ONEFamily
Outreach exists to "Connect
Kids to Community and Communities to Kids." Have you considered having a
mission week for your church? This
is one of my favorite "in-depth" ways of reaching out with the Great News of
Jesus Christ. Activities can include:
Interactive and participative praise concerts for children,
youth, and families;
Morning staff studies on "Authentic Leadership"
and "Building a Culture of Intentional Courtesy"
Brown-Bag Luncheon Studies for your community
focusing on our scriptural call to justice;
In-service for your volunteers or teachers on reaching
today's youth and families with the vibrant, living, message of Jesus
Christ;
Evening parent seminars based upon two of
Jerry's recent books: "Significant Conversations: Helping Young People
Live Meaningful Lives," and "The Deepest Longing of Young People; Loving
Without Conditions."
Local networking with other area groups (secular
or faith-based) regarding prevention and intervention strategies for
high-risk and incarcerated youth;
Humorous and thought-provoking school assemblies
(secular or religious, elementary through high school).
ONEFamily
Outreach is primarily
supported by your donations and by trainings, workshops, retreats and concerts.
[Lk 16:19] “Now there was a rich man, and he habitually dressed in purple and fine linen, joyously living in splendor every day. [20] “And a poor man named Lazarus was laid at his gate, covered with sores, [21] and longing to be fed with the crumbs which were falling from the rich man’s table; besides, even the dogs were coming and licking his sores. [22] “Now the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s bosom; and the rich man also died and was buried. [23] “In Hades he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and *saw Abraham far away and Lazarus in his bosom. [24] “And he cried out and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool off my tongue, for I am in agony in this flame.’ [25] “But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that during your life you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus bad things; but now he is being comforted here, and you are in agony. [26] ‘And besides all this, between us and you there is a great chasm fixed, so that those who wish to come over from here to you will not be able, and that none may cross over from there to us.’ [27] “And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, that you send him to my father’s house – [28] for I have five brothers – in order that he may warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’ [29] “But Abraham *said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’ [30] “But he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent!’ [31] “But he said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.’”
Luke 16:19
[Lk 16:19] “Now there was a rich man, and he habitually dressed in purple and fine linen, joyously living in splendor every day.”
“Now there was a rich man...”
“Once upon a time...”
The power of a good story is incredible, but this story – the story of Lazarus and Dives – is among the most wonderful religious stories in history; perhaps surpassed only by the Prodigal Son in it’s illustrative power. Stories seemed to flow from Jesus and were marked by brevity, timeless value, and their enduring impact on listeners. Through the darkest periods of history and despite being passed on by word-of-mouth for decades, these stories remain largely unchanged. Books have been written about Christ’s analogies, artists have interpreted them, theologians have debated them, but more than anything; lives have been changed by them.
Stories are a powerful medium. Though a quote can be timely and, statistics can underscore a point, a story moves people. Thousands followed Jesus because his stories made sense to them. Others hated Jesus because his humor often castigated the wealthy and powerful.
Influential leaders are good storytellers. In fact, one leadership guru (Max De Pree in his book, Leadership is an Art1), tells us that the primary role of a leader is 1) tell the stories and 2) model the behaviors that capture the vision of a corporate body. Dupree goes further to state that a company (or community) dies when the bean counters take over for the storytellers. Legal briefs and financial reports provide a snapshot of the present but a roadmap for the future.
Navigators shouldn’t captain ships; for leadership is not just knowing “where you are” – you could sit in a harbor and do that! Visionaries capture the hearts of people and move them beyond their comfort zones.
Is my leadership visionary? Am I telling stories that capture the heart and expand the imagination of my people? Do I take people from where they are and give them a taste of how far a determined and directed group of people could go?
Storytelling and modeling are practiced arts; nurtured gifts. Christian leaders need to be “in the practice’’ of moving hearts, we need to practice the “art of leadership.” We need to be models and storytellers of the Gospel. We need to beyond scripture quotes and jokes to telling the stories of our people.
Recently, I had to counsel a pastor about this who was involved in one of our mentoring programs. Everything that the young man across from him said was met with the pastor’s pat response; “The bible says...”
It was as though the pastor couldn’t take the risk of hearing the young man’s story and respond personally.
Let’s get beyond the leather-bound comfort of “the bible says...” and into the stories of each others lives. Sharing the story of Jesus Christ is a privilege I earn only when I have had the courage to listen to someone else’s life.
“He habitually dressed in purple...”
