LUKE 16:19-31 LIFE AFTER DEATH2013 Teaching by Jerry B Simmons

Teaching Transcript: Luke 16:19-31 Life After Death

00:00
Last week, as we looked at the first half of chapter 16, we saw there the need to be shrewd about eternity.

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And here, as we finish up chapter 16, we get to understand why this is so important. Well, last week the message was to prepare to give account. And the reason is, the reason why this is so important, the reason why we must be shrewd about eternity is, well, the reality is that there is life after death.

00:47
There is life after death. There is something beyond what we experience here on this earth. And when you take your final breath, it's not the end of your existence. There is life beyond that. And what kind of life you have beyond your last breath is determined...

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By what you do in this life. And so it's really important that you be shrewd about eternity and that you prepare yourself to stand before God and give account because you will stand before him. You will live for eternity. It's just a matter of, well, where are you going to live? Or how comfortable are you going to be?

01:30
As we look at verses 19 through 31 here, we get some insight into life after death. And Jesus gives this account of a rich man and a man named Lazarus. Now, there's those who would wonder, you know, is this a parable or is this a true story? And there's, you know, some discussion that could be had about that. It seems to me that it's probably not a parable, but it's an actual event

01:59
Mainly because Jesus uses an actual name and none of the parables does Jesus use actual names. He just talks about people in general or, you know, people without naming them. But here he gives a specific name. He talks about this poor man named Lazarus.

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And so it seems like it's an actual account. Either way, it still gives us insight into what takes place regarding life after death. And life after death is the title of the message this morning. And there's six points that we're going to be looking at as we consider this passage. Now, I'd like to begin by just saying...

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You know, this is kind of a rough message. It's a rough passage. It's difficult things for us to consider because they're not real comfortable things for us to consider. And so it is kind of rough in that sense. And I want to do my best to be gentle, but also accurate to the text. And this morning, if you're hearing this and you are in a place where you're not really right with God in your life,

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I pray that this message, that this passage would help you to see the need to get things right. And it would, you know, kind of give you some urgency.

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To get things right with God. If you're walking with God already this morning, then my prayer, and I think what God wants to do through this, is to challenge us and encourage us to love the lost in the same way that he does. Because here we get a very clear picture of what happens to the lost after death.

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So life after death is what we're talking about. The first point we find in verses 19 through 22. And here I'd like to point out that every person will die.

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We get introduced to the people of this account here in these first couple verses. And there's a rich man and there's a poor man. And the point here for us this morning is that it doesn't matter what your social status is. It doesn't matter where you are at. Every person, every one of us here will die.

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Again, it's not necessarily something pleasant and you probably don't think about this very much. If you do think about it a lot, then people start calling you morbid and that kind of stuff. So we tend not to even express it if we do think about it a lot. But the reality is every single one of us, there's an end point to our life on this earth. And it could be today, it could be tomorrow, and it could be 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 years from now. We don't know yet.

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But we do know for sure it will come to an end. We begin looking at verse 19 and we're introduced here to the rich man. It says, So here as we're introduced to this rich man, Jesus is painting this picture so that we can understand what his condition is. He's rich. He's rich.

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He's wealthy. It mentions that he was clothed in purple and fine linen. This wasn't, you know, just indicating his color preference, but the purple clothing was the most expensive clothing. It was made from a dye that was extracted from a snail. And so it was rare, it was costly, and it was kind of like the most expensive that you could get. And so this fine linen and this purple that he would wear

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showed and demonstrated that he could afford the best of the best for his clothing.

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Not only that, but Jesus says that he fared sumptuously every day. That's another way of saying he was feasting every day. He didn't have to, you know, stick with rice and beans, you know, for a season just to kind of make ends meet, you know, that month. But every day was a feast. He could eat as much as he wanted. He could have whatever meal he wanted. If he wanted prime rib every day and lobster, he could do that. Whatever he wanted, he could have it.

