THIS MAN LAZARUS

LUKE 16.19-31

God is knowledge and His knowledge is not manipulative. When you are endowed with His knowledge you become a resource worth tapping into by the universe he created. We are here to show case the very power and ability God has invested in us since the creation.

Today we look at man Jesus introduces to us by the name Lazarus. Just as there are different callings so are there different responsibilities.Lazarus was not called to be a rich man. And with his disposition as a poor man fate would have it that he was posted to the rich man's house.Amazingly Jesus goes ahead and tells us the name of Lazarus and the other one just calls him the rich man. I wonder if you could have been comfortable with an introduction like this. Jesus simply says he was rich. True as it may sound this is a loaded statement. Many of us have amassed the riches of this world such that there is no available room for the master of our lives.

Though maimed, pained and detained to filling his stomach with the crumbs from the rich man's table as his daily portion, Lazarus had fulfillment. As the church of today would love it said, he was "blessed". I know some will be troubled with relating blessing with the poor man.This word most often has been quoted out of context.To be blessed is to be much more happy, full of joy and abounding in favor ensuing from God. Reading this scripture reveals an awesome spectacle. Lazarus, Jesus says was dead and when he died we are told he went into the bosom of Abraham. On the other hand when the rich man died, Jesus said he went to hell.The official title of Lazarus was a beggar, but this could not determine the destiny of Lazarus. your situation or what you are going through need not deter you from serving God. The battle is only taken by foot soldiers who have had enough tough and hardening sessions in the training ground. The lord is using your situation to set you up for the glory that is yet to come.Like a student with a dream to achieve, this is your time to deny yourself lavish and luxurious expenditure of your time and study, both hard and smart.

The picture of a beggar reveals a horrible, miserable and pitiable person. This is what you could have thought of Lazarus. But the story of Jesus tells of a man who knew his spiritual place. May be you are facing a situation. You could define it as scaring or just difficult. Though the the beggar Lazarus was, he did not allow this to come in between him and his eternal destiny. What are the resources God has blessed you with and how are you using them.Many of us act as elephants when God lifts us up. we have a large input that is not directly proportional to what our bodies require. We amass everything so that no one may seem equal to us. The appetite to acquire wealth today has led to various people loosing the vision of their lives.Today the measurement of your blessing is the kind of car you drive, the number of services in your church and whether it is mega or not. The location also influences who the patrons are. Aren't we playing the rich man without knowing?

When Lazarus died, the bible says that he went to the bosom of Abraham. He was well nourished and provided for. Yet the opposite is said of the rich man who was in hell yelling and gnashing his teeth. The experience was quite telling and yet this is not the experience he was used to. I may not know, but there is a possibility your life has taken an about turn of what it used to be. Looking at your life objectively you will realize when you turned from beggar and became rich. Many of us look down upon brethren who come to church all year round with one shirt. Some of us do not want even to great some members, they may contract you their disease of lack.After all what can a pastor from the slums of Mathare in Nairobi tell me? And does God really speak to him as he does with me?

Your current lifestyle against the mirror of the word of God and the vocation God gave you do they align together or they are running parallel? Could it be that you became so "blessed" that even your calling changed? Like these two people so are our lives. In this divide where do you stand? You have the room and time now to remedy the situation. The place you will spend eternity will be determined not by your riches but by how you related with your staff, employees, church members and even your family. Have you ever thought of eternity. In our world today we are in a rush to achieve what we purpose, make a name and create wealth. Where will you spend your eternity? But thanks to the word of God. It is the ultimate equalizer.

Will you end up like Lazarus or the rich man?

The Lord open up our hearts to enable us embrace the TRUTH, for his word is truth and HE is the TRUTH.

May the Lord add blessings to His word, Amen!