Today’s Reading Luke 16:14-31 Read the Scripture here: biblegateway/passage/?search=luke+16%3A+14-31&version=CEB So the state of the relationship between Jesus and the Pharisees had taken a turn decidedly for the worse! Instead of eating with Jesus, and rationally discussing everything they disagreed about with Jesus over fancy meals … they stood off in the distance and sneered at Jesus and what he now taught. Jesus had no sooner finished the last teaching that ‘you can’t love both God and money’ before the sneering began. Sneering… I must practice my sneer, it takes a concerted effort to pull that look off! I have visions of Ben Stiller in Zoolander for some reason this morning thinking on this, a depraved state for sure… Jesus receiving the sneer though says to these fellows… I’ll do you one better. Instead of teaching a general practice truth about money in parable form, I’ll teach and put you squarely in it as the main character. You think you didn’t like the last parable, try this one on for size… Enter the parable Lazarus and the rich man. A story told that depicts an uncaring, unnamed wealthy person who manages to endure the unconscionable suffering of a beggar outside the gates of his compound. Yes compound! The beggar Lazarus is sick and starving. His condition is so depraved that he can’t fend off wild dogs coming and humiliating him, licking his wounds. The depiction of what Lazarus asks for is noteworthy. He longs for crumbs, just leftovers, some small sample size of mercy. Not fully eating with the rich man. Not entering into the rich man’s compound and finding any kind of relief from the elements. Not the tall order of fellowship or relationship or concern. Medical care, that’s so far off the table of consideration. He doesn’t ask for the small gift of conversation … though he longed for all of these as any human does. Just leftovers, that’s what he hoped for. Not a status change on Facebook or a Christmas card … just crumbs. Throw a plate down on the way to work… that would be mercy enough. That’s to say what is hoped for reflects the bar being set incredibly low, the very least that one would possibly ask for. What Lazarus hopes for is so impossibly small compared to his need to be whole, and still it is not met. That’s to say further that it takes some kind of real jerk not to do even this… I wonder how the Pharisees jeered by this point in the story… could they see what was coming? And then Jesus tells of the great and final reversal. These two men die and everything changes. God reverses the fortunes of both of these men in impossibly uncomfortable fashion. The separation that was a choice now remains as fixed and unchanging. Also unchanging is this rich man’s incredible insensitivity. He still can think only of himself and has the audacity to ask now for the poor man Lazarus to come and be his servant in relief getting. This still expects to be served! He is so impossibly dull even after the great reversal. Now the end of this teaching moment is significant and not to be missed. The dialogue about believing a man coming to them from the dead and Abraham’s response that those living who are as inconsiderate as this rich man have ‘Moses and the prophets’ speaks directly to overhearing sneerors and jeerors in the teaching crowd. Moses and the prophets teach two central things. The fleeing of idolatry and the law of mercy. Mercy. It’s the central theme that’s to be explored in our upcoming Exodus teachings, the mercy laws. The laws God gave the people to care for and protect those who couldn’t protect themselves. Mercy is central to the love of God and to the ministry of Jesus. Jesus looked on people like Lazarus and had mercy and compassion, because these were like ‘sheep without a shepherd.’ Jesus is done! There is no repairing anything in the relationship with the Pharisees. They are the ones who care only about living for themselves every day and have no compassion towards anyone else, not even a crumb. Sneers are gone, all they can think of is how to kill Jesus. And that friends is what they do … turning fully against the one who spoke the truth about who they were. Who is the person though that will embrace the truth and is open to change. Those are the ones who are disciples. The great hope of this parable is that you and I have today. The disciple seeks to give more than crumbs of mercy to ones in need of wholeness. The Lazarus’ of the world need the reversal in this lifetime. From us may they find fullness of love and hope and compassion and mercy, yes mercy … all in Jesus’ name. Blessings of a Thursday, John
Posted on: Thu, 27 Feb 2014 11:04:25 +0000
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