God of the Living

6 · Reads and presents the Sadducees' trick question about a woman married to seven brothers sequentially, designed to expose what they perceive as the absurdity of resurrection belief

So let's jump into the trick question here. Verse 18. I love it when my Bible is on the wrong page and I'm ready to read. 'And the Sadducees came to Him who say that there is no resurrection, and they asked Him a question saying, Teacher, Moses wrote for us in the Law that if a man's brother dies and leaves a wife but leaves no child, the man must take the widow and raise up offspring for his brother. There were 7 brothers. The first took a wife and when he died left no offspring. And the second took her and died, leaving no offspring. And the third likewise. And the 7 left no offspring. Last of all, the woman also died. So in the resurrection, when they rise again, whose wife will she be? For the 7 had her as wife.'

7 · Explains the Levirate Law's purpose in preserving family land and inheritance, providing the historical and legal context for understanding the Sadducees' question

So this arrogant bunch of men come with their arrogant question. And they come to examine Jesus in light of what's called the Levirate Law, saying, hey, if you die and you have no offspring, your brother must now marry your wife. Why? Well, because land and titles and wealth was transferred through the line of the firstborn. And so you had to provide for your children. This was common in ancient civilizations. And even God commanded it in the Torah, saying, 'Hey, this is how you will preserve the land that has been doled out to these different families.'

8 · Reconstructs the Sadducees' condescending mindset as they approach Jesus, viewing Him as an ignorant provincial rabbi they can expose through questioning about resurrection—a doctrine they don't themselves believe

And so they come to test this, in their eyes, rabbi from some backwater town that nothing good has ever come from. And they're like, 'We're going to examine him. We're going to see. We'll test this guy. We'll find out where he's going to answer and how he's going to answer. And we're going to ask him about the resurrection, the most unbelievable thing that there could be. We're going to ask him that.' And they come not believing even in the resurrection. Yet asking questions about it, hoping to catch Jesus in a poor answer that would highlight He is not who He says He is. He does not know what He claims to know. He does not have the authority that He claims to have. 'We'll test this redneck. We'll see what He has to say.' That's kind of their mindset as they approach Jesus. And if anyone takes offense to the term redneck, please know I come from redneck stock, okay? I'm not up here looking down on rednecks. Those are my family, okay? Those are my people.

9 · Highlights the sarcastic, condescending tone of the Sadducees' address to Jesus and suggests this was a practiced trick question they had successfully used against other teachers

And you can hear it. It's almost like a, 'Hey, teacher.' This teacher is not like the rest of the teachers that they've examined. This teacher is not like the others that they've come to with this kind of question. You know, I'm sure they use this all the time as a gotcha to some of these Pharisees. They're like, 'Oh, let me— okay, Mr. Smart Man who knows the law, tell me this.' Riddle me this, Batman. And the Pharisees are like, 'Oh.' I don't know whose wife she's going to be. That's a really good question. No, not so with Jesus.

10 · Emphasizes the condescending arrogance embedded in the Sadducees' question, particularly their patronizing explanation of resurrection to Jesus, revealing their true intent to undermine Him

Woman had a husband, he died, no children, his brother took her. He died, no children, his brother took her. All 7 brothers. And then you see the arrogance. Hey, in the resurrection, you know, when they rise again, you know what the resurrection is, don't you? Don't you, Jesus? In case you don't, I'll tell you what it is. It's when they rise again, whose wife will she be? And that question exposes their hearts and the intentions of their their hearts. They're there to cast doubt on the Lord.

11 · Confronts the congregation with the gap between intellectual assent to resurrection and actual lived belief, highlighting common false assumptions people bring to the doctrine

And if we're honest, we are not much different from the Sadducees. See, we theologically believe in the resurrection, right? We read about it and we say, 'Yeah, that's true.' But do we actually believe it in our lives? Do we live, do we think, do we inform our hearts in a way that says this is real, this is going to happen? A lot of times we think about the resurrection with what I would say are even kind of wrong assumptions about it. And we come to the Lord with these assumptions and these questions. Hey, my dog's going to be there, right? When I get there? We're going to finally see unicorns. Are we going to see unicorns in heaven? Are there unicorns in heaven? Yeah! I love it. But no.

