They Should Listen
“There was a rich man who was dressed
in purple in fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. And at his gate
lay a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who longed to satisfy his
hunger with what fell from the rich man’s table; even the dogs would come and
lick his sores. The poor man died and was carried away by the angels to be with
Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried. In Hades, where he was being
tormented, he looked up and saw Abraham far away with Lazarus by his side. He
called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the tip
of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am in agony in these flames.’
But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that during your lifetime you received your
good things, and Lazarus in like manner evil things; but now he is comforted
here, and you are in agony. Besides all this, between you and us a great chasm
has been fixed, so that those who might want to pass from here to you cannot do
so, and no one can cross from there to us.’ He said, ‘Then, father, I beg you
to send him to my father’s house – for I have five brothers – that he may warn
them, so that they will not also come into this place of torment.’ Abraham
replied, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; they should listen to them.’ He
said, ‘No, father Abraham; but if someone goes to them from
the dead, they will repent.’ He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses
and the prophets, neither will they be convinced even if someone rises from the
dead.’”
Think about what goes through your
mind when someone you care about dies. You may think they have accepted Jesus,
but you don’t know for sure. We know that our friends and family will be
recognizable and conscious of their surroundings. We also know that they
haven’t yet received the perfect body that will be theirs when Christ returns,
just as we have not received his perfect body either.
God’s people
never say goodbye for the last time.