Sermon for the First Sunday after Trinity
1 John 4:16-21 + Luke 16:19-31
What happens to the soul when a person dies? Is there a heaven or a hell? And, if so, what are they like? And who goes where? Jesus’ story about the rich man and poor Lazarus gives us some answers to these questions—answers that are also found elsewhere in the Scriptures, but that really paint the picture for us vividly.
Is there a heaven or a hell? Absolutely! What happens when a person dies? The body, as we already know, is laid in the ground to decay. But the soul—the soul is taken immediately either to heaven or to hell.
What’s heaven like? Jesus describes it as a place of rest and peace and comfort for the soul, which is carried to “Abraham’s bosom.” Picture Abraham embracing Lazarus with a big hug after the hard and painful life Lazarus had just left behind. It’s Abraham whom Jesus mentions from the Old Testament, because God had promised an eternal inheritance and place of rest to Abraham’s seed, to Abraham’s descendants, the children of Israel. So of course heaven is pictured with father Abraham there, receiving his children into his embrace.
What’s hell like? Jesus describes it as a place of fire and torment and despair. And there is no crossing back and forth between heaven and hell. A permanent gulf or chasm separates the two. Once you’re there, in either place, you’re there for good.
Now the even more important question: who goes where? What is it that grants a person access into heavenly rest or that sends a person to hellish torment? And, ultimately, why are you here on this earth in the first place?
Consider, first, what doesn’t get a person into heaven. Riches, wealth. That won’t do it. The rich man in Jesus’ story had all the riches anyone could ever want. He went to hell. Poverty, being poor. That won’t do it, either. Yes, Lazarus was poor. But Abraham was one of the richest men in the land of Canaan during his earthly lifetime. So poverty is no ticket to eternal life. Earthly sickness or suffering? No. Again, Abraham didn’t suffer greatly, as Lazarus did, and he was in heaven. Eating well! Wearing fine clothes! No, the rich man ate well every day, and still went to hell. Genetics? Having the right genes, the right family history? Well, both the rich man and Lazarus were physical descendants of Abraham. But one went to heaven, and the other went to hell.
Good works, then! It must be doing good works that makes the difference. The rich man was evil! Lazarus was good! Well, Jesus tells us of no great evil that the rich man did, nor does He mention a single good thing that Lazarus ever did.
So what’s the answer? It comes toward the end of the story, where the rich man pleads with Abraham to send Lazarus back to the land of the living, to the five brothers of the rich man who were still alive and who, he knew, were on the same path he was on, to end up there in hell. What does father Abraham reveal to the rich man in hell that his brothers on earth need in order to escape the torments of hell and reach the comfort of heaven? Only one thing could possibly help them: They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.
Now, the rich man didn’t believe Abraham. There must be something else they need, he thought, because he had Moses and the prophets during his lifetime, too, and he didn’t repent. And he said, ‘No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ But Abraham said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.’ ” Hearing Moses and the prophets, that is, what we know as the Old Testament Scriptures, is all that anyone needs to be “persuaded to repent,” in order to escape hell and enter heaven when they die.
And what do those Scriptures teach? For one, they certainly teach the Law, the Ten Commandments, summed up like this: You shall love the Lord your God will all your heart, soul, mind and strength; and you shall love your neighbor as yourself. And, The man who does all these things shall live by them. And the soul who sins shall die. To hear Moses and the prophets is to hear these commandments and these threats of God, to take them to heart, and then to be very afraid, because there is no one who does not sin, and God threatens eternal death in hell to the one who sins, to the one who fails to love God and his neighbor at all times, with a perfect, unselfish love.
Then there is that other word that is found throughout Moses and the prophets, the word of the Gospel. What does Moses say about Abraham? How was Abraham justified before God so that he was accepted into heaven when he died? Moses writes (and St. Paul repeats it in his Epistle to the Romans): Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness. Abraham was justified by faith alone, apart from works. And what did the prophets write? They wrote especially about the coming of the Christ, who would be Israel’s Redeemer from sin, who would make atonement for the sins of Israel, even for the sins of the whole world. They wrote about faith in the coming Christ as the only way to live eternally, the only way to escape the just punishment for sins that sinners are condemned by the Law to receive in hell.
