The Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus

Posted on March 16, 2026 by Don Merritt

Luke 16:19-31

It is very important to remember that this parable follows without any breal whatever the Parable of the Unwise Namager. As a consequence, the context in this passage is the same as in our last parable. Here, Jesus is taking His teaching another step forward for His listeners, the Parisees and teachers of the law. At the end of the last parable, they had sneered at Him, and He reminded them of how they manipulated the Law concerning divorce for their own profit, and began another parable…

Lazarus was poor and destitute; he had nothing in this world other than severe hunger and sores. The rich man was loaded and lived the life of luxury and plenty. Lazarus begged at the rich man’s gate but received nothing. As the story goes, they both died…

Lazarus was gathered to Abraham’s side, while the rich man went to torment. There was a great chasm between them, but the rich man could see Abraham and Lazarus in the distance; who was the beggar now? The upshot of the story is that there is no way to send aid to the tormented rich man, and Lazarus will not be going back from the dead to warn his brothers to change their ways. There is great justice in this, for the rich man had been blessed with much in his lifetime and now felt the torment Lazarus had felt during his life; their roles had been reversed and the scales of justice were even. The rich man and his brothers had all been able to follow the teachings of Moses and the prophets (the Scriptures) but were living in negligent disregard of them. If they would not listen to the Scriptures, they won’t listen to anyone, and the brothers’ fates will be just like that of the rich man.

I must add that we should resist the temptation to take this as teaching about heaven and hell, and thus miss the point. This is a parable, not an historical account; it is not a teaching about heaven and hell.

The rich man represents lovers of money and wealth, such as the Pharisees and teachers of the law. They might have a grand time in this life; wealth, position, power, influence and self-righteousness, but in the end, they will come to ruin for their folly. As in the last parable, the very part the Pharisees sneered at, they refused to use the assets they had been given for God’s purposes. There were desperate needs all around them and they ignored those needs, and basked in luxury, which is to say that they could not be trusted with “little”.

In the Kingdom, we will be co-heirs with Christ to everything. If we cannot be trusted with “little” in this life, we won’t be trusted with “much” in the Kingdom: This is the warning Jesus is giving to those Pharisees and teachers of the law.

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Promoting Restraint

Posted on March 16, 2026 by Don Merritt

If imposing a fine on the innocent is not good,
    surely to flog honest officials is not right.

The one who has knowledge uses words with restraint,
    and whoever has understanding is even-tempered.

Even fools are thought wise if they keep silent,
    and discerning if they hold their tongues.

Proverbs 17:26-28

These last three verses of chapter 17 promote restraint. They do so in our actions, in our temperament and in our speech. If you stop and think about it, we all know that the people we respect, that we consider to be wise and laudable all have the traits advocated in our verses. Sadly, they are all too rare these days, and perhaps in any time.  In these days, when people are incredibly rude in social media, saying thigs they probably would not dare to say in person, it is very easy to slip into a habit of being uncivil… most especially in the arena of politics, where appearing to be intelligent was once a prized attribute.

It is surely a sad state of affairs.

Yet we do not need to become part of the current trends, for in Christ we have overcome the world around us, and have both the freedom and strength to resist taking upon ourselves the characteristics of fools.

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Finding Shelter

Posted on March 15, 2026 by Don Merritt
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Where can we find shelter?

In modern life, people seek shelter and refuge in many places, for instance many seek it in money and possessions.  Others might seek it in a relationship with a loved one, while others might seek it in their careers or professions… Some might even try to find refuge in drugs or drink.

None of these can really protect us from much, for the things of men will perish after a season.  Despite this grim reality, shelter and refuge are available for anyone who seeks them; we need only to seek them in the right place.

Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High
    will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress,
    my God, in whom I trust.”

Psalm 91:1-2

Do we seek the shelter of God?

Will we dwell in His ways, walk His path and do His will? I’d have to say this is an important question, for in our answer lies our destiny.  If we answer “no” there will be no place to take refuge, but if we answer “yes” our security is assured now and forever.

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Faith and… a Tree

Posted on March 14, 2026 by Don Merritt
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Many have said that the simple things in life are the best.  Simple things don’t cost much, usually aren’t flashy and are seldom mentioned in the newspapers…  Things like devotion to duty, love of family, faith in God and serving others are the kinds of things that make life worth living…

Our Lord taught us that to love Him is to obey His commands (John 14:23) and at first glance this might seem difficult.  The truth is that it isn’t very difficult at all; it only requires simple and uncomplicated faith.  If we have simple faith in believing His teachings, then obeying Him is an easy burden to bear.

