Luke writes, “And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, that you send him to my father's house-- for I have five brothers--in order that he may warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’ But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’ But he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent!’ But he said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead,’” Luke 16:27-31.
How is it that they would not listen if one went to them from the dead? If one who you knew to be dead were to come to you, warning you to follow God, would you not be inclined to listen?
The truth is, Abraham is right. We have several examples where the same situation, the same message, reached or was seen by several or even many, with markedly different results. It really comes down to the character of each of us.
Let us look at three examples.
First, consider the angels. Michael and Satan both were in the presence of God, and yet one obeys, while the other rebelled. And not Satan alone, but others rebelled with him.
Next, we have Moses and Pharaoh. Both saw the miracles performed, both heard the message of God, but Moses was obedient, while Pharaoh rebelled, and by degrees grew worse.
Lastly, we have the eleven, and Judas. All of them were close to Jesus, and were even given the power to cast out demons, yet it didn’t profit Judas; he betrayed the Son of God.
Our character is the same whether we are presented with a great or a small lesson. If we are inclined to listen to the truth, we will recognize and believe it no matter how it comes to us, while if we are not inclined to listen, then like the rich man’s brothers, we will neither listen to Moses and the Prophets, nor the risen dead.
Judas has always puzzled me to a degree. How could he have seen what he saw, and heard what he heard, and yet betrayed Him? We are given the answer in John 12:4-6,
“But Judas Iscariot, one of His disciples, who was intending to betray Him, said, ‘Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and given to poor people?’ Now he said this, not because he was concerned about the poor, but because he was a thief, and as he had the money box, he used to pilfer what was put into it.”
During the time he was with Jesus, the word never met with belief in his heart, and so did not profit him. Judas walked alongside God, but was only concerned with earthly gain, to the extent that he stole from God.
It comes down to the character of the hearer, not the delivery method of the lesson.