“Is he back again?” asked the rich man as he rode past the beggar Lazarus. “He is such an eyesore,” he commented as he watched his dogs licking the sores on Lazarus’ side. “Have James chase the old beggar off.”

James felt badly for Lazarus. He quietly packed a bag of food scraps that had been swept off of the master’s floor. He knew that the beggar would enjoy these scraps.

As he came close to Lazarus he noticed that the beggar hardly moved. “Is he dead?” he wondered as he tapped him gently with his sandal. Lazarus finally lifted his face up and brushed the sand out of his scraggly gray beard.

“I am sorry, but the master has ordered me to make you move,” James said apologetically. Then he whispered, “Here, I’ve collected some food for you.”

Lazarus looked up. His tongue was so dry he could not form words to answer the servant. He reached out for the bag of food that James held out to him.

Though the old man was speechless, James knew by his eyes that he was thankful for the scraps.

James turned to leave. As Lazarus gathered his pathetic collection of possessions, James heard his breathing. It did not sound very healthy. “Poor old man,” James thought to himself, “he’s not long for this world.”

In fact James was right. As soon as James turned the corner, Lazarus took his last breath and died. As he lay huddled in the street, angels came and lifted him up.

James returned to the mansion, still touched by the poor beggar. He walked by the Master’s dining table. As he did, he looked at the wasteful rich man with contempt. The Master was tipped back in his chair, and tossing fine meats to his dogs. All the while his mouth was crammed full with the most exquisite cake that money could buy. He cackled and howled with laughter as he watched his dogs scramble for the rich meats, spraying bits of cake all over the place as he did.

Then it happened. He thrust his hand into the cake and ripped off a large piece. He lifted his hand to mouth level, and then mashed the cake into his mouth. Suddenly the laughter stopped. His wicked smile turned into an expression of gripping fear. His hands tugged at his neck, but he was silent. After a moment his chair fell backwards, and the rich man smacked his head upon the floor. His eyes were wide open and yet he was quite dead.

He too was carried off.

Lazarus hugged Abraham for a long time. God spoke directly to him in a warm and loving voice. “I recognize your faith in the coming Messiah. I know of you trust in Him to forgive you of all your sin. Welcome Lazarus.” Lazarus’ days of suffering were over.

Then the rich man stood before God. He was covered with sin, un-confessed and un-forgiven. God said to him angrily, “Depart from ME! I DON’T KNOW YOU!”

With that the rich man was tossed into hell. His days of suffering had just begun.

One day Lazarus and Abraham were walking together. Lazarus glowed with a joy he had never experienced on earth. They were singing praises to God when Lazarus thought that he heard a faint voice. He strained to hear it.

“Help Me! Help Me! Help Me! Help Me! Help Me! Help Me! Help Me!” the voice said endlessly.

Abraham knew who it was. “I believe that you know who that is.” Abraham walked him to a spot where he could see the man a great distance away.

“That’s the rich man!” he said. “I used to lay outside his gate.”

The formerly rich man cried, “Send Lazarus over to me so he can dip his finger in water and cool my tongue. These flames are unbearable!!!!”

Abraham shouted back, “Remember that when you were alive you had all kinds of good things, and Lazarus had nothing but bad things. Now he is comforted, and you are tormented.” Then he continued, “Besides, between us is a great and deep chasm. He cannot go to you, and you cannot come to us.”

Then the rich man changed his approach. “Then please, send Lazarus to my brothers so he can warn them about this terrible place! I don’t want them to make the same mistake I did.”

Abraham calmly replied, “They have heard all they need to from Moses and the prophets.”

The rich man pleaded, “No, if Lazarus came back from the dead and warned them, they’d surely repent.”

Abraham said, “If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.”

Religious or not, I am sure that everyone at some time has wondered about what happens after we die. There are many today who are all too happy to give us answers, but this account found in Luke 16 is rare in that it came from a person who actually saw such things. Jesus walks the streets of heaven daily, and felt the heat of hell enough to travel to earth and lay his life down to spare us from having to endure it. When Jesus spoke of our life after earthly death, he was an expert witness.

Sometimes I fall asleep with the television on. I shouldn’t do this as it causes me to have weird infomercial dreams. I have dreams about the Bowflex exercise machine and the George Foreman Grill mixed together. Let’s just say that they’re not restful dreams!

The other night a program came on that woke me completely up. It featured a man who claimed to communicate with the spirits of the audience’s departed loved ones. He would relate details too specific to be random chance. Either something was rigged, or I was watching something that was beyond human explanation. As amazingly accurate as the details were, something did not add up. I personally don’t believe that we can talk with the dead, but let’s just say for a moment that one can. It seems to me, after reading Jesus’ parable, that if a dead person really could communicate with the living, they’d have one of two possible responses. One would be “It’s wonderful up here. I can’t describe how wonderful it is. Are you positive you’ve asked Jesus to save you and forgive your sins? Don’t delay!” If the answer didn’t sound like that, it would have to sound like this, “Ahhhhhhhh! It’s hot here!!!!!! The torture never stops! Don’t make my mistake! Accept Jesus as your savior TODAY! Don’t WAIT!!!”

Instead of these, the man brought messages about very mundane subjects such as vacuum cleaners, jewelry, a special pillow, and who was selling a house. No mention of heaven, or of hell. No mention of sin and seeking forgiveness of it.

It seemed to me that the father of lies, Satan himself, was whispering into the psychic’s ear. I wondered why he would do that. Then, it occurred to me. If Satan can get us to believe that after we die we just float around and look at our loved ones and watch over our former stuff, then why be saved? Where’s the urgency?

In 2 Corinthians 6:2 it says, “…behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” That means we’re not supposed to wait! Sometimes we make excuses and believe lies. Some people say not to worry, because there is no hell. Yes there is, Jesus describes it. Once there it is too late, it is inescapable.

The only way to avoid the fate of the nameless rich man is to completely surrender. That’s right, stop trying and ask Jesus to cover you with the forgiveness He purchased with His death on the cross.

Oh, and please do me a favor. After I die, please don’t try and conjure up my spirit. I am pretty certain you can’t, and besides, I’ll be too busy enjoying heavenly things and the presence of God to answer your call. Let us leave it like this, meet me up there, and then we can talk!

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