Sermon #122 Luke
Sermons
Title: Seven
Lessons Learned Too Late
Text: Luke 16:19-31
Subject: The Rich Man and Lazarus
Date: Sunday Evening—
Tape # Y-12b
Introduction:
In Luke 16:19-31 our Lord is continuing to
address religious Pharisees, those who justify themselves before
men. He said to them, in verse 15, ―
“Ye are they which justify yourselves before men;
but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is
abomination in the sight of God.”
These are the men to whom the parable of the lost
sheep, the lost coin, and the lost son was spoken in chapter 15. In that parable they are described as the
elder brother who despised the goodness and grace of God by which poor sinners
are saved. They scorned the Lord Jesus saying, “This man receiveth sinners,
and eateth with them” (15:2). It is specifically to all who attempt to
justify themselves before men, to all who despise the
grace of God in Christ that the story in Luke 16:19-31 is addressed. Let’s
read the story together.
(Luke
16:19-31) “There was a certain rich man,
which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day:
(20) And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his
gate, full of sores, (21) And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which
fell from the rich man's table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores.
(22) 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; (23) And
in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and
Lazarus in his bosom. (24) 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.
(25) 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. (26) 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. (27) Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou
wouldest send him to my father's house: (28) For
I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into
this place of torment. (29) Abraham saith unto him, They
have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. (30) And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the
dead, they will repent. (31) And he said unto him, If
they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though
one rose from the dead.”
A Great Change
The
first thing we see in this parable is the fact that eternity brings about a
great change. Things were not the same for the rich man after he died, and
things were not the same for Lazarus (vv. 19-24).
(Luke
16:19-24) “There was a certain rich man
(a certain, notable, distinguished man, who thought himself rich before
God and was highly esteemed as such), which was clothed in purple and
fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day (a man who never had a
trouble in his soul): (20) And there was a certain (poor,
helpless) beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of
sores (full of trouble), (21) And desiring to be fed with
the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table: moreover the dogs came and
licked his sores. (22) 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 was forgotten); (23) And in hell he lift up
his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his
bosom. (24) 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.”
What
great changes are made when breath is taken from our bodies!
Here are two men. One was very rich, and the other very poor. The one “fared
sumptuously every day.” The other was a “beggar…full of sores,” who
had nothing that he could call his own. Yet, it was Lazarus, the poor
beggar, who possessed all things, who was born of God, and had true
riches in Christ. The rich man, though
clothed in purple and fine linen, (long robes, showing himself to be a
distinctly righteous man) had nothing. Lazarus, the poor man
lived by faith, and walked in the steps of Abraham. The rich man was a
thoughtless, self-righteous, selfish worldling, dead in trespasses and sins.
While on earth, the rich man was at the top of the world and Lazarus on the
bottom. Now, Lazarus is above in glory and the rich man below in hell.
We
ought never to imagine that men are blessed because they are wealthy, in good
health, and appear to be happy. That which appears
to be the blessing of God is often his curse. And we must never imagine
that those who are poor, plagued with disease, and
troubled are unbelieving and cursed. Earthly woe is often an indication
of divine favor.
(Jer
9:23-24) “Thus saith the LORD, Let not
the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory
in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches: (24) But
let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that
I am the LORD which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and
righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith the
LORD.”
Wealth
and worldly honor is no mark of God's favor. Poverty and adversity is no mark
of God's displeasure. Those whom God justifies and glorifies are seldom the
rich and honorable of this world.
One End
Learn
this, too ― death is the common end of all
men. The trials of the “beggar,” and the sumptuous living of the
“rich man,” both ceased at the appointed hour. At God’s appointed time
both men died. Both went to the grave. ― “All go to one place”
(Eccles.
You
and I are dying creatures. Few like to think
about it, but it is a fact ― Soon we must die!
(Heb
9:27) “And as it is appointed unto men
once to die, but after this the judgment:”
Death
is the one thing common to all. Yet, most people eat, and drink, and talk, and
plan, as if they were going to live in this world forever. How foolish! Someone
once said, “He that would live well should often think of his last day,
and make it his company-keeper.”
“Please view my tomb
as you pass by,
For as you are, so
once was I;
And as I am soon you
shall be. ―,
So make your plans to
follow me.”
“The
beggar died,” and his pains, sorrows, and needs died. ― “The rich
man also died,” and his sumptuous living, all his delight, all his wealth
died! ― “Prepare to meet thy God!”
