#1 Most Difficult Parable of All – Can You Handle It?预览

You may have recently read 1 or 2 of your favorite parables.

Hopefully, the message that Jesus intended by that parable spoke to you, giving encouragement or hope.

But not all parables offer encouragement or hope, do they?

In this devotional, we’re about to dive into what may be the most difficult parable of all – a parable about regular life that is told so plainly, and yet we often miss the main point.

If you haven’t read the parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus as found in Luke 16:19-31, please take the time to do so right now, and then come back here to read on.

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In this parable, there's a rich man who passes away and finds himself in Hades, a place of eternal punishment, while Lazarus ends up in a place of comfort next to Abraham – a complete reversal of their circumstances from when they were alive.

After death, the rich man realizes that the choices he made in life brought him to a place of permanent agony. He also realizes that his brothers back on earth still have a chance to avoid that fate and so he begs Abraham to send someone back to warn them.

That’s it – a simple story about 2 people and what happened after they died.

You’ve almost surely heard reference to this parable in church, but let’s have a quick review of the message in this parable.

First, we most often hear reference to this parable to give emphasis to the urgency for us as Christians to share the message of salvation with others.

Just as the rich man desperately pleaded for someone to warn his family, so too should believers feel a sense of urgency to share the good news of Jesus Christ with those who have not yet heard or understood it.

Second, we often hear this parable in reference to the consequences of unbelief – that there eternal consequences for those who reject God's truth.

The parable clearly reminds us of the seriousness of the gospel message and our response. There is an eternal reward for those who believe the message of the gospel and follow the teachings of Jesus, and eternal punishment for those who do not.

Third, the parable reminds us of the completeness of God's word to the entire world – that the Bible contains the whole truth and no further signs, miracles or revelations are required for everyone to know the message of salvation.

Abraham's response to the rich man's request to send someone back from the dead to witness to his brothers reinforces the sufficiency of Scripture as a means of conveying God's truth. As believers, we can trust that the Bible and its gospel message is definitive source of truth for all people to be saved.

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That’s the main message of this parable as we hear it in church, isn’t it?

That there is indeed a heaven and a hell.

That one’s actions & beliefs on earth determine their eternal future.

And, that we as Christians should proclaim the message to others while there is yet time.

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All of that is true, but there is an even more powerful message in this parable – one so powerful that we maybe rather not consider it…