Luke 14:25-33
14:25 Now large crowds were traveling with him; and he turned and said to them,

14:26 "Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be my disciple.

14:27 Whoever does not carry the cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.

14:28 For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not first sit down and estimate the cost, to see whether he has enough to complete it?

14:29 Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it will begin to ridicule him,

14:30 saying, 'This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.'

14:31 Or what king, going out to wage war against another king, will not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to oppose the one who comes against him with twenty thousand?

14:32 If he cannot, then, while the other is still far away, he sends a delegation and asks for the terms of peace.

14:33 So therefore, none of you can become my disciple if you do not give up all your possessions.

Think About It......... 

This is certainly not the easiest text on which to preach!  Jesus, the icon of love and peace and compassion and mercy is teaching hate, advocating homelessness, demanding everything we have before he’ll call us a disciple.  How have you handled this scripture?

Getting rid of all your property, your stocks, your bank account has certainly not been accepted as a requirement for membership in the Christian church.  I doubt Christianity would be able to boast of the huge numbers around the world….as you know, the vast majority of U.S. citizens claim Christianity as their religion.  I wonder why some people quote the Bible to condemn others outside their sphere…..but fail to accept the words that Jesus spoke in the text today. 

Now, I’m no Mother Teresa….that woman actually did follow Jesus’ words to a T.  But frankly, I doubt Jesus meant those words to be taken literally by the rest of us.  I think he meant that God should come first in our lives….not just in words but in actions.  Ignoring those in need and yet claiming to be a Christian just doesn’t make it, Jesus said.  Certainly living in the lap of luxury while we watch the poor in this world starving to death by the minute is not placing God first.

Well, I couldn’t be more excited about the news that came out recently.  I wrote about it several weeks ago.  Just over a year ago, in May 2009, word leaked to the press that the two richest men in America, Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, had organized and presided over a confidential dinner meeting of billionaires in New York City. David Rockefeller was said to have been a host, Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Oprah Winfrey to have been among those attending, and philanthropy to have been the main subject.

Investor Warren Buffett and Microsoft founder Bill Gates announced  that at a series of  dinner parties and the like, they are asking hundreds of billionaire Americans to give away at least 50 percent of their wealth to charity.  See:  http://givingpledge.org/

 Gates was ranked the second richest man in the world by Forbes magazine this year with $53 billion, while Buffett came in at No. 3 with $47 billion. Forbes said the United States is home to 403 billionaires, the most in the world.

They have named the campaign the Giving Pledge and are asking those who commit to giving away at least half their fortune during their lifetime or after their death to publicly state their intention with a letter explaining their decision. 

Bill and Melinda Gates have so far given more than $28 billion to their foundation. Since the foundation began in 1994 it has given away more than $22 billion for health improvements in poor countries and to improve access for Americans to opportunities they need to succeed in school and life.  See: http://www.gatesfoundation.org/Pages/home.aspx

Eli Broad and his wife Broad and his wife Edythe said in a statement that they will pledge to give away 75 percent of their wealth during and after their lifetime. Forbes has estimated Broad to be worth $5.7 billion. Broad said, "We agree with Andrew Carnegie's wisdom,  'The man who dies rich, dies disgraced,' and we also believe 'he who gives while he lives also knows where it goes,'" the couple said. "Philanthropy is unbelievably rewarding."

Vicki and Roger Sant:  We pledge we will gift to non-profit causes more than 90 percent of our assets during our lifetime or as planned gifts. We deeply appreciate the good fortune that allows us to make this commitment.

T. Boone Pickens:  I’ve long stated that I enjoy making money, and I enjoy giving it away. I like making money more, but giving it away is a close second. To date, I’ve given away nearly $800 million to a wide-range of charitable organizations, and I look forward to the day I hit the $1 billion mark. I’m not a big fan of inherited wealth. It generally does more harm than good. I want to thank my friends Bill and Warren for their leadership – I am pleased to join them.

Buffet said that a very rich person should leave his kids enough to do anything but not enough to do nothing. [The FORTUNE article was "Should You Leave It All to the Children?" Sept. 29, 1986.] Buffett has given the foundation $6.4 billion, not counting the 2010 gift, to be made this summer.

The foundation in turn has in that same period combined Buffett's money and its immense gifts from the Gateses to raise its level of giving to about $3 billion a year, much of it for world health. One small example: the Medicines for Malaria Venture, heavily funded by the Gates Foundation, has worked with pharmaceutical company Novartis to develop good-tasting malaria pills and distribute them to millions of children -- the principal victims of the disease -- in 24 countries.

Now I’m sure most of you don’t have billionaires in your congregation.  But you do have people who are “comfortably” well off.  Address them, just as Bill Gates to the billionaire world.  Either Gates or Buffet came up with a profound formula for giving.  Not how much can you afford to give, ask how much do you need to live and give the rest of the money away. 

Ask your congregation to think about it.  What must they do to qualify as a disciple of Jesus….as the text today states.  Quite a question.....