Wealth, judgement, and unbelief

I just finished reading through the Gospel of Luke. The part that I found the most confronting was the Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus that Jesus told and is recorded in Luke 16. The richness of parable is indicated by the fact that I have already written five different posts that feature the parable.

19 ‘There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. 20 At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores 21 and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.

22 ‘The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. 24 So he called to him, “Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.”

25 ‘But Abraham replied, “Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. 26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been set in place, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.”

27 ‘He answered, “Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my family, 28 for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.”

29 ‘Abraham replied, “They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.”

30 ‘“No, father Abraham,” he said, “but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.”

31 ‘He said to him, “If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.”’

[The image is from here].

So what is the main point of this parable? Or are there many points? Generally, I don't buy the idea that every parable has one unique interpretation, meaning, and application. Some of the absolute brilliance of the parables of Jesus is that they are so multi-faceted and so confronting.

 Here are some possible options:

A. Divine ``Karma.'' The final judgement corrects for inequalities on earth. Those who live luxurious lives and are insensitive to the poor go to hell. The poor and suffering go to heaven. This shows ``God's preferential option for the poor.''

B. The Gospel is contained in the Old Testament. It provides adequate information for people to repent and be saved.

C. Some people will not repent even if they see or hear the testimony of the risen Christ.

D. People are only saved by faith in Christ alone. There is no salvation by works. Lazarus repented and had faith in Jesus. The rich man did not.

I think all of these have an element of truth, but are oversimplifications, and I feel rob the story of some of its power.

As always, any biblical passage needs to be interpreted in context. For example, what do passages before and after this one say? How does this passage fit into the whole Bible? What is the literary genre?

It is striking to me, just how much this passage is embedded in discussions about how wealth is an obstacle to the entering the Kingdom of God.

The Parable of the Great Banquet (Luke 14:15-24) teaches that the Kingdom of God is for the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind. It is not for those who are distracted by business and their possessions.

The Parable of the Lost (Prodigal) Son (Luke 15:11-32) describes how the younger son demanded his inheritance and then ``squandered his wealth on wild living.'' But, he did come to his senses and repent.

The Parable of the Shrewd Manager (Luke 16:1-15). Jesus provocatively commends the dishonesty of the manager. He then says

11 So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches? ... 13 ‘No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.’ 14 The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all this and were sneering at Jesus. 

The parable also highlights how ``trivial'' wealth is in God's eyes. This is also shown by

After the Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus comes Jesus interaction with the rich young ruler (Luke 18:18-30)

‘You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.’ 23 When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was very wealthy. 24 Jesus looked at him and said, ‘How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! 25 Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.’

Luke 19 describes how Zaccheus, a corrupt tax collector, repents and gives half of his money away to the poor.

So what do Moses and the Prophets warn about wealth and helping the needy?
They have countless warnings to Israel that they need to care for the poor, the widows, orphans, and the oppressed. If they do not they will experience God's judgement.

Psalm 49 is just one example of a clear statement concerning the dangers of wealth.

16 Do not be overawed when others grow rich,
    when the splendour of their houses increases;
17 for they will take nothing with them when they die,
    their splendour will not descend with them.
18 Though while they live they count themselves blessed –
    and people praise you when you prosper –
19 they will join those who have gone before them,
    who will never again see the light of life.

The letter of James has hard-hitting passages about how real faith leads to caring for the poor and needy and not supporting unjust economic structures (Chapter 5). Chapter 2 says:

4 What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you? 15 If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill,” and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? 17 So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.

Those of us who are financially in the top 1-10 percent globally should be deeply troubled by this Jesus teaching and not dilute its power by trying to force it into some simple theology of salvation.