While We're Still Here - Sermon for the Sixteenth Sunday After Pentecost (September 28, 2025)

Scripture Readings: Amos 6:1a, 4–7 | Psalm 146 | 1 Timothy 6:6–19 | ​Luke 16:19–31

“He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’” (Luke 16:31).
 
So, we’re still here.
You may have heard some rumblings and rumours that ‘the Rapture’ was supposed to happen this past week. Apparently, lots of people were swept up in the belief that the world was about to end. Or rather, that all Christians were about to be taken up into heaven, and a great season of destruction for everyone else was about to begin.
 
But obviously it didn’t happen.
 
And as a side note: if you want to know more about what the Bible does and does not say about the final fate of the world, you’re once again invited to come to our Bible Study on the book of Revelation (starting up again this Tuesday, at 3:30PM. But spoiler alert: ‘The Rapture’ doesn’t factor into it!).
 
Anyway, all this speculation about the end of the world raises some interesting questions. One of which is:
 
What would you do if you believed… absolutely believed… that you only had one day left to live?
 
Would you empty you bank account, and throw a big party? Would you buy a ticket and fly somewhere warm? Would you spend it quietly contemplating what comes next? Or frantically finishing that book you always intended to read? How would you invest your limited time left on this earth?
 
I’m sure we’d all have different answers to this question. But one thing that I think we all have in common is that what we do with our lives, however long or short a time we may have left, reveals what we really value, and what we believe to be true. And our Scripture readings today call us to consider how our own lives line up with what we claim we believe… and they also invite us to spend our days seeking what matters most.
 
But before we turn to the Bible, there’s a very different point of view I think we should spend a moment exploring:
an ancient school of philosophy known as Epicureanism.
 
Epicureanism was a popular Greek worldview that developed in the three centuries before Christ’s birth, and it basically taught that the gods are not really concerned with what goes on in the world. They believed there was no afterlife to be worried about, so the best way to spend your life was to just go about your business pursuing pleasure, and avoiding pain. They’d say things like “Eat, drink, and be merry while you can… while it lasts… for soon we die, and it’s all over.” 
 
And lots of people continue to live this way today, whether or not they know much about ancient Greek philosophy. It’s an idea that has worked its way deep into our Western culture, and it can be kind of hard to root out at times. 
But what happens if there is more to the story? What happens if everything we have, and are, and invest ourselves in isn’t just for this life but has lasting effects and implications?

In that case, what should we do with our resources, and opportunities, and time? What should we be taking part in and pursuing?
 
Our Scripture readings today points us to an un-surprising answer… and that is: Love!
 
But the word ‘love’ might not be what first comes to mind when we hear today’s Gospel passage, and the parable of the rich man and poor Lazarus.
 
One of the big challenges with today’s parable is that we can be easily tempted to try and pick it apart, searching for clues to satisfy our own curiosity, and construct our own messages from it… instead of listening closely to the message that Jesus Himself is seeking to convey through it.
 
So, we need to slow down and ask ourselves, first of all: what does the purpose of this parable seem to be? Where does this story as a whole try to take us? How does it fit into the larger story of Scripture? And what clues do we have about the ways these words would have been understood in their day?

And while there is much we can say about today’s Gospel passage, one thing many scholars note is that this parable does not appear to be intended to give us a snapshot into what happens after death. It’s doing something different. That is, it’s using a very familiar kind of story in the ancient world… common tales of drastic role reversals after death… used to challenge and inspire their listeners to do something with their time on earth here and now.
 
So then, what is the parable… and what is Jesus calling us to do here and now?
 
The story focusses on the fate of two completely different individuals: an unnamed rich man, and a beggar named Lazarus.
 
We hear how the uncaring rich man lives a life of ease and pleasure, an Epicurean’s dream, while Lazarus, like Job at his lowest, lies in the dirt all alone… apart from the dogs. But then, they both die, and the rich man loses everything and faces great torment, while poor Lazarus finally finds the comfort and relief that he was denied in life.
 
