of his possessions and vowing to repay anyone he has cheated fourfold. Jesus affirms Zacchaeus afterward, even though Zacchaeus only gave away half of what he owned.

While Jesus asked the rich young ruler to give up everything, He doesn’t ask Zacchaeus to give anything. Yet Zacchaeus gives half, not under compulsion, but out of personal conviction and spiritual transformation.

It seems, then, that Jesus doesn’t have a problem with money itself, but rather with hearts that worship money. In Matthew 6:21, Jesus says, “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Whatever is of most value to us will become our idol, the true object of our worship.

Returning to the early church in Acts, one thing stands out: the generosity of the believers was voluntary, not coerced by the government. They shared what they had because of their shared love for Christ, not because a system mandated it. This was a Spirit-led community, not a political movement.

Theologian John Stott, in his book “The Message of Acts”, notes, “Neither Jesus nor his apostles forbade private property to all Christians. . . It is important to note that even in Jerusalem the sharing of property and possessions was voluntary.”

The passage is descriptive of a community of believers who are eager to share their possessions with each other, not prescriptive for national governance. That being said, the church should be a place where members of the community are willing to care for each other in many different ways, including those who have financial needs.

Jesus was and is concerned with our motives, idols, and priorities, not with endorsing a specific economic policy.

His radical teachings against greed were not a political rallying cry, but a call to surrender what we cannot keep in order to gain what we cannot lose.

“No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”
—Matthew 6:24