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And so he was feasting every day, clothed in expensive clothing. He was very wealthy and rich without any wants or needs as far as physical things were concerned. And then we're introduced to Lazarus, the beggar, in verse 20. It says, but there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate. And so here we get to meet Lazarus.

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He's diseased. It says that he's full of sores. The idea here is that they're open sores. And so it's a very painful condition for him to be in. He's also lame because it says that he was laid at the rich man's gate. And so he didn't go there himself, but people carried him there.

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But then also we see that he was starving. In verse 21, it says that he was desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table. And moreover, the dogs came and licked his sores.

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And so the only compassion he got was from the dogs, essentially, who were kind of tending to his sores. You can maybe look at that as a good thing or a bad thing. But that was kind of all the attention that he got. Other than that, Lazarus, he was poor. He was destitute. He was diseased. He was lame, completely helpless, and just hoping for some scraps.

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You know, whatever falls off the table, you know, as they toss it out, that would be, you know, exciting for Lazarus. Yes, please give me the crumbs, the leftovers from the feast. Now, if you do have to go beg for food somewhere, to go beg at someone's house where they feast sumptuously every day, that's a good strategic place to go. And so he survived off of that, off of the crumbs and the things that were left over from the rich man's table.

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And so very quickly here, with just these couple verses, we get a real clear picture of these two guys. Rich, you know, kind of as well off as you can be in this life, and then poor, and then

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The worst really you could be in this life. We are looking at these two extremes in this rich man and Lazarus. But then in verse 22 what we see is both of them die. Verse 22 says, So it was that the beggar died and was carried by the angels to Abraham's bosom. The rich man also died and was buried.

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So whatever extreme we're talking about, whether it be the rich or the poor, they both have the same end as far as this life is concerned. They both die. Now there's always been the desire, you know, for the fountain of youth and to prolong life and all kinds of that. And the best that we can do, the wealthiest person today still will come to the same end as this rich man and as Lazarus.

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That death is constant. It's going to happen. And there's no escaping it. No matter how wealthy you are, no matter how far our technology advances, death will come. Every person will die.

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Whether we're beggars or whether we are wealthy. Now here as we look at this verse and as we go on to the next few verses, we begin to get a lot of insight about what happens after this death. And so I'd like to kind of take a few moments to diagram what is going on here because there's several things to consider as we think about this. I'd like to help make sure that it's clear what

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That we know where people go when they die. And so what's being talked about here in this passage is a place that is referred to as Hades. Or in the Old Testament, it was referred to as Sheol, S-H-E-O-L. And that's the place where the people who died would go. Whether good or bad, they would go to this place called Hades or Sheol.

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Now when you and I talk about hell, this is not the place that we typically are referring to. We're typically referring to the eternal position or place of judgment. That's not what Hades or Sheol is all about. Hades is really a waiting place for the dead. It's a temporary place. It's a temporary location and we'll see that in just a moment.

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But this place, Hades, is where all of the dead went, whether good or bad. It was divided into two compartments. And so on the one side, you have the place of torment. On the other side, you have the place of comfort, also referred to as Abraham's bosom here in this passage, or paradise and other places in the scripture. So when people died...

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They would go to Hades or Sheol. Now when we're talking about the unrighteous, you can follow the path there. So the unrighteous, those who are not right with God, when they died, they would go to Hades and they would go to the side of torment.

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This is regarding those who do not believe. And it doesn't have anything to do with how wealthy a person is or even really doesn't have to do with good works. It has to do with their relationship with God and whether they had right relationship with God. Now if they went to the place of torment, which they would if they were unrighteous, then they would be in torment. Right?

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It would be not a place, you know, that was like a little bit uncomfortable as we'll see in this passage, but a place that was excruciatingly painful and difficult and there would be great torment. Now this is a temporary place until judgment day. In Revelation chapter 20 verses 11 through 15, you can read about that final judgment called the great white throne judgment.

