Don't Live For The Dot!
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“There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.
“The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. 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.’
“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. 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.’
“He answered, ‘Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my family, for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’
“Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.’
“ ‘No, father Abraham,’ he said, ‘but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’
“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.’ ”
English Standard Version Chapter 618 “But will God indeed dwell with man on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain you, how much less this house that I have built!
-Welcome
-greetings from PWC to PAOG and former members of FWC.-personally mention namesText
-Turn off cell phones
-Birthday greetings
: 19-31
NIV“There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores. “The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. 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.’ “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. 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.’ “He answered, ‘Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my family, for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’ “Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.’ “ ‘No, father Abraham,’ he said, ‘but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’ “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.’ ”
NIV“There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores. “The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. 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.’ “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. 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.’ “He answered, ‘Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my family, for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’ “Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.’ “ ‘No, father Abraham,’ he said, ‘but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’ “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.’ ”
“There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores. “The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. 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.’ “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. 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.’ “He answered, ‘Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my family, for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’ “Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.’ “ ‘No, father Abraham,’ he said, ‘but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’ “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.’ ”
:
Series: Life after Death
Joke - Superbowl.
Five minutes after you die
Five minutes after you die
What happens after I die?
One of the big questions in life.
There are four big questions in life:
Origin - How did I get here?
Meaning - Who am I? What is my purpose in life?
Morality - How do I distinguish right and wrong?
Destiny - Where do I go after I die?
Perhaps the last is the most important because regardless of how we were to answer the first three, we all have an eternal destiny. The Bible tells us “God has set eternity into the hearts of men.” We know that this life is not all there is. Many of us came to Christ simply because we were pursuing the answer to that question. We want to be saved from hell and want to have a place in heaven. God’s Word, the Bible, certainly has the answers to these questions.
Carol
Secretary - What happens after we die?
Secretary
We all go to heaven. “I hope so.” “Hope I make it because I live a good life.”
Hell is our default destination.
Not saved by good works.
Satan has distracted the church from thinking about the after life.
God’s Word, the Bible, certainly has the answers to these questions.
Carol
Origin - How did I get here?
Meaning - What is my purpose in life?
Morality - How do I distinguish right and wrong?
We live for the dot.
SLIDE on the dot.
Destiny - Where do I go after I die?
And he has good reasons for that: We won’t prepare for it. We won’t make investments into heaven’s account. We won’t share the gospel. We won’t live the hope, joy and peace Jesus brings.
So what happens after I die?
Conversation with secretary.
Satan has distracted the church from thinking about heaven. And he has good reasons for that: We won’t prepare for it. We won’t make investments into heaven’s account.We won’t share the gospel.We won’t live the hope, joy and peace Jesus brings.
What happens after I die?
What happens after I die?
Jesus answered that burning question. For many that can literally be a burning question.
For a backdrop, He was speaking to his disciples and said:
“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.”
: 13
The we read:
The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all this and were sneering at Jesus.
The He told them this story. It is not a parable. A story of two men and what transpired after death.
I want to share this account and review three different experiences between the two men to make the point we have an eternal destiny.
1. Different Experiences in Life
1. Different Experiences in Life
“There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day.
At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores
and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.
:
“Some people are born with a silver spoon in their mouth.” [SLIDE]
When you are born into a rich family, you know very little about the struggles, heartaches, pain, suffering that others face. Many things you take for granted the poor long for. The children born to the rich should not think they were deserving or entitled to riches. They were just fortunate to be born into that family. What if you were born into another family?
Some people are born with a gold spoon in their mouth. When you are born into a rich family, you know very little about the struggles, heartaches, pain, suffering that others face. Many things you take for granted the poor long for. The children born to the rich somehow think they were deserving or entitled not realizing you were just fortunate to be born into that family. What if you were born into another family?
For who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?
The rich man
dressed in purple - the color of wealth, pomp and glory. Wore designer clothing. Pick whatever name brand you want. Ralph Lauren, Gucci.
lived in luxury everyday
fine dining
servants
mansion
luxury cars
cottage
wielded influence and power
Lazarus
Lazarus
Poor beggar
Poor health
Always hungry
his companions were not his relatives, friends but dogs. They provided his medical care.
That picture is firmly embedded into your psyche.
Like the rich man and Lazarus, we all have different experiences in life also. Regardless of our experiences, it is for us to connect with God in and through it all.
2. Different Experiences in Death
2. Different Experiences in Death
:
“The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried.
The time came
Pastor Shiv.
They both died.
“There are two common experiences in life: Death and taxes. But now there is shipping and handling too.”
“Teach us to number our days that we may gain a heart of wisdom.”
You may say their experiences were the same, not different. but look closely.
Lazarus was carried.
The rich man was buried.
Take your pick!
The Auca Indians.
