The Rich Man and the Beggar - Notes from Luke 16 - Part III

 

     We are grateful this morning for the opportunity to gather together once again to explore your word so that we may take another step down the path of righteousness…

Bless all those who made the gathering come together today. Open our minds and hearts so that we may receive the messages that you have marked for each one of us…

We ask these things in Jesus’ name

Amen….

As I mentioned on Wednesday evening the Jews had a convenient theology that allowed them to see that God blesses those who are rich, but those who are poor must be under God's curse. Some believers are under that impression also, even today…Maybe you know someone who in their heart believes this?

I promised that I would just read this story to you, beginning with verse 19 and the story of the rich man and a beggar named Lazarus…

19 There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day: 20 and there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores, 21 and desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. 22 And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; 23 and in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. 24 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. 25 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. 26 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. 27 Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father’s house: 28 for I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment. 29 Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. 30 And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent. 31 And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.

Some think it's a story, a literal actual story, because it's the only---if it's a parable,the only one where a name is given, Lazarus.

It's a story of two lives, two deaths, and two judgments, two hereafters that occur.

The, scribes and Pharisees loved money, which allowed them to even misinterpret the plain laws of Scripture, so they could do whatever they wanted to in their personal relationships at home. And, again, it was meant to answer the Pharisees who were "lovers of money" and sneered at what Jesus was saying.

Now we don't know who this certain rich man is, but we can presume that since it's in the local area of either Israel or Judea, and because his audience is all Jewish, that this is a Jewish man, a very rich Jewish man. And why is this important? Because the Pharisees loved money. And the Pharisees had a faith theology that basically said---like the modern, false doctrine, faith theology---says that if you have a lot of money, it's a direct proof that God has blessed your life, the evidence of God's blessing is you're very wealthy.

So, hearing the phrase "a certain rich man," they would immediately associate with, "Oh, God has blessed him. On the other hand, somebody who's a beggar (in many circles of ancient Judaism) was considered cursed by God.

So that's how it's set up and that would be the thought processes in the minds of his audience, the Pharisees. And notice it's "a certain beggar named Lazarus." He is "full of sores, who's just laid at the gate." He's so poor, he's probably paralyzed. Maybe that is why he has sores; he's been lying on this cot.

We know that somebody lying on a bed or a cot for a long period of time, produces bed sores. He was "desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table.

Moreover the dogs came and licked his sores." So Jesus is being very picturesque here, enough to make people go, "Ugh, that's so gross." "So it was that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels to Abraham's bosom," or that is, the side of Abraham. "The rich man also died and was buried."

Now, look at verse 23.

"And being in torments," plural, not one but several, compound torment in the afterlife,

In hell, " the rich man, "lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off,

and Lazarus in his bosom," or at his side.

Okay, so first of all, notice how easily Jesus passes from one world into the next world. He can describe things that go on in this life, in this world, but he can just as easily be in touch with and describe the next world, the hereafter, and what happens when a person dies. You and I don't have that benefit.

That is why if you wonder about life after death, go to the source. Go to the One who has been in this life, has died, has risen, and is back up in heaven. He's the authority. He and he alone can give you the accurate, adequate information of what happens when a person dies. This is important, So we want to get accurate information, lest we be misleading to people, and Jesus is a good source.

Well, this rich, Jewish, blessed man finds himself in hell. It's the last place he would ever think he would be. And no Pharisee would think a rich man like this would be in hell. I'm sure they went, "Gasp!

Now, I think it's safe to say---completely safe and accurate to say that since Jesus is answering the Pharisees who, number one, believed in an afterlife---remember the Sadducees did not believe in heaven, hell, an afterlife, angels, supernatural The.Pharisees did. So they're listening. The rich man represents the Pharisee or the Pharisees, "lovers of money," very wealthy.

1 Timothy 6:10

King James Version

10 For the love of money is the root of all evil: He did not say that money was the root of all evil he said the “love” of money is the root of all evil. That is our relationship to money. The place that we give it in our lives… And Jesus knew the Scribes and Pharisees well and what their relationship was to money. How they viewed it and how they used it… They were the fat cats of the day….

Now, before we go on, I just want to point something out that's obvious, but sometimes missed.

Just looking at this story disproves the doctrine of something called "soul sleep." And some of you may have come from churches that teach soul sleep; that is,---that your being, your personhood from the moment of death until the resurrection just sort of goes into pause; there is no consciousness after you die until the resurrection; your soul just goes to sleep. But that’s not what this story indicates…According to Jesus, once you die, you are very much aware, you are very conscious, you are completely cognizant of your surroundings, and you can feel either pleasure, reward, or pain in the afterlife.

That's embedded in this story as well. So the beggar died. He was carried by the angels to Abraham's side or bosom, the place of bliss. This is---this would be in their minds the place of heaven.

Every Jewish person had this hope that there would be a great banquet in the future kingdom and that he they could sit next to Abraham. They were familiar with Genesis 15, that Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him as righteousness. And that Abraham would be in the kingdom because he was-he was the father of faith. They even knew that. So they had a desire to join Abraham in the afterlife, and to sit next to him would be an extreme honor.

But, verse 23 threw them for a loop, he "being in torments in Hades." Jesus really knew how to make a point….

"And he sees Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and he 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.'