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And at that time, Hades will be emptied out. And so they will go from that temporary place of torment to stand before God at the white throne judgment.

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And at that time, it tells us in Revelation 20, 15, anyone who's not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire. And so that's the final place of torment, the final place of judgment for the unrighteous, for those who will not believe or for those who do not have right relationship with God.

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The lake of fire is often what we refer to when we talk about hell because it's that permanent place of judgment, that eternal place of judgment. And so the unrighteous who die, which every one of them will die, they go to Hades, to a place of torment.

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Then from there they go to the final judgment. They're brought before the judge. And the final judgment is given. If their names are not written in the book of life, they're cast into the lake of fire. And for that time on, it's permanent. It's eternal. They will be there in that place of torment and eternal judgment. Now the righteous have a different story. When the righteous die, again, the righteous die and the unrighteous die. Both die. Everybody dies. That's constant.

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But when the righteous die, those who do believe in Jesus Christ, those who do have right relationship with God, they also would go to Hades. Now things have changed and I'll talk about that in just a moment. But they also went to Hades, but they went to the side of comfort.

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And there they were comforted while they waited for Jesus' work upon the cross. So it was referred to as paradise or Abraham's bosom where they would wait and there would be comfort and peace while they waited for the work of Jesus Christ to be accomplished.

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You remember when Jesus told the thief upon the cross, he said, today you will be with me in paradise. That's the place he was referring to, this side of Hades that is the place of comfort or Abraham's bosom. Now, the thing that has happened though, as a result of Jesus Christ being crucified, buried, and then resurrected as he conquered sin and death, that

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This side of Hades, the comfort side, has been emptied out. And those who were there waiting are now in the presence of the Lord. In Ephesians chapter 4 verses 8 and 9, we get to see this talked about. As the Apostle Paul talks about how he led captivity captive. And he ascended, but it means first that he descended into the lower parts of the earth. And so Jesus went to Hades.

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When he died. He went there to this place of comfort. And then as he resurrected. He took them.

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into the presence of God. That's what we understand from the various scriptures that deal with this subject. And so the righteous at one time would die. They would go to Hades, but the comfort side. But then they were set free when Christ conquered sin and death at the cross. They couldn't go straight into heaven because the sin had not been fully dealt with until Jesus died upon the cross.

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But now that that's accomplished, then he set captivity free. Well, finally, we look at the righteous today, after Christ. The righteous who die today go straight into the presence of God. The unrighteous who die today still go to Hades, to the place of torment, waiting for the final judgment day. But for the person who's right with God,

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They go straight into the presence of God. And Paul explains that in 2 Corinthians chapter 5. You can look at verses 5 through 8 if you want to look into that a little bit more. There is Paul's talking about the life to come and the spirit being given to us as a guarantee until then. He says we're confident, we're well pleased to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord.

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As long as we're in this body, he says, we're absent from the Lord. We're not yet in his presence. We're not yet in heaven. But as soon as we're absent from this body, that is when we die, then he says we will be present with the Lord. And so the righteous who die in Christ today go straight to heaven. They go straight into the presence of God.

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And that is kind of the overview look at life after death for the various groups. So for the unrighteous, it doesn't matter when they die, they will be in Hades in the place of torment, held there until the final judgment day, and then they will be cast into the lake of fire.

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For the righteous who died before Jesus died upon the cross, they went to Hades to the place of comfort. They waited there for the work on the cross to be completed and then Christ set them free and they went into the presence of God. For the righteous who die today or ever since Christ, because of his work upon the cross, because of the forgiveness of sins, the righteous go into the presence of God directly now as a result of what Jesus did for us.

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And so that's a quick look at where people go when they die. Now again, the point is every person will die. It doesn't matter if you're rich or poor, if you're powerful or not, if you're popular or if you're unknown, every person will die.

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Now, this is the point. Now, it kind of goes back to chapter 15 where we saw the lost sheep and the importance of the lost and how God cares for the lost. And here in chapter 16, as we look at this passage, here we get to understand why God cares so much for lost people. Because there really is life after death. And lost people, also known as unrighteous, they go to a place of torment.

