We study the parable of the rich man and Lazarus. There is a lot of things that this story teaches us. Firstly, we observe that we are accountable for our lives. There is a judgement appointed for all people for their actions and beliefs. As you will see, it also teaches us the need for repentance. We learn about the evidence and abundance of testimonies that God has graciously provided for men so that we may believe. Today we will also consider what sort of evidence would convince an unbeliever?
There are three main threads in the parable which we can clearly identify: 1) the life on earth (v. 19-21), 2) the afterlife and torment in hell (v. 22-26), 3) attempts to communicate to them who remained alive (v. 27-31).
Life on Earth
In the first part, we meet two people who have very different lives. First, there is a certain rich man. We do not know his name, it is not written in the eternal Word of God. All remembrance about this person is lost. There is no memory of him beyond the characteristic of his lifestyle as a way to remind us the consequences of a sinful lifestyle.
The life of this rich man is very lavish. He is clothed in purple and the best quality clothes. Purple colour is the colour of clothes used by priests in the Old Testament. We can suspect this rich man has a very high thinking of himself. He may even believe he is very righteous. Perhaps he goes every day to the temple. We can imagine he throws luxurious parties and enjoys great foods and wine. He has abundance of everything and loves his life. He is really rich in the worldly sense!
We also meet another man, a beggar named Lazarus. He is laid at the gates of the rich man. The rich man passes him everyday, but shows him no compassion. Lazarus is full of sores. He is suffering a lot! He does not have any possessions and has to beg for mercy everyday. He is desiring to be fed. This desire is not fulfilled. He remains hungry, most of the times. He sees all the abundance of the rich man and all his expectation is that there would be some crumbs that would fall from his tables and that he would at least slightly relief the hunger. Moreover, if all that sickness and suffering were not enough, there are dogs which come and lick his sores. We can imagine Lazarus is probably too weak to even cast these dogs away.
Death
And it came to pass that both of these men died. Death is inevitable for all. But what different ways were prepared for both of these men.
The beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom. It is a picture of the spiritual journey after his death. God sent his angels to carry him. He is poor and weak, but he does not rely on his own strength. What a glorious and triumphant journey it must be! He is being carried by the Holy Angels and being led right into the bosom of Abraham. He is going to be with the Lord for all the eternity, according to the promise of the Scripture: “And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” Gal. 3:28
Heaven is a place for the poor. ”Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Mt. 5:3. But what does it mean and who are the poor? It does not necessary mean they are literally poor. They simply do not claim to behold anything in the world and give glory for everything to God. They receive all as grace from the Father. They do not claim ownership for any possessions: The poor are just stewards of God’s capital and use it wisely for building His Kingdom. We can see how this contrasts and contradicts the lavish lifestyle of everyday feasts shown by the life of the rich man. The poor has always something to share with them who are in need!
The rich man also died, and was buried. We have no record of his journey into eternity, through the valley of the shadow of death. He seems to simply wake up in hell. He lifts up his eyes and he is conscious. He is in torments. He looks afar and seeth Abraham, and Lazarus in his bosom. People in hell are conscious and aware of the only chance they missed during the life on earth. They see the lost hope of faith afar off. They even pray! But the prayers remain unanswered. Did you know that people in hell pray? They cry to God for a tiny bit of mercy. But there is not even a dip of hope or mercy for them. You may not believe now, but in hell every single soul BELIEVES! It is too late for them. The only time to seek God is NOW.
Torments of Hell
“And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.”
He cried! Men, women, children, all they can do in hell is cry. Such terrible is the suffering of that place of torment. Father Abraham! Have mercy on me! Everything that these lost souls desire is some mercy. But there is no mercy in hell. Not even a tiny drop of it. Can you imagine that burning thirst that just goes on and on and on, without any relief for all the eternity?
The Need for Repentence
“But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented.”
“Thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things”. Does it mean we are not to enjoy good things in this life? NO! But we have to remember to be grateful for them. Most of all we need to look at our gates. We need to look around us to see if there are any people who may need that which we have in abundance. Seek the needs of others and show mercy. “For he shall have judgment without mercy, that hath shewed no mercy; and mercy rejoiceth against judgment.” Jam. 2:13
“And likewise Lazarus evil things”. Here is a picture of why suffering and tribulation in this world are part of Christian life on earth. The evil things come upon us because we belong to God and the world rejects God. But we know there is the eternal comfort awaiting us in heaven, if we suffer with Christ. “Now he is comforted, and thou art tormented.”
If we are to experience that sorrow now and comfort of God in the life after, we have to renew our minds. We need to see and acknowledge our sins before God. We should see the evil of this world as being the consequence of our rejection of God and of our disobedience. We should hate it. We should see and mark the injustice and rather seek righteousness with all our hearts. This is true repentance. It will come with sorrows for we will see the world and ourselves as we ought to and as we are in truth, full of evil. “For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.” 2 Cor. 7:10
The Great Gulf
“And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.”
This verse tells us that the judgement is FINAL. There is no appeal for them who end up in hell. It should urge us to plead your cause with GOD today! Seek Him and pray you are sorrowful for all the sins you committed while you were blind and unbelieving. You did not know you lived in sin, but now you do. Pray until he answers. Be honest and earnest in your prayer and the answer will come. Know the weight of your sins, until this burden is taken away from you by the Saviour! Pray while your prayers can be answered which is right now!
The great gulf is fixed. You cannot hope that them who went to heaven will descend to give you some comfort or relief when you end up in hell. There is no escape from that dreadful place.
“Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father’s house:”
The rich man finally realises there is no relief coming. He is now aware of the consequences of his unbelief and that he suffers a just condemnation. There is no communication between hell and earth, he cannot go himself to his father’s house to warn them who remain alive. He prays! “That thou wouldest send Lazarus to my father’s house”. For the rich man knows that there is communication between heaven and earth. He is aware it is in God’s power to send someone from heaven to earth! And in fact, has God not done such a thing for the human race?
What is the failure of the rich man? He lived only for himself. He lacked love, mercy and compassion. But all this was the result of the lack of faith. Faith is the medium through which we receive God’s grace. Unbelief is the root cause for all that is called SIN.
They have Moses and the prophets
“For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment.” He knows that they who remain alive, need a testimony! Please warn them that they may repent and do not end up like me here. “Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.”
They have Moses and the prophets. Abraham is referring to the Word of God, to the Scriptures. Here is the testimony they have: THE BIBLE. If that was not enough God is also sending His people to testify about Him! So why don’t you believe?
The Word of God presents many things in the form of an argument. God created us and gave us brains and minds and He knows we would be inquiring things. This is why He provided His Word in such a form that allows us to see the argumentation and reasoning behind many things. But there is one things that is never being reasoned in the Bible: the very existence of God. This is never questioned or argued for. It is just a given. There is no argument for God, for He is simply manifested by the creation, by life, by works, by prophets, by Scriptures. All these things testify and point to one person: JESUS CHRIST.
“And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent. And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.”
What would persuade an unbelieving person? What sort of arguments or evidence would be enough? The rich man believes that if they see a dead person risen from the dead, they would listen. But Abraham is clear: They do not believe the testimony of the Bible and stay in their sin, even if a person rises from the dead they will not repent from their unbelief.
“Neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.”
There is something incredibly extraordinary about this statement. It shows us that God actually has responded to every single request of the rich man. We have testimonies of the Word of God, of the prophets and of all them who believe and are sent into the world to be the witnesses for God. There is even a person who rose from the dead! God did that so that you may believe! He sent His only begotten Son to suffer and die on the cross as punishment for the sins of the world. He was buried and rose from the dead on the third day! Aside from the Holy Bible, there is an enormous pile of historical evidence for the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. But do you believe?
There are two kinds of people here on earth. They, who are on their way to hell. They are right here the closest to heaven they will ever be. There are also them who are on their way to heaven. They are right here the closest to hell they will ever be. The difference between them is faith and repentance. While you breath, there is hope for you.
I pray that we could repent from our unbelief and turn to God with all our heart. Let us seek His forgiveness, for He is a just and holy judge.