12 · Identifies common unbiblical phrases about the afterlife as evidence of false, materialistic conceptions of resurrection, drawing a parallel to the Sadducees' misunderstanding

On the livestream, if you couldn't hear, there was someone who said, 'Yeah!' And we come when we lose someone and we say things like, 'Heaven gained an angel today,' or, 'Enjoy flying on your wings.' Those things aren't what the Bible teaches about the afterlife. They're not true, and they show a materialistic belief in what the resurrection and what the afterlife is like. And it's not something that we see in Scripture. And these guys were coming asking questions about something that we don't see taught in Scripture. And so Jesus had to make it clear for them.

13 · Asserts that the resurrection's reality gives present significance to all our actions, words, and sacrifices, which are shaping us for the eternal state to come

We come with our own expectations and questions similar to the Sadducees. And the thing is, though, that the resurrection is real. It is real and it has meaning for us today. It has real meaning. Everything that we do, sacrifice, say even, has a meaning. And it will mean something on that day when we rise again as the Sadducees had to explain to Jesus, or they thought they had to. It will mold— everything we do, give, think, sacrifice will mold us for the resurrection and for the eternity that comes after it.

14 · Presses the congregation with direct questions about how their present actions and speech are preparing them for the day of resurrection and judgment, emphasizing accountability for even careless words

And that begs the question, what are we doing today that molds us and prepares us for that day? What are we doing? How are we informing our minds and hearts to one day stand before the Lord? Scripture says that one day we will give an account for every careless word we say. Some of us, that's very scary for. I got a lot of careless words that I've let fly even as a pastor. What am I doing to cultivate wise speech? In my speech? What am I doing to cultivate a humble heart that allows me to inspect the words that I'm saying? What about you? Where are you maybe not doing things that will prepare us for that day? We must be looking forward to that day. Because everything we do in this life matters on that day. It matters.

15 · Contrasts believers with Sadducees, emphasizing that eternities are decided by present actions and calling the congregation to cultivate reverent fear rooted in love rather than terror

See, the Sadducees didn't believe that there would be condemnations and rewards handed out on that day because there is not that day. We're not the Sadducees. Eternities are decided today. Let's do the things that will help us to stand on that day and to stand in the right reverent fear of the Lord. Not a fear that is like, 'Oh, no, what's he going to say?' But no, no, that awe, that reverence knowing, 'Hey, perfect love casts out fear.' It's not a fear and a like, 'Oh, what's he going to say?' He's going to confront me about what I've said and done in love. Do we believe that? And then he's going to welcome us in as only God can.

16 · Transitions from the Sadducees' question to Jesus' response, signaling a shift to exposition of Jesus' correct scriptural interpretation and its role in shaping believers

And this brings us to our next session. Section, the right interpretation. And with that interpretation, Jesus also shows us the means for molding and informing our hearts and our minds. Okay?

17 · Reads Jesus' full response to the Sadducees, encompassing His diagnosis of their error, His teaching about the resurrection state, and His scriptural proof from Exodus

So verse 24, 'And Jesus said to them, "Is this not the reason you were wrong?"' Because you neither know the Scriptures nor the power of God. For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. And as for the dead being raised, have you not read in the book of Moses in the passage about the bush how God spoke to him saying, I am the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac And the God of Jacob, he is not the God of the dead but of the living. You are quite wrong.'

18 · Uses a basketball metaphor to illustrate Jesus decisively blocking the Sadducees' attempted theological trap, showing His supreme authority as the author of truth itself

So you see, these guys were dribbling down the lane going for a slam dunk. They're like, oh, we got him, we got him. Jesus rejected. 'Get that out of here. It's not working.' You see, they came to school Jesus. But Jesus was like, 'Hey guys, I wrote the curriculum. You can't school me.' You like that curriculum? Yeah? Yeah? Uh-huh.

19 · Expounds Jesus' diagnosis of the Sadducees' error—ignorance of both Scripture and God's power—showing how this question still confronts believers today in their spiritual formation

Plain, straightforward. Jesus asked them a question. We can still feel the sting of today. Because this question comes to us in that area where we're trying to inform our stuff. He says, 'Is this not the reason you were wrong, because you know neither the Scriptures nor the power of God?' Hey, hey, isn't this why you're wrong? I'm pretty sure it is. You don't know what you're talking about, and you don't know who it is that you're talking about. Oh.