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temporarily, until the final permanent place of torment. And so we get to understand why God cares so much about the lost. Because he does not want anyone to be in the place of torment. Peter tells us in 2 Peter 3.9 that God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. God's desire, God's working, is so that

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Well, people who are lost might be saved. People who are unrighteous might repent and receive the forgiveness that he offers that, well, that they might be righteous, that they might have everlasting life, that they might not experience the torment that goes on after death for those who are unrighteous. Every one of us will die.

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And where you go depends on what you do in this life, specifically what you do with Jesus Christ. Believing in Him, repenting of sin, following Him, that's what's necessary for you to escape the torment that is to come for the unrighteous. You must turn to follow Jesus Christ. And so again this morning, if you're not right with God, this is what the Bible says about

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your future, unless you repent. And I pray that this would help you to see your need to be, well, right with the Lord. Whether it be, you know, hey, you're in a backslidden state, you haven't been really faithful, you haven't been really diligent in following the Lord. There's no time to mess around because there's life after death.

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And the only time, the only opportunity, as we'll see later on in this passage, is right now. This is the time. This is the day of salvation. Because beyond this, well, it's either torment or comfort, but that's determined by what you do here. Now, if you are walking with God this morning, then my prayer, and again, as we look at these things, this is what we need to understand regarding the people around us.

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This is why God cares so much for lost people. And this is why he desires for us to care for lost people because, well, we are the agents that he has chosen to use to reach the lost people around us so that they don't go to the place of torment. So that they have opportunity to repent because, well, every person will die.

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everyone that you know, everyone that you come in contact with, all of your friends, all of your family members, all of your co-workers, all of your neighbors, they will die. And where will they spend eternity? It's determined by what they decide here. And God says, I want you to be a part of that decision, to help them make the right decision, or at least give them the opportunity to make the right decision. So the first point is that

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Every person will die. Now as we move on to the next few verses, we see point number two is that the unrighteous people are tormented after death. This is found in verse 23 and 24. Again, not a real pleasant subject, right? But it's one that's necessary. We need to understand what happens after death to those who believe and to those who do not. Verse 23. And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off.

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So here we're following this rich man. After he dies, he's in this place of torment in Hades. And in this place of torment, he is in anguish. He is in agony, not just by what he's feeling, but also by what he's seeing. Because we see here, he says, he sees Abraham with Lazarus in his bosom.

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This gives us some real important insight into what happens after death. Unbelieving people do not just go into oblivion. I think this is kind of what we would like to think. And some people do believe this and teach this. That, you know, unbelievers just cease to exist. They just stop existing after they die. But that's not what the Bible teaches. That's not what God has said.

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That after they die, the unrighteous are in torment. And it's not just that they cease to exist. No, they actually can understand. And here this rich man can see Lazarus after he has died. And they can see, he can see that Lazarus is in a place of comfort while he's in a place of torment. He understands. He's thinking. He's understanding what is going on. He can see the other side.

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Back in chapter 13 of the Gospel of Luke, we saw where Jesus talked about the narrow gate and the wide gate. Remember that? Well, Jesus said there at that point that there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth...

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To those who are on the white road to destruction. He said, there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. When you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and the prophets in the kingdom of God. And you yourselves thrust out. Jesus said, there's going to be weeping and gnashing of teeth. You're going to be in torment. Because you see them enter into the kingdom of God. While you are thrust out. And so Jesus is consistent in this. He's making it clear.

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They see what they're missing out on. And that is tormenting as well as the physical affliction. They see what they're missing out. Verse 24, Then he, that's the rich man, cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue for I am tormented in this flame. And so here we see he's physically afflicted as well. He's tormented. And he says, have mercy on me.

