Orthodox Metropolis of Zambia (icons from here)
Luke 16:19-31
The Rich Man and Lazarus
19 “There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and [a]fared sumptuously every day. 20 But there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate, 21 desiring to be fed with [b]the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table. Moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. 22 So it was that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 And 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.’ 25 But 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. 26 And 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.’
27 “Then he said, ‘I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father’s house, 28 for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.’ 29 Abraham said to him, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.’ 30 And he said, ‘No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ 31 But he said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.’ ”
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Orthodox Metropolis of Zambia
Luke 16:19-31 contains the account of a very rich man who lived a life of extreme luxury. Laid outside the gate of this rich man’s house, however, was an extremely poor man named Lazarus who simply hoped “to eat what fell from the rich man’s table” (v. 21). The rich man was completely indifferent to the plight of Lazarus, showing him no love, sympathy, or compassion whatsoever. Eventually, they both died. Lazarus went to heaven, and the rich man went to hell. Appealing to “Father Abraham” in heaven, the rich man requested that Lazarus be sent to cool his tongue with a drop of water to lessen his “agony in this fire.” The rich man also asked Abraham to send Lazarus back to earth to warn his brothers to repent so that they would never join him in hell. Both requests were denied. Abraham told the rich man that if his brothers did not believe in Scripture, neither would they believe a messenger, even if he came straight from heaven.
There is a much we can learn from this passage:
First of all, Jesus teaches here that heaven and hell are both real, literal places. Sadly, many preachers shy away from uncomfortable topics such as hell. Some even teach “universalism” – the belief that everyone goes to heaven. Yet Christ spoke about hell a great deal, as did Paul, Peter, John, Jude, and the writer of Hebrews. The Bible is clear that every person who has ever lived will spend eternity in either heaven or hell. Like the rich man in the story, multitudes today are complacent in their conviction that all is well with their soul, and many will hear our Savior tell them otherwise when they die (Matthew 7:23).
This story also illustrates that once we cross the eternal horizon, that’s it. There are no more chances. The transition to our eternal state takes place the moment we die (2 Corinthians 5:8; Luke 23:43; Philippians 1:23). When believers die, they are immediately in the conscious fellowship and joys of heaven. When unbelievers die, they are just as immediately in the conscious pain, suffering, and torment of hell. Notice the rich man didn’t ask for his brothers to pray for his release from some purgatorial middle ground, thereby expediting his journey to heaven. He knew he was in hell, and he knew why. That’s why his requests were merely to be comforted and to have a warning sent to his brothers. He knew there was no escape. He was eternally separated from God, and Abraham made it clear to him that there was no hope of ever mitigating his pain, suffering, or sorrow. Those in hell will perfectly recollect missed opportunities and their rejection of the gospel.
Like many these days who buy into the “prosperity gospel,” the rich man wrongly saw his material riches as evidence of God’s love and blessing. Likewise, he believed the poor and destitute, like Lazarus, were cursed by God. Yet, as the apostle James exhorted, “You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened yourselves in the day of slaughter” (James 5:5). Not only do riches not get one into heaven, but they have the power to separate a person from God in a way that few other things can. Riches are deceitful (Mark 4:19). It is certainly not impossible for the very rich to enter heaven (many heroes of the Bible were wealthy), but Scripture is clear that it is very hard (Matthew 19:23-24; Mark 10:23-25; Luke 18:24-25).
True followers of Christ will not be indifferent to the plight of the poor like the rich man in this story was. God loves the poor and is offended when His children neglect them (Proverbs 17:5; 22:9, 22-23; 29:7; 31:8-9). In fact, those who show mercy to the poor are in effect ministering to Christ personally (Matthew 25:35-40). Christians are known by the fruit they bear. The Holy Spirit’s residence in our hearts will most certainly impact how we live and what we do.
Abraham’s words in verses 29 and 31 referring to “Moses and the Prophets” (Scripture) confirms that understanding the revealed Word of God has the power to turn unbelief into faith (Hebrew 4:12; James 1:18; 1 Peter 1:23). Furthermore, knowing Scripture helps us to understand that God’s children, like Lazarus, can suffer while on this earth—suffering is one of the many tragic consequences of living in a sinful and fallen world.
