Two Lives, Two Destinies

Two Lives, Two Destinies

First after Trinity

Collect of the Day: O God, the strength of all those who put their trust in thee; Mercifully accept our prayers; and because, through the weakness of our mortal nature, we can do no good thing without thee, grant us the help of thy grace, that in keeping thy commandments we may please thee, both in will and deed; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Gospel: St. Luke 16: 19-31 (BCP: p.211) There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day: and there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores, and desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; and in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And 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. But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence. Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father’s house: for I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment. Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent. And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.

The minister of my teenage years said more than once, “The most sensitive nerve in a man’s body runs from his wallet to his heart.”  The story of a rich ruler underlines that truth. The man asked Jesus, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus pointed him to the Ten Commandments. The man professed he had kept them from his youth. Jesus said, “Well, there is just one thing you lack. Sell all your possessions and give the proceeds to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven.” This answer made him very sad, because he was very rich.

The parable from today’s Gospel is a story about another rich man that ends even more sadly. The parable tells us about two lives and two destinies.

1.  Two Lives

There are two men, who can hardly have been more different in their lives – one was rich, the other is poor.

1.1.   Rich Man. The rich man had a great life. He wore the best clothing. His underwear was made of fine linen. His outer clothes, like those of royalty, was dyed purple – a very expensive dye in the ancient world, made from a mucus secreted by sea snail. Perhaps he inherited his wealth. Perhaps he earned it with work and wisdom about money. But it seems he had come to the place that he did not have to work. He not only wore clothes like a king; he ate like a king. Every day was a Christmas feast for him.

1.2.   Poor Man. The poor man had a miserable life. Whether because of illness or malnutrition he was very weak and was laid at the gate of the rich man’s estate every day. In rich peoples’ homes a piece of bread was used   like a napkin. They wiped the grease from their fingers with the bread, then threw it on the floor. After the meal, the servants swept up the pieces of bread and any scraps on the floor from the table. They took the sweepings out to the street where packs of dogs that roamed the streets would wait. The poor man was there with the dogs waiting for the scraps to be thrown outside the gate. 

Part of the man’s weakness and humiliation was that he had a terrible skin condition that covered his body with sores. The same dogs that waited with him on the food scraps, licked his sores.

The poor man’s experience at the gate of the rich man confirms the observation of Proverbs 18:23: “The poor use entreaties, but the rich answer roughly.”

The only thing we know about the poor man that we do not know about the rich man is his name – Lazarus.

1.3.   Death. The one thing that the rich man and poor man have in common is that they both died. Lazarus died. Nothing is said about a burial. That does not mean he went unburied, but that only the bare necessities of burial were done. The rich man also died and was buried. Probably he had a nice funeral with flute players and professional mourners and was put into a nice grave – perhaps like that the rich man, Joseph of Arimathea who had a cave in a garden he owned. But, both the rich man and Lazarus were as dead as Marely – dead and door nails.

One of the hardest things for us to get into our minds is that death comes to us all. No one escapes it. I will be 70 years old this year. I look in the mirror and say, “Is that a 70 year old man? I look back over my life and wonder, “Have I really lived 70 years?” Then I think about the fact I am 70 and ask myself, “Seventy plus how many? How many more to live? Still I have trouble coming to terms with the reality that I am going to die.

2.  Two Destinies

As their lives could not have been more different, so their destinies after death could not have been more different.

2.1.   Lazarus. The poor man, Lazarus, died. Though he had lived a miserable life, and had only a poor man’s burial, he was escorted by angels to a place called Abraham’s bosom, or, as some modern translations have it, Abraham’s side. The picture Luke gives us is the poor man in the closest possible proximity to Abraham. The importance of Abraham, the Father of the Jews and the Jewish nation. But here is a man, who was the lowest of the lowly on earth, who after death is exalted to a place of great honor and comfort, right beside Abraham. After death he was in the place of salvation and blessedness.

2.2.   Rich Man. The rich man also died.

2.2.1.    Torment. He lived a life of comfort and luxury and received an honorable burial. But after death he is in a place of torments. Two aspects of his torments are mentioned. He is surrounded by flames and his tongue is parched. He lifted his eyes and very far away he saw Abraham with Lazarus at his side. Abraham and Lazarus seem to be sitting near a refreshing stream of water.

