Something That Even $10,200,000,000 Cannot Buy

Luke 16:22-26, “And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.”

I recently moved into a new residence in Pensacola. I am a simple man. I am content with basic essential provisions and needs. I like plain things. Less is often more with me. My entire life I had only used a regular refrigerator, nothing fancy. I never would have bought a fancy refrigerator for myself. But the new place I am living in now came furnished with a fancy refrigerator. It has a crushed ice feature, ice cubes or filtered water. All I do is press a button to select what I want. I LOVE my new crushed ice and filtered water dispenser! I had purchased bottled water to drink for the past 30 years, but no longer. I now have my own filtered water. God is so good to me!!! Praise the Lord for His goodness. Thank you Jesus! I am not worthy.

I LOVE drinking ice-cold water bathed in crushed ice! I was enjoying some ice-cold water just a few minutes ago, enjoying the wonderful crushed ice that keeps the water very cold. As I do nearly every time I drink icy water, as the cold water quenches my thirst, I feel sorry for the rich man who died in his sins and went to Hell. I am reminded that in Hell he begged for just ONE DROP of water, but was denied by Abraham. Abraham tells him why, explaining that there is a Great Gulf fixed between them, so that they cannot transfer sides. One one side you have the place of PARADISE, and on the other side the place of TORMENT. These two extreme places exist in the realm of Hell (which is the Greek word: Hades). That is, the place of Hell is COMPARTMENTALIZED.

We know that Hell (Hades) is compartmentalized, because that is what Luke 16:19-32 teaches. When I attended the apostate Harvest Baptist Church on Guam for one year between 2013-2014, I heard one of their ignorant pastors teach that the story in Luke 16:19-31 is NOT a real account. He foolishly said that this is just an untrue parable. I was shocked by what he said. Dear reader, I can tell you with full confidence that this story is factually TRUE.

Reasons why the story of The Rich Man And Lazarus is a factual true account:

1. Jesus didn't say it was a parable. Whenever Jesus spoke a parable, He said so. We ought to accept any story as real and factual unless the Bible indicates otherwise.
2. Jesus didn't explain the meaning of the story, which He always did for parables. When Jesus told a parable, he afterwards explained the meaning of the parable. So we should conclude that this is a real true account.
3. Jesus used proper nouns for their names. The dear Savior mentions proper names of real characters; such as, Abraham and Lazarus. When the Lord told parables, He always used obscure references (e.g., a certain man went into a far country).

These three observations clearly evidence that the story Jesus tells in Luke 16:19-31 is a REAL account, involving REAL people, because it REALLY happened.

Having said that as introduction, I was thinking today of Apple founder Steve Jobs (1955-2011). Mr. Jobs was a college drop out, who started his computer business in his garage in 1976. Jobs was an amazing man, a pioneer among fellow-minded genius inventors. Sadly, Steve Jobs died at only age 56 of cancer. Saddest of all, he was a devout Buddhist who rejected Jesus Christ as his Savior. According to the inspired Holy Bible, Steve Jobs is burning in the fires of Hell forever (Revelation 20:11-15). The heathen world forgets God their entire life, but then at their funerals they always say that the deceased person is in a better place. That is simply NOT true. Hell is not a better place!!!

At the time of his death in 2011, Steve Jobs had an astounding net worth of $10,200,000,000. The Bible warns that we cannot take even one penny of our accumulated wealth into eternity...

1st Timothy 6:7-11, “For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content. But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.”

I was watching a fascinating history documentary on YouTube this week about the pyramids of Egypt. The Egyptians foolishly believed that when someone died, you could provide gifts and items which they could use in the afterlife. So they built massive pyramids with underground chambers to entomb their dead pharaohs. There were multiple secret chambers inside and beneath the pyramid. In one chamber the pharaoh was placed. In another chamber all of his gifts and personal belongings were placed, which he could use in the afterlife. Helpful items such as toiletries, combs, shaving accessories, games, food, tools, et cetera, were stored for his comfort and usage to better his lifestyle in eternity.

What saith the Scripture? 1st Timothy 6:7, “For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.” Steve Jobs died on October 5, 2011 and went into eternity with NOTHING!!! I read today in Forbes that if Steve Jobs were still alive today on earth, his net worth would be $200,000,000,000. So what? Money is nothing more than a worthless piece of paper or some metal coins. Money means nothing to me. I have never taken, nor will I ever accept, a single penny for my website ministry. If I wanted, I could make tons of money. I have loyal followers around the world, many of whom I've had the privilege of leading to Jesus Christ. In that dear respect, I am their parent and they are my children in the Lord. If I asked for money, I know people would support my labors in the Lord. But I just ask for everyone's earnest prayers for me and my humble website ministry for Jesus Christ.

Dear reader, all of Steve Jobs' amassed $10,200,000,000 in earthly wealth cannot even buy him ONE DROP OF WATER in Hell. Think about that! On earth, ten billion dollars can buy an island! Literally, I'm not kidding. With a staggering net worth of ten billion, two hundred million, dollars, Steve Jobs today cannot even purchase ONE DROP OF ICY COLD WATER...

Wonderful Refreshing Icy Cold Water

Oh, how blessed of God we are to just have water to drink! That is the precious truth that I think about every time I drink some icy cold refreshing delicious water. I hear people say that water has no taste, but it sure does! Water has a very unique taste that the tongue and body loves! I crave the taste of cold water. Water doesn't have flavor, but it does have a certain taste. I LOVE WATER!!! I thank God for water!

Even $10,200,000,000 cannot buy Steve Jobs a drop of water in Hell today. Unless he repented on his death bed and accepted Jesus as his personal Savior (which is highly unlikely), Mr. Jobs sadly went to Hell without hope for eternity. John 3:3, “Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” To get to Heaven, you MUST be born-again. I once shared the Gospel with an unsaved co-worker decades ago. I did my best to tell him how to go to Heaven. Sadly, he replied by uttering in contempt to me the words: “That born-again stuff doesn't make any sense to me.” That didn't surprise me one bit. What saith the Scripture? 1st Corinthians 1:18, “For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.”