1 00:00:01,360 --> 00:00:06,720 Mark 12/18 and I will wait for you. 2 00:00:11,320 --> 00:00:15,800 And Sadducees came to him who say that there is no 3 00:00:15,800 --> 00:00:20,120 resurrection, and they asked him a question saying, Teacher. 4 00:00:20,880 --> 00:00:24,120 Moses wrote for us that if a man's brother dies and leaves a 5 00:00:24,120 --> 00:00:27,760 wife but leaves no child, the man must take the widow and 6 00:00:27,760 --> 00:00:29,560 raise up offspring for his brother. 7 00:00:30,480 --> 00:00:34,640 There were seven brothers. The first took a wife and when 8 00:00:34,640 --> 00:00:38,640 he died left no offspring, and the second took her and died 9 00:00:38,640 --> 00:00:42,000 leaving no offspring, and the third likewise, and the seven 10 00:00:42,000 --> 00:00:46,360 left no offspring. Last of all the woman also died 11 00:00:47,320 --> 00:00:51,880 in the resurrection, when they rise again, whose wife will she 12 00:00:51,880 --> 00:00:54,600 be, for the seven had her as wife. 13 00:00:55,920 --> 00:01:00,560 Jesus said to them, is this not the reason you are wrong because 14 00:01:00,560 --> 00:01:04,200 you know neither the scriptures know the power of God, for when 15 00:01:04,200 --> 00:01:06,920 they rise from the dead they neither marry nor are given in 16 00:01:06,920 --> 00:01:08,960 marriage, but are like angels in heaven. 17 00:01:09,800 --> 00:01:12,120 And As for the dead being raised, have you not read in the 18 00:01:12,120 --> 00:01:15,800 book of Moses, in the passage about the Bush, how God spoke to 19 00:01:15,800 --> 00:01:20,160 him saying, I am the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and 20 00:01:20,160 --> 00:01:24,800 the God of Jacob? He is not God of the dead, but 21 00:01:24,800 --> 00:01:29,600 of the living. You are quite wrong, Lord, We 22 00:01:29,600 --> 00:01:33,400 thank you that we are in the truth, and we can know the truth 23 00:01:33,400 --> 00:01:37,120 because of this precious book. But Lord, apart from the 24 00:01:37,120 --> 00:01:39,720 Spirit's help, we can be left in error. 25 00:01:40,200 --> 00:01:44,800 And so we ask for His grace and bring us closer to the truth, 26 00:01:45,240 --> 00:01:48,200 give us greater clarity, understanding that we may 27 00:01:48,200 --> 00:01:51,560 worship you with greater accuracy and affection. 28 00:01:52,040 --> 00:01:56,040 We ask these things with a genuine heart, with desperation. 29 00:01:56,040 --> 00:01:58,440 O Lord, we long to meet with you and hear your voice. 30 00:01:58,440 --> 00:02:01,640 Now in Jesus name we pray. Amen. 31 00:02:03,240 --> 00:02:05,600 Well, two weeks ago we were in mark together in this very same 32 00:02:05,600 --> 00:02:08,360 chapter and I hope you didn't forget. 33 00:02:08,360 --> 00:02:12,520 But just in case before our stand alone message last week, 34 00:02:13,360 --> 00:02:17,200 Jesus and being confronted by different groups of people 35 00:02:17,760 --> 00:02:21,520 reminds us of the nature of spiritual warfare. 36 00:02:22,200 --> 00:02:24,280 Because in the opening of that message 2 weeks ago, we 37 00:02:24,280 --> 00:02:27,040 discussed the nature of spiritual warfare. 38 00:02:27,400 --> 00:02:31,960 And one of the things that we brought up was how we can expect 39 00:02:32,640 --> 00:02:36,080 challenges and oppositions as we follow Christ wholeheartedly. 40 00:02:36,720 --> 00:02:40,520 And sometimes those spiritual incursions are more fierce on 41 00:02:40,520 --> 00:02:44,280 some days than on others, and that is what we have before us. 42 00:02:44,280 --> 00:02:47,240 In this chapter, Jesus illustrates that by way of 43 00:02:47,240 --> 00:02:51,160 example, because this is not the first group that approached him 44 00:02:51,160 --> 00:02:54,360 with animosity. Christ is ready now, at the 45 00:02:54,360 --> 00:02:57,560 final moments, approaching his fulfillment of his mission on 46 00:02:57,560 --> 00:03:00,360 earth. But it wasn't a smooth ride. 47 00:03:00,960 --> 00:03:04,840 You had one group after the other coming against him, to try 48 00:03:04,840 --> 00:03:09,120 to expose him, to try to condemn him in one way or another. 49 00:03:09,560 --> 00:03:12,320 And last time in Mark we witnessed the Lord effortlessly. 50 00:03:12,480 --> 00:03:17,120 He just sidestep so smoothly the trap that was laid before him by 51 00:03:17,120 --> 00:03:21,760 the Pharisees and the Herodians. But it didn't take much time for 52 00:03:21,760 --> 00:03:24,280 another enemy to make their move. 53 00:03:24,680 --> 00:03:27,640 They stepped up to the plate and they took their own shot at a 54 00:03:28,480 --> 00:03:33,120 crafty question, hoping to entangle Christ in another way. 55 00:03:33,120 --> 00:03:36,680 And let me remind you, when the Sadducees came before it was the 56 00:03:36,680 --> 00:03:39,880 Pharisees and the Herodians. But in the Gospel of Matthew, 57 00:03:39,880 --> 00:03:42,040 you don't have to turn there. But listen to this verse in 58 00:03:42,240 --> 00:03:48,200 chapter 22, verse 23, The same day Matthew 2223 says the same 59 00:03:48,200 --> 00:03:52,280 day Sadducees came to him. So it wasn't a week later. 60 00:03:52,280 --> 00:03:56,080 It wasn't a few few days later. It was the very same day after 61 00:03:56,080 --> 00:03:58,080 the Pharisees came and the Herodians came, that the 62 00:03:58,080 --> 00:04:00,040 Sadducees now arrived on the scene. 63 00:04:00,680 --> 00:04:04,840 Sometimes when you're walking with the Lord and it rains, it 64 00:04:04,840 --> 00:04:08,280 pours, and you can expect those days. 65 00:04:08,440 --> 00:04:11,840 And you can be assured that though you may not anticipate 66 00:04:11,840 --> 00:04:14,120 what day things come like a flood. 67 00:04:14,200 --> 00:04:17,640 You can stand tall, and you can be prepared by the word of God 68 00:04:17,640 --> 00:04:20,760 and by prayer and by His promises, being in the forefront 69 00:04:20,760 --> 00:04:23,400 of your mind. So the Sadducees come now on the 70 00:04:23,400 --> 00:04:25,920 same day, giving no breath to Christ. 71 00:04:26,160 --> 00:04:29,360 They, wanting to suffocate him, approach him at this critical 72 00:04:29,360 --> 00:04:31,720 point. What are they going to do? 73 00:04:32,920 --> 00:04:36,680 What are they going to try? What lure are they going to 74 00:04:36,680 --> 00:04:39,880 attempt? Are they going to try to cause 75 00:04:39,880 --> 00:04:41,840 Christ to stumble by flattering Him? 76 00:04:42,840 --> 00:04:45,520 Are they going to try to cause his judgement to be impaired by 77 00:04:45,520 --> 00:04:49,120 their smooth words? Or are they going to try to 78 00:04:49,120 --> 00:04:54,120 cause him to be trapped by a discourse about politics so he 79 00:04:54,120 --> 00:04:58,160 can tarnish his testimony? It's none of those things. 80 00:04:59,280 --> 00:05:02,520 The Pharisees and the Herodians tried that, and to no avail. 81 00:05:03,000 --> 00:05:06,000 But this time you have the Sadducees who come, and this is 82 00:05:06,000 --> 00:05:11,440 their plan, to expose the weaknesses of what Jesus 83 00:05:11,440 --> 00:05:15,160 preached publicly. They're coming after his belief 84 00:05:15,160 --> 00:05:18,960 system, namely the hope of the resurrection. 85 00:05:19,720 --> 00:05:21,200 They want to try to dismantle it. 86 00:05:22,000 --> 00:05:23,560 They want to try to put him in a corner. 87 00:05:23,560 --> 00:05:26,560 They want to try to have him stumble over his words. 88 00:05:27,000 --> 00:05:29,000 And I thought to myself, well, what's the point of that? 89 00:05:29,640 --> 00:05:31,800 I mean, I can see the trouble you can get yourself into by 90 00:05:31,800 --> 00:05:35,840 having a conversation about paying taxes to Caesar, but what 91 00:05:35,880 --> 00:05:39,240 kind of damage does this theological jab cause? 