22 – Parables in Right Living: The Rich Man and Lazarus Luke 16:19-31 There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day. 20 But there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate, 21 desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich mans table. Moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. 22 So it was that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels to Abrahams bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. 24 Then 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 in your lifetime you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and you are tormented. 26 And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us. 27 Then he said, I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my fathers house, 28 for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment. 29 Abraham said to him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. 30 And he said, No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent. 31 But he said to him, If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead. This parable is addressed to the Pharisees with the bottom line is having ears to hear. Many do not consider the story of the wealthy man and Lazarus a parable for the following reasons: not stated as a parable in the text; in the context of teach to the Pharisees in terms they could understand; and the story elements are literal and not metaphorical in nature. The two men are at two extremes of the social strata. From the prevailing viewpoint of the Pharisee religious order, the rich man was surely the blessed of the Lord and the beggar had to have been a great sinner. The place they found themselves upon their demise is old covenant reality. Upon death, there was a place for the dead, which was divided into two parts with a great chasm between the two. One part was known as the bosom of Abraham, which is also called paradise. The other part was for the unrighteous, those with no relationship with God. Upon His resurrection, Jesus took the residence of paradise to heaven to reside there for eternity. The vacated premises of “paradise” became an expansion of the place of torment for those without standing with God. This later place is where the wealthy man finds himself. He begs Abraham to send Lazarus to his family and warn them of this place of torment. He was informed that since they would not hear the messengers God has already sent or His Word, they would not listen to a beggar raised from the dead. The wealth of this world or the knowledge of the Word in the context of one’s religious order, which blinds its constituents to the truth. Bottom line: Don’t confuse me with the facts; I’ve made up my mind. Let he who has ears to hear, hear.
Posted on: Sat, 22 Mar 2014 09:11:20 +0000
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