The Unbridgeable Chasm
Scripture: “And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us.” Luke 16.26
“O you who put far away the day of doom…” Amos 6.3
Main Point: Sin creates an unbridgeable chasm between us and God that becomes permanent at death.
Abraham’s words reveal the most sobering truth in the parable: “between us and you a great chasm has been fixed.” This isn’t just a wide river or a deep valley—it’s an eternal, unbridgeable separation. Once fixed, no one can cross from either side.
We understand chasms in our earthly relationships. Words spoken in anger create rifts between family members that seem impossible to heal. Trust broken between friends leaves wounds that never fully mend. But the chasm Jesus describes is infinitely more serious—it’s the separation between holy God and sinful humanity.
Amos describes people who “put far away the day of doom”—those who live as if there will never be a reckoning, never a judgment, never a final accounting. Like the rich man, they assume they have unlimited time to address their spiritual condition.
But the Holy Spirit uses this image of the great chasm to create urgency in our hearts. While we live, there is still time for the Gospel to bridge the gap. Christ’s death and resurrection built the bridge that spans this chasm. Through faith in Him, we cross from death to life, from judgment to grace.
The Spirit also reminds us that earthly chasms in our relationships, while painful, are not permanent like this eternal separation. He empowers us to seek reconciliation, to extend forgiveness, and to build bridges with others while there is still time.
Reflection: What relationships in your life need the bridge-building work of forgiveness and reconciliation, and how does the urgency of the eternal chasm motivate you to act while there is still time?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank You for bridging the chasm between us and the Father. Help us to build bridges of reconciliation in our earthly relationships. In Your name. Amen.
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