Devotional

Then He said to them, ‘How do they maintain that the Christ is the Son of David?’

Luke 20:41

Jesus is preparing to delve more deeply into the doctrine of the hypostatic union than the Jewish leaders were prepared to bear. Jesus is not here challenging the idea that the Christ is the son of David. He is challenging the means by which the Jewish religious elite could make sense of that truth.

Heavenly Father, thank You for guiding our lives! It is a joy and a privilege to be able to seek Your will and Your face in connection with our daily activities. It is a wonder to be able to turn through the pages of Your Word and see things that help us in our daily lives, as well as our lifelong choices and aspirations. You are merciful, loving, kind, and good to us. We praise you for your great wisdom, power, justice, and faithfulness! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ, I pray and praise You, Amen.

But they no longer dared to ask Him anything.

Luke 20:40

Jesus was too hot to handle. Interactions with Him were dangerous games for the ruling elite. His intellect, insight, and authority were enough to keep them up at night. They could not afford to rock the boat with the Romans, and any popular uprising could make waves. Their attempts to question Him had been calculated risks. But at this point, the risk had clearly become too great.

Heavenly Father, our earthly wisdom is so limited! We think we know and understand so much, and yet we are still incredibly limited. Without Your Word and Your world to guide us, we are so primitive and evil. Thank You for making Your truth available, and for keeping us humble. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ, I pray and praise You, Amen.

And the Scribes responded, saying, ‘Teacher, what you said was good.’

Luke 20:39

The Scribes were experts on the law, and like the Pharisees they did not agree with the Sadducees about the afterlife or spiritual things. Some of them may have truly been impressed by the words of Christ. But they likely made this compliment primarily as a barb against the Sadducees who were present.

Heavenly Father, thank You for the good teaching of Christ. The Word is our constant companion. In the pages of the Bible we find comfort, healing, and power. I praise You for the Truth and Your plan to reveal it to us. You are wise beyond all others and we can always trust Your faithfulness. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

He is not God of the dead, but of the living. To Him they are all alive.

Luke 20:38

Jesus teaches this to His disciples on several occasions. For example He refers to some, who had died, as sleeping. Physical death is not meant to be considered an end in the theology of Christ.

Life comes from God and is determined by God. This is what is meant by ‘to Him they are all alive’ in this verse. To us they are dead. But to Him they are very much alive.

Heavenly Father, thank You for life! We are surrounded by a society full of death and decay. But You are at work for life in every moment. You teach us truth and love and grace and show us the Way to life. Jesus is the Life! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

But that the dead rise, even Moses reveals in the bush passage, as he quotes the Lord, ‘the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’

Luke 20:37

Jesus is directly quoting from Exodus 3:6. In that verse, Moses records how the Lord identified Himself to Moses. All three patriarchs had of course been long since dead by the time that the Lord was speaking to Moses in the bush. And yet the Lord Himself refers to them as if they are still alive.

Indeed, Jesus could have quoted many Old Testament passages to affirm this truth. Job for example confirmed the resurrection. But for the Sadducees, the reference to Moses would be particularly impactful.

Heavenly Father, thank You for showing us Your truth beyond the pale smudge of death. We live so burdened by death, and held down by it. But it is a consequence of a temporary condition. May we live to look beyond the stain of sin to the glorious future in Your love! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Nor can they die any longer, for they are like angels, and are the sons of God, sons of the resurrection.

Luke 20:36

Saints are not angels. But just like angels, the saints will not die after the resurrection to glorified bodies. This makes sense because death was not originally a part of our world. Saints living in the world today are children of God spiritually. But at the resurrection, they become children of God physically.

Heavenly Father, thank You for Your Word and our access to it. Your mercy to us is made obvious by Your sharing of Your Word. You have commanded us to take it to everyone, everywhere. That shows Your great love. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

But those who are counted worthy to obtain that age, and the resurrection of the dead, neither marry nor are given in marriage.

Luke 20:35

It is very interesting how Jesus words this. We often use the terminology, ‘those who are saved’ but the redeemed are referred to in many ways in the New Testament, and we should learn from them all. Jesus is not teaching works salvation here, but He is highlighting the fact that the saved are considered ‘worthy’, meaning that the work of grace made possible by the cross does include justification. Justification is the key to understanding how imperfect people are made perfect by the blood of Christ. And, thus, due to the righteousness imputed to the saints, we are accounted ‘worthy’ to obtain that future resurrection.

Heavenly Father, thank You for the many things You teach us in Your Word. You have given us so much to consider and learn from. Almost daily I am presented with things from Scripture I had never before considered. Thank you for the constant stream of Your beautiful wisdom and understanding from Your Truth! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Answering, Jesus said to them, “The sons of this age marry and are given in marriage,”

Luke 20:34

Marriage is a function of our current situation. The Lord has given it to us as a picture of His working in our lives. It is the best illustration of the relationship between Christ and the church that we have on this earth. It is not planned as an eternal institution. There are several things that the New Testament confirms we will be doing in our future eternal state. Marrying and procreating are not among these.

Heavenly Father, thank You for marriage! You are wise and good and have given us such a wonderful thing in marriage. It brings us closer to you, and closer to another person than we would otherwise be. What a joy! Your love for us is great to give us this freedom. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Therefore, in the ressurrection, whose wife does she become? For, the seven had her as wife.

Luke 20:33

Here is their conclusion for this strange thought project. The Sadducees very likely used this particular puzzle regularly to confound their opponents. They were impressed by their own cleverness and did not expect Christ to respond the way He did.

Heavenly Father, thank You for today and for Your blessings! Each day that we open our eyes and walk into a new day is a gift from You. I can never thank You enough for Your mercy, peace, grace, and love! You are amazing! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

And after all of them, the woman died also.

Luke 20:32

The idea here is to set up a conundrum. Due to the misinterpretation of some passages of the Old Testament, the Sadducees thought they saw inconsistencies. Since the husband and the wife become ‘one flesh’, they wondered how that would carry over into the afterlife. This puzzle would exist if just two brothers had been married to the woman. But seven made the issue seem more impactful.

Heavenly Father, Your wisdom is a great comfort to us! Thank You for loving us and giving us Your wisdom in Your book. You alone have given us the answers we need. Thank You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.