SATURDAY, APRIL 8, 2017
A BEGGAR HEREAFTER?
-LUKE 16:19-31
KEY VERSE:
"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" (Luke 16:24).
An old Scotsman, while dying, was asked what he thought of death, and he replied, "It matters little to me whether I live or die. If I die I will be with Jesus, and if I live, Jesus will be with me." Death is inevitable for everyone. Our soul is worth more than the whole world and everything in it. The text reveals the drastic reversal of the state of Lazarus and the rich man after death. Lazarus was a beggar on earth, while the rich man became a beggar in hell. In his lifetime, the rich man ostentatiously displayed his wealth with beautiful clothes and sumptuous feasts. Conversely, Lazarus was destitute and covered with sores; he had only dogs to lick his sores. After death, Lazarus was carried away to an honoured place and the rich man to the place of torment. "For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?" (Matthew 16:26). Hell is a place of continual weeping, wailing, mourning and gnashing of teeth. Unfortunately for the once rich man on earth, he discovered that he was a poor man in hell. He begged for water but he was not given. He begged for homilies for his relatives on earth, yet he found none. No help, no hope, no future; and as Leonard Ravenhill puts it, "hell has no exits". Hell is a point of no return. There is no repentance in hell. Sadly, many people, like the rich man, live their lives as if they don’t believe there is going to be an end. Satan has lured such people into a state of complacency. They indulge themselves in pleasures of this life and other vices. The Bible warns that "The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God" (Psalm 9:17). Don’t wait till eternity before you repent. There’s nothing like purgatory. "The soul that sinneth, it shall die" (Ezekiel 18:20). Hell is real.
Thought for the day: Those who spurn the love of God on earth will beg for His mercy in hell.
Bible Reading in one Year: DEUTERONOMY 17-20
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