" I want you to see something else that I think is pretty obvious in this story. There's no indication that the rich man did anything heinous. No heinous crime was committed. And I believe that this is important to note also… He was just a rich guy. He was a rich guy who thought he'd end up in heaven. But when he died and he's in hell and he's in torment.

And, you see, a lot of people get this wrong thinking that "All I have to do to get to heaven is just die. I'll just live a relatively good life. I'll do my best." And I've seen people do good deeds, and somebody will say, "You are going to heaven. You have a high place in heaven." And we think, "Well, you know, hell is only reserved for the---somebody who has done some bad thing like--- okay, Hitler, he's in hell, and others like him." But there's no indication that this guy did anything like that, and yet he is in hell.

Again, a big shock, a big surprise to those who would be listening. "But Abraham said, 'Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; and now he is comforted and you are tormented. And besides all of this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed"---fixed---"so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us.'

" So there's no passageway in eternity where a person can go from hell into heaven, or purgatory into heaven, or limbo into heaven. These are words that are made up. They're not in the Bible at all.

There's no passageway. According to this account by Jesus… Once you're there, you're there. The gulf is fixed, and you can't pass from one place to the other. Jesus said this is---or Paul said this is what happens when you die: "To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord." So if you were to die tonight---and we're not hoping that will happen. You have a life of fruitfulness ahead of you.

But if you were to die tonight, your body would be eventually put into the ground and turn to dust. But immediately when you die, your spirit, your soul, the real you would go into the presence of the Lord. You'd be absent from the body, which would go into the earth---dust to dust, ashes to ashes---your spirit be in the presence of the Lord. You would be conscious. You would be aware. You would be rewarded. You would experience great bliss and great blessing.

So heaven is real, and hell is really real, and Jesus spoke freely about both heaven and hell.

And speaking of hell I have a little story of my own…

I heard about a man who was driving a car and he got an accident.

And he hit a pole, a big sign. It was a Shell gas station sign. He hit it and he was knocked out.

Well, when he woke up, he looked up, and he looked outside at that sign. Now after he hit it, the jarring of the vehicle hitting the sign knocked the S off. So, he was shocked. He rubbed his eyes, looked up, and he saw the sign: "Hell Open 24 Hours."

That would be enough to change your life; wouldn’t it???

"Then he said," verse 27, " 'I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him' "---this poor man who's now being comforted---" 'send him to my father's house, for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.'

" Do you know I believe that if an unbeliever who has died could return today, they would preach the gospel?

If Charles Darwin were here, he would say, "Don't listen to these eggheads. Don't listen to my book.

You need to believe in Christ." If John Lennon were here, he wouldn't say, "Imagine there's no heaven"; he'd say, "I don't have to imagine, I know there is, and I'm not in it.

We don’t want to the same mistake."

And so here he says, "Just send somebody to tell my loved ones about this place and this torment."

"Abraham said to him"---an interesting statement---" 'They have Moses and the prophets, let them hear them.' " They have the Scriptures.

They have the testimony of the Word of God. They have the revealed truth of God preserved through the centuries.

" 'No,' " he said, " 'father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.'

" Now I'm picturing the Pharisees listening really closely, because this is going to happen to them.

One is going to rise from the dead, but they won't believe even the resurrection of the one talking.

After he dies, Jesus himself won't be enough to persuade them to believe. It's an important point to note.

Some people say, "Well, if I could only see a miracle, I'd believe." No you wouldn't.

If you saw a miracle, you'd say, "I can't believe that I really saw that.



There must be another explanation." It’s not logical….

"But he said to them, 'If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.'

It’s important to note.." There's one reason this man is in hell. It's not because he committed some heinous crime; it's because he didn't listen to the testimony of Scripture.

That's all it takes, if a person rejects the clear testimony of Scripture, and so many do---"Well, I believe that all it takes to go to heaven is to do this," or "I believe if you just say this or do this, that you'll go to heaven"---instead of listening to the clear testimony of Scripture.

Abraham said "If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one

rise from the dead."

Somebody once said that a man's life consists of twenty years of his mother asking him where

he's going, forty years of his wife asking him where he's been, and one hour at his funeral where everybody sits around wondering where he went.

That is so true for so many, sadly.

Now in our next chapter of Luke, chapter 17, Jesus returns to preparing his disciples. And he teaches them about four basic things: forgiveness, faithfulness, thankfulness, preparedness. Those four things occupy Jesus' training of his twelve as they approach Jerusalem. First of all, forgiveness: "Then he said to the disciples, 'It is impossible that no offenses should come, but woe to him through whom they do come!

On Wednesday evening when we tackle chapter 17 if there is anyone in our little group who has been moved by some portion there will be time for them also to share their revelations, impressions and understanding…

Lets close in prayer..

Dear Lord in heaven we are thankful for this gathering of souls today and for the continued fellowship that you have blessed us all with…We pray this morning that each one of us either present or who later reads this message can take away a small portion that will enrich their spiritual lives. We ask that with your guidance and patience that we may become not just good men and women but righteous ones and let the light of Jesus will shine in our daily lives for all to witness ….

We ask for your blessing on this bible study and all who contribute to its functionality…

Remember those in need this morning both physically and spiritually. Help us as we struggle through the dark times and gives us strength, guidance and wisdom or overcome..Thank you always for listening to us and for answered prayers..

We ask these things in Jesus’s name..

Amen