Take Notice And Care!

Grace and peace to you from God, our creator, and our Lord and Savior, Jesus the Christ. Amen.

Growing up I never knew how poor we actually were. When my mom made macaroni and cheese with ranch style beans, I thought it was because she was trying to be creative, and not because that was all there was in the house. We ate a ton of spaghetti or on some special nights we would get steak, but it was one steak split between the six of us.

We’ve all been there…lean times…maybe some leaner than others, but we all know what it’s like to get creative with what you’ve got. However, I don’t think any of us have ever been forced to beg on the side of a street, and that is where this morning’s lesson begins.

Here we have two men: Lazarus, and a rich man. Take note that this Lazarus should not be confused with the one that Jesus resuscitates in the Gospel of John, they are different people. The rich man is given no name probably because our focus shouldn’t be on him, but rather on Lazarus.

Our gospel writer has painted quite the picture of him: covered in sores, extremely hungry, and pestered by dogs. He has come to the gates of this rich man because it was custom for the wealthy to provide alms to the poor. He isn’t trespassing. He isn’t being a bother. He is where he is supposed to be…seen by the fortunate and cared for.

In the two years that I have been here, I can’t recall a time of seeing anyone in town asking for money. I know that there are those with less means than others in our area. I’ve heard about the lines for food at the Sealy Food Pantry, or the lines of cars waiting for backpacks filled with school supplies, but have never seen anyone standing with a sign on the side of a road.

Houston is a different story. You practically can’t go anywhere without coming upon someone with a very sad story on their posterboard, or someone aggressively trying to wash the windows of your car. They are so prevalent that they have faded in the background, and to make matters worse, we’ve all seen news stories of panhandlers who are really millionaires. So, we’ve gotten to a place where we don’t see them, or don’t want to see them, and more often than not don’t believe them.

We don’t know much about the rich man, just that he feasted sumptuously every day. We don’t know why he didn’t feed Lazarus. We don’t know why he ignored him, or if it was intentional or not. Maybe he was disgusted by him. Maybe he was distracted by his work that he never thought about him. Maybe he thought he if I can accumulate wealth by my hard work…so can you.

It doesn’t matter if one of those were the reason or not for his ignoring, that is the crux of this parable. It was the rich man’s responsibility to care about Lazarus, and he didn’t.

Today’s Gospel lesson doesn’t come with the good news of Jesus Christ, or the comforting reminder that God loves you. It doesn’t reassure us that we have been saved by grace through our faith. It just is a warning.

“The poor man died and was carried away by the angels to be with Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried. 23In Hades, where he was being tormented, he looked up and saw Abraham far away with Lazarus by his side.”

Let me be clear; the warning in the morning’s lesson is not that the rich man went to Hades. The Gospel of Luke is known for its emphasis on the “great reversal” where the first shall become last and the last shall become first. The lowly are raised while the mighty are lowered. So, it makes sense that the rich man is in Hades, while Lazarus is in Heaven. Listen…

“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.’ 25But 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.”

The rich man still thinks that Lazarus is beneath him. That is where things went wrong for the rich man and where they can go wrong for us. As followers of Christ, we are called to take notice of those around us. We are called to unite, and not divide. We are called to care about others.

This not an easy task today. It’s easier to divide. It’s easier to walk away. It’s easier to say, “not my circus, not my monkeys!” I too have been jaded by the dishonest and the cheats. I have seen a mother with her children on the side of the road holding a sign that said, “We’re hungry”. So, I went to the store and bought stuff to make sandwiches only to have it all thrown back in my face, because she only wanted the money.