Very little is more condemning of Dives (the name customarily given to this rich man) than the fact that he “habitually dressed in purple and linen.” These were the clothes of royalty and the priesthood. In his ostentatious attitude, this man chose to dress as both royal and holy. In the two parables about wealth in this chapter and the story of the wealthy fool in Luke 12, Jesus shows us the meaning of kingdom foolishness and the deception of wealth. The greatest deception is that people start to believe they are owed a privileged status. They actually think they are exceptional and believe that they have become more valuable because they have more valuables. That is the very definition of a fool; a self-absorbed man.
My wife just dropped me off at the airport and we had to laugh, on the back of the brand new SUV in front of us in the departing zone was a bumper sticker that said: “All my riches are in heaven.” It seemed ironic that I would see that bumper sticker on that particular car on the day that I would be studying this specific reading.
Like the man who wore the robes of royalty and holiness; we can wear the robes or buy the bumper sticker – but it doesn’t change the truth.
In truth; only one should have worn those robes and it wasn’t even Jesus Christ. If we tried to put those robes on Jesus he would have rejected them. The one in this story who deserved the royal robe was Lazarus. Jesus would have torn the precious linen to bind the poor man’s wounds and used the robe to cover his nakedness. What am I doing with our Lord’s robes today? Have I deceived myself into believing that the robes belong to me, that my possessions are for my privilege? Do I deceive myself with the belief that my valuables make me more valuable or important than the one lying wounded at the entrance to my gated community?
At any moment that I believe these falsities; this story turns its point upon me. All too often, I am the man of privilege and self-deception. That man is me! I am the man of purple and linen.
Luke 16:20-21
[20] “And a poor man named Lazarus was laid at his gate, covered with sores, [21] and longing to be fed with the crumbs which were falling from the rich man’s table; besides, even the dogs were coming and licking his sores.”
“A poor man named Lazarus was laid at his gate.”
Just as with Dives, there are a number of subtleties regarding Lazarus’ situation that the people of Christ’s time would understand though we might not:
Laid at his gate;
The first thing we should examine is that Lazarus is abandoned at the gate of Dives. Someone – in a final cry for hope or gasp of desperation – thought that perhaps they could do best for Lazarus if they laid him at the front gate of a wealthy man’s house. This was someone’s desperate cry for help. The orphanage where I am spending the next few days is similar. Most of these children have parents (or a parent), but they are so impoverished that they lay their elderly or their children at Padré Norman’s door. Then, they disappear into the night, in the desperate hope that their infant or child is in better hands with the orphanage than on the streets.
All too often we disdain this behavior (from behind our gated communities) and yet we are oblivious to the children on our own streets who seek to be arrested because there are no healthier alternatives to addiction or abuse.
Lazarus still lies abandoned at our gates; he has never gone away.
The “crumbs which were falling” and the “dogs were coming”;
Jesus took his disciples to the Syro-Phoenician lands across from Galilee; to a people the Jews called “Sons of Dogs.” One can imagine the disciples whining the whole time. At a roadside stop, Jesus rests for a meal with the twelve and a woman pleads to the disciples for an audience with Jesus. Her daughter is possessed by a demon and the mother is hopeless. So hopeless that she turns to an itinerant Jewish Rabbi for help. The disciples are wearied by the trip. They are tired of these foreigners. Can we imagine their attitude toward this woman; they ask Jesus to get rid of her [Mt 15:23]. I see Jesus’ interchange with this woman as an affront to the disciple’s prejudicial attitudes. It goes something like this:
Matthew 15:23-28
[Mt 15:23] But He did not answer her a word. And His disciples came and implored Him, saying, “Send her away, because she keeps shouting at us.” [24] But He answered and said, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” [25] But she came and began to bow down before Him, saying, “Lord, help me!” [26] And He answered and said, “It is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” [27] But she said, “Yes, Lord; but even the dogs feed on the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.” [28] Then Jesus said to her, “O woman, your faith is great; it shall be done for you as you wish.” And her daughter was healed at once.”
This woman – that the apostle’s try to push away – is a heroine of faith to Jesus.
This story seems as much a reminder to the close followers of Jesus as it was to the “Pharisees” who were “lovers of money [v14].”
It is always important for me to remember that the stories of Jesus never allow me the comfort of pointing my fingers at others. Self-righteousness is never a proper attitude for the Christian.
This is the only instance of a proper name appearing in a parable.
If we combine John’s Gospel with Luke’s it seems apparent that the healing of Lazarus occurred sometime around the telling of this story. It was that incident which prompted the high priests of Jerusalem to seek Jesus’ death:
John 11:47-50
[Jn 11:47] Therefore the chief priests and the Pharisees convened a council, and were saying, “What are we doing? For this man is performing many signs. [48] “If we let Him go on like this, all men will believe in Him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation.” [49] But one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said to them, “You know nothing at all, [50] nor do you take into account that it is expedient for you that one man die for the people, and that the whole nation not perish.”