92 00:05:40,280 --> 00:05:44,240 Well, the worst that this conundrum can do is that by 93 00:05:44,320 --> 00:05:48,400 Jesus not being able to answer this question adequately, it 94 00:05:48,400 --> 00:05:50,120 would cause him to be embarrassed. 95 00:05:51,080 --> 00:05:55,000 And in the sight of the crowds, they would be able to now have a 96 00:05:55,000 --> 00:05:58,560 reason to question if he was really the Messiah, if he was 97 00:05:58,560 --> 00:06:01,240 really the teacher of teachers, if he was really the one that 98 00:06:01,240 --> 00:06:03,840 the Spirit anointed and appointed to be the saviour of 99 00:06:03,840 --> 00:06:06,520 this people. So in essence, they just want to 100 00:06:06,640 --> 00:06:11,120 try to vandalize his reputation, They want to try to wound his 101 00:06:11,120 --> 00:06:15,720 credibility by bringing this difficult question, I guess, in 102 00:06:15,720 --> 00:06:17,800 their minds, and make him fumble. 103 00:06:18,640 --> 00:06:21,720 And so this is what is happening in this part of the Bible. 104 00:06:22,520 --> 00:06:24,760 But you remember from the Pharisees and the Herodians that 105 00:06:24,760 --> 00:06:27,040 when witnessing them trying to trap Jesus, we're not just 106 00:06:27,040 --> 00:06:29,960 looking at a scene with no relation to us, we're looking at 107 00:06:29,960 --> 00:06:31,960 things that we can adopt in our own lives. 108 00:06:32,400 --> 00:06:35,400 They set a trap for Christ, and they're traps for us as well. 109 00:06:35,400 --> 00:06:37,360 And it's no different with the Sadducees. 110 00:06:37,840 --> 00:06:40,600 In the same way that the Sadducees try to corner Christ, 111 00:06:40,600 --> 00:06:42,920 be mindful of this trap on this day. 112 00:06:44,680 --> 00:06:51,000 There are people who skillfully aim to instill in your heart 113 00:06:51,960 --> 00:06:58,440 doubt, confusion, insecurity concerning the validity of the 114 00:06:58,440 --> 00:07:04,040 Bible, truths that you believe, truths that you hold to with 115 00:07:04,040 --> 00:07:08,120 your heart, with your life. Like the Sadducees, you have 116 00:07:08,120 --> 00:07:13,320 some who want to create in you, doubt about the soundness of 117 00:07:13,320 --> 00:07:17,080 what the word has to say, and that has been the strategy of 118 00:07:17,080 --> 00:07:21,040 Satan from the beginning. The very question that served as 119 00:07:21,040 --> 00:07:25,440 the doorway for sin to enter into our universe was what did 120 00:07:25,440 --> 00:07:30,120 God really say? That is the question that 121 00:07:30,120 --> 00:07:33,360 brought us into this mess thousands of years later. 122 00:07:33,600 --> 00:07:37,000 And it is the question that causes people to remain in sin 123 00:07:37,160 --> 00:07:40,680 and not find liberty in the truth of God's word. 124 00:07:41,000 --> 00:07:43,640 And it's even a question that causes genuine believers who 125 00:07:43,640 --> 00:07:47,240 believe the right truths to be saved, but not some truths to 126 00:07:47,240 --> 00:07:49,760 know greater peace and greater joy. 127 00:07:49,760 --> 00:07:54,120 Did God really say you think Satan just whisper that once in 128 00:07:54,120 --> 00:07:57,320 the beginning of creation and they never utilize that again? 129 00:07:58,040 --> 00:08:01,880 You're dead wrong. And let me remind you that in 130 00:08:01,880 --> 00:08:06,640 Genesis 3, one that before Satan asked that question, we were 131 00:08:06,640 --> 00:08:09,320 told and we were given a description of the instrument 132 00:08:09,320 --> 00:08:12,320 that he used to ask it a serpent. 133 00:08:13,160 --> 00:08:15,280 I don't want to get into the discussion about that too much, 134 00:08:15,280 --> 00:08:18,200 but I want to say this. The Bible describes the serpent 135 00:08:18,320 --> 00:08:22,000 as the most crafty of all the creatures that the Lord had 136 00:08:22,000 --> 00:08:23,880 made. That's an interesting 137 00:08:23,880 --> 00:08:26,920 description, don't you think? And it's there to inform you of 138 00:08:26,920 --> 00:08:32,280 how Satan works. Satan uses crafty things to 139 00:08:32,280 --> 00:08:35,120 convey his lies in your life and mine. 140 00:08:35,679 --> 00:08:40,440 He's very clever. He uses crafty people. 141 00:08:41,039 --> 00:08:46,840 He uses crafty means. He uses crafty packages and so 142 00:08:46,840 --> 00:08:49,880 whether that be through politicians, the arts, 143 00:08:49,960 --> 00:08:54,600 philosophy, science, and the same way he used the craftiest 144 00:08:54,760 --> 00:08:57,760 things of them all back then, he uses them today as well. 145 00:08:57,760 --> 00:09:01,760 Be very careful. He packages his lies in a very 146 00:09:01,760 --> 00:09:06,280 convincing way and people think like, how did Eve fall for the 147 00:09:06,280 --> 00:09:08,760 serpent? You remember the serpent, He, he 148 00:09:08,760 --> 00:09:12,360 was the one that came to Eve and we're looking at a serpent, most 149 00:09:12,360 --> 00:09:13,760 of us in here. I don't know anybody who likes 150 00:09:13,760 --> 00:09:14,920 snakes. I guess they're they're out 151 00:09:14,920 --> 00:09:16,840 there. But this is pre fall. 152 00:09:16,840 --> 00:09:19,920 I I'm under the persuasion that that serpent was beautiful. 153 00:09:21,440 --> 00:09:25,200 That serpent looked harmless. The snake was Slytherin. 154 00:09:25,200 --> 00:09:27,840 Through here we'd all be jumping on our pews and running for the 155 00:09:27,840 --> 00:09:30,280 doors. But when this serpent came to 156 00:09:30,280 --> 00:09:34,000 Eve, she was disarmed. I'm sure there was something 157 00:09:34,000 --> 00:09:40,000 about that serpent was very attractive, very alluring, very 158 00:09:40,000 --> 00:09:43,640 winsome, maybe even comforting. Remember pre fall? 159 00:09:43,640 --> 00:09:49,840 I know you can't imagine it now. Beware, Satan uses crafty 160 00:09:49,840 --> 00:09:57,680 things, and sometimes he'll use unfair, crafty questions to make 161 00:09:57,680 --> 00:10:01,040 your faith wobble about the Bible that you love and believe 162 00:10:01,040 --> 00:10:04,000 in. And so I want us to look at this 163 00:10:04,000 --> 00:10:07,000 portion of Scripture because it provides insights about how you 164 00:10:07,000 --> 00:10:10,160 and I also can evade the web of doubting what the Bible has to 165 00:10:10,160 --> 00:10:16,280 say and live in the Glee, the Glee and the confidence of God's 166 00:10:16,280 --> 00:10:18,160 word. But before we do that, let's 167 00:10:18,160 --> 00:10:19,520 think about who the Sadducees are. 168 00:10:20,400 --> 00:10:27,160 So if the Pharisees were exclusively religious and the 169 00:10:27,160 --> 00:10:32,920 Herodians were predominantly political, the Sadducees were 170 00:10:32,920 --> 00:10:36,600 hybrid of the two. They were religious, but they 171 00:10:36,600 --> 00:10:41,520 were also politically involved. And the Sadducees were different 172 00:10:41,520 --> 00:10:44,440 in that they made-up of the elite of their day. 173 00:10:45,320 --> 00:10:49,080 They actually occupied the most seats of the Supreme Court of 174 00:10:49,080 --> 00:10:52,560 Israel's time, the Sanhedrin. So they were men of prominence, 175 00:10:52,560 --> 00:10:54,760 they were men of influence, they were wealthy, they had great 176 00:10:54,760 --> 00:10:58,040 pedigree, and their main responsible, because they 177 00:10:58,040 --> 00:11:02,160 occupied the majority of the Sanhedrin, was to have oversight 178 00:11:02,160 --> 00:11:04,400 over the activity of the Temple in Jerusalem. 