Five missionaries were killed in 1956. They were the fiercest tribe. Their lifestyle was one of murder. They murdered all the other tribes, they murdered one another, it was actually probably as evil a group of people on the face of the earth, and these five missionaries began to pray for them, had a heart for them, they flew into the jungle, they dropped gifts. Eventually they went down to meet them and they tried to help them, and they were all killed. Their wives, after their husbands died, got together and said, “Our husbands can’t waste their life.” Their wives, then, went back to that jungle to reach that same tribe and eventually there was this miraculous revival. That tribe came to Christ. The actual people who speared them to death were living and then as they became Christians and began to grow, they began to tell the story of that day and how after they killed them, they had this weird experience of there was all this singing in the trees. And these white figures that came over the bodies and ushered them into the sky.
Others who have researched NDEs document beautiful stories of death and angels but also horrible stories of people describing the flames of hell.
Others who have researched NDEs document beautiful stories of death and angels but also horrible stories of people describing the flames of hell.
Different experiences in the physical and spiritual realms.
The rich man probably had a great funeral, a casket, dignitaries in attendance in a fancy cathedral. I guess not many attended Lazarus’ funeral. They were glad the awful looking, sick, poor, shabby beggar, that menace to society, that eyesore, was removed out of their sight.
Do you realize how what we experience can differ from the truth?
Finally, let us examine their differences in destinations.
3. Different Experiences in Eternity.
3. Different Experiences in Eternity.
Jesus simply says that Lazarus was comforted at Abraham’s side but focuses almost exclusively on the rich man.
In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side.
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.’
“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.
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.’
“He answered, ‘Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my family,
for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’
“Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.’
“ ‘No, father Abraham,’ he said, ‘but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’
“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.’ ”
: 23-
How can a good loving God send people to hell?
One of the questions people ask is: How can a good loving God send people to hell?
The answer is: He doesn’t. Hell was not prepared for man but for Satan and his demons.
Destination: Hell
Destination: Hell
People choose hell when they reject God, what God says in His Word, Jesus’s death on the cross, they reject God’s loving appeal to them.
God’s holiness demands a hell
God’s justice demands a hell.
Our first appeal when something wrong is done: we want justice.
Think about Stalin, Hitler, Bashar al Assad and multiplied wicked people in the world, the 104 individuals arrested "for purchasing prostituted children"
Think about Stalin, Hitler, Bashar al Assad and multiplied wicked people in the world, the 104 individuals arrested "for purchasing prostituted children"
Hell is a consequence of man’s poor choice.
But if you are here today, you can make the only sensible, reasonable decision. Believe on the Lord Jesus and be saved from hell. I thank God today my destination is not hell, instead I have quite the opposite.
C. S. Lewis: I willingly believe that the damned are, in one sense, successful, rebels to the end; that the doors of hell are locked on the inside. All that are in Hell, choose it. Without that self-choice there could be no Hell.
All that are in Hell, choose it. Without that self-choice there could be no Hell.
Chuck Colson: In a sense, the concept of hell gives meaning to our lives. It tells us that the moral choices we make day by day have eternal significance, that our behavior has consequences lasting to eternity, that God Himself takes our choices seriously.
The proper question should be “How can a loving God not send people to hell?”
Jesus said nothing about hell
The Rich Man’s Experience
He was conscious.
Life does not end when you die. It begins! Life on earth is simply a prep for life in eternity.
The rich man in hell:was conscious. Life does not end when you die. It begins! Life on earth is simply a prep for life in eternity.was in perpetual agonizing tormenthis memory was intact. He remembered Lazarus.His suffering could not be relieved by anyoneHe did not have a second chance. He could not cross the deep divide.His riches and social status could not save him. His ideologies, religion and snarky comments to followers of Christ could not save him.His suffering was so severe that he wanted his brothers who were probably following his example to be saved.Abraham told him they had to listen to the preachers and the Scriptures.One of the questions people ask is: How can a good loving God send people to hell? The answer is: He doesn’t. Hell was not prepared for man but for Satan and his demons. People choose hell when they reject what God says in His Word, Jesus’s death on the cross, they reject God’s loving appeal to them. Hell is a consequence of man’s poor choice.But if you are here today, you can make the only sensible, reasonable decision. Believe on the Lord Jesus and be saved from hell.I thank God today my destination is not hell, instead I have quite the opposite.
There is no soul sleep.
To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.
Jesus and the thief.
No purgatory.
His memory was intact.
He remembered Lazarus.
His senses were intact.
Sight
Sight
Feeling
he can feel
Speech
Hearing
He was in perpetual agonizing torment.
He requested Lazarus come and take what was once a sore-filled hand to touch his tongue.
His suffering could not be relieved by anyone
was in perpetual agonizing tormenthis memory was intact. He remembered Lazarus.His suffering could not be relieved by anyoneHe did not have a second chance. He could not cross the deep divide.His riches and social status could not save him. His ideologies, religion and snarky comments to followers of Christ could not save him.His suffering was so severe that he wanted his brothers who were probably following his example to be saved.Abraham told him they had to listen to the preachers and the Scriptures.One of the questions people ask is: How can a good loving God send people to hell? The answer is: He doesn’t. Hell was not prepared for man but for Satan and his demons. People choose hell when they reject what God says in His Word, Jesus’s death on the cross, they reject God’s loving appeal to them. Hell is a consequence of man’s poor choice.But if you are here today, you can make the only sensible, reasonable decision. Believe on the Lord Jesus and be saved from hell.I thank God today my destination is not hell, instead I have quite the opposite.
