What Are You Banking On Luke 16 19to31

The First Sunday After Trinity   7-June-2026
Sermon Text: Luke 16:19-31
Sermon Theme: “What Are You Banking On?” I. The Seen or the Unseen? (vs.19-21) II. Feelings or Facts? (vs.22-26) III. Entertainment or Enlightenment? (vs.27-29) by Rev. Nathan J. Rusert
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I.N.R.I. Entering the non-festival half of the Church Year, Jesus says: Luk 9:23-26 ….., "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. (24) For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it. (25) For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost? (26) For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him the Son of Man will be ashamed when He comes in His own glory, and in His Father's, and of the holy angels. … The Church year began the end of last November with the first Sunday in Advent. The festival half of the Church Year follows the life of Jesus the only Savior for mankind. Advent traced again the promise of history. Christ Jesus came to win our salvation. Christ Jesus still comes in His Word within His Church by the Holy Spirit. Christ Jesus soon will come again in glory. The season of Christmas we marveled to see the fullness of the Godhead dwell bodily in the Baby Boy born of the Virgin Mary. Heaven rejoiced that Salvation was born in our flesh and blood as the Eternal only begotten Son of God took on our humanity to be our Brother to rescue us from all sins , from death, and from the power of the devil. The season of Epiphany we saw the historical facts of Jesus manifesting His glory as the God/Man in the days of His humility. As pre-Lent and Lent began we followed Jesus for 70 days towards Holy Week and His laying down His life for us on Good Friday. Easter Season broke with the joyous news, “Alleluia! Christ is Risen!” For forty days we again heard the eye-witness historical evidence of Jesus’ resurrection. We celebrated His ascension and enthronement in Heaven as the God/Man filling all things. Our human flesh has been reconciled to God the Father and God the Holy Spirit in God the Son Christ Jesus. The promise is fulfilled God the Holy Spirit now floods into our world by the message of Christ. Faith in the only True God – the Triune God – is given us bringing us from death to life in Him – as we learned last Sunday.
        The foundation is laid – on the eternal Word of God – Jesus is the Rock – the Church is built on the Word of God spoken by the Moses and the Prophets, the Apostles and Evangelists. All their writings testify of Jesus the Cornerstone of the Holy Christian Church.
Foundations are important. Preparing to celebrate the 75th anniversary of our congregation, our inserts for these past two weeks high-lighted the foundations of our sanctuary being dug, poured, and the first blocks laid. In the Psalms David warns, Psa 11:3 If the foundations are destroyed, What can the righteous do?” The devil since his fall and rebellion has always attacked the foundation of the Church – God’s Holy Infallible Word. Amid evil’s attacks on the Truth of the Holy Bible and its pride in perversion, the Church stands. The gates of hell will not prevail against Her, as David sings, Psa 11:4 The LORD is in His holy temple, The LORD's throne is in heaven; His eyes behold, His eyelids test the sons of men. King Jesus promises where His Church gathers He is present in His Word breathing out the Life Giving Peace Bringing Holy Spirit to comfort us with forgiveness of all our sins, life, and salvation.
    The color of the Trinity season is green – the color of new life and growth in creation around us. Entering the Church’s season of the Holy Spirit’s daily and rich work calling us, enlightening us, and keep us in Christ Jesus through the Gospel. Today Jesus asks you, : “What Are You Banking On?” I. The Seen or the Unseen? (vs.19-21) II. Feelings or Facts? (vs.22-26) III. Entertainment or Enlightenment? (vs.27-29)
I. Jesus now preaches to the Pharisees and us. (vs.19-21) Why? A few verses earlier Luke writes, Luk 16:14 Now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, also heard all these things, and they derided Him. What things did they hear from Jesus? Luk 16:13 "No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon." Are we better than the Pharisees?    Communism is a system of atheistic materialism – it seeks to usurp the most wealth and power for itself in the fallacy of serving mankind or saving nature. Religious materialism is just as deadly. The turning of the Gospel into a money making power brokering prosperity propaganda is just as soul destroying . A theology of glory is peddled by many main-line and mega churches in our nation today.  
    Jesus lays before us the example of two men. One is known to the world. Perhaps like an Elon Musk, or a Bill Gates, pushing towards being trillionaries. This man wears the finest designer clothes. His life is a perpetual feast. Only the best foods, wines, and company grace his estate and table.  Is this man evil because he is rich? No. Abraham, whom we met in our Old Testament reading for today, was an exceedingly rich man. Hannah sings the truth on the birth of her son Samuel, “1Sa 2:7 The LORD makes poor and makes rich; He brings low and lifts up. Rich people aren’t evil, nor are poor people morally upright – all people have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.
    Abraham didn’t trust his riches, but he “believed the Lord” the promise that from his descendants the only Savior of the world would be born. His faith in Christ Jesus alone, whom he could not see by sight, was credited to him as righteousness.