179 00:11:06,240 --> 00:11:09,480 And so that implies that they had some obvious religious 180 00:11:09,480 --> 00:11:12,640 belief and convictions. And they did, though they 181 00:11:12,640 --> 00:11:17,120 differed from the Pharisees. The Pharisees believed in the 182 00:11:17,120 --> 00:11:18,720 entirety of the Hebrew scriptures. 183 00:11:18,720 --> 00:11:21,080 The Pharisees had oral traditions that were passed 184 00:11:21,080 --> 00:11:23,800 down, and unfortunately they held up those traditions even 185 00:11:23,800 --> 00:11:26,560 above the word of God. This the the Sadducees were 186 00:11:26,560 --> 00:11:29,040 different, though, and I'll show you why they're different 187 00:11:29,040 --> 00:11:32,200 because we're told the main difference in Acts 23, verse 8. 188 00:11:32,600 --> 00:11:35,360 It's a brief verse worth looking at if we're going to understand 189 00:11:35,560 --> 00:11:39,080 why the Sadducees are asking this question and why Jesus 190 00:11:39,080 --> 00:11:43,320 answered in the way that he answered in Acts 23 eight. 191 00:11:43,320 --> 00:11:46,920 We're told for the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, 192 00:11:47,960 --> 00:11:53,720 nor Angel, nor spirit, but the Pharisees acknowledge them all. 193 00:11:55,400 --> 00:11:58,560 So the main difference between the Sadducees and their school 194 00:11:58,640 --> 00:12:02,680 of thought with the Pharisees is that they did not believe in a 195 00:12:02,680 --> 00:12:05,400 spiritual world. There are no angels. 196 00:12:05,400 --> 00:12:08,040 There are no demons that parallel our universe, that 197 00:12:08,040 --> 00:12:12,040 interact with our world. They denied an afterlife, which 198 00:12:12,040 --> 00:12:15,400 means that there are no eternal rewards that await, nor there 199 00:12:15,400 --> 00:12:17,880 anything to worry about concerning eternal punishment. 200 00:12:18,480 --> 00:12:21,560 They were annihilationist, meaning when your body died, 201 00:12:21,560 --> 00:12:24,160 your soul died with it, you cease to exist. 202 00:12:24,760 --> 00:12:27,200 And so in some great sense these are kind of like the modern 203 00:12:27,200 --> 00:12:31,320 liberal theologians. They really dismissed a lot of 204 00:12:31,320 --> 00:12:35,080 the supernatural, though not entirely, but strangely these 205 00:12:35,080 --> 00:12:41,000 guys prided themselves in being devoted to the writings of Moses 206 00:12:41,000 --> 00:12:43,280 exclusively. They didn't acknowledge the 207 00:12:43,280 --> 00:12:45,960 prophets, They didn't look to any other writings except for 208 00:12:45,960 --> 00:12:48,800 the first five books of the Hebrew scriptures. 209 00:12:49,120 --> 00:12:51,520 So they were Moses only kind of believer. 210 00:12:51,520 --> 00:12:54,440 So they did have some tie to the Bible, but not like the 211 00:12:54,440 --> 00:12:56,040 Pharisees. And there's no way you can catch 212 00:12:56,040 --> 00:12:59,040 a Sadducee take seriously any of the oral traditions that were 213 00:12:59,040 --> 00:13:01,240 passed down by their opposing school of thought. 214 00:13:01,240 --> 00:13:04,640 So these guys were at odds with one another, but they found a 215 00:13:04,640 --> 00:13:08,960 common enemy in Jesus. And understanding the Sadducees 216 00:13:08,960 --> 00:13:12,520 theological framework helps us understand their way of life. 217 00:13:12,720 --> 00:13:15,600 Because yes, they were theological, but they're also 218 00:13:15,720 --> 00:13:18,000 political, actually more political than they were 219 00:13:18,000 --> 00:13:19,680 spiritual, if you can call it that. 220 00:13:21,480 --> 00:13:24,240 And it makes sense, doesn't it? Why were they so invested with 221 00:13:24,240 --> 00:13:26,600 Rome? Why were they so preoccupied 222 00:13:26,600 --> 00:13:29,360 with those things? Because they believe that this 223 00:13:29,360 --> 00:13:30,840 world is all that there is to life. 224 00:13:33,440 --> 00:13:37,480 There's no world to expect. There's no investment to make in 225 00:13:37,480 --> 00:13:40,240 the world to come. And So what do they want to do? 226 00:13:40,240 --> 00:13:42,840 They want to pursue, and they want to secure positions of 227 00:13:42,840 --> 00:13:46,160 power and wealth and influence. That's their ultimate ambition, 228 00:13:46,440 --> 00:13:48,040 because that's the fruit of their belief. 229 00:13:50,000 --> 00:13:53,800 And the worldview here of the Sadducees made them appease the 230 00:13:53,800 --> 00:13:57,440 Romans in a very heavy way. And they wanted to, in that 231 00:13:57,800 --> 00:14:00,120 maintain their places of control and honor. 232 00:14:00,720 --> 00:14:04,640 And with that, it's no surprise that they abuse their positions 233 00:14:04,640 --> 00:14:07,560 of power and honor. If the Sadducees made-up the 234 00:14:07,560 --> 00:14:10,520 majority of the Sanhedrin, and the Sanhedrin in great part were 235 00:14:10,520 --> 00:14:13,280 responsible for the temple, then even what we saw with the 236 00:14:13,280 --> 00:14:15,280 merchants in the temple makes sense. 237 00:14:15,760 --> 00:14:17,240 They made the place of God a business. 238 00:14:17,240 --> 00:14:18,600 Why? Because, again, what are we 239 00:14:18,600 --> 00:14:20,920 worried about? This is all there is to life. 240 00:14:21,080 --> 00:14:23,480 There's no judgment. There's no hell. 241 00:14:23,800 --> 00:14:25,760 There's no heaven. This is it. 242 00:14:26,120 --> 00:14:28,600 So eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die. 243 00:14:29,320 --> 00:14:33,360 That's how these men lived, and This is why they weren't even 244 00:14:33,360 --> 00:14:36,000 like the Pharisees, persistent opposers of Christ. 245 00:14:36,000 --> 00:14:39,920 Because they're not concerned about a Messiah, they could care 246 00:14:39,920 --> 00:14:42,920 less about the anointed 1 to come and deliver us all. 247 00:14:42,920 --> 00:14:45,840 Right, Rome is here, and so let's do the best with Rome and 248 00:14:45,840 --> 00:14:47,400 try to make the most of this life. 249 00:14:48,120 --> 00:14:53,000 But the Sadducees appear on the scene when they realized, like 250 00:14:53,000 --> 00:14:57,920 the Herodians who are completely political, that this Jesus and 251 00:14:57,920 --> 00:15:01,560 his movement can now ruffle our ambitions. 252 00:15:02,520 --> 00:15:06,280 And so they're going to step up to the plate, not wanting there 253 00:15:06,280 --> 00:15:08,840 to be any potential risk of losing what they price so much 254 00:15:08,840 --> 00:15:14,040 by having Rome invade by being provoked by Jesus. 255 00:15:14,040 --> 00:15:17,320 So they're going to approach Christ now, and they're going to 256 00:15:17,320 --> 00:15:21,640 do their best to give a shot at his reputation so that it would 257 00:15:21,640 --> 00:15:25,560 at least give a blow to the momentum in Jerusalem. 258 00:15:26,120 --> 00:15:29,040 And in looking at this interaction, I want us to see 3 259 00:15:29,040 --> 00:15:34,640 insights of how you and I can avoid the trap of doubting God's 260 00:15:34,640 --> 00:15:37,680 word. Let's read it again, verse 18. 261 00:15:37,880 --> 00:15:40,440 And Sadducees came to him who say that there is no 262 00:15:40,440 --> 00:15:44,000 resurrection and they asked him a question saying Teacher Moses 263 00:15:44,000 --> 00:15:46,560 wrote for us that if a man, brother, man's brother dies and 264 00:15:46,560 --> 00:15:49,240 leaves a wife but leaves no child, the man must take the 265 00:15:49,240 --> 00:15:50,880 widow and raise up Austin for his brother. 266 00:15:50,880 --> 00:15:53,840 Pause. That's in the Bible. 