Heaven & Hell – Week 5

A creation always has a creator.

There’s no such thing as an intelligent creation without an intelligent creator. So what is our job? Our job is to convince the world they’ve been lied to. It’s our primary objective. It’s our purpose. Billy Graham said,

“I believe that one of the great problems in the church today is that we’re not really convinced that it is our responsibility to win people to Christ. We think it’s the responsibility of the evangelist or the pastor or the missionary. But it is the responsibility of every Christian.”

Billy Graham

If only pastors are telling people about Jesus, we’re in big trouble. Know why? Because people trust pastors less than they trust you. Get this, a survey asked people if they trust people in different professions, and only

39% trust clergy

The world doesn’t trust clergy and you might think, “Oh that’s just the world we live in. People don’t trust institutions of any kind anymore,” but that’s not true. Here are some other professions:

• 39% trust clergy
• 89% trust nurses
• 79% trust doctors
• 75% trust teachers

People trust you MORE than they trust pastors. So we can’t just hope pastors tell everyone about Jesus. It’s got to be all of us. If we love people like Jesus told us to, we have to tell them about Jesus so they can make it to heaven.

Heaven & Hell Week 5 Teaching Text

Luke 16:19-31

Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus

¹⁹ Jesus said, “There was a certain rich man who was splendidly clothed in purple and fine linen and who lived each day in luxury. ²⁰ At his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus who was covered with sores. ²¹ As Lazarus lay there longing for scraps from the rich man’s table, the dogs would come and lick his open sores.

²² “Finally, the poor man died and was carried by the angels to sit beside Abraham at the heavenly banquet.^[a] The rich man also died and was buried, ²³ and he went to the place of the dead.^[b] There, in torment, he saw Abraham in the far distance with Lazarus at his side.

²⁴ “The rich man shouted, ‘Father Abraham, have some pity! Send Lazarus over here to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue. I am in anguish in these flames.’

²⁵ “But Abraham said to him, ‘Son, remember that during your lifetime you had everything you wanted, and Lazarus had nothing. So now he is here being comforted, and you are in anguish. ²⁶ And besides, there is a great chasm separating us. No one can cross over to you from here, and no one can cross over to us from there.’

²⁷ “Then the rich man said, ‘Please, Father Abraham, at least send him to my father’s home. ²⁸ For I have five brothers, and I want him to warn them so they don’t end up in this place of torment.’

²⁹ “But Abraham said, ‘Moses and the prophets have warned them. Your brothers can read what they wrote.’

³⁰ “The rich man replied, ‘No, Father Abraham! But if someone is sent to them from the dead, then they will repent of their sins and turn to God.’

³¹ “But Abraham said, ‘If they won’t listen to Moses and the prophets, they won’t be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.’”

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