Now look back at Jesus’ parable. What do we see in Lazarus and what must we assume about Lazarus? Well, we see no works of love toward his neighbor in Jesus’ story. He wasn’t in a position to do much, except, perhaps, to pray for his neighbor. But since the Law condemned Lazarus with the rest of mankind, he clearly committed his cause to the merciful God. As a true son of Abraham, he believed in God’s promise of salvation, in spite of the difficult life he was forced to lead on earth. He continued to trust in God and to bear his afflictions patiently. That’s trust that comes only from hearing God’s Word. That’s love for God. Lazarus was poor in possessions, but rich in faith, even though the rich man ignored him, even though it appeared that God was ignoring him. But as the angels carried his soul to Abraham’s bosom, the truth was revealed. God hadn’t been ignoring him. God had accepted him as a beloved son through faith, and had been sustaining his faith and preparing to receive him into heavenly glory and peace and rest.
There is great comfort here for Christians who are suffering, whether you’re suffering at the hands of men or are abandoned by men or whether you’re poor or sick, and even when it seems that God has forgotten you, too. Christians suffer here on earth and sometimes look to be the most wretched of men. But the fact remains that God sent His Son to be your Redeemer from sin. He made (or will make!) you His beloved child through Holy Baptism, and after the hardships and injustices of this life are passed, your soul will most certainly be carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom, too.
Back to the rich man in the Gospel. The rich man, as a Jew, heard the word of the Law from Moses and the prophets during his earthly life. But he didn’t listen. He didn’t repent. He didn’t think about God or his neighbor or his sins or his need for salvation. He had a fine life on earth without bothering himself with such things. So he also paid no attention to that other word from Moses and the prophets, the word of the Gospel. He had no faith, no trust in God for redemption and for the forgiveness of sins.
Now, maybe the rich man deluded himself during his life, thinking, “I’m an Israelite, a son of Abraham. Of course I love God!” But what did St. John say in our Epistle? If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen? The rich man may object, “I didn’t hate Lazarus!” But God doesn’t necessarily define “hate” as having strong negative feelings toward someone. To hate your neighbor is to not love him, to refuse your opportunities to show love to him.
And so we see the rich man showing no love for his neighbor, Lazarus, lying at his gate every day, yearning to be filled by the crumbs that fell from the rich man’s table. Love for God and love for our neighbor go hand in hand, and they both flow from faith in the God who loved us first, when we didn’t deserve to be loved at all. Where there is no faith, there is no love, because love is the product of faith and the testimony of faith.
So examine your heart and your actions today. This Gospel doesn’t warn us about mistreating our neighbor. It warns us about getting caught up in our earthly life, to the point that we take our salvation for granted, to the point that we stop hearing and paying attention to the preaching of God’s Word and neglect His Holy Sacrament, to the point that we lose saving faith in Christ and become apathetic toward our neighbor, which is a symptom of apathy toward God.
You’re not here on this earth to get rich, to live it up, to make money, or to live comfortably and to die at a ripe old age. You’re here to hear Moses and the prophets—the Word of God, to be brought to a knowledge of your sins and your constant need before God, and then to be brought to a knowledge of Christ as your Redeemer from sin, as your refuge from wrath and condemnation, to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and then, as a believer, to grow in love and service to your neighbor.
And if God allows you to live it up a little bit while you do that, to make some money, to live comfortably and to die at a ripe old age, fine! Thanks be to God! Abraham enjoyed those things on earth. Lazarus didn’t. The important thing is that God loved them both, and they both knew and believed that and put their trust in God their Savior. And after a brief time on earth, both Abraham and Lazarus ended up with the same reward of grace: eternal comfort and peace and rest in the presence of God. The same awaits you, who hear God’s Word, repent of your sins, believe in the Lord Jesus, and “abide in love.” That’s why you’re here on this earth. Amen.