20 · Highlights Jesus' gracious method of consistently pointing opponents to Scripture through rhetorical questions, establishing that God has preserved all we need to know about Him in written form

And look at Jesus' grace there. Like when we look at his interactions with people in the Bible, particularly with his opponents, what does he always say? Have you not read? Have you not heard? Hey, you've read this. This. Is the means by which we inform our minds and our hearts. And Jesus in his grace is pointing them and he says, 'Guys, it's in here. Is this not why you are wrong? Because you know neither the Scriptures nor the power of God.' And he's regularly saying this, 'You know what the law says.' Haven't you read the Scriptures? Hey, it is written. Have you not read? And so on. He's saying all that we need to know about God, God has preserved for us in His written Word.

21 · Asserts the sufficiency of Scripture for life, godliness, and resurrection preparation, emphasizing that the New Testament provides the full revelation of God in Christ that the Sadducees lacked

All that we need for life and godliness can be found in these pages. All that will prepare us for the resurrection, for the life that comes after this one, can be found here. Let's approach these words like that. And more than that, more than that, in the Gospels and the New Testament we have a record of the full and final revelation of God in His Son. Jesus came to reveal God's character, to show God's mission, to inform us of God's love, and to win back God's people. We have a record of that here. Oh, man, we have such a treasure. That the Sadducees did not have.

22 · Presses the congregation with diagnostic questions about whether Scripture or culture is shaping their theology and whether they seek eternal life or mere life principles

And so are we reading these Scriptures? Are we letting Scripture inform our thoughts about God or even our thoughts about the culture? Or are we letting the culture inform our thoughts about God? Are we seeking the God of the Bible who gives eternal life? Or are we looking for principles for a good life? All we need to know about God is here. Do we live like that's the truth?

23 · Highlights Jesus' rhetorical strategy of assuming rather than arguing for the resurrection, using 'when' instead of 'if' to establish it as certain reality

Jesus goes on with something that is a little bit hard to understand, right? And the first thing, though, that we see is Jesus assumes the resurrection. He doesn't go on like this big, 'Hey, here's all the evidence in the Bible for the resurrection.' He's like, 'No, no, no, no, no, no.' We're just going to assume this. He says, 'When they rise.' Not if. Not, 'Hey, if the resurrection is true, it's going to be like this.' He's like, 'No, no, no, no, no. When they rise.' Full-blown. It's happening. When they rise from the dead.

24 · Explains what Jesus means by being 'like angels in heaven'—not physical wings but a spiritual state free from sin's taint, living in pure worship and praise of God without self-exaltation

You see, the resurrection will happen, and when it happens, the state of people will be changed. And Jesus says, hey, they'll be like angels in heaven, not given in marriage. What does that mean? Well, if you're sitting there going, Vince, that means we get our wings! Sorry, you're wrong. That's not what it means. It means that we will— our state will change. We will be like the angels in heaven means that we will no longer be tainted by sin. We will become at that moment Because we're still waiting on our body, on our material body to be raised from the dead. When we die, we become like the angels in heaven. We become spirit. We also become this no longer affected by sin, no longer like dealing with our temptations, no longer like doubting even. Like everything that the angels are experiencing right now, the angels in heaven, See, Jesus is very clear like that about that. He's not saying all angels, the angels in heaven. We will be like them, totally given over to the worship and praise and exaltation of God and not ourselves. And as one As one who constantly wants to exalt himself, I cannot wait for that day. I cannot wait.

25 · Unpacks why marriage won't exist in the resurrection—its purposes of procreation and relational deepening become obsolete when God's glory fills the earth and believers achieve perfection

And then like the angels in heaven, they will not be given in marriage. What does that mean? Well, you know, what is the purpose for marriage? Marriage is the context for enjoying physical intimacy that results in two things. Procreation and also a deeper relationship between those who are married. And if they are perfect like the angels in heaven, there is no need for deepening and molding that relationship and strengthening it. And on that day, the glory of God will cover the earth as the waters cover the sea. There is no longer a need for procreation. The role and purpose and function of marriage has gone away. There's no need for it anymore. That's what Jesus is saying here. He's saying, 'Hey, there's no need for it, so it's not going to happen. It's not going to be there.' It's pretty cool. It's pretty cool. It will all be accomplished on that day. The increasing upon the earth and subduing it, it will have taken place. By the time we all rise and meet the Lord in the air. Oh, it's going to be a day. It's going to be a day. No need for marriage.