267 00:15:54,480 --> 00:15:56,840 You're going to find that in Deuteronomy chapter 25, 268 00:15:56,840 --> 00:15:59,160 specifically in verse five and six, and you don't have to turn 269 00:15:59,160 --> 00:16:00,600 there. But it's a law concerning 270 00:16:00,880 --> 00:16:04,240 marriage, at least one law in the context of marriage. 271 00:16:04,560 --> 00:16:08,800 And what this law did is it provided for a family line, that 272 00:16:08,800 --> 00:16:13,520 if a man died leaving no offspring, then that man's 273 00:16:13,520 --> 00:16:19,240 brother was responsible to marry that wife, give her a child, and 274 00:16:19,240 --> 00:16:23,280 then the deceased husband's name and property and land will 275 00:16:23,280 --> 00:16:26,560 remain with that family. And so this was a way to 276 00:16:26,560 --> 00:16:29,000 protecting widows. It was a way of protecting also 277 00:16:29,000 --> 00:16:31,680 the inheritance of that family, of those tribes. 278 00:16:32,200 --> 00:16:35,720 And we may think that's unfair. What if that brother doesn't 279 00:16:35,720 --> 00:16:37,800 want to marry that woman for whatever reason? 280 00:16:37,800 --> 00:16:40,960 Well, there's a way out of it. It wasn't completely binding, 281 00:16:41,280 --> 00:16:43,880 but it was a thing of honor more than anything else. 282 00:16:44,160 --> 00:16:47,640 And so the the Sadducees are taking that law concerning 283 00:16:47,640 --> 00:16:50,360 marriage of the old covenant under the old covenant, and 284 00:16:50,360 --> 00:16:52,480 they're applying it in a very strange way. 285 00:16:52,960 --> 00:16:56,240 They create this ridiculous hypothetical situation. 286 00:16:56,760 --> 00:16:58,800 And you know the rest. Look at verse 20. 287 00:16:59,080 --> 00:17:01,920 There were seven brothers. And then they go on to describe 288 00:17:01,920 --> 00:17:04,359 the first took a wife and when he died left no offspring. 289 00:17:04,480 --> 00:17:07,960 The second also and in verse 22 and the seven left no offspring. 290 00:17:08,079 --> 00:17:09,880 Last of all, the woman also died. 291 00:17:11,040 --> 00:17:13,720 So they're saying now in connection to the resurrection, 292 00:17:14,359 --> 00:17:18,480 all right, if there is life after this life, then what's 293 00:17:18,480 --> 00:17:21,119 going to happen to these seven guys who are going to appear in 294 00:17:21,119 --> 00:17:23,000 the world to come? And they all married the same 295 00:17:23,000 --> 00:17:28,920 gal. Figure that one out, Lord, and 296 00:17:29,040 --> 00:17:31,560 you get the impression that if this is the question that they 297 00:17:31,560 --> 00:17:34,320 asked Jesus, then it was probably like the best thing 298 00:17:34,320 --> 00:17:37,480 that they had in the chamber. It probably was. 299 00:17:37,480 --> 00:17:39,600 In fact, I will take it further. I don't want to speculate too 300 00:17:39,600 --> 00:17:41,800 much, but it could be that they've used this against the 301 00:17:41,800 --> 00:17:44,200 Pharisees, and the Pharisees were not able to answer the 302 00:17:44,200 --> 00:17:46,680 question for themselves. So it was like their go to 303 00:17:46,680 --> 00:17:50,320 question in a debate and they thought themselves we got 304 00:17:50,320 --> 00:17:53,040 nobody's been able to answer this, nobody's been able to 305 00:17:53,040 --> 00:17:55,280 let's do it, let's try. So they come up and they say, 306 00:17:55,280 --> 00:17:58,840 what do you say Lord? And you see in thinking that the 307 00:17:58,840 --> 00:18:02,480 scriptures were silent on this issue, namely marriage in the 308 00:18:02,480 --> 00:18:04,560 afterlife, these men thought that they had a valid 309 00:18:04,560 --> 00:18:07,960 refutation. And here's the point that I want 310 00:18:07,960 --> 00:18:09,720 to make. Similarly, there are some 311 00:18:09,720 --> 00:18:12,640 believers who argue in like manner. 312 00:18:14,280 --> 00:18:18,360 They tried to discredit the Word of God as being insufficient or 313 00:18:18,360 --> 00:18:21,560 contradictory by looking and pointing out realities that are 314 00:18:21,920 --> 00:18:27,080 not mentioned or barely emphasized in the scriptures. 315 00:18:27,920 --> 00:18:29,680 And so here's the thing to keep in mind. 316 00:18:29,880 --> 00:18:33,120 Keep in mind of if you are going to be 1, to avoid the trap of 317 00:18:33,120 --> 00:18:37,760 doubting God's Word #1, some skeptics of the Bible entangle 318 00:18:37,760 --> 00:18:40,840 others with speculation, speculation. 319 00:18:42,040 --> 00:18:47,120 And what that means is they try to bring to people's attentions 320 00:18:47,120 --> 00:18:50,920 things that are not highlighted or underscored directly in the 321 00:18:50,920 --> 00:18:53,800 Word of God. Or they they they they make 322 00:18:53,800 --> 00:18:57,280 these arguments and they they produce these unfair kind of 323 00:18:57,600 --> 00:19:01,760 hypotheticals to try to cause you to rethink the soundness, 324 00:19:02,000 --> 00:19:04,880 the validity, the accuracy, the sensibility of some of the 325 00:19:04,880 --> 00:19:07,480 things that you believe. But here's the thing that you 326 00:19:07,480 --> 00:19:10,200 and I have to do as believers. You have to be willing to humble 327 00:19:10,200 --> 00:19:16,320 yourself and be content with the truth that not every question 328 00:19:16,760 --> 00:19:20,880 given there is a direct answer provided in the Bible. 329 00:19:22,360 --> 00:19:25,640 I know that sounds shocking, but it really isn't because the 330 00:19:25,640 --> 00:19:28,960 Bible was not designed to answer every single question that one 331 00:19:28,960 --> 00:19:32,280 can come up with. You don't find a cupcake recipe 332 00:19:32,280 --> 00:19:35,360 at a math book, do you? And we don't criticize that math 333 00:19:35,360 --> 00:19:37,320 book, do we? Oh, the Bible doesn't tell me 334 00:19:37,320 --> 00:19:39,840 how to make frosted cupcakes. Or excuse me, The Bible doesn't 335 00:19:39,960 --> 00:19:41,840 tell me to do this or do that. Here's the thing. 336 00:19:41,960 --> 00:19:44,400 The Bible wasn't designed to answer absolutely everything. 337 00:19:45,000 --> 00:19:46,920 People have trouble reading the Bible as it is now. 338 00:19:46,920 --> 00:19:48,800 You want to answer every single question in the Bible in the 339 00:19:48,800 --> 00:19:51,720 world. The idea of the Bible is that it 340 00:19:51,720 --> 00:19:55,200 has been given to us specifically to disclose 341 00:19:55,200 --> 00:19:58,040 redemptive history and how mankind can be saved. 342 00:19:58,600 --> 00:20:02,000 That is, the design and every detail provided orbits around 343 00:20:02,000 --> 00:20:04,920 that central theme. And so you and I, even as 344 00:20:04,920 --> 00:20:10,240 believers, have to step back and apply Deuteronomy 2929, which 345 00:20:10,240 --> 00:20:13,240 says this. The secret things belong to the 346 00:20:13,240 --> 00:20:16,720 Lord our God, but the things that are revealed belong to us 347 00:20:16,720 --> 00:20:19,880 and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of 348 00:20:19,880 --> 00:20:22,800 this law. There is a category of truth and 349 00:20:22,800 --> 00:20:29,000 information and data that's under the filing of secrets, and 350 00:20:29,000 --> 00:20:31,440 the only one who has the passcode to it is the Lord. 351 00:20:33,280 --> 00:20:36,680 That frustrates people, that makes people flustered, but 352 00:20:36,680 --> 00:20:39,080 that's something that we as creatures have to be willing to 353 00:20:39,080 --> 00:20:41,840 comply with. There are just some things that 354 00:20:41,840 --> 00:20:45,800 we will not know in great detail, some things that we 355 00:20:45,800 --> 00:20:49,240 might not know at all. There are secrets that belong to 356 00:20:49,240 --> 00:20:52,640 the Lord our God, and the Bible tells us that in the book. 357 00:20:55,280 --> 00:20:58,040 But what has been given to us, according to this verse, is 358 00:20:58,040 --> 00:21:01,240 sufficient, Sufficient for what it says. 359 00:21:01,240 --> 00:21:03,840 But the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children 360 00:21:03,840 --> 00:21:06,720 forever. That we may do all the words of 361 00:21:06,720 --> 00:21:09,720 this law. What has been granted is 362 00:21:09,720 --> 00:21:13,520 sufficient for us to obey God in the way that he wants us to obey 363 00:21:13,520 --> 00:21:16,960 him, to respond to God in the way that He wants us to, that 364 00:21:17,120 --> 00:21:21,320 that is given, that is laid out for us, we have no reason to 365 00:21:21,320 --> 00:21:24,600 doubt or question. Are we exactly where God wants 366 00:21:24,600 --> 00:21:26,640 us to be? In our faith, in our practice 367 00:21:26,760 --> 00:21:28,960 and the way that we interact with Him and one another? 