Chapter 13, Riches and Poverty, from J.C. Ryle's book, Practical Religion

1. Practical Religion
Chapter 13: Riches and Poverty
J. C. Ryle

2. Luke 16:19-31
The purpose of this parable is that
we may know something of life
after death
“We live in a room with only two
exits, one goes to heaven and the
other to hell”
Geoff Thomas

3. Luke 16:19-31
22
The poor man died and was carried by the angels to
Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried,
23
and
in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw
Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side.
24
And he called out,
‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the
end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish
in this flame.’
25
But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that you in
your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like
manner bad things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in
anguish.
26
And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm
has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to
you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us.’

4. Luke 16:19-31
22
The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham's
side. The rich man also died and was buried,
23
and in Hades, being
in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and
Lazarus at his side.
24
And he called out, ‘Father Abraham, have
mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in
water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.’25
But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that you in your lifetime
received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad
things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish.26
And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has
been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you
may not be able, and none may cross from there to us.’

5. Luke 16:19-31
27
And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, to send him
to my father's house— 28
for I have five brothers—so
that he may warn them, lest they also come into this
place of torment.’ 29
But Abraham said, ‘They have
Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’ 30
And
he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to
them from the dead, they will repent.’ 31
He said to
him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets,
neither will they be convinced if someone should rise
from the dead.’”

6. Different conditions
God appoints different conditions
to different people
But we must take heed that we do
not draw lessons from the parable
which it was never meant to teach.
The rich are not always bad
men, and do not always go to
hell.
The poor are not always good
men, and do not always go to
heaven.
Both are children of Adam. Both
came from the same dust, and
belonged to one family. Both are
living in the same land and
subjects of the same government.
And yet how
different is their
condition!

7. Worldly and Spiritual Conditions
The rich man was wealthy,
but spiritually poor
Lazarus was poor, but
spiritually wealthy
People are measured not by
their wealth, but by the
condition of their souls
We should do well to measure all
men by God’s standard,— to
measure them not by the amount
of their income,
but by the
condition of their
souls.

8. The Ultimate Equalizer
Whether rich or poor, all
will one day die
Death comes to all, rich or
poor, powerful or weak
Death provides an
urgency to the call of the
gospel
Different and divided
as they were in their
lives, they had both
to drink of the same
cup at the last. Dust
they were, and unto
dust they returned
(Gen. 3:19). This is the lot of all
men. It will be our own, unless the
Lord shall first return in glory.

9. Precious to God
We hear nothing of the rich
man, but that he dies and
next is in hell
The moment Lazarus dies,
he is carried by angels to
Abraham's bosom
The believer enjoys many
privileges
Different and divided
as they were in their
lives, they had both
to drink of the same
cup at the last. Dust
they were, and unto
dust they returned
(Gen. 3:19). This is the lot of all
men. It will be our own, unless the
Lord shall first return in glory.

10. Selfishness Ruins the Soul
If, like the rich man, we live
only to ourselves, we shall
ruin our souls.
Riches have a hardening
effect on the soul
Money takes away some
cares, but brings with it
more than it removes
There are, I believe, thousands of
rich people in this country who
literally give away nothing at all. I
see it in the
notorious fact, that
few, even of those
who give, give
anything proportioned
to their means. I see all this,
and mourn over it.

11. Searching Our Hearts
A parable like this should
make each of us search the
heart – where are we going?
Seek salvation while it may
be found
Believers, give generously
to charity, giving back to
God's work what He has
entrusted to you
Once let a man see the full
meaning of the words, ‘Christ
loved me and gave himself for
me,’ and then he
will delight to give
himself to Christ,
and all that he has
to his service.

12. For next time:
Chapter 14: The Best Friend
Please read:
John 15:12-15
Prov. 17:17
Psalm 25:14