Luke 16:19-31 (CSB)
The Rich Man and Lazarus 19 “There was a rich man who would dress in purple and fine linen, feasting lavishly every day. 20 But a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, was lying at his gate. 21 He longed to be filled with what fell from the rich man’s table, but instead the dogs would come and lick his sores. 22 One day the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 And being in torment in Hades, he looked up and saw Abraham a long way off, with Lazarus at his side. 24 ‘Father Abraham!’ he called out, ‘Have mercy 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 flame!’ 25 “‘Son,’ Abraham said, ‘remember that during your life you received your good things, just as Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here, while you are in agony. 26 Besides all this, a great chasm has been fixed between us and you, so that those who want to pass over from here to you cannot; neither can those from there cross over to us.’ 27 “‘Father,’ he said, ‘then I beg you to send him to my father’s house— 28 because I have five brothers—to warn them, so that they won’t also come to this place of torment.’ 29 “But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; they should listen to them.’ 30 “‘No, father Abraham,’ he said. ‘But if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’ 31 “But he told him, ‘If they don’t listen to Moses and the prophets, they will not be persuaded if someone rises from the dead.’” **Check out the phrase in verse 28 “warn them, so that they won’t also come to this place of torment.” Diamarturomai (BDAG, p. 233) “to exhort with authority in matters of extraordinary importance, freq. w. ref. to higher powers and/or suggestions of peril, solemnly urge, exhort, warn.” Warn them with deep sincerity…have some urgency about it. Let me ask you, when was the last time you had a sincere conversation with someone concerning their eternal destiny? I’m not talking about yelling in someone’s face in order to get their attention…but rather, to be prepared to speak the truth in love and pray that their eyes will be open to seeing the truth, receive Him, and get their names written in the Lamb’s Book of Life (Rev. 21:27). Who has the Lord placed in your life that you could begin speaking into today? Who is it that really needs this warning? Act on it as the Holy Spirit leads and approach it His way.
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AuthorNate Smith is a husband, a father of 6 girls, grandpa to 3 granddaughters and one grandson, a police and fire chaplain, a pastor, and has a passion to see men grow in Christ. #girldad including granddaughter
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