368 00:21:29,400 --> 00:21:32,960 Everything pertaining to that has been disclosed, and there 369 00:21:32,960 --> 00:21:35,760 are other things that we will never know, and we should be OK 370 00:21:35,760 --> 00:21:38,680 with that. But in this case with the 371 00:21:38,680 --> 00:21:40,880 Sadducees, they're trying to create something that wasn't 372 00:21:40,880 --> 00:21:47,040 intended to connect this law about what a man should do for 373 00:21:47,040 --> 00:21:49,440 his brother if he dies concerning his wife and his 374 00:21:49,440 --> 00:21:51,640 family line. What does that have to do with 375 00:21:51,640 --> 00:21:56,160 the resurrection to come? Instead, we have to see here 376 00:21:56,160 --> 00:21:58,960 that His revelation intends to renew us and change the way we 377 00:21:58,960 --> 00:22:00,720 live. And that's how we approach the 378 00:22:00,720 --> 00:22:03,160 word of God. And your response with that is 379 00:22:03,160 --> 00:22:06,600 to rest. Just rest in that truth and 380 00:22:06,600 --> 00:22:11,080 resist the enchantment of endless questions and irrelevant 381 00:22:11,080 --> 00:22:13,520 disputes. You know the Bible more than one 382 00:22:13,520 --> 00:22:16,200 occasions tells Christians Be careful and the kind of 383 00:22:16,200 --> 00:22:20,480 theological debates and battles you get yourself into. 384 00:22:20,480 --> 00:22:23,800 Let me remind you in First Timothy 1/4 what we're told 385 00:22:24,920 --> 00:22:28,760 First Timothy 14. Nor devote themselves to myths 386 00:22:28,760 --> 00:22:33,160 and endless genealogies which promote speculations rather than 387 00:22:33,160 --> 00:22:35,520 the stewardship from God. That is by faith. 388 00:22:36,440 --> 00:22:39,120 There are some people who just they just love talking about 389 00:22:39,120 --> 00:22:44,360 things that there aren't really answers for philosophying and 390 00:22:45,000 --> 00:22:50,160 theological sparring. And you can devote yourself in 391 00:22:50,160 --> 00:22:53,520 such conversations where it becomes actually unfruitful. 392 00:22:53,720 --> 00:22:56,120 And instead of spending your energy and your focus on what 393 00:22:56,120 --> 00:22:59,600 has been revealed, becoming more godly and more accurate and your 394 00:22:59,600 --> 00:23:02,480 understanding of God, you're giving yourself to what ifs and 395 00:23:02,480 --> 00:23:06,800 what abouts and why nots. And that can drain you of the 396 00:23:06,800 --> 00:23:09,440 limited things that you do have to give yourself over to what 397 00:23:09,440 --> 00:23:12,480 has been known. So Paul, not not just here in 398 00:23:12,480 --> 00:23:16,160 many in many places. Tell your people, Pastor Tim, 399 00:23:16,520 --> 00:23:19,520 not to devote themselves to these things, because it's 400 00:23:19,520 --> 00:23:23,000 dangerous and it can actually lead to strange conclusions and 401 00:23:23,000 --> 00:23:27,120 theological beliefs. So how do I avoid the trap of 402 00:23:27,120 --> 00:23:30,000 doubting God's Word? Well, don't have conversations 403 00:23:30,000 --> 00:23:33,520 and don't entertain things that only lead to speculations. 404 00:23:35,400 --> 00:23:37,400 But here's the thing that's interesting about the Sadducees, 405 00:23:37,400 --> 00:23:43,560 because their argument didn't just prove that they were not 406 00:23:44,160 --> 00:23:45,800 engaging with the Word as they should. 407 00:23:46,120 --> 00:23:48,480 They proved that they didn't really know the Bible to begin 408 00:23:48,480 --> 00:23:51,520 with. Look what Jesus says in verse 409 00:23:51,520 --> 00:23:56,200 24. Jesus said to them, is this not 410 00:23:56,200 --> 00:23:59,800 the reason you are wrong? Is this not the reason you are 411 00:23:59,800 --> 00:24:03,600 wrong because you know neither the scriptures nor the power of 412 00:24:03,600 --> 00:24:06,520 God? The Lord impresses me. 413 00:24:06,520 --> 00:24:08,920 I mean, he tells the people that should know the Bible the most, 414 00:24:08,920 --> 00:24:11,960 that they don't know the Bible. He told the Pharisees, have you 415 00:24:11,960 --> 00:24:13,520 not read? It's like, excuse me, that's 416 00:24:13,520 --> 00:24:14,920 what we do. And now he tells this other 417 00:24:14,920 --> 00:24:16,840 group of religious people, you don't know the Bible. 418 00:24:17,680 --> 00:24:22,960 You don't know the Scriptures. So before dismantling this 419 00:24:22,960 --> 00:24:25,800 apparent dilemma, the Lord deals with the underlying issue of 420 00:24:25,800 --> 00:24:29,440 their question, which is their outright denial, their outright 421 00:24:29,440 --> 00:24:32,520 denial of the resurrection. And the reason why they denied 422 00:24:32,520 --> 00:24:35,520 the resurrection was not because they came to the Bible and they 423 00:24:35,520 --> 00:24:37,200 were not persuaded by the argument. 424 00:24:37,680 --> 00:24:40,560 It was because they failed to see it. 425 00:24:41,840 --> 00:24:43,200 And he's going to point that out later. 426 00:24:44,000 --> 00:24:46,560 They thought it had nothing to do with where they stood 427 00:24:46,560 --> 00:24:49,280 concerning the Scriptures. They thought it was a silly 428 00:24:49,280 --> 00:24:51,960 idea. This man made perhaps concept. 429 00:24:52,120 --> 00:24:55,360 And so they mocked it and they scorned it, and they were 430 00:24:55,360 --> 00:24:57,920 ultimately ignorant of it. And because they were ignorant 431 00:24:57,920 --> 00:25:00,480 of this thing called the resurrection, they ended up 432 00:25:00,480 --> 00:25:02,120 what? Becoming ignorant of what God 433 00:25:02,120 --> 00:25:05,000 can do, namely, raise people from the dead. 434 00:25:05,320 --> 00:25:07,160 So you don't know the Scriptures, and because you 435 00:25:07,160 --> 00:25:09,960 don't know the Scriptures, you don't know the power of God. 436 00:25:10,800 --> 00:25:13,080 And so this is the indictment that he makes against them. 437 00:25:14,280 --> 00:25:17,400 And so the second insight and overcoming the traps that are 438 00:25:17,400 --> 00:25:20,800 laid before you by others who want to cause you to doubt God's 439 00:25:20,800 --> 00:25:23,320 word is this. Some critics of the Bible are 440 00:25:23,320 --> 00:25:24,880 critics because they don't know the Bible. 441 00:25:27,960 --> 00:25:30,960 Some critics of the Bible are critics because they don't know 442 00:25:30,960 --> 00:25:34,760 the Bible to begin with. And when you match that up with 443 00:25:34,760 --> 00:25:37,000 somebody who claims to be a Christian, who also doesn't know 444 00:25:37,000 --> 00:25:38,480 the Bible, then you got problems. 