CONSEQUENCE by Pastor Shah, Clearview Church, Henderson
Introduction: Help me finish these sayings – “What goes around comes around.” “What you sow is what you reap.” “You’ve made your bed, now lie in it.” What do all those sayings mean? “Actions have consequences.” I have the freedom to punch this podium but the consequence will be pain or even a broken hand. So also, in life, we are free to live as we please but we’re not free to choose the consequences. We can have our kicks but we cannot control the kickbacks. And, sometimes those kickbacks and consequences don’t end on this side. They even extend to the other side. In other words, some actions have eternal consequences. How you live in this life determines how you will live in the life to come.We’re in our series on the parables of Jesus and today we come to the Parable of the Rich man and Lazarus and the message is titled “CONSEQUENCE.”
Luke 16 19“There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day. 20But there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate, 21desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table. Moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. 22So it was that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. 23And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. 24“Then he cried and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.’ 25But Abraham said, “Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and you are tormented. 26And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us.’
Question: Again, parables are like mirrors. They reflect who we are in the story. In this parable, are you the rich man or are you Lazarus? Are you living for temporary pleasures of life or do you care to notice those around you who are hurting and less fortunate? Will your end be like the selfish and self-indulgent rich man or like Lazarus? Are you saved?
Context: The Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus has fascinated me ever since I was a little child.The imagery is incredibly vivid.Here’s a rich man living it up, enjoying a lavish banquet every day, and has no regard for others; and there’s the beggar Lazarus lying by his gates, covered in sores, and eating the crumbs that fall from the rich man’s table. Growing up in India I saw many beggars on my way to town and to school but there was one I remember particularly. He sat at the same spot by the train station bridge. He was blind and he always sang as he begged. He had a beautiful voice. I’ve been to India several times and I’ve often looked at that empty spot and wondered what happened to him. Was he alone when he died? Did any of his family member come to get his body or did the local authorities just dispose him off? Either way, his face is permanently etched into my memory.
Why did Jesus give the Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus? At first glance, the parable appears to be saying that being rich disqualifies you from heaven and being poor guarantees you heaven.But, we know that can’t be true. Many of God’s people in the Bible were wealthy. In fact, Jesus had some rich people who followed him. Also, throughout history there are many rich who have followed Jesus and many poor who have rejected him. Plus,Ephesians 2reminds us that salvation is only by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. The key to heaven is not based on your bank balance but on whether or not you received Christ.
So, why did Jesus give this parable? Context is very important here. Few verses earlier in Luke 16:13Jesus made a very indicting statement– “No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.”The word “Mammon” is a Hebrew/Aramaic word for money and wealth but here Jesus deified it, gave it God-like qualities. In essence, he was saying that “money” is a god and it demands your submission and worship just like the living God. Just like the first of the 10 commandments says “You shall have no other gods before me,” Mammon also says, “Serve me and me alone. Worship me and me alone.” But, you cannot serve 2 gods. Devotion to one will cause you to disobey the other.You have to pick between the Living God and Mammon (Money God). Why did Jesus say that? Listen to the very next verse – 14Now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money…” With all their “Table Fellowship,” trying to live a holy life like the priests in the temple, and treating the dining table at home as the altar in the temple, they had a weakness. They were “lovers of money.” In all their rule keeping they had found ways to swindle people and add more money to their coffers. One example of this is found in Luke 20 46“Beware of the scribes…47who devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense make long prayers…” You will look in vain in the historical documents of the period for evidence that the Pharisees were money lovers and taking advantage of people or even living it up while others were suffering. Why? They are the ones who recorded those documents!
Application: Are you a lover of money? I’ve seen people destroy their lives. Listen to I Timothy 6 9But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, andintomany foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. 10For the love of money is a root of allkinds ofevil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows…17Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy.
What was the reaction of the Pharisees to Jesus’ indictment against their love for money? 14“Now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, also heard all these things, and they derided (ridicule/mock)Him.”If you ever want to neutralize God’s word, just mock it. If you ever want to disobey God and not feel convicted about it, just ridicule it.Now listen to Jesus – 15And He said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God.” Three verses later, Jesus gave the Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus:
- One is very wealthy and clothed in purple but the other is very poor and covered in sores.
- The rich man is eating lavishly while the poor man is eating the crumbs that have fallen from the table.
- The rich man has plenty to drink but the dogs are licking the sores of the poor man. These are not household pets but scavengers.
- The rich man dies and is buried but the poor man probably didn’t even get a funeral.
Now there’s a reversal: The poor man is taken to Abraham’s bosom (chest) but the rich man to Hades. Then the rich man being tormented by the flames begins to cry to Abraham on the other side and asks for Lazarus to give him a drop of water to cool his tongue. People have tried to build the doctrine of eschatology off this parable.That was not the reason why Jesus gave this parable. Think about it, do you think people in heaven will be able to see people in hell and vice-versa? We know that can’t be true. Imagine having to see your family and friends who never received Jesus as their Savior burning in hell and still try to enjoy heaven! Revelation 21:4“And … there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.” Keep in mind that if you ask questions that the parables did not address, then you will inevitably get wrong answers.“Abraham’s bosom” simply implies comfort and care. John 1:18“No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declaredHim.”Hades simply implies the other side. Also, there are many different words used in the Old Testament and the New Testament for the Place of the Dead – Sheol, Gehenna, Hades, Abyss, Tartarus, Paradise, the Pit, Hell, the Lake of Fire, Heaven, and the New Jerusalem. We don’t have time to examine all these in detail because there’s so much we don’t understand. The only thing to remember is that those who are saved are in the presence of the Lord and those who are not saved are not. Paul reminds us in 2 Corinthians 5:8“We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord.”One day, there will be judgment and then those who have accepted Christ will be in Heaven and those who have rejected Christ will be in Hell.Having said that, don’t think of this parable as a step by step description of how things will happen on the other side. That was the intent of the parable. Jesus gave the parable in a vernacular that the listeners would understand for a different purpose.
Back to the parable – The rich man is now poor on the other side and being tormented by the flames cries out. 25But Abraham said, “Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and you are tormented. 26And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us.’ The point is that the consequence of how you live here are eternal. Listen again to Paul in I Timothy 6 18Let themdo good, that they be rich in good works, ready to give, willing to share, 19storing up for themselves a good foundation for the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life.
Application:What foundation are you building on?
But, there’s more –27“Then he said, ‘I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father’s house, 28for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.’ 29Abraham said to him, “They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.’ 30And he said, “No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ 31But he said to him, “If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.’ ”The consequence of your wrong priorities not only effect you but also for others.
Matthew 16 24Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. 25For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. 26For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?
Are you saved? Who is your God?
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