Was Jesus a socialist? Lawrence Reed, President Emeritus of the Foundation for Economic Education, tackles this question in his 2020 book titled just that. Some socialists like to claim Jesus among their ranks, but the Bible says otherwise. In Lawrence’s view, the teachings of Christ emphasized personal responsibility, voluntary charity, and the ethical foundations of freedom. We explore key biblical passages that both directly and indirectly comment on the structure of society and the proper relationship between personal values and government force. While it would be unreasonable to expect direct biblical instruction on the minutiae of contemporary policy issues, the Bible does contain plenty of guiding principles that light the way for us.