Blessed Prospect
This
parable is also intended to assure us that for God’s elect the death of
this body is a blessed prospect. In that hour all men dread, believers
are specially and tenderly cared for by God. The Lord Jesus tells us
that when Lazarus died he “was carried by angels to Abraham's bosom.”
I
find something very comforting in this expression. We know very little, if
anything, about the true, inward experiences of dying people. But this
much is certain ― “Blessed are the dead that die in the Lord!”
― “To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord!”
― “As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness. I shall be
satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness.”
Those
who sleep in Jesus are in good keeping. They are not
disembodied spirits, floating around in the atmosphere. While their bodies
sleep in the earth, awaiting the resurrection, they are at rest among friends
in Abraham’s bosom, at the feet of Christ, the Lamb upon his throne. They have
no want of any kind. Best of all, Paul tells us they are “with Christ”
(Phil.
(2
Cor
(2
Cor 5:1-9) “For we know that if our
earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of
God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the
heavens. (2) For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon
with our house which is from heaven: (3) If so be that being clothed we
shall not be found naked. (4) For we that are in this tabernacle
do groan, being burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon,
that mortality might be swallowed up of life. (5) Now he that hath
wrought us for the selfsame thing is God, who also hath given unto us
the earnest of the Spirit. (6) Therefore we are always confident,
knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord:
(7) (For we walk by faith, not by sight:) (8) We
are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and
to be present with the Lord. (9) Wherefore we labour, that, whether
present or absent, we may be accepted of him.”
The End
Here we are allowed to see
the ultimate end of us all, the righteous and the unrighteous, the believing
and the unbelieving. Soon, very soon, you and I will join one of these two men.
We will join Lazarus in heavenly glory, or the rich man in hell. This is the
end of all men. May God give us wisdom and grace to lay to our hearts the
things he lays before us in this portion of his Word.[1]
Lazarus died, and was
carried up to heaven. Chosen, redeemed and born of God, he entered into glory.
But “the rich man also died!” What
became of him?
“In hell he lift up his eyes, being in
torments!”
Here, the Lord God allows us to look beyond the grave. He allows us to look
into hell itself. He shows us the pains, feelings and desires of an eternally
lost, damned soul in hell, one who is forever shut up in hell under the torment
of God’s infinite, holy, justice and wrath.
Trust Christ
Are you ready to die? Are you prepared to meet your
God? Oh, how I pray that God will grant this very hour that you may flee his
wrath and find refuge in Christ! How I pray that he will save you from the
wrath to come! How I pray you will not find your place at last with the damned
in hell![2]
But, if you would escape the fires of hell, you must give up and forsake your
imaginary, pretended goodness.
· That which we think is
goodness in ourselves is only the self-delusion of self-righteousness.
· That which we perceive as
goodness in others is the biased perception of people who think someone must be
good because we have benefited in some way from their kindness, love, and
generosity to us.
·
The Word of God declares, “There is none righteous…There is none
that doeth good, no, not one” (Rom.
Your goodness will never take you to
heaven. Your goodness is nothing but horrible sin under a pretty mask, hatred
for God under a cloak of decency, and putrifying rottenness under the cover of
religious perfume.
If you and I would be saved, if we would stand accepted
before God and be accepted by him, in his presence forever, we must have a
goodness, a righteousness that is worthy of God’s approval.
· A religious decision will do
you no good.
· Religious morality will
profit you nothing.
· Saying, “I believe in
Jesus,” will not save you.
· Saying “the sinners’ prayer”
will only add to your condemnation.
If you would be saved you must know the Lord
God himself. ― “This is life eternal,
that they might know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast
sent.” You and I cannot be saved
unless we know Christ, unless we are made to be the righteousness of God in
Christ. You know that what I am telling you is true. Your conscience verifies
these things. You may not like them. You may suppress them until you perish in
hell. But you cannot deny them. This is what God demands from you and me.
· Perfect Satisfaction –
Atonement.
· Perfect Righteousness –
Obedience (Matt.
We cannot give him either. These things are to be
had only by the obedience and death of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the sinners’ Substitute. They are ours only if we trust the
Lord Jesus Christ. Trust him now. Oh, may God be pleased to grant you faith in
Christ!
Sooner or later, you will learn that what I am
preaching to you is true. I wonder if you will learn it before it is too late.
