Luke 16:19 Jesus said,
"There was a certain rich man who was splendidly clothed and who lived each day
in luxury.
20 At his door
lay a diseased beggar named Lazarus.
21 As Lazarus lay
there longing for scraps from the rich man's table, the dogs would come and lick
his open sores.
22 Finally, the
beggar died and was carried by the angels to be with Abraham. The rich man also
died and was buried,
23 and his soul
went to the place of the dead. There, in torment, he saw Lazarus in the far
distance with Abraham.
24 "The rich man
shouted, 'Father Abraham, have some pity! Send Lazarus over here to dip the tip
of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in anguish in these
flames.'
25 "But Abraham
said to him, 'Son, remember that during your lifetime you had everything you
wanted, and Lazarus had nothing. So now he is here being comforted, and you are
in anguish.
26 And besides,
there is a great chasm separating us. Anyone who wanted to cross over to you
from here is stopped at its edge, and no one there can cross over to us.'
27 "Then the rich
man said, 'Please, Father Abraham, send him to my father's home.
28 For I have
five brothers, and I want him to warn them about this place of torment so they
won't have to come here when they die.'
29 "But Abraham
said, 'Moses and the prophets have warned them. Your brothers can read their
writings anytime they want to.'
30 "The rich man
replied, 'No, Father Abraham! But if someone is sent to them from the dead, then
they will turn from their sins.'
31 "But Abraham
said, 'If they won't listen to Moses and the prophets, they won't listen even if
someone rises from the dead.'" (NLT)
Most agree that this is an actual story, but to those who
believe it is a parable it stiil illustrates several truths.
1. In heaven things may be reversed, the selfish rich man
will be in torment and Lazarus will be in a separate place, where the saints
were kept before the resurrection of Jesus the Messiah.
2. There is a hell, a place of torment
3. There was a place where the souls of the saints were
held, called paradise.
4. The souls of the dead were aware of where they
were
5. They cannot leave hell, but paradise was probably taken
up with Jesus
6. Even though someone was risen from the dead, many will
not believe
There is more to the story, but these I see from having
read the story many times. Some want to say this is only a story, because they
do not agree with it's truths. Parables illustrate truths, and actual stories
are true testimonies.
