What Does $62 Billion and Matthew 16:26 Have in Common?

Please note: Although this article was written in 2008 after attending a Berkshire Hathaway shareholder meeting, we still have people who search on whether Warren Buffet has a relationship with Jesus Christ and end up at GND. This very question was posed to Buffett during the shareholder meeting in 2008, and we are reposting the article since it is so requested. Please keep in mind that things could have changed since then, because Scripture clearly says that only God knows the heart ... Luke 16:15.


The weekend of May 3, 2008 may have very well answered this question. You see, on May 3, Warren Buffett, the 77 year old CEO and Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, along with Charlie Munger, the Vice Chairman, held his annual Berkshire Hathaway Shareholders Meeting in Omaha, Nebraska. Before continuing, in the event you have never heard of Warren Buffett, according to Forbes list of richest people in the world, Mr. Buffett holds the title with a net worth of $62 billion.

If you have never had an opportunity to attend the Berkshire Hathaway shareholders meeting, this particular meeting is more like an event than a corporate business meeting, complete with a reception on Friday night at Borsheim's Jewelers, the actual meeting on Saturday at the Qwest Center, and an event consisting of a themed party with food on Saturday night at Nebraska Furniture Mart.

With people coming from all over the world, this year's event happened to draw ~31,000 faithful followers of Warren Buffett, and I had an opportunity to attend.

Starting at 8:30 AM with people packed to the rafters in the Qwest Center, the Saturday meeting begins with a humorous corporate movie and then proceeds to six hours of questions addressed to Warren Buffett. If you have read any news articles pertaining to the Berkshire meeting, or have seen any clips of the shareholder's meeting on television, such as CNBC, you know that Mr. Buffett was asked questions on everything from derivatives and investment bankers to ethics to how he stays in such good shape, to which he responds is due to his diet of Coke and Mrs. Sees candy.

Given the six hours worth of questions directed to Mr. Buffett, the one question that caught my attention and held it for the rest of the day was a question asked by a man probably 30 years old. This young man stepped up to the microphone and in the midst of 31,000 people asked Mr. Buffett, the world's richest man, if he knew and had a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. Without hesitation, Mr. Buffett responded ... no, I am an agnostic. I don't know whether there is a God or not. Maybe when I die I will find out but I don't know.

For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? Matthew 16:26