Faithful Living in Real Life

Scripture – Mark 12:18-27 ¹⁸Then the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to him with a question. ¹⁹“Teacher,” they said, “Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife but no children, the man must marry the widow and have children for his brother. ²⁰Now there were seven brothers. The first one married and died without leaving any children. ²¹The second one married the widow, but he also died, leaving no child. It was the same with the third. ²²In fact, none of the seven left any children. Last of all, the woman died too. ²³At the resurrection whose wife will she be, since the seven were married to her?” ²⁴Jesus replied, “Are you not in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God? ²⁵When the dead rise, they will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven. ²⁶Now about the dead rising—have you not read in the book of Moses, in the account of the bush, how God said to him, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’ ? ²⁷He is not the God of the dead, but of the living. You are badly mistaken!”

Reflection: Another group of leaders came trying to trick Jesus into saying something they could disagree with. This group brought a theoretical question. I find those kinds of questions annoying. They usually are meant to do nothing but start an argument.

Jesus didn’t bite on this one. Instead, He simply pointed out that an entire movement within the Jewish faith was wrong. He used scripture to point out how they did not know scripture – or at least were totally closed to what it says.

It’s no wonder these people wanted to get rid of Him. He was a threat on many levels to them. Because of that, they couldn’t see the life – the new relationship with God – He offers.

Remind me today, Lord, to live in real time. Keep me from getting tangled up in theoretical situations. You’ve called me to live in the real world. Teach me to do that in a redemptive way.