Luke 16:22-23 “The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side.”

Heaven is not a reward for work performed. If it were, how could Lazarus have possibly made it? He was a beggar, not a philanthropist. He had no great fortune from which to contribute to medical research or famine relief. He was disabled. He couldn’t build houses for Habitat for Humanity. He didn’t volunteer at the local soup kitchen. His open sores would have disqualified him.

In life Lazarus was good for one thing. He could sit and beg. He could take gifts from others. I can hear others suggesting that he was a parasite on society, and that his death did the world a favor. But that is the blindness of unbelief talking.

Before Martin Luther went to see Jesus, the last words he said were, “We are all beggars, this is true.” Like Lazarus, we are beggars, if we want to see things clearly. Any gift, any talent, any discipline, any work-ethic I might have now, any success I might enjoy, are all gifts God has given me purely out of his goodness, not because I earned or deserved it.

The love God has shown me, the forgiveness he has extended for all my sins, the sacrifice he was willing to make when he sent Jesus to be crucified in my place for the crimes I have committed–this is all pure charity on his part. I didn’t contribute even a little to the grace he has given me. All was a gift. Like Lazarus, my place in heaven, our place in heaven, has been assured and secured by the God who is our help.

We can look forward to the day when the angels will come and carry us to be reunited with our fathers in faith. But not because we have earned it. Jesus teaches us that God gives heaven to beggars who know that they are beggars, and nothing more; not to beggars posing as rich men who think that even heaven can be bought for a price. “We are all beggars.” Thank God this is true.