TITLE: SPIRITUALLY RICH - ON THINGS THAT MATTER
SCRIPTURE: Luke 16:25
Written by: Dr Conrade Yap
Date: December 14th, 2015
25“But Abraham replied, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. (Luke 16:25)
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| Codex Aureus of Echternach |
In the Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus, Jesus contrasts two scenes, and two worlds of richness and poverty. In the first scene (this life on earth), the unnamed rich man is presented as one who enjoys the luxuries of life, who is well-dressed with fine linen and has fine-dining daily. He lives the good life and appears to reside in a castle-like residence. He lives "in luxury every day." If he is in our modern world, I could think of him having the best of everything for self. He could be eating a lobster a day or had lots of choices about which tuxedo to wear when he goes out. He could have an indoor swimming pool or an elaborate exercise equipment. He could also be rubbing shoulders with the ruling powers of the day, meeting in high places and lazing around at posh resorts. Who knows, he could be playing golf with the Presidents or CEOs of major corporations of the world. Just a swipe of his credit card on a big purchase could render him frequent flyer miles that benefit his entire household. Life is good. So good that matters of poverty and injustice in the world do not register even a single thought of care or concern. People who are rich and powerful tend to have blind spots about the rest of society.
Almost immediately, Jesus switches channels to zoom in on Lazarus, who not only sat at the gates of the rich man, he had sores so painful that he needed the dogs to moisten the wounds with their tongues. Hungry, he was willing to settle for any crumb that fell on the table. I am not even referring to leftovers. Crumbs are like bits of food that would be discarded anyway. Like rats or stray cats that snatch away any food that falls on the ground, he longed for those crumbs. If the rich man is the epitome of luxurious living and wanton splurging of wealth, Lazarus is the symbol of poverty and a life nobody wants.