Most do not. In Luke 16, we read about a man who learned everything too
late. He did not learn the things I am telling you now, until he was in
hell.
Lessons Learned in
Hell
The passage before us has a
very sobering distinction that separates it from all others. This is the only
place in the entire Bible (the only place in the world) in which we learn
anything at all about the thoughts and emotions of the damned in hell.
Here are seven things that
old Dives learned. But he learned them too late. He learned them in hell! I
pray that you will not learn them too late.
I. As
soon as he died, this rich man discovered that Death does not end all.
“If a man die, shall he live again?” Indeed, we shall. We all
have an immortal soul that will live on forever, after our bodies are in the
grave. Will you spend eternity in the bliss and glory of heaven or in the
torments of the damned in hell?
(Mark
8:36-37) “For what shall it profit a
man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? (37) Or
what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?”
What a meeting place hell will be!
·
Lost Neighbors
·
A Lost Daughter and Her Lost Mother
·
A Lost Son and His Lost Father
·
A Lost Church Member and His Lost Pastor
II.
This poor soul also learned that There is
Hell is as real as
The
Lord Jesus tells us plainly that after death the rich man was “in hell
― tormented with fire.” What a fearful picture he gives us. This lost
soul in hell longed and begged for a drop of “water to cool his tongue.”
He was tormented in flames. There was “a great gulf fixed” between him
and Abraham, which could not be crossed.
J.
C. Ryle wrote, “There are few more dreadful passages
perhaps in the whole Bible than this. And He from whose lips it came, be it
remembered, was one who delighted in mercy!”
I do not know where it is,
and I cannot imagine what it is, but hell is a real place. The rich man found
out too late that hell is not a myth. Hell is a place of…
·
Unquenchable Fire!
·
Undying
·
Inescapable Torment!
·
Everlasting Darkness!
·
Eternal, Conscious Separation!
·
Unending Hopelessness!
“To
say Hell is a horrible place is an understatement. Most people think of
Hell as the farthest point from God. It is the caves where Satan’s minions
scamper about, poking feeble folk with tiny pikes and taunting them for all
eternity. As bad as this seems, it does not even compare to what Hell really
is. Hell is the very presence of God and His wrath without Christ as a
mediator. Hell is the “place” where men face God without a savior, without
anybody to pay their debt of sin. If you thought Satan’s minions were scary,
imagine being face to face with all God’s wrath with no Jesus in sight.”
Nathan Terrell
III. Lifting
up his eyes in hell, this rich man found out what he tried his best to ignored
all his life, that A holy
God must and will punish sin.
It is written, “The soul
that sinneth, it shall die!”
God is so inflexibly just and holy that when he found sin upon his own
dear Son he poured out his infinite wrath upon him. And he who punished his Son
for sin will certainly punish you for sin, if your sin is not removed by his
Son.
IV.
The rich man found out that HELL IS A PLACE OF ENDLESS TORMENT.
(Luke
16:23-24) “And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar
off, and Lazarus in his bosom. (24) 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.”
Dives cried, “I am tormented in this flame!” Hell is
a place of lust and desire unfulfilled, a place of mental, moral and physical
agony. When I try to imagine what the torments of the damned in hell must be, I
am shocked by what I know, and quake because I realize that I know is nothing
in comparison with what those torments actually are! Unspeakable torments!
Endless torments! All I can do is cry, “Flee! Flee! Flee away to Christ, lest
you fall into hell and the torments of the damned!”
The
Names
A. What dreadful names are used
to describe that place in the Book of God!
· It is called a place where the worm dieth not
(Mark 9).
· It is called a burning oven (Mal. 4:1).
· It is called a fiery-furnace (Matt. 13).
· It is called the bottomless pit, the unquenchable fire, fire and brimstone, hell fire, the lake of fire, devouring fire, everlasting fire, eternal fire, a stream of fire (Rev. 21), and “the second death.”
The
Torments
B. The torments of the damned
are unthinkable. In hell you will have full sight and knowledge of your condition. All
your senses will be fully awakened.
1. You will have a
full sight and knowledge of your wasted life, from first to last.
― “Son, remember!” )v. 25).
2. The guilt of all
your sin will lay heavily upon your soul.
― There will be no pleasure in sin for a season
in hell, but only torment. Who can imagine the agony of a tormented conscience,
fully awake! It will be a worm that dieth not and a fire that is not quenched
forever!
