Proper 21C (Pentecost 16 2025)

Text: “31 He said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.’” (Luke 16:31)

I – A Tale of Two Men

There was a rich man. Clothed in purple robes and fine linen. Feasting splendidly every single day. He is the very picture of what so many aspire to in this life. Perhaps the picture of what you aspire to in this life.

Jesus does not bother to tell us his name. That is not unusual in the parables Jesus tells. But here it is telling. Unlike the second man — unlike Lazarus — this rich man is remembered only for his comforts. That is allhe is remembered for. His identity is wrapped up in what he wears and what he eats. Nothing else. Certainly not his faith.

And then there was a poor man. We know about his situation, too: he lay at the gate of the rich man’s house, covered with sores, longing for crumbs, licked by dogs. He had nothing the world considered worth remembering.

Except, this man is unique in all of Jesus’ parables. He has a name. He is important for more than just his circumstances. His name is Lazarus, which literally means “God has helped.” That is what Jesus wants you to remember about him.

Two men. One defined by his outward splendor. The other defined by God’s mercy. One wrapped in purple linen. The other wrapped in sores. One surrounded by feasting friends. The other noticed only by dogs. Two men, living in the same world, but not living the same life.

II – Their Reversal

And then they both died. Lazarus, for all we know, went unburied, while you can be sure that the rich man was buried with every honor at his funeral. But what does Jesus tell us? Lazarus “died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s side,” while the rich man was buried and found himself in torment (Luke 16:22). Their fortunes are reversed. What the world prized, God despised. What the world overlooked, God remembered.

Lazarus is comforted in Abraham’s bosom — that place of rest, where Abraham, the father of faith, receives his children. The rich man is in anguish, longing for relief he cannot have.

It is not that poverty itself is holy, or that sores and hunger save. Lazarus is comforted because God has helped him, because he belongs with Abraham in faith. Nor is it that wealth itself condemns. Abraham was rich in cattle, silver, and gold, yet he is the one who welcomes Lazarus. The problem is not wealth, but indifference. The rich man was concerned only with his own comfort and pleasure, and he ignored the Word of God and the neighbor at his gate.

And now it is too late. Abraham tells him: “Child, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad things. But now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish.” A great chasm has been fixed. The destinies of the two men are sealed.

In death, the rich man’s name is forgotten. All his wealth and reputation could not preserve it. However many children he had to carried on his name; whatever businesses he left behind; whatever monuments he had built to himself— literally or figuratively— his name is forgotten.

Lazarus, on the other hand — who had nothing worth remembering in this life — was remembered by God. His comfort is not his reward for poverty, but God’s mercy to him in faith.

Moses and the Prophets had already spoken with painful clarity: do not harden your heart, do not shut your hand against your poor brother, but open wide your hand to him within your gates (Deuteronomy 15:7–11). Isaiah calls this the fast the Lord chooses: to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house (Isaiah 58:6–7). If you claim to love God, whom you have not seen, when you refuse the neighbor you see, then you are a liar according to St. John (1 John 4:20; cf. James 2:15–17). The rich man’s indifference toward Lazarus is therefore not merely a lack of kindness; it is unbelief. He served mammon, not God (Luke 16:13).

III – The Sin of Gluttony and the Punishment of the Tongue

Here that unbelief shows itself in a particular way — his appetite. The subtle sin that we need to recognize here is gluttony. Gluttony is more than overeating; it is worship misdirected. “Their god is their belly” (Philippians 3:19). Gluttony becomes the visible sacrament of false worship. Regardless of whether the rich man claimed to be a believer or not, he shows who and what he truly loves by the fact that he opened his mouth to feast, but he would not open his gate to love. That is how he confessed his creed.

And now, in judgment, his punishment fits his sin. The rich man pampered his tongue with endless feasting. Now he begs for a single drop of water to cool it. The tongue that feasted without mercy is now the tongue that burns with thirst. The very member he indulged becomes the member that torments him.

And so it is with every sin. The punishment fits the crime.

What punishment have you stored up for yourself?

The tongue that feasted without mercy while others starved will, one day, burn with thirst.

The tongue that lied and slandered your neighbor will be silenced in the day of judgment.

The tongue that cursed and blasphemed will taste only ashes in the fires of hell.

The hands that clutched and never shared with those in need will grasp forever at emptiness.

The hands that struck your neighbor in anger will tremble without rest.

The hands that were folded in idleness while others suffered will be bound in chains.

The eyes that lusted after another’s body will be consumed with fire that never satisfies.

The eyes that looked down on others in pride will be cast into the dust.

The eyes that turned away from your neighbor in need will be closed in darkness.

The feet that would not walk across the street to help the needy will wander without end.

