The Rich Man & Lazarus
Luke 16:19-31
By Alan Walker
Heaven and hell are eternal addresses based upon what we do in this life and the decisions we make regarding the teller of this story - Jesus Christ. Whether we surrender to Him or just play games.
I want to share a couple of passages with you from the Sermon on the Mount - words of Jesus, and then share a familiar story Jesus once told.
Matthew 5:3: "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."
Matthew 5:7: "Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy."
The story is told in Luke 16:19-31. Let me read it to you…
19 "There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. 20 At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores 21 and longing to eat what fell from the rich man's table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.
22 "The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. 24 So he called to him, 'Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.'
25 "But Abraham replied, 'Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. 26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.'
27 "He answered, 'Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my father's house, 28 for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.'
29 "Abraham replied, 'They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.'
30 "'No, father Abraham,' he said, 'but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.'
31 "He said to him, 'If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.'" (NIV)
It's the contrasting story of a wealthy man who had it all, and a beggar named Lazarus.
First of all I want you to see the obvious…
1. Their Economic Diversity
Verse 19:
19 "There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. 20 At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores 21 and longing to eat what fell from the rich man's table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores. (NIV)
We are first introduced to the "rich man". We don't know much about him, including his name. But we know the following:
 | He was rich. Probably not Bill Gates, but maybe not too far away either. When he went out for dinner, if he chose Burger King, it wasn't because he had no other choice. |
| He dressed well - I'm not sure how he would fit into our community. A walk through the park would probably find him asked several times for a few bucks. And believe me he would have them, but it's doesn't look like he would part with any of them. His garments indicate that he was in fact a wealthy man. |
| He lived well -The nicest chariot. The finest foods. The best home. Quality servants. His furniture didn't come from the Salvation Army. He lived well not just on payday, but every day! |
On the other hand, we are introduced to his neighbor Lazarus.:
| His occupation is that of a beggar. He had nothing. He didn't even have a card-board sign. In the time of Jesus a beggars were that way because of necessity. Usually it meant they were in some way handicapped and could not earn a living. This was a long time before SSI, Welfare, Food Stamps and Section 8. |
| He was apparently handicapped for he had to be "laid" at the gate of the rich man's home. The implication is that he was carried there and perhaps later picked up. |
| He was hungry! I dare say most of us have not been hungry. There may be an exception, like my sons when they came from school; they were always trying to convince me they were near death from starvation. Lazarus really was hungry. So hungry he would have made a meal and thanked God for it from the crumbs off of the rich mans table. |
| He was in pain! I don't know what kind of sores he had, but sores are… sore. They hurt. If you've ever had a canker sore in your mouth, been nudged by a nettle, stung by a bee, or had shingles and I'm not talking about roofing, you know what sore sores are all about. |
Two men in this story. One very rich, the other very much in need.
The needy man was not there by choice. He wasn't a fraud. Not on a street corner asking for change. Some choose to be the way they are, while others are victims of their times.
Matthew 5:7 "Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy."
Now look with me at…
2. Their Eternal Destiny
22 "The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. 24 So he called to him, 'Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.'
25 "But Abraham replied, 'Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. 26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.' (NIV)
Here's something that is not just a story - something that is far from fiction - something so real that it at times grabs us by the shoulder and shakes us:
"The time came…"
All of us, some before others, some with awareness, and others completely unexpected are going to have our time come up, and life will be over!
My wife’s mom a few years ago had a stoke. She held on, and did pretty well for a time, but within a couple years passed on. She was 84 years old. She looked at her nurse and said she was going to die now, and she did. It was hard to say good bye, but not unexpected.
Ken, our former minister, preached a message from Proverbs on Sunday, went to the "Y" on Monday at noon to work out, and while on the tread mill, he fell over dead. He had a massive coronary! It caught us all by surprise. It was completely unexpected.
"The time came…"
The Bible says in Hebrews 9:27, "Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment." (NIV)
As Jesus' story goes, both of these men died…and like the Hebrew author mentions - they faced judgment.
The beggar died and the angels carried him off to Abraham's side.
The rich man died - but notices the contrast. There were no angelic escorts - it simply says, "he was buried."
The NIV tells us he is in "hell".
| Hell is certainly not a popular topic to speak on. |
| Many don't want to believe it even exists |
| Some make a case for eternal annihilation rather than eternal hell. |
Frankly from what we read here, I don't blame them for not wanting this place to exist, or for trying to come up with a way to suggest the bible is in error on this subject, or at least to subscribe to eternal annihilation. But we still must deal with what Jesus said here.