The Bible says our earthly lives are a “mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes” (James 4:14). Our earthly sojourn is exceedingly brief. Perhaps the greatest lesson to learn from this story, then, is that when death comes knocking on our door there is only one thing that matters: our relationship with Jesus Christ. “What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul?” (Matthew 16:26; Mark 8:36). Eternal life is only found in Christ. “God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life” (1 John 5:11-12). The truth is, if we wish to live apart from God during our time on earth, He will grant us our wish for eternity as well. As one pastor aptly said, “If you board the train of unbelief, you will have to take it all the way to its destination.”
Two different scenarios to us. The one is enacted on earth and the other one in heaven...
Orthodox Archbishopric of Zimbabwe
From today’s Gospel extract we have heard the parable of the rich man and the beggar Lazarus where Christ presents two different scenarios to us. The one is enacted on earth and the other one in heaven. In the scenario, which is enacted on earth, the rich man appears well-nourished, well-clothed, well-housed, healthy. He has a family, five brothers, friends, and servants. In the same scenario on the other hand, there appears the beggar Lazarus-hungry, naked, homeless, sick, without relations and friends alone and deserted, with the dogs as his only companions in his solitude licking his wounds and bringing relief to his pain.
In the second scenario, in the scenario of heaven, the conditions are reversed. The rich man is tormented, he burns, and he thirsts. “I am in agony in this fire, “ he tells us. This painful cry expresses the extent of his despair. Conversely, the beggar Lazarus happily relishes the life of paradise.
It is wrong to say that because the rich man enjoyed all the possessions of earth, he is deprived of them now in heaven and because the poor man was deprived of them on earth, he enjoys them now in eternity. It is wrong my beloved to say that the cause of condemnation of the one is wealth and the justification of the other is poverty. It is neither wealth that leads to hell, nor is poverty an incline which leads to paradise. What is important for anyone to reach paradise or hell is the way in which he lives his wealth or poverty.
Today, Christ presents to us an ill-natured rich man and a good poor man. Besides, Abraham who is already presented by Christ as being in paradise, according to the witness of the Old Testament, was one of the wealthiest persons. Hence, if wealth were something evil, he would not be in paradise but in hell. What is important is how one uses wealth. If you use wealth to improve life on the planet on which you live, it will lead you to paradise. If however you use it to spread hatred and injustice without constructing works of love, then it leads you to hell. The rich man of today’s parable is condemned because he makes bad use of his wealth. From being an administrator of the material possessions which God entrusted to him, he becomes an embezzler, using them only for himself.
Seeing the poverty stricken Lazarus outside his door hungry and wounded, not only does he not show any interest in helping him but he also causes him irritation. He could have become a contributor of joy, putting his wealth in the service of love. He did not understand that by giving he would further utilize his money. He did not realize the more one gives the more one acquires. Hence, although the wealthy man of the parable is presented to us as being wealthy in material possessions, he proves to be poor in spiritual matters. The lack of love, which he expresses in helping his neighbour, is what led him to condemnation. Therefore, what condemns the wealthy man is the way in which he manages his wealth. On the other hand, the poverty-stricken Lazarus is presented as being wealthy in virtues. What led him to paradise is not his poverty but his patience and endurance in his tribulation.
The poverty stricken Lazarus does not complain about his situation. He does not hate the rich man who treats him with contempt. He does not become a thief by breaking into someone else’s home in order to satisfy his hunger. He is not carried away by the camouflaged propaganda of the changing social system, which instead of leading to justice as it promises to do, leads man far away from God.
Conversely, Lazarus endures. He is content with the crumbs and company of dogs. He is satisfied with little and does not live with the longing to become wealthy by treading on the souls of others if the opportunity is given to him. And it is perhaps in his state of being satisfied with little that he is richer than the wealthier man because poverty is not measured by what one has but by what one desires, because the more you desire, the poorer you are even if you have a lot.
Finally, however, wealth as much as poverty depending on the way in which we use them will lead us to the appropriate place accordingly: to hell or to paradise. We would be able to say by means of a parable, that poverty and wealth are two keys. Everyone holds the one and the other. You can open the door with the key as well as lock it. It depends on the way in which you use it. In today’ gospel extract, the wealthy man used his key to close the door of paradise, whereas the poor man used it to open the door.
Similarly my beloved, we have the opportunity to freely decide how we are going to use our key of wealth or poverty, opening or closing the door, which leads to the life of paradise. The ecological crisis is a result of our sinful way of our lives. So we need ecological repentance in order to bring ecological and economic justice in order to protect our common Oikos, the whole Oikoumene, our common House, our Planet. We should behave like Zanheos of the Gospel sharing our wealth with the poor and the suffering. Our care to stop any activity of pollution of our Planet is the only way to give hope for life to the future generations.
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