26 · Transitions to Jesus' direct scriptural instruction, quoting His appeal to Exodus 3:6 where God's present-tense self-identification proves the patriarchs' continued existence

So after assuming the resurrection and then telling them there's no need for marriage, He does some teaching of his own. See, the smug and arrogant Sadducees, these teachers, they need to be taught themselves. And Jesus says, 'And as for the dead being raised, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the passage about the bush, how God spoke to him, saying, "I am the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob"? He is not the God of the dead.' but of the living, you are quite wrong.'

27 · Highlights Jesus' gracious evangelistic method of meeting the Sadducees where they are by appealing to the Torah—their accepted authority—demonstrating how to engage people through their own belief systems

See, Jesus is not content with letting them remain in their darkened state. And He starts teaching them with these words, 'As for the dead being raised...' And then He points them to the Torah. There's maybe some instruction there in how we should evangelize people. He points them to their source of authority. We need to find people's source of authority there, but he points their source of authority is the Torah. They don't really accept some of the other things, and he's like, okay, in your Torah, here's what it says. And he points them to the Scriptures that they would hold on to. And they believed in God and they believed Moses' words as having had talked to God and spoken to God. And he's like, 'Have you not read?' This is nothing but grace on Jesus' part. You see, even with these arrogant, smug, insufferable know-it-alls, Jesus is reaching out to them. He's reaching out and he's saying, 'Guys.' Guys, it's right here as plain as day.

28 · Unpacks Jesus' grammatical argument from Exodus 3:6—God's use of present tense 'I am' rather than past tense 'I was' logically requires that the patriarchs remain alive after physical death

And then he outlines the conversation that God had with Moses. I am the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. For God to presently, currently be the God of the three patriarchs who died much long— like, long time ago before Moses came. It means they're alive. For Him to say, 'I am,' not, 'Hey, I was the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.' No, 'I am currently right now the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.' It presupposes that they're alive long after they died their earthly lives. He's not the God of the dead. He's the God of the living. You are quite wrong.

29 · States the sermon's central theological claim and transitions to pastoral application by naming specific church members who have died recently, making the doctrine personal and immediate

And this is the heart of the text today. God is the God of the living, not the dead. And think of the people that we've lost just even over the last year, year and a half. Okay, look, not all of them to COVID, but we've lost some folks. We've lost Lydia Orca. We've lost Zester Hatfield. We've lost Bill Russell. We've lost Maggie Sulak. We've lost Richard Moreno and his amazing wit and charm. Some folks here have lost unborn children. We have lost some folks in the last year, year and a half.

30 · Quotes D

You know, D.L. Moody once said, 'Someday you will read in the papers that D.L. Moody,' of East Northfield is dead. Don't you believe a word of it. At that moment I shall be more alive than I am now. I shall have gone up higher, that is all, out of this old clay tenement into a house that is immortal, a body that death cannot touch, that sin cannot taint, a body fashioned like unto His glorious body.

31 · Applies the doctrine directly to each named deceased member through a rhetorical pattern of distinguishing loss from death, affirming they are 'more alive' now because God is the God of the living

So I ask you, have we lost Richard? Yes. Is Richard dead? No. Absolutely not. He's more alive than he ever has been. Have we lost Maggie? Yes. Is Maggie dead? No. She is more alive than she has ever been. Have we lost Bill? Yes. He's more alive than he ever has been. He is not dead. Have we lost Lydia? Yes. She's not dead. Her God is the God of the living, not of the dead. Have we lost Zester? Yes, but Zester is not dead. He is more alive today than he ever has been. He's just moved on higher. He has changed addresses. He has changed places. Because his God is the God of the living, not of the dead.

32 · Directly addresses parents who lost an unborn child, pastorally affirming their child's life and offering hope through the truth that God is the God of the living

And Justin and Abby, I haven't seen you today. Maybe you're coming second service. Your child is She's not dead. She's not dead. No, our God is the God of the living and not the dead. She's more alive than she ever would have been here on this planet. And there's hope in that. There's hope in that.

