God Of The Living

 

  Luke 20:27-40

The Resurrection and Marriage

²⁷ Some of the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to Jesus with a question. ²⁸ “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 raise up offspring for his brother. ²⁹ Now there were seven brothers. The first one married a woman and died childless. ³⁰ The second ³¹ and then the third married her, and in the same way the seven died, leaving no children. ³² Finally, the woman died too. ³³ Now then, at the resurrection whose wife will she be, since the seven were married to her?”

³⁴ Jesus replied, “The people of this age marry and are given in marriage. ³⁵ But those who are considered worthy of taking part in the age to come and in the resurrection from the dead will neither marry nor be given in marriage, ³⁶ and they can no longer die; for they are like the angels. They are God’s children, since they are children of the resurrection. ³⁷ But in the account of the burning bush, even Moses showed that the dead rise, for he calls the Lord ‘the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ ³⁸ He is not the God of the dead, but of the living, for to him all are alive.”

³⁹ Some of the teachers of the law responded, “Well said, teacher!” ⁴⁰ And no one dared to ask him any more questions.

Winding down the Liturgical Year to the celebration of Christ the King tomorrow and Advent the week after, we look at the reality of death and the consolation of resurrection.  Death is not the end, but the doorway to eternal life, something not to be feared but to be embraced. We need to reflect on this passage today and in the week ahead to keep things in perspective.  Our world offers us little, if any, consolation, but the words of Jesus promise and assure us that "the best is yet to come". God is the the God of the living, not of the dead, "for to him  all are alive." (Lk 20: 40). Let this be our consolation and motivation.

Bro Rene

Dear Jesus, may your teaching this day give us peace, joy and consolation and strengthen us to listen to you and follow you without fear or hesitation. Amen