3. When God lays
judgment to the line and righteousness to the plummet, when the hail of
fire and brimstone sweeps away your refuge of lies, when the waters of God’s
horrible wrath overflow your hiding place, and your
covenant with death is disannulled, your covenant with death shall not stand.
When the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then you shall be trodden down
by it (Isa. 28:17-18). ― Then, shall be brought
to your never ceasing remembrance the fact that you are in hell, that you are
damned because you despised Christ and the gospel, because you refused to hear
his word of grace, because you rejected that one Foundation laid in
(Isa
28:19) “From the time that it goeth
forth it shall take you: for morning by morning shall it pass over, by day and
by night: and it shall be a vexation only to understand the report.”
(Prov
1:23-33) “Turn you at my reproof:
behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you, I will make known my words unto
you. (24) Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my
hand, and no man regarded; (25) But ye have set at nought all my
counsel, and would none of my reproof: (26) I also will laugh at your
calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh; (27) When your fear cometh
as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress and
anguish cometh upon you. (28) Then shall they call upon me, but I will
not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me: (29) For that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear
of the LORD: (30) They would none of my counsel: they despised all my
reproof. (31) Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way,
and be filled with their own devices. (32) For the turning away of the
simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools shall destroy them. (33)
But whoso hearkeneth unto me shall dwell safely, and shall be quiet from
fear of evil.”
4. Though he was
forever confined to hell’s dark prison of torment, old Dives saw Lazarus in the
bliss of heaven’s glory. Yes, the damned in hell see their friends,
families, neighbors, mothers, fathers, husbands, wives, children, and those
they despised on earth in the kingdom of heaven, and themselves cast out
forever (Luke 13:28).
(Luke
13:28) “There shall be weeping and
gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the
prophets, in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out.”
5. In hell your only
company will be the damned ― the damned angels ― the damned
sons of men ― the damned like yourself ― A vast company of men and
demons who hate you as fully as you hate them, screeching and roaring so
insidiously that they drive you mad, mad forever, and your madness is madness
without hope of relief!
6. In hell God
Almighty will lay upon you all the fulness of his unmitigated wrath, without
mercy. He will punish you with everlasting destruction from his
presence and glory (2 Thess. 1:9). ― In this
condition you must be forever!
(Rev
20:6) “Blessed and holy is he
that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no
power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him
a thousand years.”
7. Perhaps the greatest
torment of all is what is described in the last line of Luke 16:23. ― In hell, old Dives “seeth Abraham
afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.”
·
He “seeth” Abraham ― All the
blessedness of covenant grace fulfilled.
·
He “seeth” him “afar off.”
·
He “seeth” “Lazarus in his bosom.” ― Possessing and
Enjoying all the Blessings of Covenant Grace!
V. In
hell this poor, lost soul learned, but learned too late that Christ is the only way of salvation. ― The
rich man's riches, religion and works were of no value to him in hell. Missing
Christ, he lost all!
Illustration: Voltaire’s Son
“There’s nothing to hang on to!”
VI.
In hell the rich man learned, but learned too
late, except
a man repent he will surely perish. ― In hell
this man realized that without repentance there is no salvation (v. 30).
(Luke
16:30) “And he said, Nay,
father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent.”
·
In hell he saw what matters!
VII.
One more thing that this rich man learned in
hell, but learned too late, is this ― no one can ever be saved without hearing and believing
the gospel (vv. 28-31).
(Rom
(1
Pet 1:23-25) “Being born again, not of
corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and
abideth for ever. (24) For all flesh is as grass, and all the
glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower
thereof falleth away: (25) But the word of the Lord endureth for ever.
And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.”
(Luke
16:28-31) “For I have
five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this
place of torment. (29) Abraham saith unto him, They
have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. (30) And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the
dead, they will repent. (31) And he said unto him, If
they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though
one rose from the dead.”
Be wise now, and believe the
gospel. Trust Christ, lest you also perish forever under the wrath of God.
[1] (Eccl 7:2-4) “It
is better to go to the house of mourning, than to go to the house of
feasting: for that is the end of all men; and the living will lay it to his heart. (3) Sorrow is better
than laughter: for by the sadness of the countenance the heart is made better.
(4) The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning; but the heart
of fools is in the house of mirth.”
[2] Most people think nothing
of saying to another, “Go to hell.” ― If they had any idea what they were
saying, I think that even the most profane man on the face of the earth would
tremble at the thought of wishing such a horrible thing upon another.