33 · Shifts to future-facing application, instructing the congregation how to think about future deaths in light of Scripture's teaching that God is the God of the living

And one day there will be rumors of your death as well. Don't worry, I won't believe them. I will not believe those rumors. Why? Because I will know what Scripture teaches. On that day, I will be informed by that truth that God is the God of the living and not the dead. And I will be like, 'Oh, no, no, no, no.' They are more alive today than they ever have been. Let's not mourn for them. Let's mourn for us that we missed them. They're more alive today than they ever have been.

34 · Personalizes the application by anticipating his own death and instructing the congregation to reject reports of it as false, modeling confidence in the resurrection doctrine

And one day you will hear, maybe if you're still alive, that I've died. I'm telling you, don't believe it. It ain't true. It ain't true. You can tell people, 'Wrong! He is alive today!' He hoped in the God of the living, not the god of the dead. He's just changed addresses. He's gone up higher. You will be tempted to believe the rumors, but don't.

35 · Grounds the hope of believers' resurrection in Christ's own resurrection, narrating the gospel story from incarnation to resurrection as the basis for confidence that death has been defeated

And we know this is true. We know this is true because our God is alive today. Right? Our God is alive. Our God who came and died. Man, death could not hold Him down. Death could not grip Him like it will grip us. No. Death has been defeated. Our God came as a baby. And He lived a life. And He went to the cross and He died to pay for our sins. And then He shook off death. And he came out of the grave, and he's alive today, and that is what gives us hope. That is how we know that the death of those in Christ are just a rumor and they're not true.

36 · Establishes the logical connection between God's own life and His character as the God of the living, explaining that He brings the dead to life by imparting both life and faith

See, God is the God of the living because God is a living God. God's not dead. He is not dead. He rose, and now he brings us from death to life as well. He does this through imparting not only life but also faith to those that he enlivens. God is not the God of the living— sorry, God is the God of the living, not the dead.

37 · Argues that even atheists' questions about death reveal God's implanted awareness of eternity, which exists because God is the God of the living who sent Jesus to end death

And the crazy thing is, even the staunchest atheist has questions about what happens when they die. They— even though they think, 'I go into the dirt and that's it,' they wonder. Why? Because God has set eternity in the hearts of men. Why? Because he is the God of the living, not the dead. And he sent Jesus to give life and bring an end to death.

38 · Grounds God's sending of Christ in divine love, quoting John 3:16 to show that God's purpose was to give eternal life rather than allow perishing, accomplished through grace and faith

In love he did this. John 3:16 tells us, for God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. Eternal life. What grace. God in love sent His Son. By grace we are saved through faith. Man, amazing.

39 · Uses Romans 5:14 to show that death's reign required God's intervention, which came through Christ—the true Adam—whose blood payment stopped death's dominion over His people

And then Paul tells us in Romans 5:14, death reigned from Adam to Moses even over those whose sinning was not like the transgression of Adam, who was a type of the One to come. See, if God is the God of the living, He had to do something to stop the reign of death. Death reigned from Adam to Moses, and it reigns over us. And God stopped it. He sent the One that Adam pointed to. He sent the real one. He sent the one who was to come. And that one who was to come, Jesus, interposed His precious blood to pay for our sins and to stop the reign of death in His people. Stopped it in its tracks because He is the God of the living. Not the dead.

40 · Closing prayer asking God to help the congregation understand His word, pleading for the Holy Spirit to give spiritual life to any present who remain dead in sin, and offering assurance of forgiveness to all who believe in Jesus

Let's pray. Father, Father, thank you for this passage, for this reminder that you are the God of the living and not the dead. Father, I pray that you would help us to dig into your word and to see What you show us there about yourself, about this world, about eternity. Father, I pray this morning that— that you are giving life today. I pray, Lord, if there's someone here who has not been given that new life, Lord, that by the power of the gospel and by the person of the Holy Spirit, You are giving life and You are bringing them from death into life and now indwelling them and imparting faith to them. Faith in the One who forgave their sins. Who paid for their sins as He hung on a cross and then was raised, showing that the sins have been forgiven. If you believe in Jesus, you have been forgiven. Father, I hope. That they hear those words and they believe that truth. In Jesus' name, amen.