Rich and poor have this in common: The LORD is the Maker of them all. – Proverbs 22:2

Today's Scripture Reading (January 6, 2026): Proverbs 22

The Gospel of Luke tells the story of a rich man and a poor man. The rich man lived in luxury; he owned the best clothes and ate the best food. But at the gate of his home, another man sat in poverty and discomfort. All that he possessed were the rags that barely covered his thin frame. His body was covered with sores, and he dreamed of just being able to eat the crumbs that fell from the rich man's table.

In a move that has sparked much debate, Jesus did something he rarely does in his parables. While the rich man remains anonymous, like most of the characters in Jesus's stories, the poor man is named; Jesus calls him Lazarus. Some have wondered whether Jesus's naming of this poor man meant it was not a parable but a real story. Others have openly wondered whether this was just a way for Jesus to let the audience know the importance of this poor man. I have to admit that I wonder if this story wasn't the inspiration for Charles Dickens' favorite Christmas Story: A Christmas Carol.

One day, this rich man died, and it just so happened that Lazarus died on the same day. Lazarus was transported into heaven, while the rich man was sent to Hades. And the rich man in Hades is suffering; the one who had once had all the choice food and drink that he wanted now was crying out for just a drink of water. And so, he sees Father Abraham and Lazarus in heaven, and the rich man thinks he is still at home. He calls up to heaven and asks Abraham to send Lazarus down to him with some water for the rich man to drink. Even in Hades, the rich man doesn't recognize that Lazarus is no longer the poor man who sat at his gate and would do whatever the rich man said for the promise of the crumbs that might fall from the rich man's table. Abraham explains that during his life, the rich man was comforted by all that he possessed, while Lazarus suffered. But now, it was Lazarus's turn to be comforted and the rich man's turn to suffer from a lack of things.

But then Abraham adds that there is a great gulf fixed between where the rich man was and where Lazarus is, and no one was allowed to cross this prodigious chasm. I have never admitted this before, but a friend of mine wrote a play called "A Great Gulf Fixed," and I hated it, not because it wasn't a good script, but because I found the story so depressing (Sorry, Mark). Let me say this: I don't want to get to heaven and find that any of you are stuck on the other side of the gulf. I don't want to get to heaven and find out that the neighbors of our churches, or of our homes, are on the other side of the gulf. I want to make sure that they feel loved and know that that love doesn't originate with me or us; instead, it originates from the throne of God.

The story of the rich man and Lazarus emphasizes that God does not see as we do. He doesn't evaluate us on our money, jobs, race, gender, intelligence, or knowledge. God sees none of the things that seem to grab our attention. Every time I say that I am more essential because of (fill in the blank), I am wrong.

        Rich and poor have this in common:
            The Lord is the Maker of them all.

                                                            Proverbs 22:2

And that means that he has created us in his image. And he has placed in us a kernel of something that makes us essential to the community of God. Every one of us is both critical and necessary. All of us. It can't be any other way. God is the creator of all of us, and no one can replace any of us. This importance to God is something we share, and it should bind us all together. 

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Proverbs 23