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Posted:

19th June, 2006


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Honor to whom honor: hats off to Bill Gates

You, too, were probably deeply moved a few days ago to hear of Bill Gates's decision to devote himself full time to helping better the lot of the world's poorest people. Having already given away untold billions of dollars, he and his wife, Melinda, have started a foundation for the purpose of bringing relief to their afflicted brothers and sisters in the family of man. Their foundation focuses on combating malaria and TB in developing countries.

Cynics may respond with the usual “Yeh, buts…” and launch into a tirade against what they perceive as the “real motives” for such a move, but I believe men and women of good will will respond with joyous applause. Cynics will minimize the enormity of this decision with snide remarks to the effect that they, too, would happily do such a thing if they had the same amount of money as the Gateses. They do not understand the typical human heart. Solomon did, and he said,

He who loves silver will not be satisfied with silver; nor he who loves abundance, with increase (Eccl. 5:10).

In a wicked world, where men and women who have the financial or political wherewithal to lay golden eggs invariably do so in their own nests, the Gateses' selfless spirit shines as the proverbial bonfire on a pitch dark night. They have all the silver and gold one could dream of yet, it would seem, they do not love it, their hearts are not set on

it. Their generosity has given me a real boost. Jesus, the maker of the human heart, understood perfectly what goes on in the minds of men and women (John 2:25). He said,

And again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God (Matt. 19:24).

What would I give to eavesdrop on a conversation between Jesus Christ and the Gateses were such to take place. I can't help but wonder what Jesus would say to them. Don't get me wrong; salvation doesn't get doled out to philanthropists based on their generosity. Salvation “belongs” to those who are “poor and of a contrite spirit”, who recognize their desperate need of a Savior, and who are willing to do, in “trembling” faith, all that the One True God instructs (1 Pet. 1:17). Nevertheless, I suspect that Jesus would say to them something like, “With God all things are possible… You are not far from the kingdom of God”. Would that they took the next quantum step and sought a far more noble goal than merely helping their fellow man; would that they devoted themselves with equal zeal to glorifying the God who is the giver of every good gift, both physical and spiritual.

They probably won't pursue this most blessed of all pursuits. Nevertheless, somebody has to be the richest person in the world. At last we can say, it couldn't have happened to a nicer guy. I hope Bill Gates holds that trophy for a very long time.















 
 

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