    Money isn’t evil. If you worship what you see – idolize – love money, power, prestige, your knowledge, your things – you find your comfort and help in them alone – then you have fallen from Holy Spirit Word breathed Faith in Jesus.
    Behold this other man. Lazarus – “Whom God Helps”. He looks forsaken. He has no friends. He is clothed in weeping sores and rags. He has been thrown to the curb by family, like trash to be hauled away. He is starving. No one has pity, except the stray street dogs who give him some relief by licking his wounds...or are they tasting what they can devour once he dies? What good is this man’s faith? Where is his helping God? He seems hidden from all we can see.
    Would you rather be the rich man or Lazarus? Our flesh wants fancy clothes, good food, fancy houses, and friends. A stinking sore covered beggar isn’t on our dream sheet. But listen and learn from Jesus. What is the rich man’s name? Unknown – to Whom – to Jesus. Mat 7:21-23 "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. (22) Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?' (23) And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'
    The only Saving God knows Lazarus by name. He preserves Lazarus under the cross of suffering. Dear Christian, we walk by faith and not by sight. The things we see are temporary, the unseen things are eternal. Rejoice that God has called you by name and birthing you from above in baptism. He preserves your life in trial, suffering, and loss – He knows your name – you can be certain – He places His Name upon you keeping you as the apple of His eye.
II.    We live in a culture that follows its feelings. Following feelings only leads to disaster. Twice Wisdom warns, Pro 14:12 There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death.” Ten times out of nine a pilot who ignores his instruments and flies by feelings crashes his airplane. This fallacy promoted by popular movies where people ignore instruments and follow their feelings or force – is a subtle lie whispered by the devil, promoted by the world, and loved by our fallen flesh. Do you bank on your feelings or on facts?
    Lets face the facts...(vs.22) The wages of sin is death. All of us sitting here this morning will one day die. The ultra rich may imagine that they will achieve immortality by joining technology to their body – they are fools who say in their heart there is no god, except themselves. They follow Satan’s lie that man can be his own god.
Lazarus dies. The rich man has a celebration of life. Don’t candy coat death. A funeral is a time to mourn. Death is the last great enemy we face. Sadly following feelings Canada has murdered 100,000 of its citizens calling it compassionate medical care...MAID...Medical Assistance In Dying. The rich man may have had a huge celebration of life, but that didn’t alter his eternity.
    Lazarus died, his body either hastily buried in the pauper’s field, or thrown on the trash heap outside the city to be devoured by maggots and vultures. Learn from Jesus – the fact – Lazarus didn’t die alone. Abandoned by all. He was attended to by God’s Holy angels. His death was a homecoming to full fellowship with all believers in Jesus at Abraham’s side.
    The rich man was attended to by the best physicians, and friends, but the demons that grab him upon death abandon him to the eternal solitary confinement of hell. (vs.23-24) His feelings of being favored by God by being blessed with riches was a lie. He knew Abraham’s name, but he didn’t know and believe in Abraham’s God – Christ Jesus. His feelings. His head knowledge could save him. Now he prays to a saint – his prayer to Abraham is of no use. We are to pray to our Father in heaven in Jesus’ Name by the Holy Spirit’s Words written for us in the Holy Bible.
The fact is hell is real. (vs. 24-26) There are no second chances. It is appointed unto man once to die and after that the judgment. There is no half-way purgatory to earn heaven. Now is the time to forsake your feelings and lay hold of the facts of God’s Law in its severity and the Gospel in its sweetness. Eternally separated from God and from all other humans – hell is eternal torment – in the prison of self – where your worm will not die and the flame will never be extinguished. The rich man who had no compassion on the fact that poor Lazarus was laid at his doorstep – still wants Lazarus to wait on him. Even in hell this man isn’t repentant. He still idolizes himself.
    Repent of trusting your feelings. Learn the facts of God’s Holy Word – know God’s Ten Commandments – know the fact of the Apostles’ Creed – know to call upon Our Father in Heaven with Jesus’ Words now by His Holy Spirit. One day it will be too late – you will die!
III. The foundation of our sanctuary is solid – our building has stood for over seven decades. But a congregation foundation can be threatened by erosion, as our culture yearns for entertainment in the place of hearing God’s Word to be enlightened by the Holy Spirit. It is the idea of those in hell (vs.27-28) The rich man in hell blames God for not entertaining him enough into heaven. A spectacle like a dead man risen would’ve converted him. Now send Lazarus back to his brothers – save them! Our fallen flesh doesn’t want to sit, listen, and be enlightened by the Holy Spirit through the Word of God fixing our eyes on Jesus alone!
    Beware of forsaking the foundation of Christ’s Church. (vs.29-31) Hell doesn’t end unbelief. Hating God’s Word only brings death. Jesus has risen! Now is the time to hear His Word – daily devotions, Bible study, prayer and Word centered cross focused worship and hymns. Take up your cross daily and follow Jesus. Amen.