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Have mercy. Have you ever thought about one drop of water being merciful? He thinks so. He says, have mercy. Send a drop of water to put on my tongue because I am in torment. Now the word mercy gives us this idea of, well, it's not receiving judgment that is deserved. I think this is really interesting.

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The rich man is asking for mercy. He's not there in Hades crying out for justice saying, Abraham, give me justice. Give me what I deserve. No, by asking for mercy, he's admitting, no, I deserve what I'm getting. But even though I deserve it, grant me some relief, please. Have mercy on me. The rich man at this point is not disagreeing with the verdict. He's not in Hades in torment saying, I don't deserve this.

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He's in Hades, in torment, saying, I deserve this, but have a little bit of mercy on me. He knows that he is experiencing what he deserves, and he agrees with the verdict. We might disagree in this life, but afterwards, we'll see clearly, the Lord will reveal clearly, and those who are in torment will see and understand. They will agree it is what they deserve.

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Unrighteous people are tormented after death. And again, this is why God cares for lost people. Because he does not want anyone to go there. He does not want anyone to experience that. And he gives us this insight into what is going on after death. This is one of the longest and most detailed passages about judgment and life after death in that way that we have. He gives us this insight

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To help us have his perspective. That we would remember to see people as he sees people. You see for us the eternal perspective needs to override everything else. We get consumed because that person cut us off. And that's all that we can think about. And we forget about eternity. And we forget well that's a person that needs Jesus. We get consumed. Hey they did some injustice. They did some wrong.

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And that becomes the most important thing to us, correcting that wrong or paying them back. But we need to have an eternal perspective and realize this is a lot bigger than that. This is a lot bigger than some insult or some thievery or some, well, even rape or murder. It's a lot bigger than that. This is about eternity. And God does not want anyone to be in the place of torment. And that really needs to be our heart as well.

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God cares for lost people. But this morning he's saying, do you? Do you think about those who are around you and where they will be? And so do you give them an opportunity to escape the torment that is in store? Well, as we go on into verse 25, we also see that people remember after death.

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Verse 25 says, But Abraham said, Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things and likewise Lazarus evil things, but now he is comforted and you are tormented. So he's tormented physically. He's tormented by what he sees. He's also tormented by his memories. Abraham says to him, Hey, remember your lifetime. Now, his physical body is gone at this time. And so his memories...

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are not tied to his brain any longer. I often say I have a bad memory, but then I correct myself and say, actually, no, I have a good memory. I just have a bad index. If you remind me enough of enough things around it, then I will remember what you're talking about. But I can't look it up in my head on my own. Like I just, my index is corrupt. I need some help finding that information. But that's my physical nature.

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Outside of this body, the memories will persist. But they'll be perfect memories. Not limited by a poor memory or what's happening chemically in your head. No, this will be... Well, he'll be able to remember. Here's what John Corson says. He says, I suggest that one of the most horrendous aspects of hell is the memory people will have of the times they could have received the free gift of salvation but chose to harden their hearts instead.

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Have you ever had one of those times where you say something and regret it afterwards? Has that ever happened to anybody? That happens to all of us, right? And you ever had it where you walk away from that and for the next couple of days, for the next week, for maybe the next month or couple months or years, you replay that conversation in your head regretting that you said what you said. And you know how agonizing that could be.

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But that's what it's like for eternity for the unrighteous. Remembering, replaying back. Abraham says, remember in your life, hey, you received lots of good things. Lazarus had evil things. Now he's comforted and now you are tormented. The memories will persist. People will remember after death. Now again, this is why God cares for lost people. God does not want anyone to go there to experience that.

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And again, He wants to give us His perspective. Do you see people the way that God sees them? Do you consider their eternal condition and deal with them accordingly? Relate to them according to really what they need for eternity. Well, we go on now to verse 26. We see point number 4. That is that people cannot change after death. Verse 26 says, And besides all this, between us and you, there is a great gulf fixed between

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So that those who want to pass from here to you cannot. Nor can those from there pass to us. Now please understand, Abraham is not saying that there is great gulf in Hades. No, he's saying there's a great gulf between us. That is, there's a great divide, a great chasm, and people are not able to switch sides.

