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to be rich. This idea is decidedly
wrong.
The Bible records the lives of sev–
era! righteous, wealthy men who
served and obeyed God. There was
Abraham, a man of tremendous
wealth, very rich in cattle, silver,
and gold (Genesis
13:1-6).
He was
also a righteous man (Genesis
26:5).
His son Isaac also prospered enor–
mously. Isaac was undoubtedly one
of the richest agriculturalists of bis
time (Genesis
26:12-22).
In New Testa–
ment times, we
find that Joseph
of Arimathea -
a follower of
Christ - was a
very rich man
(see Matthew
27:57).
God nowhere
condemns the
possession of
wealth. On the
contrary, the
apostle John
wrote: " ...
1
wish above all
things that thou may-
est
prosper
and be in health ..."
(III John 2).
Perot himself, appreciative of his
wealth, never envied or hated the
wealthy when he was growing up in
the depression. He knew that life
afforded him the opportunity to be
what he wanted to be. He never
sought wealth, as such. But now that
he has it, he intends to put it to good
use.
Money itself is not the measure of
success, but on the other hand, we
should all realize that having money
is not wrong. It can be a tremendous
tool to accomplish good.
However, the lave of money is
another matter! "The lave of money
is the root of all evil things, and
there are sorne who in reaching for
it have wandered from the faith and
spiked themselves on many thorny
griefs" (1 Timothy 6:10,
The New
English Bible).
Sorne people, seek–
ing wealth alone, equating it with
true success, fall into this trap. They
PLAIN
TAUTH
March 1974
focus on money and forget the
larger issues of life.
Jesus himself knew the human
temptation. He said: "Do not store
up [that is, board] for yourselves
treasure on earth, where
it
grows
rusty and moth-eaten, and thieves
break in to steal it . Store up treasure
in heaven, where there is no moth
and no rust to spoil it, no thieves to
break in and steal. For where your
treasure is, there will your heart be
also" (Matthew
6:19-21 ,
The New
English Bible).
He added, "You can–
not serve God and Money" (verse
24).
Inordinate desire for wealth can
cause ulcers, contribute to heart at–
tacks, and result in a host of other
ills. But when money is used as a
tool to belp others, it can be a great
power for accomplishing good and
keeping one in good emotional,
mental, and physical health.
Real Success Defined
Men like H. Ross Perot, who have
studied, prepared themselves, taken
great risks, launched businesses,
driven themselves, persevered in
spite of obstacles and set-backs,
have often achieved notable "suc–
cess," as most people define this
word. But real success in life goes
one big step further.
1t
involves not
merely the acquisition of fame or
fortune, but putting these things to
use in service to others.
True success may be measured in
terms of what an individual does
with the abilities he receives during
life. Not all become millionaires or
make vast amounts of money. Suc–
cess is measured in other ways.
Jesus Christ set us a perfect ex–
ample. He was not a "millionaire."
But bis whole life was devoted to
doing good. He healed the sick,
comforted the affiicted, and encour–
aged the faint-hearted . He pro–
claimed a gospel of deliverance
from misery and bondage - the
good news of the
kingdom of
God.
His was the
greatest real suc–
cess story of all
history. His im–
pact on the lives
of people cannot
be measured in
terms of money.
Jesus Christ
measured suc–
cess by an inter–
esting yardstick
- giving. He said:
"lt
is more blessed to
give than to receive" (Acts
20:35,
RSV).
Real success is not defined as the
acquisition of wealth, fame , or
human adulation; it is not defined
as how much you "take out" of life
or "get" from others. Rather, it is
defined by how much you "put in"
- how much you contribute to the
lives of others.
Jesus Christ did not amass gre11t
wealth, although he could have; but
bis life was spent in serving the
needs of people and prov.iding their
greatest need - spiritual fulfillment
- so their lives could be happy and
prosperous.
Success in life comes not f<am the
acquisition of material goods, but
from developing an attitude of ser–
vice for mankind and from giving,
not getting. The sooner the whole
world learns this inestimable lesson,
the sooner we will all experience
worldwide happiness, peace, and
prosperity. And wbat success could
be more thrilling than that?
o
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