Introduction Welcome to this our final look at parables. As we now - PDF document

Introduction Welcome to this our final look at parables. As we now know a parable is an illustrative story that generally carries just one simple truth. A general principle about studying parables is that we should not get distracted by picking over details of the story’s colour and illustrations. The aim is to understand the key truth and message in the story. At the start of his ministry parables were just one way he used to get his message across. However, it was a particular clash with the Pharisees about how to practice the Sabbath, as can be found in Mark 2 and 4 , that triggered Jesus to solely use parables in his public teaching about: God’s love, His Grace and other important points about the Kingdom, right living before him, repentance and salvation. Refs: Mark: 2: 23 – 28- Sabbath conflict Mark 4: 10 – 12 – Aim of Parables � lead to repentance (otherwise they might turn and be forgiven) but they will be ever seeing but never perceiving and ever hearing but never understanding This and other parables should lead to repentance which then leads to salvation. 1

Jesus told this particular parable to highlight two main points to hypocritical Pharisees about repentance and salvation: • There are consequences for how you live today. • There is a sufficiency of scripture regarding how to live righteously before God. Repent, believe, love your neighbour and be saved! The story’s main focus seems to be after death and not. However, it uses illustrations which are not consistent with the rest of scripture. But such illustration was necessary to complete the story and make Jesus’ point very clear. But what does the rest of scripture say about what happens after death? 2

The first point is this: Scripture clearly presents the doctrine of judgement and punishment for wrong living before God in this life. This is an important yet uncomfortable element of Christ’s Gospel of Grace and as such the message of all parables: God’s grace to forgive. But this is an element missing in many Christians understanding of God’s amazing grace because they have never really known or have lost sight of what they have truly been saved from. (Click for slide text) As a result Christians can easily become: Complacent about their salvation • Apathetic in their evangelism • Have a dullness to their worship life and are, • Lethargic in their acts of kindness and service. • I believe many Christians have no real understanding of what scripture actually indicates about post death judgement and punishment. It is not often taught and preached in Churches these days. So our views tend to be shaped more by what we hope to be true or what we assume to be true. God desire is also clear: John 3: 16 and 2 Peter 3: 9: So that none should perish but everyone come to repentance. 3

The majority of Biblical scholars agree that at some point after death there will be a judgement followed by either reward or punishment. And this is part of God’s plan. Scripture seems clear that the place of punishment is a real place where a real experience is to be had. This parable does reinforces other scriptures by highlighting that this place of punishment is a place: • To be avoided at all cost (Mark 9: 43-48) • Where there will be many who will be surprised to find themselves there • Where no one complains about the justice of being there • Where those who are there are not only frustrated with themselves for ending up there but are also in great turmoil and distress as a result of being there. I believe this place of punishment is a place we are all destined to end up because none of us, in our lives today, look like Jesus in the eyes of God. However, it is also clear from scripture that Christ has come to save us from this destiny of terrible consequences, and this through His ministry, death and resurrection and by us choosing to live, with our full intent , righteously before Him. However, if you dig into this subject a little more you find two main opinions about when this separation for punishment or reward takes place: • Immediately after death or, • Or only at the resurrection or for some at the time of the rapture. And what this punishments purpose serves Fulfilling the Justice of the law • or Rehabilitation and restoration • These opinions may be interesting and help you understand that there are different views on what happens after death. But that on the matter of judgement and punishment there is general consensus it will take place. The message of the parable is one for this side of death. 4

The main debate revolves around how the term Hades is translated: Some say it is merely the Greek term for the grave as is Sheol the Hebrew name. So with this view the grave is just the place where our spirits lay in a dormant / sleep like state until Judgement day. Revelation 20: 11–15 supports this sleep state, for it states that on Christs return hades and the sea both give up their dead in readiness for judgement. But not if you have fallen a sleep as a faithful follower. In that case passages related to the rapture state that thos e living will be caught up in the air along with those raised who fell asleep. Judgement then is for others then and the second death is one of two routes post judgement. So after Judgement there is no lingering in living eternal hell as suggested in this parable. So in this view there is no interim state a person is transported to . Just a limbo state and as such there can be no communion with or between the dead. That is, unless you are Jesus saying, “Arise from the dead”. As for ghosts, we read the story of King Saul and the witch of Endor – it is considered by proponents of this sleeping state that Samuel’s ghost was an apparition and the deception of an evil spirit. There are also passages which support understanding of why Moses and Elijah could appear with Jesus in his transfiguration. For it is held that they by-passed this sleep phase and taken directly to heaven by the Arch Angel Michael – whose trumpet will also awaken the dead on the last day. 5

Another view and more in line with this parable and the passage when Jesus declares to the convict on the Cross, Luke 23: 43: “Truly I tell you today you will be with me in Paradise” (but this is disputed as where the comma is around Today makes a big difference and there are no commas used in NT Greek) Further, Jesus also mentions "Hades" in a warning to Capernaum in Luke 10: 15 about being raised up or down to Hades. And again there is great debate surrounding 1 Peter 3: 18 – 22 where people read into it that Jesus actually went into Hades in the period between his resurrection and ascension to preach to those who died not hearing the Gospel. These opinions may be interesting and help you understand that there are different views on what happens after death. But that on the matter of judgement and punishment there is general consensus it will take place. So though the dialogue in the parable occurs beyond the Grave the message of the parable is one for this side of death. 6

Again the purpose of this or any other parable is to deliver an important spiritual truth in a story. As was the case with parables that Jesus told soon after this one – which form a series called the Olivet Parables – told on and around the mount of Olives near the time of his crucifixion and point to the Advent of His return to collect and / or Judge. Read slide Again, this and other parables are just vehicles for the message of God’s Grace and salvation which should lead to repentance . 7

So let’s focus on this parable’s main points: • It is the only one that uses a personal name. • It was a story Jesus told a week or so before he actually raised his friend Lazarus from the dead. With bringing his friend back to life many followed Jesus and wanted to hear Lazarus’ testimony. Even at Christ’s death we are told that many came back to life and bore witness in Jerusalem. That a Roman centurion seeing this declared, “Surely this must be the Son of God”. But sadly not the Pharisees, raising Lazarus triggered them not to want to follow but to plot to kill both Jesus and Lazarus. Thus fulfilling Abraham’s words from the parable– if you cannot believe scripture then you wont believe in miracles. 8

There is a consistency between the messages of all the parables: On this passage: The message is: How we treat the weak and the vulnerable in this life strongly influences our destiny in the next Jesus uses this imagery to indicate a simple truth that how we choose to live today will have fearful or delightful consequences and, how we are to live has not been hidden from us. We should also note that some people, as in Lazarus’ case, just don’t have a choice and for them there is mercy, grace, care and compassion. But we have a choice: Matthew 7: 21 – 28 “But when did we do these things for you? “Whenever you did it for the least of thee”” So, this Church should not only be a place for revealing Christ as Lord and saviour through scriptures but also a place where we can collectively serve and learn how to serve the weak and vulnerable in our community. 9