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People in torment are unable to cross over to the place of comfort. And the people who are in comfort are unable to cross over to the place of torment. Now the rich man is saying, send Lazarus with a drop of water for my tongue to have mercy on me. And Abraham is saying, even if we wanted to, this is not possible. You can't cross from your side to ours. We can't cross from our side to yours. It's not possible.

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Again, every person will die. The opportunity to decide where we go when we die happens in this life. There's no opportunity afterwards. Purgatory is not real. It doesn't exist. The only opportunity that you and I have, the only opportunity that any person has to enter into eternity with God, that place of comfort and rest, the only opportunity we have is in this life.

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Hebrews 9.27 says, it's appointed for men to die once, but after this, the judgment. Once we die, that judgment is made, that judgment is set, and there's no opportunity to change afterwards. You can't cross from one side to the other. And again, I would say this is why God cares for lost people, because He understands, He recognizes, this is the time, this is the only opportunity that lost people have.

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Now is the time to reach them. This is the only chance that they get. And God's giving us this insight to help us have that same perspective. That we would recognize the only time that people have is right now. Tomorrow is not promised. Tomorrow is not guaranteed. It's right now that they have the opportunity to decide where they will spend their life after death. God cares for lost people.

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He wants us to as well. Well, point number five we see in verse 27 and 28. And that is that people care about others after death. In verse 27, it says, Then he said, I beg you therefore, Father, that you would send him to my father's house. The rich man is now begging. It's been flipped. He says, hey, can you send a drop of water? Sorry, we can't send a drop of water even if we wanted to. Okay, well, please, I beg you.

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Can you send him, Lazarus, to my father's house? Bring him back to life, Abraham, and send him as a messenger to my family. Verse 28. For I have five brothers that he may testify to them lest they also come to this place of torment. Send him back to my family. I don't want them to come here, the rich man says. Please, I beg you, send Lazarus back. People often talk about hell as if it's a big party.

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But that kind of talk only happens here. It doesn't happen after death. After death, what happens is, well, people wish, they beg perhaps. Please send someone back to the people I care about. I don't want them to come here. Whenever we do funerals, I often have this passage in my mind. Even though I...

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Probably wouldn't share it unless the Lord really told me you have to share this. But in my mind, I have this passage. Because as I share the gospel, I will often say, and even if I don't know anything about the person who died, I can boldly say, if that person could speak to you right now, he would tell you that the things that I'm saying are true. That this is the gospel message, and they would tell you to receive it. And respond to it. And I can say that with confidence, whether the person is in heaven or in Hades. Right?

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Because that's what this rich man would have told his family. Believe the gospel. Repent. Follow Jesus Christ. Because I don't want you to come here. He cares about his family. He cares about others after his death. Let me ask you. Do you know anyone in Hades right now? Again, not comfortable, right? We don't really want to think about this. But do you know anyone in Hades? You know what they would be telling you?

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You do not want to come here. Make sure you do everything possible to walk with God because you do not want to come here. That's what they would testify to you. Hades and hell will be filled with regrets. Regrets, well, for their own selves, but also regrets for others as

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I wish I wouldn't have led them astray. I wish I would have had an opportunity to show them the truth. I wish I would have an opportunity to send someone back filled with regrets. This is why God cares for lost people. Because that is a horrendous condition to be in. God does not want anyone to go through that. Well, finally, point number six found in verses 29 through 31.

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Here we see that people must repent at God's word. Verse 29, Abraham said to him, they have Moses and the prophets, let them hear them. So the rich man says, send Lazarus back to my family so he could tell them and they don't come here. And Moses says, they have the scriptures. I don't need to send Lazarus back to them. They have the scriptures. Let them hear the scriptures. Let them respond to the scriptures. Then verse 30,

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And he said, no, Father Abraham, but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent. The scriptures aren't enough, the rich man says. They won't believe the scriptures, but if Lazarus was to go to them and they recognize, hey, you're that beggar who died and now you're back. He says, then they will believe. Actually, what he says is, then they will repent.