The rich man called Abraham “Father” and pleaded for mercy. He asked Abraham to have Lazarus, whom the rich man seems to think of as a servant, dip his finger in water and cool his tongue. Abraham addresses the man as “Son” but said that what the rich man asked was impossible.

The rich man had received many good things during his life on earth, while Lazarus received many bad things.

Now the roles are reversed. The rich man is in anguish, while Lazarus was comforted. Moreover, there is a wide chasm that separates the place of blessedness and the place of torment. Those in the place of blessedness with Abraham cannot go over to the place of torment, even if they wanted. Those in torment cannot pass to the place of blessedness, no matter how much they long for it. At death destinies become irrevocable.

2.2.2.    Brothers. Then for the first time in the story the rich man thinks of someone other than himself. He has five brothers still alive on the earth. He asks Abraham to send Lazarus to his brothers to warn them so that they will not end up where he is. But Abraham says, “They have the Old Testament Scriptures – the Law and Prophets. Let your brothers listen to them.”  The rich man, says, “But if someone somehow could return from death – perhaps like the ghosts who appeared to Scrooge – my brothers would then repent.” Abraham ends the conversation by saying that, if they won’t listen to Moses and the Prophets, they would not listen even if a man were raised from the dead and called on them to repent.

3.  Teaching

The rich man and Lazarus is a parable – a story used to teach lessons. We must be careful not to misuse parables. We don’t use parables to establish doctrine, but clear doctrine may help us understand what the parable teaches.

3.1 Destinies. The story illustrates that there are two destinies - only two possible destinies - after death. One is punishment and torment, and the other is blessedness and comfort. To put it in popular terms, there is heaven, and there is hell. No one will experience the fulness of either destiny till after Christ’s second coming and the resurrection of both the righteous and unrighteous, but final destinies are become irrevocable at death. We should not indulge, nor allow anyone else to indulge, in the hope that there is some change possible after death. It is a sobering thought, but a reality we cannot deny: Death is final, and destiny is fixed.

3.2. Faith. What is the difference between the two men that determines their destinies? The poor man, after death is at Abraham’s side, while the rich man, though 3 times he calls Abraham “father” is I the place of torment. What made the difference? Is it just that the poor are blessed after death while the rich are tormented?

No. The key to understanding the two men and their destinies is their relationship to Abraham relationship and to God.

What’s the most important thing we know about Abraham. According to Genesis 15:6, “Abraham believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness” (Genesis 15:6). Abraham’s righteous standing before God was not based on his good works. He righteousness was received by faith. St. Paul picks up on this in Romans 4, where he says,

“… if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God.  For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.”  Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due.  And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness… (Romans 4:2-5[BS1] )

The Jews are descended from Abraham by birth. But his true descendants are those who, like Abraham, believe and are counted righteous. Abraham is the father of all those who believe, whether Jews or Gentiles.

The rich man’s problem was not that he was rich, but that he lived for wealth and the life of wealth. He did not entrust himself to the Lord and his promises. He got all the happiness he would ever have in this life, because all he lived for was this life. On the other hand, Lazarus, the poor man, was a true child of Abraham, because he believed the Lord and his promises. Though he never had treasures on this earth, his destiny was to share in the inheritance God promises to Abraham.

People live according to their faith. Those who trust in riches will live for what riches can buy. Those who trust in the Lord, may or may not have riches, but they will live for the Lord because the entrust themselves to him for salvation.

3.3. Word. The real difference between people is whether their hearts are open to the word of the Lord. Paul writes: “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ” (Romans 10:17). Whether there is no readiness to hear and believe the word of the Lord, not even miracles will not convince. The rich man thought if in some way Lazarus could appear to his brothers, his brothers would believe. But Abraham said, “No, not even if some rose from the dead,” would they believe. Do you remember what happened when Jesus called a different Lazarus - Lazarus his friend, the brother of Martha and Mary -  to come forth from his tomb, and he did? Did the hostile Jews believe? No, they intensified their plot to kill Jesus and wanted to kill Lazarus, too. And new those who will not hear the Prophets and Apostles, the Word of God, will not believe – even though Jesus Christ has been raised from the grave to immortal life.

Sacraments today are similar the miracles of Biblical times. They do not create faith, but they confirm and strengthen faith. The Gospel says, “Whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’ In Holy Communion says Christ says, “Yes that is true. Here, take this bread and wine you can see, touch, and taste. They are the tokens of body given for you and my blood shed for you.”

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 [BS1]