445 00:25:41,080 --> 00:25:43,280 I've discovered in my conversations with people from 446 00:25:43,280 --> 00:25:46,320 different faiths, different cults, even philosophies, that a 447 00:25:46,320 --> 00:25:49,720 majority, if not all of them, who reject the truth, that is 448 00:25:49,720 --> 00:25:52,840 the truth, have not personally made an examination of the 449 00:25:52,840 --> 00:25:55,480 foundations of our faith. Have you ever discovered that 450 00:25:57,120 --> 00:25:59,600 talk to people long enough from this sect, or talk to people 451 00:25:59,600 --> 00:26:01,840 long enough from that expression of religion? 452 00:26:02,080 --> 00:26:05,400 And what you discover is those people who represent that camp 453 00:26:05,640 --> 00:26:10,600 say the same things a majority of the time because they have a 454 00:26:10,600 --> 00:26:14,960 shared script. And what they receive a majority 455 00:26:14,960 --> 00:26:17,080 of the times, the things that they read from all the authors 456 00:26:17,080 --> 00:26:20,280 who think like them or blogs that they found or some guy with 457 00:26:20,280 --> 00:26:23,000 a podcast. And they adopt these things. 458 00:26:23,000 --> 00:26:25,080 And then when they find a Christian, they just shoot off 459 00:26:25,880 --> 00:26:27,080 thinking that it will trip them up. 460 00:26:27,080 --> 00:26:29,480 And it often does because of the Third Point that I'm going to 461 00:26:29,480 --> 00:26:33,000 get to in a moment. So a lot of people just receive 462 00:26:33,000 --> 00:26:36,200 and repeat from talking points and other writings that they've 463 00:26:36,200 --> 00:26:37,760 discovered. But they haven't made a personal 464 00:26:37,760 --> 00:26:41,800 ambition to come to this holy book and discover the harmony of 465 00:26:41,800 --> 00:26:45,160 it. And how even with the basics of 466 00:26:45,160 --> 00:26:47,960 the faith, even a child can understand they haven't made 467 00:26:47,960 --> 00:26:51,120 that effort. Because with presuppositions 468 00:26:51,120 --> 00:26:54,080 already, Because of their guard, because they're already set on 469 00:26:54,080 --> 00:26:57,560 wanting to disprove this truth. They haven't made the first step 470 00:26:57,560 --> 00:26:59,760 and effort to discover if it's true to begin with. 471 00:27:01,920 --> 00:27:04,840 And if you've engaged with people from different places and 472 00:27:04,840 --> 00:27:08,960 beliefs long enough, you'll discover that they parrot the 473 00:27:08,960 --> 00:27:14,560 same things in the same ways. And so that should comfort you. 474 00:27:14,640 --> 00:27:18,280 That that should comfort you because some people are 475 00:27:18,280 --> 00:27:22,880 intimidated by what others say. But you shouldn't because of the 476 00:27:22,880 --> 00:27:25,640 Third Point. If you want to overcome the trap 477 00:27:26,000 --> 00:27:28,160 of doubting God's Word, and this is where I want to stay for the 478 00:27:28,160 --> 00:27:30,680 majority in the rest of this time, is that you must be 479 00:27:30,680 --> 00:27:33,960 thoroughly equipped with what God has said. 480 00:27:35,280 --> 00:27:37,520 The more familiar you are with your faith, the more you have a 481 00:27:37,520 --> 00:27:41,800 grasp on this truth. The less doubt will torment you. 482 00:27:44,240 --> 00:27:46,880 People often ask, How can I grow my knowledge of the Word? 483 00:27:47,800 --> 00:27:49,160 How can I increase in this believe? 484 00:27:49,160 --> 00:27:50,080 How? Where do I start? 485 00:27:50,080 --> 00:27:54,280 Can I tell you something? In my at least experience in the 486 00:27:54,280 --> 00:27:56,760 first few months of walking with the Lord being very eager and 487 00:27:56,760 --> 00:27:59,000 anxious to tell people about Jesus Christ, I've been 488 00:27:59,000 --> 00:28:01,520 presented questions that I could not answer on the spot. 489 00:28:02,120 --> 00:28:03,760 And I'm so thankful for those moments. 490 00:28:03,960 --> 00:28:06,000 You know why? Because in those moments where I 491 00:28:06,000 --> 00:28:11,760 was, it gave me enough motivation to lock myself in my 492 00:28:11,760 --> 00:28:15,920 basement apartment and discover that truth that I could not 493 00:28:15,920 --> 00:28:21,120 answer. And when I've come to this word 494 00:28:21,120 --> 00:28:24,000 of my personal study over the years and I've stumbled upon 495 00:28:24,000 --> 00:28:26,520 something in one account and then I compare it to another 496 00:28:26,520 --> 00:28:30,320 account 1 description, I compare it to another description, my 497 00:28:30,320 --> 00:28:32,760 heart begins to race a little bit because I'm like, did I just 498 00:28:32,760 --> 00:28:37,880 find a contradiction in the Bible And I wrestle with the 499 00:28:37,880 --> 00:28:40,720 text and I examine the text and I research about the text. 500 00:28:41,480 --> 00:28:44,360 I can't tell you the relief that comes over me when I realized 501 00:28:44,360 --> 00:28:47,640 no, no, no, the Bible knows exactly what it is describing. 502 00:28:47,640 --> 00:28:49,640 God knows exactly how he authored this book. 503 00:28:49,840 --> 00:28:53,240 And I am more concrete in my faith than I was when I found a 504 00:28:53,240 --> 00:29:00,080 thing to begin with. Look what Jesus does in verse 505 00:29:00,080 --> 00:29:04,000 25. For when they rise from the dead 506 00:29:04,720 --> 00:29:08,360 they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels 507 00:29:08,360 --> 00:29:11,160 in heaven. And As for the dead being 508 00:29:11,160 --> 00:29:13,720 raised, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the passage 509 00:29:13,720 --> 00:29:17,320 about the Bush, how God spoke to him saying, I am the God of 510 00:29:17,320 --> 00:29:19,560 Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob? 511 00:29:19,800 --> 00:29:23,200 He is not God of the dead but of the living. 512 00:29:23,200 --> 00:29:27,320 You are quite wrong. In verse 25. 513 00:29:28,480 --> 00:29:31,000 You're dealing with the one who descended from heaven. 514 00:29:31,720 --> 00:29:34,480 You're dealing with the one who will be the king of the world to 515 00:29:34,480 --> 00:29:37,040 come. You're dealing with the one who 516 00:29:37,040 --> 00:29:41,280 knows all things. And he clarifies first the 517 00:29:41,280 --> 00:29:43,720 symptom of the bedrock of their faulty view. 518 00:29:43,960 --> 00:29:46,400 And he says, you guys don't know what you're talking about 519 00:29:46,400 --> 00:29:49,280 because you think that the resurrection is going to be a 520 00:29:49,280 --> 00:29:51,400 continuation of the life as we know it. 521 00:29:51,800 --> 00:29:54,720 And it's not. It's not. 522 00:29:56,960 --> 00:29:58,840 There will no be no marriage in heaven. 523 00:29:59,640 --> 00:30:03,920 I know the Mormon say otherwise, but it's not true because of 524 00:30:03,920 --> 00:30:07,200 what Jesus says and some are conflicted by this. 525 00:30:07,200 --> 00:30:10,040 May just pause your to even just meditate on the life to come. 526 00:30:10,840 --> 00:30:13,000 Some are conflicted by this because they can't imagine a 527 00:30:13,000 --> 00:30:16,400 world void of the deep bond that one can know in the place of 528 00:30:16,400 --> 00:30:19,880 marriage. Some are baffled by this because 529 00:30:19,880 --> 00:30:22,920 they can't imagine a world where they can't have access to the 530 00:30:22,960 --> 00:30:27,160 ecstasy of a physical, intimate relationship with another person 531 00:30:27,160 --> 00:30:28,320 that they've made a covenant with. 532 00:30:28,320 --> 00:30:32,240 Right, Some of you who are in love with your spouse and I pray 533 00:30:32,240 --> 00:30:34,560 that every person here is madly in love with their wives and 534 00:30:34,560 --> 00:30:36,840 their husbands. You've probably even thought to 535 00:30:36,840 --> 00:30:39,400 yourself and had conversations with your spouse we're not going 536 00:30:39,400 --> 00:30:42,600 to be married in heaven. That would be strange. 