Luke 16:19-31
19 There was a rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. 20 And at his gate was laid a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, 21 who desired to be fed with what fell from the rich man’s table. Moreover, even the dogs came and licked his sores. 22 The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried, 23 and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side. 24 And he called out, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame. 25 But Abraham said, Child, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish. 26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us. 27 And he said, Then I beg you, father, to send him to my father’s house– 28 for I have five brothers–so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of torment. 29 But Abraham said, They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them. 30 And he said, No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent. 31 He said to him, If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.
If you’ve spent any amount of time in church you’ve probably heard or read this parable. And if you’re old enough, you might even remember the song Whitecross wrote about it (No Second Chances, 1991)
For most of my life I was taught the rich man represented the world: full of riches and pleasure, but also sinful, and that it was His “multitude of sins” that sent him to Hell.
But that analogy is not entirely accurate. We don’t know the rich man’s sins, only that he did not go to Heaven when he died. As far as we know his only sin was not following God.
So what was the real reason behind the parable?
The rich man had everything he could ever want, yet he never took notice of Lazarus sitting outside his house. Even the most miserly of people, if confronted with someone in the same condition as Lazarus, would have some compassion and at least give some food. Yet the rich man was so busy, he never once noticed Lazarus.
You’re probably thinking, “But Jonathan, I’m not rich.”.
If you’re reading this, you obviously have internet access, which puts you ahead of most of the world in terms of wealth.
Have I gotten so caught up in my daily routine that I ignore the needs of those whom God has placed in my life?
I ask God everyday to allow people to see, hear and feel Him through me, but when he puts someone in my way who actually needs to feel His love am I too consumed with my life to even notice them?
Sadly, at least lately, the answer is yes.
Last week, I got home from work one night and saw a van parked on the side of my street. There was a man getting some tools from the back and I didn’t recognize him or the vehicle, so I didn’t think anything of it. The next morning when leaving for work I noticed the van was still there. Upon closer inspection, I saw one of the tires was blown out. Apparently the man had been trying to change the tire and it had gotten dark, so he had someone pick him up and planned to come back in the morning to finish.
Was I really so busy that I couldn’t check on him as soon as I got home? Had I just walked over I would have seen the blowout and could have helped him and he wouldn’t have had to worry about leaving his van in an unfamiliar place. But I was so consumed with my own life…… I wanted to eat dinner, I wanted to watch a movie, I, I, I.
All I cared about was myself.
Which is why I have two friends who I can look to as examples of what it means to truly be Christlike. I’ve known them since I was ten and they’ve shown me through their lives how to truly love people as Christ loves them. One of them has shown me what being a “real man” is all about. Watching how he interacts with his wife and son has shown me what a husband and father are supposed to be. If I ever get married and have kids I already know I will be asking him a lot of questions.
I could fill a book with stories of how this couple has impacted my life and the lives of many others. And not just friends, but people they run into at Walmart, at the movies, at gas stations, etc.
Yet, there is not really anything extraordinary about them. They both work normal jobs, serve their local church and serve the community. What makes them special is if they know of someone in need, they do whatever they can to help. No matter how tough their day has been, no matter what is going on in their lives, they still find to help others.
