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Mark 12:18-27
In Mark 12:18-27 the Sadducees, who do not believe that there is life after death, questioned Jesus concerning marriage in the resurrection. They referred to the Law of Moses that concerned a man producing offspring for his brother who had died without producing any offspring for himself, and the requirement for his still living brother to produce offspring for him through the wife of the dead brother (Deuteronomy 25:5-10).
The answer that Jesus gave concerning this question, which is clearly a trap set by the Sadducees as they were sarcastically presuming the resurrection in which they did not believe, is an answer that addressed the facts, not the presumed sarcasm. Jesus declared in Mark 12:24-27 (NKJV), “Are you not therefore mistaken, because you do not know the Scriptures nor the power of God? 25For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. 26But concerning the dead, that they rise, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the burning bush passage, how God spoke to him, saying, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? [Exodus 3:6, 15]. 27He is not the God of the dead, but the God of the living. You are therefore greatly mistaken.”
This is a promise that in God is life, not death; and that God is the God of the living.
This Bible passage is greatly explained in John 3:16 – the most well-known verse in the Bible, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” This is not simply a Bible verse to memorize and quote, but a Bible verse to live by and to believe in as Jesus declaring everlasting life for us if we will simply believe in Him.
The sarcasm of the world will continue to bombard God, Jesus, and the Bible with questions of misunderstanding that would seem to discount them, but the Bible and our faith declare the reality of the passage in our hearts, in our minds, and in our souls. We are taught in Matthew 22:36-40 stating, “‘Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?’
“Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.” The Law is fulfilled through Jesus (Matthew 5:17) and through His death we gain life everlasting. If you will put your faith in Jesus today and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you too will be saved (Romans 10:9-10).
Dear LORD,
There are so many people who strive to prove that Jesus is not Your Son sent to save the world from sin (John 3:16-17). Please help us all to present ourselves to others in ways that will help them believe as Your Holy Spirit works through our lives to be Your disciples and to make disciples throughout the world – in Christ. In Jesus name I pray, amen.