537 00:30:43,240 --> 00:30:45,320 How am I going to see you? How are you going to see me? 538 00:30:46,080 --> 00:30:48,160 And some might be disappointed by Jesus. 539 00:30:48,160 --> 00:30:49,760 Brief description of the world to come. 540 00:30:49,760 --> 00:30:53,280 But be comforted to know that what this meant to describe is 541 00:30:53,280 --> 00:30:57,560 that there will be a bliss so intense that it will make even 542 00:30:57,560 --> 00:31:01,320 the joys of marital covenant relationships seem shallow. 543 00:31:04,400 --> 00:31:07,560 There will be such an intense enjoyment of the things of God, 544 00:31:07,560 --> 00:31:09,440 the glory of God, the people of God. 545 00:31:09,440 --> 00:31:12,200 And if we're enjoying this now and we're still in this flesh, 546 00:31:12,360 --> 00:31:14,600 what's it going to be like when we're all perfect? 547 00:31:15,880 --> 00:31:17,360 I know you're trying to find a perfect church. 548 00:31:17,360 --> 00:31:18,560 You ain't going to find a friend. 549 00:31:18,880 --> 00:31:20,480 You got to wait till heaven for that. 550 00:31:21,640 --> 00:31:25,760 But all a day where we get along all the time. 551 00:31:26,120 --> 00:31:29,880 No wonderful thought, A oneness in the presence of God. 552 00:31:29,880 --> 00:31:33,960 That will be something that your body now would not be able to 553 00:31:33,960 --> 00:31:37,280 handle. It would combust if you even 554 00:31:37,280 --> 00:31:44,000 sipped of what the glory that awaits is going to do to you. 555 00:31:44,080 --> 00:31:49,120 So Jesus talks about indirectly of something that is not going 556 00:31:49,120 --> 00:31:51,680 to be known, something that's really sometimes even the chief 557 00:31:51,680 --> 00:31:55,160 goal of people, just to find that one person that I can walk 558 00:31:55,160 --> 00:31:58,480 hand in hand with and that's going to be non existent. 559 00:32:00,560 --> 00:32:03,720 For some it's not even that, for some it's gold and money and 560 00:32:03,720 --> 00:32:06,640 jewels and possessions. May I remind you, the goal that 561 00:32:06,640 --> 00:32:09,560 people are killing and cheating about is going to become 562 00:32:09,560 --> 00:32:14,120 pavement in heaven. We're going to step on that 563 00:32:14,120 --> 00:32:19,480 stuff, and I can assure you that as awesome as the sight of 564 00:32:19,480 --> 00:32:22,880 Golden streets will be, it's going to be the glory of Jesus 565 00:32:22,880 --> 00:32:27,040 Christ that's going to apprehend you and take your breath away 566 00:32:27,360 --> 00:32:29,960 for thousands upon thousands of years. 567 00:32:32,400 --> 00:32:36,280 So though the Scriptures does not in the Old Covenant, at 568 00:32:36,280 --> 00:32:39,520 least in the Old Testament, disclose every single activity 569 00:32:39,520 --> 00:32:43,520 that will take place in heaven, it does over and over provide 570 00:32:43,520 --> 00:32:47,400 this truth, that the theme of heaven will be the absolute 571 00:32:47,400 --> 00:32:49,640 glory of God that you and I will know and enjoy. 572 00:32:49,640 --> 00:32:52,760 Let me read to you Psalm 17, verse 15. 573 00:32:52,760 --> 00:32:54,600 This is a verse about the resurrection right here in Psalm 574 00:32:54,600 --> 00:32:58,800 17, verse 15. As for me, I shall behold your 575 00:32:58,800 --> 00:33:01,600 face in righteousness when I awake. 576 00:33:02,360 --> 00:33:04,800 I shall be satisfied with your likeness. 577 00:33:05,960 --> 00:33:10,600 Like awake from what? Awake from death, Psalm 1715. 578 00:33:10,640 --> 00:33:12,800 As for me and the verses proceeding that he's talking 579 00:33:12,800 --> 00:33:16,080 about the wicked and what they toil after he goes, never mind 580 00:33:16,080 --> 00:33:19,120 that. As for me, when I awake, I will 581 00:33:19,120 --> 00:33:25,400 be satisfied with your likeness. Satisfied like real eternal 582 00:33:25,640 --> 00:33:31,520 satisfaction, one might say. Well, of course the Lord can be 583 00:33:31,520 --> 00:33:34,480 confident about this world to come, because he's the king of 584 00:33:34,480 --> 00:33:36,040 the world and He created that world. 585 00:33:36,040 --> 00:33:39,240 But wait, he's also our example. He's not just flexing his 586 00:33:39,240 --> 00:33:41,080 omniscience by answering the Sadducees. 587 00:33:41,200 --> 00:33:43,720 He wants to provide us a principle, because in this 588 00:33:43,720 --> 00:33:48,240 moment he's about to point to the Bible, and that's what he 589 00:33:48,240 --> 00:33:50,480 does in verse 26. As for the dead being raised, 590 00:33:50,480 --> 00:33:52,480 have you not read in the book of Moses? 591 00:33:52,960 --> 00:33:56,000 And then he goes to Exodus chapter 3, and he speaks about 592 00:33:56,000 --> 00:34:01,480 the moment of the burning Bush. And he This is fascinating 593 00:34:01,480 --> 00:34:03,240 because he could have gone to Daniel. 594 00:34:03,240 --> 00:34:05,280 There's great verses in Daniel about the resurrection. 595 00:34:05,560 --> 00:34:07,600 Could have gone to Isaiah, plenty in there about the 596 00:34:07,600 --> 00:34:10,760 resurrection, could have gone to the Psalms, could have gone to 597 00:34:10,880 --> 00:34:13,840 some of the minor prophets. But instead he goes to the book 598 00:34:13,840 --> 00:34:14,760 of Moses. You know why? 599 00:34:14,760 --> 00:34:15,880 Right. Because you heard about the 600 00:34:15,880 --> 00:34:17,719 Sadducees. That's all they adhered to. 601 00:34:17,719 --> 00:34:23,800 And so he, he's going to in some way, I don't think entirely, but 602 00:34:23,800 --> 00:34:26,560 in in one way he's going to, he's going to show them how they 603 00:34:26,560 --> 00:34:28,719 missed it even and what they exclusively believed in. 604 00:34:29,239 --> 00:34:31,400 OK, you hold to only the books of Moses. 605 00:34:31,600 --> 00:34:34,679 Did you realize what God said to Moses in Exodus chapter 3? 606 00:34:36,480 --> 00:34:41,120 And here's the thing, the Lord who is the Word shows me here of 607 00:34:41,120 --> 00:34:46,360 how much he knew the Word, because who would have pulled a 608 00:34:46,360 --> 00:34:49,760 resurrection truth out of the burning Bush? 609 00:34:49,800 --> 00:34:54,880 And Moses having a conversation because we right here in that 610 00:34:54,880 --> 00:34:58,200 passage how God spoke to him saying, I am the God of Abraham, 611 00:34:58,200 --> 00:35:00,040 the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. 612 00:35:01,360 --> 00:35:02,880 Can I ask you something? When you read that in Exodus 613 00:35:02,880 --> 00:35:05,960 chapter 3, did you think, oh OK, there is a resurrection? 614 00:35:08,320 --> 00:35:12,440 How the Lord saw the scriptures, the depth that the Lord had and 615 00:35:12,440 --> 00:35:14,520 not just seeing things at face value? 616 00:35:14,520 --> 00:35:16,560 Yes, we should take the simplicity of the scriptures 617 00:35:16,880 --> 00:35:20,840 with joy, but also the implications of it, the 618 00:35:20,840 --> 00:35:23,240 implications of some of these truths that I want to see with 619 00:35:23,240 --> 00:35:25,080 that kind of depth. Because here's what the 620 00:35:25,080 --> 00:35:28,920 resurrection hinges on God telling Moses I am the God of 621 00:35:28,920 --> 00:35:31,320 Abraham and Isaac and Jacob, not I was. 622 00:35:32,760 --> 00:35:38,720 I am implying that though even in Exodus 3 Abraham, Isaac, and 623 00:35:38,720 --> 00:35:42,400 Jacob were long gone, God could still say to his current servant 624 00:35:42,400 --> 00:35:48,680 I am the God of these men. God is not the God of dead 625 00:35:48,680 --> 00:35:51,760 worshippers. God is the God of living 626 00:35:51,760 --> 00:35:55,360 worshippers. And for him to say I am the God 627 00:35:55,360 --> 00:35:58,880 of these men shows that they were alive, though their bodies 628 00:35:58,880 --> 00:36:02,600 were in a cave. Did you not realize that you 629 00:36:02,600 --> 00:36:05,120 Sadducees? No wonder you're always sad. 630 00:36:07,040 --> 00:36:10,840 You didn't realize that what God was saying there was showing 631 00:36:10,840 --> 00:36:12,680 that he is the God of a living people. 