Refused any peace for himself, the rich man eventually begs Father Abraham to send Lazarus back to the land of the living to warn his five brothers. But Abraham says that is not necessary. Luke 16:29-31, “Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; they should listen to them.’ He said, ‘No, father Abraham; but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’”
 
The twist and the power of this parable lies in this last line: apparently, we don’t need another dramatic sign or revelation… we need our hearts to be opened… to believe and to do what has already been made known to us!  
 
After all, ‘belief’ in the biblical sense is not just about knowing… passively holding information in our brains, and agreeing that it is objectively true. No, belief in the biblical sense is about having our whole lives… our bodies, minds, and souls, aligned and activated by the truth that we’re holding onto.
 
For an Epicurean, this would look like seeking only to enjoy life… or at least, to avoid as much suffering and pain as possible. The point of life from this point of view is to make the most of our days for ourselves! And that’s just what the rich man did. He lived for himself, and ignored the sufferings of Lazarus on his doorstep.
 
But in contrast, God has long made known what He wants for us here and now through Moses and the Prophets: to love Him wholeheartedly, and to love our neighbours as ourselves. If we choose not to believe and act on this when Moses and the prophets told us to, our hard hearts won’t be changed even if somebody rises from the dead.
 
This parable served as a word of warning to those who opposed Jesus in His day, many of whom claimed to be deeply devoted to God, yet really served their own interests, and neglected their neighbours in need. In these words, our Lord was foreshadowing His own death and rising again, revealing that their current lack of faith in Him was a reflection of their disconnection from God’s own heart, a disconnection that could persist even after He rose again. And this warning was not just for them: it applies to us too.

We Christians claim to believe that someone has indeed risen from the dead, fulfilling the great rescue mission of God foretold long ago by Moses and the prophets.
 
We claim to believe that Jesus Christ, God’s holy Son came among us, and became one of us… humble and poor, suffering for our sakes… and that He gave up His life at the cross to share the riches of God’s abundant life with our bankrupt world.
 
We claim to believe in God’s goodness, and compassion, and saving love offered to us all in Jesus, who calls us now to take part in and share His goodness, compassion, and love with those on our doorsteps.
 
But do our lives line up with our claims? Do our actions day by day point to this reality? Are we spending our precious time on this earth pursuing what God calls true life? Or are we content to seek our own enjoyment, and avoid our own pain, while those on our doorsteps suffer?
 
The point of the parable is to confront us with the truth that we do not have ignorance as an excuse. We already know what God wants from us: to act with godly compassion, and goodness, and love right here and now!
 
This is the life that is really life, as St. Paul puts it in our second reading today from first Timothy… not simply living for ourselves, and our own pleasure, but living each day in the light of God’s great mercy and love.
 
And notice that this life of love doesn’t mean that we can’t enjoy the good things we have received. But we are called to practice contentment, and gratitude… to keep in mind where these good things really come from, and to remember how they are intended to be used.
 
1 Timothy 6:17-19, “As for those who in the present age are rich, command them not to be haughty, or to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but rather on God who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. They are to do good, to be rich in good works, generous, and ready to share, thus storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of the life that really is life.”
 
We are still here.
And with the time we still have, however long or short that might be, we are invited to invest ourselves fully in the life that truly is life: living faith, growing love, sharing hope that we have received in Jesus Christ our Lord. 
 
What we do in this life really matters. And Jesus our Saviour King is calling us to make the most of our time to pursue and to practice His life of love… empowered by His holy Spirit to reflect His goodness, compassion, and care to those all around us, and turning from our old self-centred ways to share in the abundant life offered to all who gather around His table in faith.
 
I’ll close now with St. Paul’s words to his fellow believer, St. Timothy. May we all be inspired to spend our days walking in this way:
 
1 Timothy 6:11-12, “But as for you… pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, gentleness. Fight the good fight of the faith; take hold of the eternal life, to which you were called and for which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.” Amen.
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