Genesis 22:
7 And
Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am
I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for
a burnt offering? 8 And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb
for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together.
Isaiah
41:8 8 But thou, Israel, art my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of
Abraham my friend.
Isaiah
51:2 Look unto Abraham your father, and unto Sarah that bare you: for I called
him alone, and blessed him, and increased him.
Matthew
1:17 So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; and
from David until the carrying away into Babylon are fourteen generations; and
from the carrying away into Babylon unto Christ are fourteen generations.
Luke
16:23 And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham
afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. 24 And he cried and said, Father Abraham,
have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in
water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. 25 But Abraham
said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and
likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. 26
And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that
they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us,
that would come from thence. 27 Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father,
that thou wouldest send him to my father's house: 28 For I have five brethren;
that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment. 29
Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. 30
And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they
will repent. 31 And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets,
neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.
32 And
ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. 33 They answered
him, We be Abraham's seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest
thou, Ye shall be made free? 34 Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto
you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin. 35 And the servant abideth
not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever. 36 If the Son therefore
shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed. 37 I know that ye are Abraham's
seed; but ye seek to kill me, because my word hath no place in you. 51 Verily,
verily, I say unto you, If a man keep my saying, he shall never see death. 52
Then said the Jews unto him, Now we know that thou hast a devil. Abraham is
dead, and the prophets; and thou sayest, If a man keep my saying, he shall
never taste of death. 53 Art thou greater than our father Abraham, which is
dead? and the prophets are dead: whom makest thou thyself? 54 Jesus answered,
If I honour myself, my honour is nothing: it is my Father that honoureth me; of
whom ye say, that he is your God: 55 Yet ye have not known him; but I know him:
and if I should say, I know him not, I shall be a liar like unto you: but I
know him, and keep his saying. 56 Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day:
and he saw it, and was glad. 57 Then said the Jews unto him, Thou art not yet
fifty years old, and hast thou seen Abraham? 58 Jesus said unto them, Verily,
verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I AM. 59 Then took they up stones
to cast at him: but Jesus hid himself, and went out of the temple, going through
the midst of them, and so passed by.
James 2:21 is deliberately
misunderstood, as if the author favors justification by works.
23 And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. 24 And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.
The rich man had no faith, as shown to the public is his complete neglect of Lazarus, who only wanted a little food, a few leftovers.
5. Here one traces the secret sins of his heart as the evil fruit. For where faith is, there is no anxiety for fine clothing and sumptuous feasting, yea, there is no longing for riches, honor, pleasure, influence and all that is not God himself; but there is a seeking and a striving for and a cleaving to nothing except to God, the highest good alone; it is the same to him whether his food be dainty or plain, whether his clothing be fine or homespun. For although they even do wear costly clothes, possess great influence and honor, yet they esteem none of these things; but are forced to them, or come to them by accident, or they are compelled to use them in the service of others.
This is consistent with Matthew 7. An evil tree with corrupt fruit is the tree of unbelief. A good tree bears good fruit, and the two cannot be mixed around. Unbelief can never produce good fruit. Faith in Christ can never produce evil fruit. Because the rich rulers of Lutherdom care so much about their sumptuous meals, deluxe benefits, and enormous salaries, they have no concern for the poor ministers who are at their gates. So these synod potentates say, "We have made our board of education debt-free by selling our only college aimed at the poor in Alabama. Isn't that great?" That comes from the synod president whose dogma is Justification without Faith.
I know how many ministers are treated in the so-called "conservative" synods. They know the hint of a comment from one of them, traced back to them, will end their call. The lupine leaders lick their chops because they have more ministers than churches, so a few more man-made openings are good for their maneuvering. They will also force their seminary students into taking federal student loans and kick them out with large debts, no job, and no benefit from part of an MDiv in a dying synod. Some students and pastors should be removed, but many more District Presidents should be removed.
The rich man is tormented in death, so he only thinks of physical relief. Now Lazarus is very important to him, to do far less for the rich man than what Lazarus wanted in life. This shows again the unbelief of the rich man, because he was begging for something that could not be done. So it is with many who have spent their lives attacking the Gospel. They are tormented by their sins against the Gospel and against believers, but cannot see a way out. Many recent Catholic "saints" were like this, terrified of death, or unconsoled by the Gospel, yet unable to see the path to forgiveness and salvation. Paul Tillich, still praised by modern apostates, was also in torment as he was dying.
25 But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. 26 And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.
Abraham gives the advice and the damning truth. Life is very short, but the rich man did not consider that he lived for himself and had no faith until it really mattered to him - too late. Lazarus had nothing, only faith. I have known many people like that. One woman was given the official status in her state as "pauper." She laughed about it, saying, "The only thing I have is Christ. I have no money, no job, no home." And what did she value? - she kept a Christmas savings club at the bank so she could buy presents for everyone. She loved giving presents.
The great gulf cannot be bridged after death. This parable is devastating for Roman Catholic dogma, which declares that good works can be donated to the person suffering in Purgatory, that masses will shorten their stay and send them more quickly to heaven. They state the the holiest life of the holiest religious person would mean that individual would be in Purgatory until 15 minutes before the Second Coming. Works are not enough in this life. They say, "Jesus' death on the cross means forgiveness of sin, but you have to pay for your sins."
The state of Lutheran education today is proven by the number of "conservative" Lutheran clergy who cannot wait to join Rome or the Eastern Orthodox.
27 Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father's house: 28 For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment.
Unbelief does not change at death for the rich man. He has a sales pitch, go to my brothers and tell them the truth, so they do not likewise end up in torment.
29 Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. 30 And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent. 31 And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.
This is a key Biblical passage, because the lesson is a contrast between unbelief (someone from the dead) and the efficacy of the Word. The brothers have all the Gospel they need in Moses and the prophets, so they do not need ghostly appearances.
The final stroke utterly defeats all this falsehood, this castle built on his ravenous belly and need for showing off. If the brothers are not converted by the Gospel in the Old Testament (the only one at the time), they will not be converted even if someone rose from the dead.
This is also a fatal blow to all those who like to rake Easter offerings into their church accounts while denying the resurrection, the ascension, the miracles, the Virgin Birth, and the teachings of Christ.
"Raised for our justification" means - this is the final, ultimate proof of the divinity of Christ. The greatest enemy of all - death - was defeated by Jesus. Hundreds saw and heard Him after the resurrection. The empty tomb and the appearances of the risen Lord strengthened the disciples so much that they risked everything to take this Gospel around the civilized world.
Raised for our justification includes - "If believe on Him who raised Him from the dead." The Objective Justification parasites are like the rich man - they believe enough to affirm some parts of the Gospel, even the empty tomb, but they reject and mock faith in Him. The opponents are June bugs who devour prized roses so they can reproduce and expand to attack more.
