South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1914-05-16
THE RICH AND POOR.

II. INltn lneIe Is no ndIIn IN
being rich: the Bible never condemns
rich men as such. Few men, however,
are strong enough or good enough to
resist the baneful tendency of
riches. When men get wealthy they
are very liable to lose their humility
and become proud; to lose their char
ity and become hard hearted: to lose
their sense of dependence upon God
and 10 depend upon themselves. Dives,
in our lesson story, was a rich man,
but is not blamed on that account;
he was simply blamed, and finally pun
ished. because as a man he was hard
hearted and cruel, and shut his eyes
and stopped his ears to the poor and
to their cry for help. There ere, how
ever, d great many good rich men,
just as kind hearted. and who realize
their dependence upon God as do de-
VOut poor men. 1t is clearly not nee
essarily wrong to aim to make money
or TO become rich, but, on the law OF
averages. if you succeed in your am
bitiOn, you are liable to become proud
and naughty. and at least that you
will not continue as humble follower
of Jesus Christ. / believe that God,
in his goodness, prevents most of us
from becoming rich. as he knows In
advance that il would be our undoing;
that we should possibly lose our trust
and dependence upon him, and finally
lose our souls. Every devout man who
is not rich should be careful not to
envy those who are and equally care
full not to worry or be discouraged
because he is not rich.
=. The Rich Are Under Obligation
TO Help the Poor. If rich men would
be generous and lend a listening ear
to the cry of the poor, giving to them
a liberal share of their money. and
thus mitigate the sufferings of pow
ar-fx hoy l.
iZe their Indebtedness to God for their
wealth. this may be an effectual means
of retaining their goodness, and pre-
vent the general tendency which
riches have for hardening a mans
heart 1t is a crying shame that with
so many wealthy men, there are still
those who suffer for the want of food
and clothing. In our large cities, even
today with all our progress and en-
lightenment. the poor seem TO get
poorer. and the rich get richer. Dives
allowed a really good but poor man
to suffer at his gates when he could
have relieved his sufferings without
any hardship whatever TO himself.
He is but a type of many rich men
today. 1t is the duty of rich men TO
spend their time and money. not only
enough to relieve present poverty. but
10 bring about conditions by which
the poor may help themselves.
of the Poor Avails Nothing. Accord
ing to the text the penalty of rich
men for not helping the poor is that
when they call upon God for mercy,
or for help, in the day of need, that
he Will not listen to them. Many rich
men take pains not 20 learn about the
needs Of the poor. and in such case
theirs is a guilty ignorance. If they
do not want to know. they are just
responsible as though they did know.
I knew a rich ariStOcrat. a Sir Walter
Somebody, Bart. having vast estate
of thousands of acres, with superb
gardens and all the other appoint
ments of wealth. who tore down all
the cottages on his estate. and made
his laborers procure themselves homes
in neighboring parishes. so that he
would not see the signs of their pow
erty or be bothered with hearing of
their needs. | should not be sur
prised to learn. in that great day. that
he is companion of Dives and that
he too. while he beholds some of his
poverty stricken labOreTs in heaven,
finds himself a companion of the rich
man crying for water TO cool his
tongue.
{. After death the Rich Who i'm
Life Neglect the Poor Will Be Tor
mented. The story of the rich man
and Lazarus is told in pictorial Ian
guage and / have no idea that Jesus
meant his words to he taken in their
literal sense. The story. however is
no doubt true in all its essential par
ticulars and harmOnizes with the good
ness. as we'll as the justice Of God.
The Scriptures teach that we shall
know each other in the future life, and
hence when rich men in their hard
hearted. sinful and wretched cOndi-
tion see the poor. whom they neglect
ed on earth. happily situated in the
other country. it is natural that the
sight shall fill them with torment, and
that their regrets and remorse of con-
science would burn them like FIRE.
Dives had stopped his ears in life TO
the bitter cry of want and suffering.
and now he cries in vain for comfort
for himself The story tells us that
his cry was not heard. but he was re-
minded that ne in his lifetime received
good things. and likewise Lazarus evil
things and that now he IS tormented
and Lazarus comfOrted. What a les
son this is. not only for very rich men.
but for all men who stop their ears
TO the CRY OF the poor. and do not
minister 20 their needs
copyright. 1914. by +. :. DavidsonD