Reader’s Guide: “The Word for Today” Sunday, March 10, 2013 Read – Luke 16:19-31 The Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus is another of Luke’s masterpieces – only Luke tells us this story! As we noticed Luke has set up this parable and connected it to what he has just been talking about – twice in this chapter Luke begins, “There was a rich man…(Luke 16:1, 16:19). We have been noticing that Luke’s Jesus often warns about the perils of wealth – this story is a great illustration of just how wealth can lead one who prospers to destruction. There is no reason to view the rich man in the story as particularly sinful. There is no mention that he has obtained his wealth dishonestly. He is simply a rich man who has been abundantly blessed. In fact, one might argue that he is the example of one who had followed the ways of God and is thus reaping the blessings. The book of Deuteronomy had argued as much. Obedience to the commandments = blessed by God = wealth (Deuteronomy 28:3-4). The lack of wealth was evidence of lack of obedience = not blessed by God. There is simply no way to get around this idea in the Bible – if you do what God says you will be blessed! There is every reason to think that the rich man we meet in this story was exactly that – he was a prime example of how a person was to live life! Yet, in Jesus’ parable he winds up in the flames of torture. No doubt Jesus’ parable was offensive to the wealthy people of Jesus day who had sought to live life properly – had done everything right – and understood themselves to be blessed by God! Why did this man wind up where he did? As we begin to look at the story a little more closely what we recognize is that this man’s wealth led him to think too highly of himself. Even in the place of torture he still thinks he is somehow in charge, “Send Lazarus to give me a drink.” What right does he have to give orders regarding Lazarus? What the story reveals is that this rich man had come to trust in his riches to give him power and security – those who prosper in this world seem to think they have the right to order others around. It does not seem that the rich man thought of himself as harming Lazarus – and the values of this world would agree with him. After all this rich man had only played by the rules and benefitted greatly because of that – he was blessed by God and he thought his wealth was evidence of it! Jesus lives by a different set of values! Wealth does not mean entitlement! And when wealth becomes entitlement the wealthy are in great peril! This rich man has had his reward in this life and that is all he is going to get from his wealth. It seems for Jesus, in Luke’s gospel, the purpose of wealth, of blessing, is to be used for the benefit of others. We will soon hear Jesus say to another rich man that he is to sell all he has and give to the poor and to come and follow Jesus. We will soon meet a poor widow who gives all she has. And we will meet another character that only Luke tells us about – Zaccheaus – a rich man, just like the rich man in this story, but a rich man who is saved and welcomed into the Kingdom of God. The point is the proper attitude about wealth and the proper use of wealth – and that wealth carries with it the great peril of overtaking the wealthy. There is a proper use of wealth – and that use is to help a neighbor in need! As we listen to Jesus’ parable, who do we identify with? Are we Lazarus? Are we the rich man? Does the story threaten us? I for one find it a bit uncomforting. And that is Luke’s hope. The parable is skillfully told. What irony flows in the words of Jesus as the rich man finally begs Jesus to send Lazarus to warn his brothers – who apparently are also wealthy like the rich man was. Jesus says, “They have Moses and the prophets to listen to so they will not listen even if someone were to rise from the dead!” What irony since Jesus will ultimately be the one who rises from the dead. Luke has made his point. Wealth has the power to destroy the wealthy. And those who follow Jesus will recognize that in this life they have the opportunity to give their wealth away – not to earn God’s favor but to follow Jesus. When we hear the story of Zaccheaus we will need to recall this parable. We are also reminded of the parable of the Good Samaritan – also unique to Luke. There the lawyer was told to go and do likewise. Here the implication is that those who are wealthy will see Lazarus at their door and provide the help that is needed. We are also reminded of the story of Cain and Abel and Cain’s question, “Am I my brother’s keeper?” The implied answer to Cain is “absolutely yes!” The implication in this story is that every rich man is the keeper of the poor. One last bit of information about this parable may be of interest to the curious. This is a parable that is shared with non-Jewish Egyptian culture – the Egyptians knew a similar parable. One can’t help but wonder if Jesus knew that when he told the story.