Unbelievable Unbelief

 

Here is Sunday's sermon. 

Jesus told several stories to respond to his critics who were “lovers of money” and who scoffed at him. (Luke 16:14)

Luke 16:19-31

Here’s a story that gets us ready for Easter.

Characters….

The story begins as Jesus introduces us to two principal characters.

There was a rich man.  He was very rich for he “…used to dress in purple and fine linen and feast magnificently every day.”  He seems to have everything in this life that he could want.

There was a poor man.  He was very poor, so poor that he used to lie by the rich man’s door begging.  Jesus’ words seem to suggest he may not have been unable to get there by himself.  His hunger was so intense he would have been satisfied with the scraps from the rich man’s table.

To make matters worse, he was diseased.  It manifested itself in ugly sores.  Dogs, Jesus said, “came and licked his sores.”

Perhaps Jesus meant the dogs were more compassionate than any of the poor around him.

Perhaps he was so weak he was unable to fend them off.

Jesus gave the poor man a name, Lazarus.  The rich man is anonymous.  I suspect Jesus was using a bit of irony in giving the poor man a name.  Usually, we know the names of the rich; the poor are anonymous.  Not here.

Their deaths…

After introducing the characters, Jesus tells us that they both died.

The poor man died without much earthly fanfare.  Perhaps he was simply found dead on the street one morning.  Beyond the earthly plane, it was a different story.  Jesus tells us Lazarus “was carried away by the angels into Abraham’s embrace.”  Those hearing this story would have thought this was the kind of treatment a patriarch or king might receive.

Of the rich man, Jesus simply said, “The rich man also died and was buried.”

Their fates…

Jesus introduces an element common in many of the stories teachers of his day told. There is a “reversal of fortune.”  The afterlife couldn’t have been more different than there earthly lives.

The rich man found himself in “Hades.”  It was a place of torment and agony.

At the same time, Lazarus was in “Abraham’s embrace.”  This was the abode of the righteous dead.  It was a place of joy and satisfaction.  He was under the care of the founder of their faith.

Keep two thinks in mind, this is a parable:  It is not intended to present the geography of hell.  At the same time, don’t think the rich man went to “hell” because he was rich and Lazarus went to “heaven” because he was poor.  Something more intangible was at work.

It is evident that Lazarus trusted God, despite his difficult life.  The rich man appears to have given no thought to God or much else beyond his personal enjoyment.  Remember, the rich man did not have a broken relationship with God because he was indifferent to the poor; he was indifferent to the poor because he had a broken relationship with God.

Two dialogues…

Jesus story contains two dialogues.

The first focuses on the nature of our condition after death.  It is set.  There will be no more reversal of fortune.

I believe the second dialogue is the more significant for understanding this phase of Jesus’ ministry.

“Then the rich man said, ‘Please, Father Abraham, at least send him to my father’s home.
For I have five brothers, and I want him to warn them so they don’t end up in this place of torment.’
      “But Abraham said, ‘Moses and the prophets have warned them. Your brothers can read what they wrote.’
      “The rich man replied, ‘No, Father Abraham! But if someone is sent to them from the dead, then they will repent of their sins and turn to God.’
      “But Abraham said, ‘If they won’t listen to Moses and the prophets, they won’t listen even if someone rises from the dead.’”

Perhaps we are meant to see the rich man as the eldest son.  He has five brothers, still at home.  He remembers how they lived their lives with the same indifference toward God that he had demonstrated in his.  He hoped to change that.

Abraham reminded him that the word of God, read every Sabbath in the synagogue, would keep them from such a fate if only they heed its lesson.  The rich man feared they wouldn’t.

But if a man returned from the dead to warn them, they would hear.

Abraham issued a shocking answer:  Some unbelief will resist even the testimony of one returned from the dead.  Such unbelievable unbelief gripped the hearts of many—including some of Jesus’ enemies.

For almost three years Jesus had been teaching as no one had taught before, he had been performing miracles—including raising some from the dead—yet, his enemies continued to disbelieve.  Some would continue to disbelieve even after Jesus himself had defeated death.

The Will to Disbelieve

Some critics of Christianity say those who embrace the Christian world-view are guilty of wishful-thinking.  In the face of what these critics consider overwhelming evidence against the Christian message Christians exercise “the will to believe.”  They continue to believe despite what observation and common-sense tells them.  Their will to believe ignores all obstacles.

In this parable, Jesus seems to be saying there is a “will to disbelieve.”  No matter how carefully the apologist or defender of Christianity lays out the evidence these people will not acknowledge the truth of the Christian message.

In recent years several books challenging the existence of God have been published prompting observes to describe their message as “the new atheism.”  But an analysis of their arguments shows that these writers are merely revisiting the old atheism with its arguments that have been answered centuries ago.  The boldest of these new atheists, like late Christopher Hitchens, try to shock audiences by claiming that religion in general and Christianity, in particular, are dangerous.   Sorry, Chris, Marx made that argument against Christianity, as did the Romans.  The presence of schools, hospitals, and orphanages where there were none before the coming of Christianity to a region makes the “Christianity is dangerous” argument just a little questionable.

Still, men and women will disbelieve.  In the last quarter century the percentage of Americans claiming to be atheists or agnostics has more than doubled; this, despite a flood of books defending the reliability of the Bible and the contributions of Christianity to the world at large.  Most of these books were not written by “flaming evangelists” with degrees from online seminaries.  They were written by individuals like Jeffrey Russell who has an Emory PhD and has taught at Harvard, Notre Dame, and the University of California.  Then there are those by former atheist Alister McGrath who earned a doctorate from Oxford in biochemistry while he was also earning a first-class honors degree in theology.  I could add more names but just remember these when you hear the critic say that anyone who takes the Bible or Christianity seriously is an ignorant bumpkin.

Of course, those people you know who are exercising this will to disbelieve may not be philosophers or scientists.  They may be neighbors, co-workers, classmates, or family members.  They may not offer sophisticated arguments but they still reject every aspect of your testimony.  They may insist what you see as answers to your prayers are only coincidences.  They may claim your life never changed when you found Christ—you only imagined it.  They may treat your reading the Bible the same way as most of us would treat reading the daily horoscope in the newspaper.

Some men and women do not believe the gospel because they have sincere doubts about it or unanswered questions.  We need to treat these men and women with patience and respect, trying to help them overcome their objections.

There are others who resist surrendering to the gospel even though they sense their spiritual bankruptcy and realize the truth of the gospel.  They hold back.  They will not surrender to the call to repentance and belief.  They may be happy to call Jesus a great teacher, but will not acknowledge him as Savior.

That is a dangerous place to be.  What can we who care for such men and women to help them move beyond their resistance?

àWe should continue to lay the foundation of evidence and reason in support of the gospel.

àWe need to live out the gospel with integrity, demonstrating in our lives the reality of its promise.  Research shows this is the most compelling human witness we can offer in this day.

àWe need to pray tht the Spirit might show the appeal of Christ through us.

Conclusion

It is difficult to win those who will not act in accord to what they know to be true.

If someone you care about fits this description, don’t give up hope.  Soon after the church began to preach the gospel of the Risen Christ, many of the Pharisees began to turn to the gospel.  Some of these were almost certainly among those who had originally resisted Jesus.

If you recognize the truth of the gospel but haven’t committed yourself to him, stop waiting.