Amy C Walters

The Rich Man and Lazarus | Luke 16:19-31

The name Lazarus means “God is help.” At first, that name seems to mock him as we see his suffering and wonder where God’s help is. But through this story, we get to see that his reward is not in this life, but in the life to come. And that reward is far greater and lasts far longer than this life.

Jesus is in the midst of a long lesson on money and wealth and how to use it. This particular lesson is pretty heavy, showing a rich man suffering in hell. 

It reminds me of the Parable of the Rich Fool (Luke 12:13-21) in which the main character hoards his wealth for himself. And God says to him, “You fool! This very night, your life will be demanded from you.” And he dies. 

This story is almost a continuation of that one. The Rich Fool shows us what happens on that side of life when you hoard wealth. And the Rich Man and Lazarus shows us what happens in the after life from hoarding wealth. 

Now, we’ve already noted that this parable is not teaching that being wealthy is a sin in and of itself. Instead, it’s the rich man’s refusal to listen to and obey and believe God’s word that lands him where he is. 

So why do you think Jesus spends so much time teaching about money? I wonder if it’s because those who don’t have much money or resources realize that they are needy. Whereas those who have plenty of wealth and money and resources tend to rely on those things. It gets easy to feel comfortable and find your security in it. 

In the Beatitudes in Matthew 5, Jesus even says, “blessed are the poor in spirit.” He’s not talking about monetary poverty but spiritual poverty–those who recognize they cannot save themselves.

We see the rich man’s pride displayed in this story as he tries to order Lazarus around, even though he is not in a position of honor or power. When he requests that Lazarus bring him water, Abraham says, “Son, remember that in your lifetime, you received your good things and Lazarus received the bad, but now he is in comfort and you are in agony. In your lifetime, you received your good things.” 

The rich man lived for his comfort on earth, and that’s where he received it. He wasn’t thinking about what comes next and was unprepared for it. He was getting what he deserved. As Peter Gurey says, “The rich man is the cause of his own suffering.” It is just, it is equitable. 

Now, someone in the rich man’s situation might argue that they didn’t notice Lazarus in need and didn’t have the opportunity to help him. Would that be true of the rich man? 

Absolutely not! Lazarus was laid at his gate. So anytime this man left his house, he’d have to step over Lazarus. He couldn’t miss him. 

Sometimes though, when we see the same needs over and over again, we can develop a callous to them. If we turn away from them, we can get to a point where we don’t see them anymore. That may be the case with this rich man. But it’s not a valid excuse. 

The rich man also lived in luxury. He had plenty. He had more than enough money and food and resources to help. Instead he hoarded them to himself. 

Now let’s look at Lazarus for a moment. He’s an interesting main character in this story, because he actually doesn’t do anything. He doesn’t say anything. He has no agency, and yet he and Abraham are the only ones who are named, and he plays a significant role.

I think his silence and inaction are intentional, because they stand in direct contrast to the rich man. He has all of the wealth, does all of the talking, tries to do all of the bargaining and moving things and doing things to fix his situation. But Lazarus, whose name means “God is help,” is totally dependent on God. He’s not trying to help himself, do it himself, earn his own way into heaven. He looks to God for his help.

At first, in his lifetime, this name seems to mock him. Where is God’s help in his hunger and pain and exposure? It seems like God is not helping him at all. But through this story, we get to see that his reward is not in this life, but in the life to come. And that reward is far greater and lasts far longer than this life. 

That’s exactly where the rich man gets things backward. He was living for the now and for the moment. And because of that, he was totally unprepared for what came next. 

Our key truth for today is don’t live for the moment, live for eternity. 

Just like the rich man, we get this backward. We want comfort and happiness right now. We want immediate relief and satisfaction.

And that’s why Jesus keeps pointing us to what comes next. He tells us about the feast and our invitation to it. He tells us to make friends who will welcome us into eternal dwellings. He tells us about Lazarus at Abraham’s side. 

Your suffering and your struggle right now may be very real. You may be able to relate to poor Lazarus all too well. But you must remember that suffering won’t last. Look to God for your help and you will receive your comfort and your reward maybe in a small way on earth but definitely and completely in heaven. 

So many people live by the philosophy of “you only live once,” carpe diem. What do they mean by that? Seize all the joy and happiness and things that you can from this life right now. Live for yourself because that’s all there is. 

As Christians, we recognize that life is a gift from God and we use it well. But we also know that there’s something else coming, something even greater than this life. And we choose to invest in that. We choose to look forward to that.