AM April 3rd Luke 20

April 3^rd             Question – Resurrection

 

27: Then came to him certain of the Sadducees, which deny that there is any resurrection; and they asked him, 28: Saying, Master, Moses wrote unto us, If any man's brother die, having a wife, and he die without children, that his brother should take his wife, and raise up seed unto his brother. 29: There were therefore seven brethren: and the first took a wife, and died without children. 30: And the second took her to wife, and he died childless. 31: And the third took her; and in like manner the seven also: and they left no children, and died. 32: Last of all the woman died also. 33: Therefore in the resurrection whose wife of them is she? for seven had her to wife. 34: And Jesus answering said unto them, The children of this world marry, and are given in marriage: 35: But they which shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage: 36: Neither can they die any more: for they are equal unto the angels; and are the children of God, being the children of the resurrection. 37: Now that the dead are raised, even Moses shewed at the bush, when he calleth the Lord the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. 38: For he is not a God of the dead, but of the living: for all live unto him. 39: Then certain of the scribes answering said, Master, thou hast well said. 40: And after that they durst not ask him any question at all.

The Lords Question – David

41: And he said unto them, How say they that Christ is David's son? 42: And David himself saith in the book of Psalms, The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, 43: Till I make thine enemies thy footstool. 44: David therefore calleth him Lord, how is he then his son?

Jesus warns of the Scribes

45: Then in the audience of all the people he said unto his disciples, 46: Beware of the scribes, which desire to walk in long robes, and love greetings in the markets, and the highest seats in the synagogues, and the chief rooms at feasts; 47: Which devour widows' houses, and for a shew make long prayers: the same shall receive greater damnation.

The Sadducees come with their most difficult question. To them it is the most difficult question that they can comprehend and they add a complexity to the basic question to make it seven times more difficult than impossible to answer. Their basic question is based on a point of Mosaic Law which stated that if a man dies with out children then his brother is to take his widow and marry her to raise children to his brother’s name. Now that was difficult enough, but then try to make the question impossibly complex. They say there was a man who died and his brother took his wife but he died childless too and so his next brother took her to wife and he had not children and so on and on through seven brothers. Now the question is not, Is the inheritance lost? Nor is it who eventually will take his brothers name? No, the question is - Whose wife will she be in the resurrection. Of course marriage is only for this mortal life and does not extend beyond death. And this is exactly the point Christ makes in response. He says that those who are accounted worthy to obtain that world and the resurrection from the dead. (By the way here is a simple explanation of the Jewish standing before God under law. And how different to the Christian who comes as an unworthy sinner and finds the Grace of God will save him by faith and not by law keeping) In the resurrection the righteous have no marital state they will be like the angels who do not marry, nor can they die anymore. They will be called in that day the children of the resurrection. The Sadducees are having an education on resurrection and they don’t believe in resurrection. Then Christ says, When the Lord spoke to Moses at the burning bush he called himself the Lord the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Then he said, he is not a God of the dead, but of the living: for all live unto him. You see God did not say l WAS the God, but l AM the Lord God etc. Abraham, Isaac and Jacob have not ceased to exist but they are in the presence of God now and one day will be raised from the dead to be alive again on earth in the kingdom. The scribes were impressed by Christ’s answer. After this they were afraid to ask him any questions at all. So Christ decides that he will ask a question of his own. He said, how do men say that the Christ is David's son? When David said in the book of Psalms, The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, till I make thine enemies thy footstool. Now here is the question, If David called the Messiah his LORD why is he called David’s son? The answer is that Christ is David’s son according to the flesh but the son of God and therefore he is David’s Lord God.  Paul in his letter to the Romans said Rom 1v3 Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; 4: And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead. 

Lastly Christ turns to warn the disciples of the teachings of the Scribes. He says their emphasis is on long robes – a sign of dignity. They love greetings in the markets – a sign of importance, the highest seats in Synagogues – a sign of rank. However they are greedy in taking the inheritances of the widows (The most wicked crime in Israel) and to impress men they make long prayers these very people who really aught to know better because of their profession will be under great damnation.