The Great Demarcation
The Great Demarcation
Luke 16:26 Besides all this, a great gulf has been fixed between us, so that those who want to cross over from here to you cannot do so, and no one can cross from there to us.
The text above emanated from the conversation between Abraham and the rich man and it serves as a great warning to every man to evaluate their lives regarding the matter of eternity. The context of this text was set in the afterlife but it was a truthful outcome of the events that transpired on earth before death. You are familiar with the story of Lazarus and the rich man in Luke 16:19-31. They represent the two extremes of life here on earth: one, extremely poor, sick, lonely, and wretched, while the other had enormous riches with provisions for daily celebrations. Not many people on Earth fall into these two categories excluding the factors of war, natural disaster, or unique geographical calamities. Christ here points us to the fact that there’s no excuse for us to miss life in eternity. Regardless of the circumstances we find ourselves either good or bad, we have no reason to remain or return to sin. The pleasantness or difficulties posed by our circumstances will not matter in the end, but the disposition of our heart toward God is what counts- Revelation 20:12,15 And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne. Then books were opened, and another book was opened – the Book of Life. So the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to their deeds. If anyone’s name was not found written in the Book of Life, that person was thrown into the lake of fire.
The main focus of this text is the permanence of the demarcation between hell and paradise. There are no gray areas, no third alternative, and no purgatory-
Luke 16:22-23 “Now the poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. And in hell, as he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far off with Lazarus at his side. We must decide our fate to favor our eternal abode with God by abandoning every beguiling and besetting element of sin and embracing the livelihood of faith and humility.