He remembered Lazarus.
He did not have a second chance.
He could not cross the deep divide.
His riches and social status could not save him.
His ideologies, religion and snarky comments to followers of Christ could not save him.
Opportunity knocks once.
And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.
The Holy Bible: King James Version. (1995). (electronic ed. of the 1769 edition of the 1611 Authorized Version., ). Bellingham WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.
He wanted his brothers to become believers.
There are no atheists, unbelievers, cynics and skeptics in hell!
That was Pascal’s wager.
Blaise Pascal seventeenth-century French philosopher, mathematician and physicist. He posits that humans bet with their lives that God either exists or does not.
One statement people often make when faced with a painful situation. “I won’t wish this upon my enemy.”
His suffering was so severe that he wanted his brothers who were probably following his example to be saved.
Abraham told him they had to listen to Moses and the prophets.
Look around you today in society. How many are listening to God’s servants?
How many are in church?
How many read the Scriptures?
His answer let someone from the dead tell them.
The answer is: He doesn’t. Hell was not prepared for man but for Satan and his demons.
People choose hell when they reject what God says in His Word, Jesus’s death on the cross, they reject God’s loving appeal to them.
Hell is a consequence of man’s poor choice.
But if you are here today, you can make the only sensible, reasonable decision. Believe on the Lord Jesus and be saved from hell.I thank God today my destination is not hell, instead I have quite the opposite.
Poor and sickly Lazarus was in paradise where he was comforted. Not much detail is given there but we know he was recognized by the rich man and he was no longer in pain and suffering. he was comforted.What is your concept of heaven?Definition of heaven: SLIDESAtmospheric heavens - space above the earthCelestial heavens - sun, stars.Third heaven - God’s dwelling place, where the Father, the Son, angels and deceased saints areThe new heaven. The future heaven - New heavens and new earth. But the new earth will be a heaven because God will dwell with us.Paradise: The place where God dwells and we find eternal love, joy, beauty, splendor, glory, and riches. Imagine the most beautiful place you can. Heaven surpasses that greatly.What is heaven like? Misconceptions:A dull quiet place.Disembodied spirits floating on clouds in the air with angel wings playing a harp.One long boring worship service. “We will be worshiping God forever in heaven.”We were created to worship God but not 24/7. If that were the case, Adam and Eve would have placed in temple to worship all the time. Instead they were placed in a garden with fruit trees and animals.Before talking about heaven, what happens after a believer dies? Angels are going to usher your soul to heaven. says, “Now, the poor man died and was carried away by angels to Abraham’s bosom. And the rich man also died and was buried there.” You get an escort service.
How many were in church last week to celebrate the resurrection of Christ. Someone did return from the dead.
Hell is a place of eternal fire and torment, where the worms do not die and the fire is not quenched.
Conclusion
“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
Matt
Song: Where will you be a million years from now? Will you be happy or will you be crying? As ages roll throughout eternity, I ask this question, Where will you be?”
Are you living for the dot? or for eternity?
The second thing to happen is you immediately are in God’s presence. To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. .8Jesus - today you will be with me in Paradise.There’s no soul sleep, there are no intermediate places that you go at any time. You are conscious and in command of your faculties, thinking, feeling, speech, and memories. So when you die, as a believer, it’s not like you have this disembodied spirit that’s floating all around and you don’t know what’s happening. You are conscious, you think, your personality, your soul, the real you is in the presence of God. You participate in magnificent worship with angels and believers before the throne of God. Rev. This is happening in heaven right now. This is not what heaven is like forever.We exist in an intermediate state until the resurrection.
The New Heaven.It will all be new! Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. We love new things, new clothes, new cars, new houses!God will do a makeover of this present planet earth to dwell in. I believe the new earth will be an Edenic paradise - trees, fruits, rivers, animals. It is a physical place. A real physicality to it, not disembodied spirits floating around.Jesus, the carpenter from Nazareth is up in heaven preparing places for us - Are they houses, mansions, cottages? I don’t know all the details. You may not have the finest house on this earth but Jesus is preparing a beautiful dwelling place for you in heaven.-3People of all nations, tribes, languagesThe new earth with land, rivers, lakes, waterfalls, mountains, hills, valleysSunsets, trees, grass, flowers.Nature in all its beauty.Cities, countrysides, roadsThe capital city is the New Jerusalem. : 1I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. [21.2]There is a city being prepared in heaven presently, the new Jerusalem. It is being prepared for the Son of David, the Messiah, the Christ, who will reign
NIVI consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.
NIVSo we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
I’ve got a mansion