Faith is not complicated, it has no ulterior motive, and it isn’t self-promoting; it just boils down to a loving response to His loving act of saving us from death.  Simple faith is uncomplicated because we are relieved of the need to find a way to work it to our advantage or to use it to put others down; instead, simple faith lifts everyone up.

Simple faith is like a tree that grows in the wild.  It doesn’t try to impress anybody; it doesn’t worry about the latest fashions or how to climb over other people on its way up the corporate ladder.  All the tree does is live, grow and do what God intended for it.

Come to think of it, we can learn quite a bit from a tree!

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Parable of the Dishonest Manager

Posted on March 13, 2026 by Don Merritt

Luke 16:1-18

Jesus continues with the parables, this time the Parable of the Dishonest Manager. A rich guy received accusations that his asset manager was wasting (or dispersing) his assets. He calls the manager in and tells him he is fired and asks for an explanation. The man, realizing he was losing his job, came up with a plan; he would call in his master’s debtors and discount their balances for immediate payment. This would be good for the master because he would have those accounts paid up immediately. It would be good for the debtors because they would pay a discounted rate and have the debt off their backs, and it would be good for the manager because he will have made new friends, and he is about to be looking for a new job.

I’ve heard preachers call this “dishonest” dealing on the manager’s part, but I must disagree; it is a common business practice that turns bad debt into a win-win. What good is a note receivable to a business person if it isn’t collectable? We have come to call such uncollectables “toxic debt” in recent years, because it’s a loss that looks like a gain. What the manager did was to turn the “bad paper” into the equivalent of cash for the master for the benefit of all concerned, and I have often wondered if he had done so sooner if he might have kept his job. You should note that the master commended him for this… but he was still fired. Might he have been given another chance had he done this sooner?

Wait! Hold on! He needed the Master’s approval to discount those notes, so while that may have been a shrewd business move, he did it behind the master’s back.

Yep, that is a big deal.

Of course, none of this is really the point Jesus was making; He was talking about our hearts to people who were lovers of money.

In 16:8 ff. Jesus is actually saying that the manager’s move was a good one, but for all the wrong reasons. We should use worldly assets shrewdly for the kingdom, money and possessions to make friends so that we might share the light of Christ with them, as opposed to keeping all for ourselves.

You see, it’s a matter of the heart. God has entrusted us with certain things in this life. We are to handle these things for God’s benefit, rather than for our own, yet if we cannot be trusted to this, what will God think of us after all, He is the “master” in this parable.

The Pharisees sneered at this. Jesus pointed out that they might fool most people, but they can never fool God who sees all, including the condition of the heart. He continues in the next few verses with a warning: They will not be able to force their way into the Kingdom by manipulation of the law and indirectly at least, He comes to another area in which the condition of the heart is exposed: Divorce. The system of that day had so manipulated the law concerning divorce that great injustice was being done to many people.

To put it another way, the Pharisees and teachers of the law had enabled wealthy men to abuse their wives and to get away with it by dedicating their assts to the Temple. In an extreme case, a wealthy older man could divorce his wife of many years, get a younger model and dedicate his fortune to the Temple, making everything all neat and proper, and leave both women destitute upon his death, to the profit of the religious establishment.

Ah yes, that was the corruption He was talking about, and there’s another parable right after this one…

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Parental Tranquility

Posted on March 13, 2026 by Don Merritt

To have a fool for a child brings grief;
    there is no joy for the parent of a godless fool.

A cheerful heart is good medicine,
    but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.

The wicked accept bribes in secret
    to pervert the course of justice.

A discerning person keeps wisdom in view,
    but a fool’s eyes wander to the ends of the earth.

A foolish son brings grief to his father
    and bitterness to the mother who bore him.

Proverbs 17:21-25

These verses can be understood in context by noting the similarity of vv. 21 and 25. Because of this textual feature, we can understand vv. 22-24 as referring to the relationship of parents and children, especially parent pf disappointing children. Perhaps the idea here is that children who are on the edge might find the inspiration they need to come back into line and follow the wisdom of their parents.

V. 21: The behavior of one’s children can greatly affect his own future happiness or sorrow (v. 25; Prov. 1O:l; 19:13). Think of the sorrow that Cain brought to Adam and Eve by killing Abel, that Absalom brought to his father David.

