Jump Start # 1348

Luke 16:23 “In Hades he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and saw Abraham far away and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried out and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool off my tongue, for I am in agony in this flame.”

  We continue our journey through the story of the rich man and Lazarus, as told by the Lord in Luke 16. Only Luke records this story. This is the only detailed picture of what life is like after death. Without this, we are left with questions, curiosity and wild speculations. In our last Jump Start, both men died. That’s not the end of the story. This is where most movies end. Luke takes us beyond the grave to a place that the living cannot see. He shows us Hades.

Hades, it’s not hell. Older translations, such as the King James Version, do not use the word hades. They use the word hell. They are different words in the original and they have different meanings. Hell is the final destiny and eternal destiny of the ungodly. Those whose names are not in the book of life will be cast into Hell. Hell takes place after Jesus returns, the dead are raised and the judgment takes place. Hell is still future. Hell hasn’t happened yet. Hades, meaning the unseen world, is the place that the dead go until Jesus comes. Hades contains Abraham’s bosom as well as torment. Both men in our story went to Hades—just different parts of Hades. As Jesus died upon the cross, He promised the penitent thief that he would be with Him today in paradise. Paradise, what and where is that? Luke tells us in Acts 2 that Jesus’ body did not suffer decay and His soul was not abandoned to Hades. There’s our word again. Abraham’s bosom, Paradise are part of Hades.

So both men died, the rich man and Lazarus. Their bodies were buried and their souls went to Hades. The rich man was in agony. He was in a flame. He was hurting. Lazarus was in Abraham’s bosom. He was comforted, loved and accepted. Two different places. Two different outcomes. Determined by their choices in life, their souls would remain there until the coming of the Lord.

There are some interesting things our text reveals. First, they both felt. The rich man felt misery, pain and agony. Lazarus felt comfort. There was a sense of recognition. The rich man knew Abraham. He knew Lazarus. He requested that Lazarus be sent on a mission to bring some water. These souls were not ambiguous, cloud like spirits that had no identity. The rich man didn’t call Abraham Lazarus. He recognized the difference.

Also, as Luke continues Jesus’ story, Abraham responds to the rich man and reminds him, “Child, remember that during your life time you received your good things and likewise Lazarus bad things.” Remember. There is memory after death. The rich man remembered that he had been rich. Later in the text, he remembers that he had five brothers. He remembered their moral condition because he feared that they were going to end up exactly where he was. There are things after death that we still remember. You will remember if you were married, had kids, had “good things,” or “bad things.” You remember.

Also, the rich man had wishes. He first of all, wanted some water. That couldn’t be given. Next, he wanted to warn his brothers about the awful torment of Hades. He didn’t ask to go back, but instead, he asked for Lazarus to be sent back. In our modern times, Lazarus would have gone back and written a book about all the things he saw and felt. A movie might have been made based upon that book. That’s the flavor of the month these days. Didn’t happen in the Bible. Lazarus wasn’t sent back. No word was sent back. Abraham declares that the brothers have all that they need to avoid that awful torment. They have Moses and the Prophets. They have the Bible. That is all that one needs. But the rich man knows his brothers. He knows that they won’t pay attention to the Bible. They are too busy, too stubborn, too much like he was. If a resurrected person came back and warned them, they would change. That request was denied. Not going to happen. No messages from the dead to the living.

What we see in this picture is that after death we are not sleeping. We see that the dead have not ceased to exist. We see that both the righteous and the unrighteous were alive. They felt, knew, desired and understood. All that a person is, except for the physical body, continued on. Nothing had changed, except their location and what they could now do.

A couple of thoughts for us.

First, this tells us that not everyone is saved. The rich man was in torment, fire and agony. His life was a terror. It seems these days that everyone is preached into Heaven. Folks that never darken a church building. Folks that lived wild and reckless. Folks that were mean and selfish and abusive. Everyone goes to Heaven it is believed. Heaven is viewed as a giant party. Rock ‘n roll, playing golf, eating chocolates, fishing, and having a good ole’ time—is the concept that most have of Heaven. Current statistics indicate that 81% of Americans believe in Heaven. However, a huge number believe in Heaven that do not believe in God. That’s odd and not Biblical. Without God, there is no Heaven. God is in Heaven, Jesus tells us. Jesus said that the road to destruction is wide and crowded. More won’t make it than those who do. Why? Just like the rich man, it’s their choices in life. No time for Moses and the Prophets. No time for Jesus. Don’t like rules. Don’t like being pure and holy. Would rather live it up and take the chances. Mark Twain reportedly said that he liked Heaven for the climate and Hell for the company. Really? Look  at the rich man in this text. Nothing could be done to change his condition. No water. No prayers. No mercy. Stuck. Trapped. Lost. Hopeless. Helpless. Not everyone is going to Heaven. God doesn’t determine it, we do. We do by our heart, our choices, our walk in life. The rich man was lost because he didn’t want to be saved. His choices put him on a dead end path to destruction.

Second, we must be careful in telling folks that their loved one is better off now after they have died. So many will say, “at least their suffering has ended.” You can’t say that about the rich man. His suffering was worse after death than it was before. He wasn’t better off. He was in the worst way possible. Death is gain, as Paul defined it, for the righteous. For those who choose God, death is not something to be feared nor dreaded. Death opens the door so we can go home to God.

Now, another thought here. The picture of the rich man reminds us that life doesn’t end at our death. Suicide doesn’t end our misery. Suicide throws us into eternity and places us in a world where we no longer have options, hope and a chance to change things. Suicide is never the answer. It makes our problems greater than God. It gives up on God. It throws in the towel on life and too often is not thought out nor is this passage considered. The rich man was not better off after he died. His sufferings had not ended.

The picture from Luke 16 reminds us that death is only a doorway into the next room. Death is just the opposite of birth. With a birth, a living being moves from the unseen world of the womb into the room of the living. With death, a person moves from this world into the room of hades. They are alive. They know. They remember. All that has happened is that they have switched rooms. The womb is different than the world we live in. Hades is different than the world that we now are in. Each room has limitations. Each room is different. In the room of the living, where we are now, we have choices and freedoms. In Hades, that changes. The rich man wanted water. He couldn’t have any. He wanted word sent back to his family. That wasn’t allowed. He probably wasn’t used to being told “no.” He certainly wasn’t used to flames, agony and torment. His world had changed. There was no going back. There are no do overs. There are no mulligans. There are no second chances once we’ve switched rooms. Now is the time for salvation. Now is the time to make the right choices. Now is the time for God.

This story is told by Jesus as a warning. No one has to be where the rich man is. Jesus wanted the selfish, arrogant Pharisees to see what was awaiting them if they did not change. Jesus wants us to see the same.

This passage ought to scare us. It ought to drop us to our knees now and beg for mercy from God. It ought to make us open our eyes to our ways and to God’s ways. It ought to bring about positive and godly changes in our lives. To ignore this, is to do exactly what the rich man did. He ignored Moses and the Prophets. He took his chances. He did as he wanted to do. It cost him his soul. What a terrible mistake.

We can do better. We can do right.  Can we help you with this? Would you like a Bible study? Would you like to talk about this? You do not have to follow the rich man’s steps.

Roger