These were the men who wore the linen and the holy robes of Israel. God was not at the core of their mission, their primary concern was; “The Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation.”
The one who came to restore God’s people was killed by God’s priests for the purpose of expediency. Lazarus was at the center of this story because he was at the center of the high priests deception. In giving life to Lazarus; our Lord’s life would be taken from him.
Why is the name of Lazarus used in this story; the only story where a proper name is used? Because Lazarus was not actually Jesus’ death sentence – it was ultimately the death sentence of Caiphas, the high priests, and Jerusalem. The high priests would be judged by their treatment of Jesus – not in their lifetime – but historically and eternally. Dives would be judged for his treatment of Lazarus – also not in his lifetime – but eternally through this parable.
What judgment will be used against me? Will I someday be judged for my choices of self-aggrandizement and expediency like the wealthy priests of Jerusalem? Will I someday be judged for my self-importance and disregard like Dives? Or, will I have the sense to use my purple robe to warm Lazarus and my linen for his bandages?
Luke 16:22-24
[22] “Now the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s bosom; and the rich man also died and was buried. [23] “In Hades he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and *saw Abraham far away and Lazarus in his bosom. [24] “And he cried out and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool off my tongue, for I am in agony in this flame.’ [25] “But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that during your life you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus bad things; but now he is being comforted here, and you are in agony. [26] ‘And besides all this, between us and you there is a great chasm fixed, so that those who wish to come over from here to you will not be able, and that none may cross over from there to us.’”
“Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus...”
The implication of this story is stark and clear. Salvation, lay less than one act of mercy away from Dives, yet he never took the invitation to right the wrong on his own doorstep. Now he had all eternity to explain why he was too busy, had too many other pressing matters, or deserved to enjoy his wealth and not help others.
However, none of those statements would save him now. He was in continual “torment,” the word used is “basanos’ [GSN931]” and was literally a dark stone used for testing the quality of metals. Lazarus was Dives’ touchstone and he had been found lacking.
Even in death, Dives still didn’t “get it.” In his thirst, he wants Abraham to command Lazarus to fetch water and bring it to Dives.
Everyday of his life, Dives had the chance to prove his metal against the touchstone. Death did not alter his attitude; it merely eternalized it. Dives dug the chasm between Hades and himself everyday that he turned away from justice and deceived himself about his own values. Dives didn’t fall into hell; he slipped into it day by day for years.
Everyday we are provided with opportunities to “test our metal.” Our daily paths are filled with touchstones; opportunities to build a bridge or a chasm between Lazarus and myself. Which one will it be?
Luke 16:27-31
[27] “And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, that you send him to my father’s house – [28] for I have five brothers – in order that he may warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’ [29] “But Abraham *said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’ [30] “But he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent!’ [31] “But he said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.’”
“They will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.”
Dives had every chance to choose mercy and he walked by it until it became invisible to him. Didn’t the brothers of Dives step around or over Lazarus on their way to family parties? They had the law, they had the prophets and rather than being moved to compassion they turned away from mercy. A good haunting by Lazarus would not convince the brothers – it would simply be passed off as indigestion or a bad dream.
Because we do not know the exact timing of when this story was told (before Lazarus was raised or after); we do not know if this story was a prophetic warning or a statement of judgment. The religious leaders had either seen or would see Lazarus return from the dead and his presence would not convince them of Jesus’ claims; rather, the Sanhedrin would use it to condemn the Lord.
They had seen the miracles of Christ, they had heard the preaching of Christ and they had studied the writings of the prophets and the law. Rather than opening the door to compassion; they slammed the door to salvation.
Lazarus walked among them, Lazarus returned from the dead, and Lazarus became their touchstone. They had every sign of salvation laid before them and they still chose self-deception.
We have every sign too. We have the scriptures, we have the Messiah and we also have Lazarus. We have every tool needed to make the choice and we must get it right. However, let’s be clear about the choice!
The choice isn’t to view all the evidence and decide whether we will call Jesus the Messiah or a fake. How ridiculous it would be to walk away from this story with that conclusion! Jesus is still Lord whether I believe it or not. The choice Dives made incorrectly was to leave Lazarus at the gate. The choice for me is whether or not I will take off my purple and linen garments to cover and care for the Lazarus at my gate.
The New Testament Greek Lexicon based on Thayer’s and
Smith’s Bible Dictionary plus others; this is keyed to the large Kittel and the
“Theological Dictionary of the New Testament.” These files are public domain.
The Old Testament Hebrew Lexicon is Brown, Driver,
Briggs, Gesenius Lexicon; this is keyed to the “Theological Word Book of the Old
Testament.” These files are considered public domain.