And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. 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. 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.
Luke 16: 22-25 KJV
A lot of people might end up with one form of regret or another if we don’t know what we do at the end of life or where we would be when death comes calling.
People generally fall into 4 categories which are;
- A group of people who never knew what life could be. They live in complete ignorance of what life is or what their life could be. (the lame man at the pool of Bethesda)
- A group of people who see a bit of possibility but do not have the capability or think they do not have the ability, capacity or right spirit to make the best of it. A lot of people see them themselves as non-achievers
- A group of people who have opportunity, see the opportunity and have the capacity to make the best of the opportunity but misuse the opportunity. What they use the opportunity for was not what it was designed to be used for.
- A group of people who through sacrifice, knowledge and understanding made the best of all opportunities in the best way possible. They can say I have finished the race
A lot of people would look back and say, “if I had known”. In the first part of this topic we spoke about people who were facing death but didn’t want to die as they do not know where they would go after death.
A lot of people don’t understand life and what life should be. We spend so much time building up a future that brings a burden and life of regret. Luke 16: 19- tells of a very rich man who had more than enough to eat; there was a poor beggar who looked to eat of the scrap left to the dogs. According to the rich man he lived a very good life. He sat very respectably over the city but at the end of that life he had regrets.
What kind of life are we living at this time of our life? Are you going to say at the end of your life that it was a great life, a well lived life or will you say it was a life filled with regrets? Will be on your bed and spend the end of your life thinking of all you could have done things differently? Do you care for the ordinary person you see on the street? Do you see a beggar on the road and help them? Do you consider other people and make their life a bit more brilliant? How many of you pick up a child and send them to school? How many of you see your friend going through hard times and help make his life better? How many of you know the name of your staff?
The rich man had wealth but his life was a failure. The other one was poor but the life he lived ended in success.
