Title: Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus
Contents
2007. 2. 7 (Wednesday night) Bible: Luke 16:16-31 Title: Parable of the rich man and Lazarus
During his public life, Jesus proclaimed and taught many truths, and especially when he spoke the truth of the kingdom of heaven, he explained them through parables. Jesus also spoke in parables. However, in these parables, the truth about the post-death phenomenon, the greatest concern of mankind, is hidden. By examining the text, let us see the life of the saved and the plight of the unsaved as revealed by the Lord.
1. The life of a rich man who seems to have succeeded
The rich man shown in the text is the object of admiration of the unbelievers that all life apart from God aspires and pursues. He had nothing to regret.
He enjoyed life. Even if I didn't have to work, I didn't have to worry about food, and I was able to do whatever I wanted, what I wanted to eat, and what I wanted to wear. He was very healthy. His material abundance was used to strengthen his body and thereby possessed health. There were many brothers. He was not alone on this earth. In this way, death came to the rich man, who did not have everything possible in the name of happiness in this world.
2. Death inevitably comes to the rich
1) Death comes to all life.
Verse 22 says, “Then the beggar died and was taken up by angels into Abraham’s bosom, and the rich man also died and was buried.” The foolish rich man was living under the illusion that “death cannot come to me.” It would be unfair if death had come only to the poor and not to the rich. But death was fair, and the rich also died. Death has no distinction between east and west, no distinction between races, no difference between rich and poor, and no order of age.
2) There is work to be done urgently before death comes.
Death is a fate that will come sooner or later, even if you try to avoid it. Therefore, our lives should think about what to do before that. It is said to be ① the purging of iniquity (Romans 6:23, ‘the wages of sin is death’).
② You must have the right faith. Right faith is to know the truth revealed in God's Word, to accept the revelation of God's omnipotence and grace revealed in Christ, and to entrust oneself to Him. ③ You have to do a lot of work. John 9:4 says, “For the time is still day, and we must do the work of him who sent me; and the night is coming, and then nothing can be done.”
Now the night of the world is getting deeper. Those of us who can work while it is still bright daylight should focus on the work of the Lord.
3) There is a place you must go to when you die.
When a person dies, we use the word “dead”. It means that our souls have returned to our hometown, Heaven, to our Heavenly Father. In this expression, we realize that there is a place the soul must go to when it dies. In the parable of the text, we can see that the rich man died and went to hell, and Lazarus died and was placed in the arms of Abraham under the guidance of an angel.
3. Parable Lessons
Through the parable of the rich man and Lazarus, we discover the afterlife of Jesus.
1) It shows God's law of reaping what you sow.
Receiving according to what you have done is also present in this life, but it is clearer in the life to come. Jesus' parable confirms that the rich man suffered good things in the world, and suffered in Hades, and Lazarus suffered in the world, so now he is suffering. Therefore, while we live on this earth, we should plant a lot and sow good seeds in the fields.
2) It teaches that people should live by neo-capitalism.
The rich man was a man who led an extremely humanistic life. He was captivated by the pleasures of this world and the wrong view of life, and he could not see God, Heaven, or Hell. However, Lazarus overcame all hardships with patience through the faith and hope of theocraticism. He looked to heaven and lived. We must look to heaven and live.
3) What should we strive for before death comes?
① It is to evangelize the family. After his death, the rich man begged Abraham to send Lazarus to evangelize his brother, but was refused. What do we learn from these words?
It is home evangelization. That way, my family won't be subjected to terrible things like the rich.
② Give your children material things First, you must inherit the faith.
4. The Life of a Failed Rich Man
Because his life was completely selfish, it was a meaningless life without any service for others (verses 20, 21). He used his time, health, material, talents, etc. only for himself. He did not know the eternal heaven, which is more precious than the world. That's why I didn't yearn for heaven and I didn't even hope for it. The most fatal failure in life is the loss of eternal heaven. This world is a place where finite life is given the only opportunity to possess eternal heaven. The rich are fools who have rejected these opportunities for themselves.