22nd Sunday after Pentecost
Luke 20-27-40
27 Then Jesus was approached by some Sadducees—religious leaders who say there is no resurrection from the dead. 28 They posed this question: “Teacher, Moses gave us a law that if a man dies, leaving a wife but no children, his brother should marry the widow and have a child who will carry on the brother’s name. 29 Well, suppose there were seven brothers. The oldest one married and then died without children. 30 So the second brother married the widow, but he also died. 31 Then the third brother married her. This continued with all seven of them, who died without children. 32 Finally, the woman also died. 33 So tell us, whose wife will she be in the resurrection? For all seven were married to her!”
34 Jesus replied, “Marriage is for people here on earth. 35 But in the age to come, those worthy of being raised from the dead will neither marry nor be given in marriage. 36 And they will never die again. In this respect they will be like angels. They are children of God and children of the resurrection.
37 “But now, as to whether the dead will be raised—even Moses proved this when he wrote about the burning bush. Long after Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob had died, he referred to the Lord as ‘the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ 38 So he is the God of the living, not the dead, for they are all alive to him.”
39 “Well said, Teacher!” remarked some of the teachers of religious law who were standing there. 40 And then no one dared to ask him any more questions.
For Reflection:
Read Luke 20:1-40. Describe the events that take place. Who is initiates each exchange and what is the purpose? The outcome?
In 27-40, what assumptions are the Sadducees making? How does Jesus respond?
Reflect. What assumptions do you make when reading Scripture? When praying? Ask God to show you. Listen.
What is the bigger question Jesus introduces that the Sadducees are overlooking?
Read Isaiah 6:1-8. Revelation 4, Revelation 21:1-5. What do these OT and NT passages reveal about what is to come?
Colossians 3:1-4; then in segments: 5-11, 12-14, 15-17. How might we live in new life in Jesus now?