Listen to what it has to say about hell…
"he was in torment" (v. 23)
"I am in agony in this fire" (v. 24)
"And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us." (v. 26)
The beggar is seen at the side of Abraham. The side of Abraham is meant to give us a picture of heaven. A place of celebration! Lazarus is "comforted" there.
Yet, the rich man who had it all is in hell. Far from any comfort. He is asking for pity, for mercy, for help. He wants relief from his agony. "If only Father Abraham you could put a drop of water on my tongue, just a drop…one little drop….to cool my tongue."
It's remarkable that the rich man is asking for the very things the beggar needed on earth.
| The rich man wants pity - the beggar needed pity at his gate. |
| The rich man wanted just a drop of water - the beggar just a crumb. |
| The rich man was in agony - the beggar was covered with sores. |
I feel a need to take a brief side-bar here and share the obvious with you.
The beggar did not go to Abraham's side because he was poor any more than the rich man went to hell because he was rich.
Heaven and hell are eternal addresses based upon what we do in this life and the decisions we make regarding the teller of this story - Jesus Christ. Whether we surrender to Him or just play games.
Yet this story does not take away from the description of hell, the warning of hell, the portrait Jesus wants to burn into our mind.
But could there be more to this story?
Could it be that Jesus is pointing out that the rich man was oblivious to the genuine needs of those around him? Perhaps he could have lived just a little less luxurious, and gave a piece of bread to the beggar at his gate.
Remember, Jesus said, "Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy."
Next notice…
3. The Rich Man's Earnest Plea
| What message did the rich man want to share? |
| What did he want Lazarus to point out to his brothers? |
| What communication did he want to get across too his brothers? |
He wanted his brothers to hear so that that they must avoid this place called hell at all costs! He wanted them as far away as they could eternally be.
People have told me they will have a great time in hell with all their friends. The truth is their friends would do anything to get a message to them that they’re wrong! They would beg to have them avoid this place at all costs! The rich man wanted his brothers to be warned!
"Father Abraham, let someone go and warn them. Please. This place must be avoided!"
Abraham points to the Bible. The book whose theme from beginning to end, from Genesis to the maps, from "In the beginning" to "amen" is the Redemption of Man.
Sadly, and still statistically correct in the 21st century, the rich man says they will not listen to just the Bible.
"But if someone rises from the dead and goes back to tell them they will believe!"
(Jesus may have had a smile on his face as he told this part of the story.)
He wanted his brothers to remember the beggars of life.
We must not ignore context of this story, as rich man chose to ignore the beggar.
Jesus was about to give everything. He was about to give His blood to the ground and to stain the cross. He was about the give His head to a crown of thorns; His hands and His feet to spikes; His back to the sting of leather; His face, to the back of the hand of soldiers. He was about to give His side to the spear, and His soul to God for all mankind.
With all Jesus was about to do, don't you believe he might be calling our attention to the beggar, to at least notice he exists at the gate? To at least recognize he's hungry? And then like Jesus offer him at the very least, the crumbs from our tables?
Matt 5:7 "Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy."
"But they will use is for wine, beer, dope, or cigarettes."
| Not the children in children's home both here and abroad. |
| Not the starving of Ethiopia |
| Not the survivors of the Tsunami |
Alan, are you saying it's possible to lose our soul over something like this?
I don't know, but I do know Jesus said: "Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy."
Wrapping It Up
There are a few things I want you to consider as we wrap it up today…
| Each of us, like the rich man and the beggar, is going to die! Hey, some of us have already come pretty close. One thing I know for sure – that this life is not just about living, but about Jesus and what we do with Him. What are you doing with him? |
| Hell is something to avoid at all cost! This is not a preacher's scare tactic - this is real. |
| There will be people in heaven and there will be people in hell. You and I can go to heaven - if we come to Christ, and then live our life for Him, in Him, by Him, and grow in our relationship as we journey with Him from now to heaven. |
| The legitimately poor are not to be neglected. I'm not rich. Maybe you're not Bill Gates. But all of us have something we can share - our faith in Jesus, our hope of heaven, and the light of hope as we share with those in need. |
All of us want to enjoy the pleasure and celebration of heaven. I have no way of knowing if we will walk through life like the beggar, hurting, in need, handicapped - or if we will walk through life as the rich man, without needs, but one thing both have in common is a need of live life in total and complete surrender to Jesus Christ. That's how life is to be lived. That's the key!
Copyright © 2005. Alan Walker is minister of the Arcata Church of Christ in Arcata, California. Used by permission. Permission is granted by the author and by The Preacher's Study to use this document in total or in sermon preparation in the context of the local congregation only. Publishing it in a book, on the Internet, or any place beyond the local congregation is prohibited.