The feet that hurried to sin against your neighbor will stumble in the pit.

The feet that ran after wealth and pleasure instead of serving others will find no place to stand.

The heart that envied your neighbor’s blessings will be eaten away by its own bitterness.

The heart that trusted in riches instead of God’s mercy will be left hollow.

The heart that refused God’s Word and hardened itself against your neighbor will be hardened forever in the last judgment.

Which of these will happen to you? Which member of your body has not been guilty? Your sin, in the end, will consume you. What you craved will become the sum total of what you are. Your name forgotten, and in the end, the craving itself — your torment.

Repent. Hear Moses and the Prophets. Repent of the sins of your tongue, of your hands, of your eyes, of your feet, of your heart.

IV – The Gospel Answer to Indifference

Repent and believe that Christ took that torment upon Himself.

The tongue that feasted without mercy while others starved — He bore its burning thirst. On the cross He cried out, “I thirst” (John 19:28), fulfilling the psalmist’s words: “My strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth” (Psalm 22:15). On behalf of the tongue that lied and slandered the neighbor — He was struck by false witnesses, yet He opened not His mouth (Isaiah 53:7)— just as the prophest had foretold. The tongue that cursed and blasphemed — He Himself was mocked and reviled, yet He prayed, “Father, forgive them” (Luke 23:34).

The hands that clutched and never shared with those in need — for their sake, His hands were stretched out and nailed to the cross, giving everything. The hands that struck the neighbor in anger — His hands were bound and beaten, even though they had only ever healed and blessed. On the behalf of the hands that were folded in idleness while others suffered — His hands worked salvation, lifted up on the cross for all.

For the sake of the eyes that lusted after another’s body — His eyes wept over Jerusalem, and then closed in death. The eyes that looked down on others in pride — His eyes looked up to heaven and commended His spirit to the Father. The eyes that turned away from the neighbor in need — His eyes looked on the thief beside Him and promised, “Today you will be with me in Paradise” (Luke 23:43).

For the feet that would not walk across the street to help the needy — His feet walked the way of sorrows, bearing the cross. The feet that hurried to sin against the neighbor — His feet were pierced with nails. The feet that ran after wealth and pleasure — His feet carried Him only to Golgotha, to give Himself for you.

For the heart that envied, the heart that trusted in riches, the heart that refused God’s Word and hardened itself against the neighbor — all of it He bore. He who knew no sin became sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God (2 Corinthians 5:21). His heart was pierced with a spear, that your heart might be cleansed.

Even if you have turned a deaf ear to Moses and the Prophets, believe in the One to whom they point. Your Savior has died and has risen to life again. His resurrection is God’s final testimony: He was tormented in your place. He took the punishment that fit your sin. You are Lazarus— you are the one God has helped. And because He bore it all, you are remembered before God. Your name is written in the book of life.

V. The Sanctified Life of God’s People

And now, set free in Christ, those same members of your body are sanctified for love — love of God and love of the neighbor.

The tongue that once feasted without mercy now prays, praises, and gives thanks, and speaks words of truth and encouragement to the neighbor. The tongue that once cursed and blasphemed now confesses Christ’s holy name, and intercedes for others before God.

The hands that once clutched and never shared now open wide in generosity to those in need. The hands that once struck in anger now serve in humility. The hands once folded in idleness are now folded in prayer for the neighbor and stretched out in service.

The eyes that once lusted after another’s body now look with compassion. The eyes that once looked down in pride now look up in humility. The eyes that once turned away from the neighbor now see Christ in the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the sick, the prisoner (Matthew 25:35–36).

The feet that once refused to move now walk across the street to help the needy. The feet that once hurried to sin now run to bring aid. The feet that once chased after wealth now follow in the footsteps of Christ, bringing good news to the poor.

The heart that once envied now rejoices in the gifts God gives to others. The heart that once trusted in riches now rests in Christ alone. The heart that once refused God’s Word is now made new by the Spirit, beating with faith, hope, and love, poured out in service to the neighbor.

Because you are Christ’s, you need not fear death. The torment of the rich man will not be yours. Your sin has already been judged in Christ. Your name is remembered by God. When you die, you will be carried by the angels to His side, sheltered in His presence, comforted forever. And on the Last Day, you will rise from the dead. He will call you by name. When He calls you by name, both your name and your deeds of love will be remembered before Him. You will stand in the company of Moses, the prophets, and all of the saints who have ever lived. Your tongue will sing, your hands will be lifted in praise, your eyes will see the King in His beauty, your feet will stand upon the holy mountain, and your heart will rejoice without end in the presence of your God.

So take heart: in Christ, your name is remembered, your members are redeemed, and on the Last Day you will be raised to everlasting comfort in His presence.