A great evil

Today's texts: Amos 6:1a, 4-7; Psalm 146; 1 Timothy 6:6-19; Luke 16:19-31.

The parable of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31) is a tricky one, because it’s filled with all sorts of distractions. Why do they end up where they do? What do we do with the details which seem to relate to the afterlife? But this is a parable, a teaching story. We have no idea if Jesus’ parables are historically based or purely fictional, but in any case the details of the story are generally a backdrop or tool for Jesus’ teaching. We should not read them too literally nor let them distract us from the central focus of the parable.

In this case, the parable is found in a section of Jesus’ teaching dealing with how wealth is used. This parable is, from beginning to end, about the same thing: helping those in need.

The rich man essentially pleads ignorance and requests that someone be sent back to his living brothers to warn them. However, scripture is clear on the need to care for the poor, as this week’s Old Testament reading (Amos 6:1a, 4-7) and Psalm (146) indicate. If that isn’t clear enough to his brothers, not even someone returned from the dead (not even Jesus!) would be enough to convince them otherwise.

If there’s one thing the Bible is consistently clear on, it’s this: the poor should benefit from abundance. Money, as Paul says in 1 Timothy 6, is the root of all kinds of evil, and to live in luxury while ignoring the plight of the poor is, biblically speaking, a great evil.

* * *

This week's texts: Habakkuk 1:1-4, 2:1-4; Psalm 37:1-10; 2 Timothy 1:1-14; Luke 17:5-10.