TOPIC:
BE GENEROUS
26C Sunday Homily, Luke 16:19-31, September 25, 2022
1)
STORY
A
boat crowded with passengers was crossing a river when it struck a rock and
began to sink. The lifeboats could hold
only half of the passengers, so the others were forced to jump into the river
and swim to shore. There was one man on
deck, a thief, who stole gold which belonged to the many gold miners returning
home and hid it in his luggage. Satisfied
that he had enough gold with him, he jumped into the river planning to swim to
shore. He sank like a rock and drowned.
When his body was recovered, even his pockets were filled with gold that he had
stolen. His greed was the cause of his
death.
2) GOSPEL, Luke 16:19-31
A)
In the parable, the rich man had fine clothes, good food, a beautiful home, and
a comfortable life. He thought only of
himself, totally ignoring poor Lazarus. The
rich man’s selfishness resulted in his eternal suffering.
B) Lazarus was poor, hungry, and sick but received no help from the rich man. After his death, he enjoyed eternal happiness.
3)
APPLICATION TO LIFE
A)
Our wealth included many things.
i.
It includes money, time, talents, and experience.
ii.
Wealth can help us or hurt us just as a knife or fire can help or hurt us. It can make us generous or selfish.
iii.
We must make prudent use of our wealth as it will influence our future.
B) There are many poor and needy persons in the world. They may have no money, food, home, or work. They may have no happiness, peace, or purpose in life. We must help them with the blessings God has given us. We must be generous.
4) CONCLUSION
Selfishness
caused the greedy passenger, the thief, to steal gold but lose his life. Selfishness caused the rich man to neglect
poor Lazarus resulting in the rich man’s suffering. We must prudently use the wealth that God has
given us for ourselves and for others especially those in need. We must not be selfish. We must be generous.
