Jump Start # 619

Luke 16:22 “Now it came about that the poor man died and he was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s bosom; and the rich man also died and was buried.”

The rich man and Lazarus—what a great lesson the Lord taught! I want to devote our next few Jump Starts to looking at this powerful story. It is rich with lessons and many intriguing thoughts that can make a difference to our faith and our walk with the Lord.

This is one of the few pictures we have from the other side of death. We have tons of questions about what will we be doing and what it will be like and what we will look like and so forth. This passage doesn’t answer all of those curious thoughts. They are not intended to. The Bible is for the living. It is to get us to the other side safely in Jesus. So many are so focused on the other side of death that they forget to live.

Let’s begin by realizing that these two men, Lazarus and the rich man, have many contrasts, both in life and death. One is rich. We know him as the rich man. We don’t even know his name. He lived well. He ate well. He had much.  He had a table, house and gates. Lazarus was poor. Nothing is said about his house, table nor gates. He is laid at the gates of the rich man’s house. The word “laid” may bring the thought of tender and loving care. Maybe someone tucked a blanket around him, patted his head and wished him well. I wish that was the case. The Greek language won’t allow that. The word means to “dump,” “cast,” or, “throw.” There’s no loving care there. It seems that someone rolled Lazarus off the cart in front of the rich man’s house. The image is that Lazarus didn’t have anything, nor anyone. That’s a pitiful way to live or die. Could it have been that Lazarus had no money to buy the medicine that he needed? Dropping him by the gates of the rich man was a desperate act of trying to find someone to help him. Lazarus is so pitiful that he can’t even chase away the street dogs that have gathered to lick his wounds. The picture is painted in such a way that we ought to feel sorry for him. We should. The rich man didn’t. He acted like the priest and the Levite in the story of the good Samaritan. He ignored Lazarus. The sick man wasn’t living in Africa. He wasn’t down in a ditch where no one could see him. He was by the gates, the only way in and out of the place was through the gates. The rich man had to see him. He probably thought, how disgusting that the dogs were all around him.

The reason that the rich man ends in torment and Lazarus in comfort has nothing specifically to do with their status in life. The rich man wasn’t tormented just because he had wealth. God had many wealthy people on His side. Job is a great example. Abraham is another. It’s not money, it’s what you do with it and what it does to you. The rich man demonstrated that he did not love his fellow man. He was in the position to help Lazarus, possibly even save his life and he did nothing. Shame on him! God would not stand still for that.

Also, Lazarus wasn’t taken to comfort just because he was poor, sickly or had a hard life. This is difficult for many to get. We assume that if we’ve had a hard life here then we ought to get Heaven. It doesn’t work that way. A person doesn’t go to Heaven just because they died serving their country or trying to rescue someone. A person doesn’t get Heaven because they have had “hell” on earth. A person doesn’t get Heaven because the road has been long and hard for them. I’ve had discussions with people who just flat out said, “I deserve Heaven for all that I’ve had to put up with in this life.” WRONG. No one deserves Heaven. No one.

Heaven isn’t given out by chance, like a lottery ticket. It is for those who have chosen Jesus and walked with Him. Lazarus must have been a man of faith. That consistent lesson is taught throughout the Bible—the just shall live by faith. Poverty is not the ticket to Heaven, faith is.

Both men died. I expect the rich man had some funeral. His grave would have been marked with a fine monument. Tons of people would have shown up at his funeral. Prominent people would have been in the audience. The local paper would have featured his passing. Those things haven’t changed. And Lazarus? He most likely was tossed in a pauper’s grave. His grave was most likely unmarked. Few, if any, attended his funeral, if he even had one. There was one in attendance and one who noticed. That was God. God recognizes the passing of His children.

Even before we get to the rest of this great story, we find powerful lessons here. The rich man would have been the talk of the town. Big house—big chariot—big table—big gates– nice landscape– traveled far and well– newest stuff– latest stuff– coolest stuff. We understand that today. Big screen– cool sports car– tickets to the best events—finest labels on his clothes. A man of success. A man of wealth.

There are some things that the rich man saw after he died that he never saw before.

• He saw that his soul was the most important possession. His luxuries didn’t help him in death. All the fine food, all the exotic travels, all the fancy clothes, all the rich friends did not help him. They did not ease his pain nor make his eternity more enjoyable. God is not impressed with how big your house is. He is interested in how large your heart is.
• He saw that death comes to all people. Death often comes unannounced. It comes to those who are ready and those not ready. It comes to those you have nothing to do and those who are very needed. Death comes to the busy businessman, the famous musician, the housewife, the elder in the church, the young college student. Death doesn’t care that you have plans. Death doesn’t care that it’s not a good time for you. Death doesn’t care that others are counting on you and need you. Death doesn’t care. Death comes not just to the poor, but also to the wealthy.

• He saw that he had opportunity to do what is right. The story continues to where the rich man wants to warn his brothers about the place he was in. Obviously, they didn’t believe in it as he hadn’t. He is told that they have Moses and the prophets. That’s the Bible. They have the Bible. They have been given the answers that they needed. They have hope from God. The rich man knows that they won’t touch the Bible. He hadn’t. They were all cut from the same cloth. His brothers were going to be in terrible torment with him because they ignored their souls as he had.

• He saw for the first time that he was hopeless. He begs for water, just a drop of water. Probably for the first time in his life he begs. He can’t get what he wants. There is no one to obey his commands. No one to serve him. His status has changed. He has no freedom. He has no one to help him. He is alone and he is in misery. In many ways, he and Lazarus have switched positions. It was too late to say, “I’m sorry.” There was no second chances. His life was over. His life was wasted. He had failed. Nothing could be done for him.

Can you see these things? If you can, you are already better off than the rich man. He never saw them until it was too late. The passage is for us. It’s a wake up call. It’s a reminder to have a course correction before it’s too late. Some day will be our last day. What matters then, as what matters now, is you and Jesus. Are you walking with Him? Are you obeying Him? Are you connected to Him? Don’t let stuff keep you from Him or from Heaven.

More next time…
Roger