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And you see afterwards, the rich man recognizes what is really needed is repentance. Remember, the demons believe that God exists and they shudder as a result of it. It's not just enough to acknowledge that God exists. It's not enough to just acknowledge that Jesus Christ died upon the cross. But there has to be a repentance to turn from sin to follow God.

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And now he has a clear understanding of that. And he says, if you send Lazarus back, someone comes to them from the dead, then they will repent. Verse 31, Abraham responds, but he said to him, if they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead. What Abraham says and what we see consistently throughout the scriptures is that miracles do not produce faith.

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It's proven all throughout the ministry of Jesus. Miracles do not produce faith. What produces faith? Well, Romans 10, 17 tells us that faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. It's the scriptures that produce faith, not miracles. There was another man named Lazarus. Remember Mary and Martha's brother? And he actually died. And Jesus brought him back to life several days after his death.

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So kind of a similar circumstance to what we're reading about here. And we see the result was, there were some who believed, but for the religious leaders, for many, they decided, you know what, not only do we need to kill Jesus, we need to kill Lazarus too, because we can't refute this miracle that has happened. Whether a person believes or not is not based upon some miracles or some great sign. It's based upon their heart and their condition regarding the Word of God.

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John Corson says, tragically, there will be those who believe in the existence of Jesus and in the inspiration of Scripture who will be lost eternally because of their refusal to repent, to change direction, to follow Jesus. There's going to be those who know the truth but refuse to repent, to turn, to change. Corson says, it doesn't matter if there's some miracle or some great sign. What really matters is what your heart says

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concerning the word of God? Are you listening to him? Are you responding to him? Are you putting his words into action? Are you basing your life on what God has said and what God has revealed? God cares for lost people and he does not want anyone to go to this place of torment. And so he's given his followers the great commission to get the word out.

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Because it's the word that people need to hear. It's the word that produces faith. It's the word that must be responded to. And Jesus says, tell the world about me. Spread the word that people may believe and be saved. That's why he gave us the Great Commission. That's his heart. That people would not enter in to that place of torment. What's your heart? Do you have God's perspective?

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Again in chapter 15 we see the illustration of the sheep and the coin. The son that was lost and then found. And God rejoices abundantly and greatly. Because he doesn't want the lost to die that way. He's calling them to repentance. And maybe that's you this morning. He doesn't want you to be in torment in this life after death. And so he's calling you.

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He's calling you to repentance. He's calling you to change, to believe Him at His word and change and follow Him. He's calling you to turn from sin, to walk with Him because He does not want you to die in that lost condition. But for those who are found, for those who have turned,

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This is such an important passage for our hearts. And speaking to us as a body here at Calvary Chapel Living Water, this is really a continuation of something that God has been ministering to us. That there's a great need for us to have a heart for the lost in the way that God does. That we would recognize eternity and we would respond accordingly to give people an opportunity to

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To hear the Word of God and respond to it. To receive the forgiveness that Jesus offers. Because there is life after death. And in this passage, as we consider life after death, primarily we're looking at, well, the judgment side of life after death. There's also the reward side, the side of eternity with God. There's great things in store. And we can look forward to those things. But let's not lose sight of the other side.

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Let's not lose sight of the great need. Let's have a great love and compassion for the lost. Even if they cut us off or rip us off or beat us or hurt us or ridicule us. Even if they sue us. Let's have a great love for the lost because they need an opportunity to hear the Word of God to escape that eternal torment. The worship team is going to come up and lead us in a song as we prepare now to partake of communion.

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We pray you have been blessed by this Bible teaching. The power of God to change a life is found in the daily reading of His Word. Visit ferventword.com to find more teachings and Bible study resources.