V. 22: Those who have cheerful hearts and bright outlooks upon life have a physical blessing of health that others do not know. On the other hand, nothing has such a direct tendency to ruin health and waste out life as grief, anxiety, fretfulness, bad tempers. (See also: Prov. 12:25; 15:13,15)

V. 23: If it is a wicked man that accepts a bribe to pervert justice, then it must also be wicked to offer such a bribe.

V. 24: The contrast between the fool and the one with understanding in this verse is that the fool’s eyes are a long way off, but the wise man sees wisdom right where he is. The fool misses the opportunities at hand and is always supposing that somewhere else, something else, is really better. As he gazes far off looking for the elusive better opportunity, the wise man snaps up the one right under the fool’s nose.

V. 25: V. 21 spoke of the sorrow that ti fool brings to his father. This verse speaks of the grief and bitterness he brings to both his parents. It is a tragedy when a son brings “grief” instead of joy to his father, and when he brings “bitterness” instead of satisfaction to his mother. But children must be reared and trained, not merely begotten and born. Similar passages: Prov. 1O:l; 15:20; 19:13.

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The Keys to Tranquility

Posted on March 12, 2026 by Don Merritt

Why should fools have money in hand to buy wisdom,
    when they are not able to understand it?

A friend loves at all times,
    and a brother is born for a time of adversity.

One who has no sense shakes hands in pledge
    and puts up security for a neighbor.

Whoever loves a quarrel loves sin;
    whoever builds a high gate invites destruction.

One whose heart is corrupt does not prosper;
    one whose tongue is perverse falls into trouble.

Proverbs 17:16-20

Most people would like to live a tranquil existence, even carefree if possible. Solomon has given us five verses here in chapter 17, which present some keys to finding tranquility. Looking at the first one, it doesn’t take a genius to realize that if we desire a tranquil life, we probably shouldn’t hang around with fools; especially fools with money− they will bring nothing but trouble.

In the next verse, good friends and family make the best companions. Verse 18 gives us insight into what is and is not smart in business matters. Next, we see the connection between quarrelling and sin, and advertising our wealth, in this case, by building a “high gate”. If you need a gate, there is really no point in building a target. Finally, in verse 20 we see the result of allowing ourselves to be corrupted by the world around us. I think it’s fair to say that this usually happens slowly, bit by bit, until we lose track of how far we have strayed from right and wrong. A corrupted heart ruins our good judgment and dirties our mouths and things start to go wrong.

More importantly, corruption pulls us away from God, and that never brings about a good result.

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Parable of the Prodigal Son

Posted on March 12, 2026 by Don Merritt

Luke 15:11-32

Jesus tells a third parable to the Pharisees and teachers of the law; this one is so familiar to us that I need not recount the details. Of course, we know that the younger son who had taken his inheritance early went out and squandered it on wild living. He ended up broke and in very bad circumstances, and then having come to his senses, had gone home to beg his father for a job as a servant, believing that he was no longer fit to be called a son. His father rejoiced upon seeing him and threw a great party to celebrate his return, causing his older brother to harbor serious resentment; their father explained:

“‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours.  But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’” (15:31-32)

Such is God’s attitude when a sinner repents, as we all know.  Now, picture in your mind the vilest, the most unattractive, the least deserving kind of person you can imagine; yes, the one you would least want to be seen with− that is the person we are talking about here.

When that person repents, God is in the mood to throw a party!

With this in mind, why do we not always share His enthusiasm?

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Photo of the Week: March 11, 2026

Posted on March 11, 2026 by Don Merritt
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The Parable of the Lost Coin

Posted on March 11, 2026 by Don Merritt

Luke 15:8-10

“Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Doesn’t she light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it?  And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.’  In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

This short parable is part of Jesus disputing with the Pharisee and teachers of the Law over His willingness to sit down and eat with tax collectors and sinners…

Jesus quickly moved on to the next parable, this time of a woman who loses one of her ten coins. She drops everything and searches the house until she finds it, and then tells her friends of her joy at having it back. Once again, He tells them that that it is just like this kind of joy in heaven when a sinner repents, for just as that coin was of great importance to the woman, it is that important to the angels of heaven. I would imagine that the Pharisees and teachers of the law might identify with this one, being rather well-to-do; imagine searching the house for ten percent of your net worth that has gone missing!

If this would get their attention, it just might serve as a revelation to them about the value that God places on each person, even those who are “tax collectors and sinners”. As we know, this term describes people the Pharisees didn’t much care for. Yet it was more visceral than just not caring for or enjoying their company for the Pharisees wouldn’t even want to be seen with such people because they were considered so ultra-nasty socially.

Oh yes, such people were so ultra-nasty that you would be damaged even being seen around them.

But God loves them anyway and does not want even one to perish.

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