Is it wrong to have wealth? Let’s plunge into the Deeper Waters and find out.
I got into a Facebook debate recently with someone talking about Elon Musk and all the wealth he has. Obviously, Elon needs to do more with the money that he has. He has so much money while so many people are suffering from hunger.
This kind of argumentation has a lot of emotional appeal. In our society, many of us have come to hate some people for having money. Of course, a lot of celebrities and athletes are exempt from this because, well, we get entertained by them. We also know that we can’t be them, but a CEO? That’s different.
Let’s look at the last part first. There are a lot of people dying from hunger. Yes. The problem is that this is not just a money problem. This is a problem because of wicked governments in the world. Believe it or not, some dictators out there don’t care if their people starve or not. It’s not as if people wanting to feed the hungry are allowed to go door-to-door in these countries giving out food to the poor. No. In many cases, the government will seize and goods that come in and use that as leverage to control the populace.
“Well, Elon has more money than he needs!”
Yet as I was told this, I asked back immediately if the person was using a library computer. Do they have a car? Do they have a smart phone? Do they have a place to live with a bed and with heat and air? Can they take a warm shower? Do they have food in their refrigerators and cabinets? If they answered yes, then they are actually themselves among the richest people in the world.
It’s awfully strange then that such people do not have to give away what they have. They do not have more money than they need. It is those people who are above them that are the problem. To paraphrase Thomas Sowell, it is amazing that Elon Musk is greedy for wanting to keep the money he has earned, but someone else is not greedy for wanting what they think is their share of the money Elon has earned.
Not only this, but it’s not as if Elon Musk keeps his money in Scrooge’s vault and goes swimming in it regularly. Usually, what we measure is the net worth of a CEO. He has money invested in his earnings and his business. Saying he is worth X billion does not mean he has X billion in his bank account.
We also have to ask how many people does Musk employ? There are plenty of people who have jobs today because of Musk. CEOs own the company, but who does a lot of the work also in the company? Middle-class employees.
Does Musk give to charities also? Yes. When the hurricane hit areas in the east of America, he was there to provide internet services and other goods for those in need. Someone could say Musk could give more, but when we stand before God, we won’t be asked about what Musk did with what he had. We will be asked what we did with what we had.
Let’s suppose that instead of investing in his company which would create jobs, Musk goes out and buys a yacht or a mansion. Doesn’t that hurt us? No. Hint. CEOs do not build yachts and mansions. Who builds them? Again, middle-class people. It is the rank and file that build them and thus, they have jobs. You can say they are temporary, but all construction jobs are temporary.
Let us suppose that Musk puts his money in a bank. You could say it is just sitting there, but you know who it provides opportunities for? You and I. We can take out loans from a bank because of money that has been put there by others. That money could be used to fund education or our own small businesses we want to start.
Does the Bible often seem to condemn the rich and the wealthy? Yes, but it is not because they are rich and wealthy. Plenty of heroes of the faith are also rich and wealthy. Abraham and the patriarchs were incredibly rich. David and Solomon were rich. Anyone who provided for a New Testament church and the copying of New Testament manuscripts was rich. Having wealth is not the problem. Wealth having you is the problem.
Also, in America, if you are poor, it is not because another person is rich. If Elon’s money was equally divided among all Americans, we would all get about $777 one time. For me, that could pay my rent for one month and maybe one or two other bills and then that’s it. This is something people miss when they want to talk about going to college and getting free health care and just letting the rich pay for it. As Margaret Thatcher said, the problem with socialism is sooner or later you run out of other peoples’ money. Not only do the rich lose the money, but they have less they can do to hire other people.
Keep in mind as I say this that I am not rich myself. I have my own Patreon and I make minimum wage at my job. When it comes to voting, my policy is simple. Never vote for a new tax. Always vote for a tax cut. Does that include tax cuts for the rich? Absolutely. I trust that they can do more good with the money than the government can, a government that is $35 trillion in debt doesn’t have a lot to say about how other people should use their money. Government needs to reduce its spending, not take more from us.
Could Musk do more? I am sure he could, but that is an irrelevant question to ask. The question I should be asking is “Can I do more?” The question you should be asking is the same. When I meet someone who wants someone rich to give away all they own, but they won’t part with their smartphone, computer, automobile, etc. I just can’t take them seriously.
Do what you can with what you have. How someone else is spending their income will be between them and God.
In Christ,
Nick Peters
(And I affirm the virgin birth)