Bible basics 101 - when jesus is speaking a parable - the entirety of the story is fictional. We dont get to create a literal part to justify our own needs. Case in point - Lazarus and the rich man. This is a parable. Jesus is not telling us there is a literal chasm over which those in hell can speak to those in heaven. He is speaking parabolically. What is he getting at though? Look at the characters in the parable. The rich man - clothed in purple, a Jewish royal or elite. Lazarus - poor, clothed in sores, a gentile. Only a gentile would beg at the gate, a Jew would go to the temple (thx Bill Winn). Jesus is self identifying with the Gentiles - Christ was clothed in sores during the crucifixion. He is showing us that the Gentiles are included in him - whether the religious elite like it or not. The chasm is not about heaven and hell but about the lines of us and them we create. Whenever we do this, jesus willingly reveals himself on the side of the them in the scenario.
Posted on: Sat, 26 Jul 2014 14:08:28 +0000