The Rich Man and Lazarus: Urgent Call to Believe

Jesus sets two men side by side in Luke 16, and the picture could not be more extreme. The rich man is not just doing well. He is clothed in purple and fine linen, living it up, feasting sumptuously every day with a table full of all the goodies. Lazarus is not just poor. He is laid at the rich man’s gate, covered with sores, hoping for scraps, too weak even to fend off the dogs that come and lick his wounds.

The parable then brings both men to the same place every man eventually reaches. Lazarus dies, and the angels carry him to Abraham’s side, that place of comfort, closeness, and rest. The rich man also dies, and almost nothing is said about his burial before he lifts up his eyes in torment. Proverbs 22:2 stands behind the scene: the rich and the poor meet together, and the Lord is the maker of them all.

Jesus gives a sobering picture of hell, not because the point is to make people curious about details, but because the reality is serious. The rich man begs for even the smallest relief, just a wet finger touched to his tongue. Abraham tells him that a great chasm has been fixed, and no one can cross from one side to the other. The eternal state is not something to play with, and judgment is not an idea people can simply wish away.

The difference between the men is not finally their bank accounts. Abraham himself was wealthy, so wealth is not the indictment. The rich man had Moses and the prophets, and the law had already told him not to harden his heart or shut his hand against his poor brother. His life showed that he did not care about what God had said.

The rich man then begs Abraham to send Lazarus back to warn his brothers, but Abraham says they already have Moses and the prophets. Jesus makes the point sharp: if they will not hear the word of God, neither will they be convinced if someone rises from the dead. Another Lazarus would later be raised, and Jesus himself would rise from the grave, yet unbelieving hearts still resisted. The call is plain: do not wait for some miracle. Scripture has already given everything needed to believe, and today is the day to trust Christ and speak the good news while there is still time.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Scripture is enough to believe The rich man assumes that a miracle would do what God’s word had not done, but Abraham refuses that logic. The issue is not lack of evidence, but the refusal to hear Moses and the prophets. A heart that will not bow before Scripture will explain away even resurrection. [50:29]
• 2. The chasm becomes fixed forever The great chasm is one of the most sobering images in the parable because it shows that death ends the season of response. The rich man can ask, beg, and feel anguish, but he cannot cross over. That fixed separation gives weight to the mercy of hearing God’s word today. [46:45]
• 3. Wealth exposes what faith loves The rich man is not condemned simply because he has money, since Abraham himself was greatly blessed. His feasting beside Lazarus reveals a heart untouched by the law of God and unmoved by the suffering at his own gate. Possessions become spiritually dangerous when they train a soul to ignore a brother in need. [48:02]
• 4. Today must not become someday The parable presses urgency on those who know Christ and those who do not. No one is promised another conversation, another chance, or another season to speak plainly about the Lord. Love does not wait for perfect timing when the words of life have already been given.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [29:46] - Opening and Luke 16 Introduction
• [31:32] - Prayer for the Word
• [32:39] - The Rich Man and Lazarus Read
• [34:24] - Two Lives, Two Destinies
• [36:26] - The Rich Man’s Luxury
• [38:17] - Lazarus at the Gate
• [40:35] - Death Comes to Both Men
• [43:37] - The Reality of Torment
• [46:45] - The Great Chasm Fixed
• [48:02] - Wealth, Faith, and God’s Law
• [49:45] - The Plea for Five Brothers
• [50:29] - Moses, the Prophets, and Scripture
• [54:26] - Believe Today, Do Not Wait
• [55:30] - Speak the Gospel While There Is Time

Bible Reading

Luke 16:19-31
“There was a rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. And at his gate was laid a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who desired to be fed with what fell from the rich man's table. Moreover, even the dogs came and licked his sores. The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried, and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side. And he called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.’ But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish. And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us.’ And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, to send him to my father’s house— for I have five brothers—so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of torment.’ But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’ And he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ He said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.’” [32:39]

Proverbs 22:2
“The rich and the poor meet together; the LORD is the maker of them all.” [43:37]

Deuteronomy 15:7-8
“If among you, one of your brothers should become poor, in any of your towns within your land that the LORD your God is giving you, you shall not harden your heart or shut your hand against your poor brother, but you shall open your hand to him and lend him sufficient for his need, whatever it may be.” [48:48]

Hebrews 9:27
“And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment,” [45:32]

Romans 10:17
“So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” [52:17]

Observation questions

1. What details in Luke 16 show just how extreme the difference was between the rich man’s daily life and Lazarus’s condition? [36:26]
2. After both men die, what different things does Jesus say happen to Lazarus and to the rich man?
3. In the conversation after death, what exactly does the rich man ask for first, and what reason does Abraham give for why that request cannot be granted? [46:45]
4. When the rich man asks for Lazarus to warn his brothers, what answer does Abraham give, and what does he say about someone rising from the dead? [50:29]

Interpretation questions

1. The rich man is not condemned simply for being wealthy, since Scripture also shows Abraham as a wealthy man. What does the rich man’s treatment of Lazarus reveal about the condition of his heart and his response to God’s word? [48:02]
2. Deuteronomy 15:7-8 commands God’s people not to harden their hearts or shut their hands against a poor brother. How does that command help explain what was spiritually wrong in the rich man’s life?
3. Abraham says, “They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.” Why does Jesus place so much weight on hearing Scripture rather than waiting for some dramatic sign or miracle? [52:17]
4. The great chasm is said to be fixed. How does that shape the way a person should think about death, judgment, and the urgency of responding to God now? [54:26]

Application questions

1. Lazarus was at the rich man’s gate, which means the need was close, visible, and hard to miss. Who are the people near at hand in daily life whose hardship could be easy to step around or ignore? [38:45]
2. Wealth can train a soul to live comfortably without much thought for others. In what ways can comfort, routine, or abundance make a person less attentive to God and less compassionate toward people in need? [49:27]
3. Scripture is enough to bring a person to faith. Is there an area where someone has been saying, “If only God would do this one more thing, then I would believe or obey”? What would it look like to respond instead to what God has already said? [54:40]
4. Hebrews 9:27 says that after death comes judgment. How does that truth affect the way a person should think about delays, excuses, and “someday” plans in spiritual matters? [45:32]
5. Many people know someone like the rich man’s five brothers—family members, friends, neighbors, or coworkers who are not walking with Christ. Who comes to mind right away, and what would be a simple faithful next step toward speaking the gospel to them? [55:30]
6. The rich man wanted his brothers warned before it was too late. What fears most often keep someone silent about Christ, and what kind of courage is needed to speak with love and clarity? [56:01]
7. “Today” must not become “someday.” Is there a conversation, an act of repentance, or a step of obedience that needs to happen soon rather than later? [56:58]