The Parable of Lazarus and the Rich Man: Why Was the Rich Man in Hell?

Luke 16:19-31

The parable of Lazarus and the rich man is very well known, it is about a beggar who is covered with sores, and a rich man who has all his wants and needs met.  But what happens when they both die is the key to the reason for this parable, told by the Lord Jesus Christ.



This passage teaches that life does not end at death.  Jesus plainly teaches in this section of scripture, in perfect alignment with the rest of the bible, that there are places where the human soul goes after death and continues to exist.  All true churches believe that because they all believe what Jesus says and they follow Jesus Christ.  A Christian is a follower of Jesus and believes Jesus.   These days a belief in hell is fading fast, and compromised churches are leading the way in unbelief.  As well as this, students in bible colleges are no longer interested in the subject.   It's the churches' neglect of the subject of everlasting punishment which has happened in the same period of time when the world is becoming more rebellious, more permissive, more violent and more godless.   The church is a pale reflection of the world and the world's views.  But the bible has not changed, the bible and the words of Jesus Christ are unchanged.  The eternal destinies of those who die have not changed, nothing has changed.  God has not changed his mind and it's completely irrelevant that society does not like or believe the doctrine or that they don't want the doctrine.  Hell still exists.   The opinion of men is not the measure of truth nor reality.  God's word is the measure of truth.  He is the ultimate reality.   Even if you don't believe in hell, you will still end up there if you are not a Christian.  Hell is a real and remote place, a place of fire and darkness, a place of everlasting punishment.  Think about it.

What does Jesus say about the passage in Luke 16?  he is speaking to people who were religious but not converted, not saved.  V14 "And the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and they derided him." 

There were once two men:  V19-21 "There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day.  And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores, And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores."   We see in these verses a description of the two men.  The rich man is described as being clothed in purple and fine linen, same thing in Rev 18:12, it means that this emphasizes luxury, the best.  The labels of the day, the rich man was clothed in. V19 tells us of his diet.  He had plenty to eat every day.  But then the beggar is also described.  His name is Lazarus, the rich man is not named.  Lazarus is the complete opposite of the rich man:  lying at the gate, outside the home.  He is full of sores, the Lord says the dogs came and licked his sores, so the sores were not bandaged, no one was looking after him.  What was the beggar's desire?  He simply wanted the crumbs, the leftovers, the scraps that fell from the rich man's table.  What a pitiful picture.  The Lord is describing two men who are vastly different.