Luke 16:19-31
Listen to Moses and the Prophets
19 “There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. 20 At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores 21 and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.
22 “The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. 24 So he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’
25 “But Abraham replied, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. 26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been set in place, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.’
27 “He answered, ‘Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my family, 28 for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’
29 “Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.’
30 “‘No, father Abraham,’ he said, ‘but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’
31 “He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’”
Hebrews 13:8
Jesus is Alive
8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.
John 5:44-47
Moses Wrote About Jesus
44 How can you believe since you accept glory from one another but do not seek the glory that comes from the only God?
45 “But do not think I will accuse you before the Father. Your accuser is Moses, on whom your hopes are set. 46 If you believed Moses, you would believe me, for he wrote about me. 47 But since you do not believe what he wrote, how are you going to believe what I say?”
Jesus tells us that we should read, study, and believe our Bibles...We should believe what Moses and the Prophets wrote...He tells a dead rich man, that if we do not believe in what Moses and the Prophets have written, why would the rich man's five living brothers believe Lazarus, if He raises him from the dead and sends him to the rich man's family to talk about heaven and hell...
Much of our faith, if not all of our faith, is from the Bible and the Scriptures...Much of our faith is found in what Moses wrote, the Wisdom Books, the Books written by the Prophets, and the History Books...These books set the foundation for our faith...There is so much history and past in the Bible, that it seems in today's modern world, we sometimes look past these ancient writings...Modern technology and constant new gadgets and gadgetry almost blur our historical outlook on things...Time seems to pass quickly, and we do not look and want to study the older things, the historical things, the sacred things, and the holy things as much...Maybe history means less to us today than it did to our ancestors, and that is sad...It is especially sad, if we omit the historical things written in the Bible...There is far to much going on around us today....We are today bombarded with information and data...We now have up to the minute news, weather, and sporting event news, as well as up to the minute on what are friends are doing and what other people are doing -all on a phone or tablet...We might get the thought that life is more interesting now, than it was in the ancient days...Or maybe we think that the Bible was so long ago, that I cannot relate to all the "stuff" the ancient writers wrote about...Life can go by in a blink, without knowing or even reading about Moses and the Prophets...Some days we forget (in two thousand years), that we too will be a part of humanities history...
Jesus is telling us we should listen to Moses and the Prophets...How can we listen to them, if we have not read them?...How can we believe in what they wrote, if we haven't read them...And that it is very important...There are things sacred and holy in life and they start with Moses and the Prophets...Moses wrote about Jesus...Albeit long ago...If we believe Moses, then we believe in Jesus, and what He says and teaches...But if we cannot believe in Moses and the Prophets, we will never believe in Jesus...
People who follow Jesus, understand the importance of the ancient writings and this history of humanity in these writings...Our faith is rooted in the ancient books and our ancestor's history and their sacred writings...Without this history, we can have no faith...Without these writings, we can have no faith...This history is important...If we do have faith, without reading Moses and the prophets and the Bible, we are basing our faith on what someone else has told us...I am not sure how strong that makes one faith...That type of faith may work for some, but I cannot base my faith entirely on what the current writers and speakers say and do...
Trying to get people to believe often takes more than a miracle...Jesus rose from the dead...I want to repeat that, Jesus rose from the dead...And He tells us that ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’...Someone did rise from the dead, and many still do not believe...Some may believe that this was two thousand years ago, and too far removed from me...Jesus is alive...He rose from the dead, our of LOVE...LOVE never dies...He is the same yesterday and today and forever...He is near us today, tomorrow, and always...