632 00:36:13,840 --> 00:36:16,440 And at the patriarchs and your Father's are alive, and they're 633 00:36:16,440 --> 00:36:21,920 alive today. And so the Lord, many would say 634 00:36:22,160 --> 00:36:26,520 in his brilliance, accommodates to the Sadducees by meeting them 635 00:36:26,520 --> 00:36:28,680 where they were at in the books of Moses. 636 00:36:28,680 --> 00:36:33,400 But I don't think he does. But not entirely. 637 00:36:35,080 --> 00:36:39,280 Can I show you why? You have some people who say, 638 00:36:39,280 --> 00:36:41,360 you know, if people don't believe the Bible, don't try to 639 00:36:41,360 --> 00:36:42,680 prove the Bible. With the Bible. 640 00:36:44,440 --> 00:36:46,400 You know, if people don't use the scriptures, you got to use 641 00:36:46,400 --> 00:36:50,080 other methods and means to try to get their conscious alarmed 642 00:36:50,080 --> 00:36:53,160 and awakened. Jesus doesn't do that, even with 643 00:36:53,160 --> 00:36:55,200 these Sadducees who didn't believe in many things. 644 00:36:56,120 --> 00:36:58,200 So we read in Acts 23 that they didn't believe in the 645 00:36:58,200 --> 00:36:59,760 resurrection. They didn't believe in angels. 646 00:36:59,760 --> 00:37:01,360 Remember, they didn't believe in spirits. 647 00:37:02,160 --> 00:37:05,720 But go back to what Jesus said in his opening explanation, 648 00:37:05,720 --> 00:37:08,440 verse 25, for when they rise from the dead, they neither 649 00:37:08,440 --> 00:37:11,680 marry nor are given a marriage, but are like angels in heaven. 650 00:37:14,400 --> 00:37:16,160 You're talking about angels with people who don't believe in 651 00:37:16,160 --> 00:37:18,360 angels. Guess what? 652 00:37:18,880 --> 00:37:24,560 Jesus doesn't care what I mean by that. 653 00:37:24,880 --> 00:37:28,520 Just because these men didn't uphold these truths, didn't make 654 00:37:28,520 --> 00:37:35,000 them untrue. Listen, Don't doubt the power of 655 00:37:35,000 --> 00:37:38,560 the word of God. Don't doubt the power of the God 656 00:37:38,560 --> 00:37:41,160 with people who vehemently stand against the word of God. 657 00:37:41,160 --> 00:37:45,920 This word is God's word, and when it touches the conscience, 658 00:37:46,120 --> 00:37:50,120 you never know what can happen. It can awaken even the skeptic 659 00:37:50,120 --> 00:37:52,640 of all skeptics. It can convict even the most 660 00:37:52,640 --> 00:37:57,080 hardened of sinners. Here's Jesus, Florida State. 661 00:37:57,120 --> 00:38:01,000 Answering yes, but not being intimidated by their skepticism, 662 00:38:01,000 --> 00:38:02,800 still presenting the truth as it is. 663 00:38:03,840 --> 00:38:06,840 Not bending, not tiptoeing, not being cautious. 664 00:38:06,840 --> 00:38:08,360 Yes, be wise. Yes, be careful. 665 00:38:08,520 --> 00:38:11,000 It all depends on who your audience is, but I love how the 666 00:38:11,000 --> 00:38:15,680 Lord here speaks about it being true, whether they acknowledge 667 00:38:15,680 --> 00:38:19,320 it or not. I've had some conversation with 668 00:38:19,320 --> 00:38:21,880 them, Asus, who obviously don't believe in the Bible, but in 669 00:38:21,880 --> 00:38:25,040 those conversations I would say, but the Bible says this, the 670 00:38:25,040 --> 00:38:27,760 Bible says this. And you can sometimes see the 671 00:38:27,760 --> 00:38:32,480 conviction on their faces because even the Scripture talks 672 00:38:32,480 --> 00:38:35,120 about how the law shuts the mouths of every person so that 673 00:38:35,120 --> 00:38:37,240 they're not, they're not justified in the sight of God. 674 00:38:37,440 --> 00:38:40,120 This book has been meant to be heralded in the declare to all 675 00:38:40,120 --> 00:38:44,120 men, all creatures. And so I love how the Lord here 676 00:38:44,120 --> 00:38:47,360 with these people who don't even believe in angels, talks about 677 00:38:47,360 --> 00:38:51,440 it so casually they will be like the angels in heaven. 678 00:38:52,760 --> 00:38:55,680 So yes, be wise, yes, be strategic and how you present 679 00:38:55,680 --> 00:38:58,800 the truth. But don't ever doubt what the 680 00:38:58,800 --> 00:39:01,120 truth can do to those who don't even believe in it. 681 00:39:02,240 --> 00:39:07,760 Share it, declare it, counsel with it, and people can be 682 00:39:07,760 --> 00:39:10,840 changed by it. I'm not sure if it did happen 683 00:39:10,840 --> 00:39:15,600 with these Sadducees, but I want you to see that in the pursuit 684 00:39:15,600 --> 00:39:18,160 of knowing the Scripture, knowing the truth, being able to 685 00:39:18,160 --> 00:39:20,840 defend it, being able to deflect every objection that comes your 686 00:39:20,840 --> 00:39:25,720 way, that you never forget the personal ambition of the word of 687 00:39:25,720 --> 00:39:28,400 God in your life. So in this account he talks 688 00:39:28,400 --> 00:39:32,160 about the burning Bush and that passage. 689 00:39:32,160 --> 00:39:35,200 But I want you to see how the Lord describes it in Matthew 22. 690 00:39:36,160 --> 00:40:02,080 Let's go to Matthew 22 verse 31. But in verse 29 of Matthew 22. 691 00:40:02,080 --> 00:40:04,400 Let's read from there. But Jesus answered them. 692 00:40:04,400 --> 00:40:06,800 You are wrong, because you know neither the scriptures nor the 693 00:40:06,800 --> 00:40:09,000 power of God. For in the resurrection and 694 00:40:09,000 --> 00:40:11,400 neither Mary nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in 695 00:40:11,400 --> 00:40:13,560 heaven. And As for the resurrection of 696 00:40:13,560 --> 00:40:18,280 the dead, have you not read what was said to you? 697 00:40:18,280 --> 00:40:24,520 He didn't say that in Mark. Have you not read what was said 698 00:40:24,520 --> 00:40:28,240 to you by God? I am the God of Abraham and the 699 00:40:28,240 --> 00:40:29,600 God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. 700 00:40:29,600 --> 00:40:31,200 He is not the God of dead, but of the living. 701 00:40:31,680 --> 00:40:34,240 And when the crowd heard it, they were astonished at his 702 00:40:34,240 --> 00:40:36,800 teaching. But notice that phrase, what was 703 00:40:36,800 --> 00:40:39,200 said to you? And you've heard me talk about 704 00:40:39,200 --> 00:40:41,480 this not too far back, but I think it's worth mentioning 705 00:40:41,480 --> 00:40:46,840 again since we're here, Moses hearing a voice from a burning 706 00:40:46,840 --> 00:40:51,640 Bush, God commissioning him, though that is a historical 707 00:40:51,640 --> 00:40:54,440 event not to be repeated. That is something to be examined 708 00:40:56,360 --> 00:40:59,560 as a past event. Still, Jesus says in that 709 00:40:59,560 --> 00:41:02,120 moment, God still has something to desire to speak to you. 710 00:41:03,160 --> 00:41:05,760 There's a truth even in that historical component of 711 00:41:05,760 --> 00:41:10,360 redemptive history that is meant tailor made to edify, convict, 712 00:41:12,080 --> 00:41:15,480 challenge you. So when I come to the 713 00:41:15,480 --> 00:41:17,920 scriptures, when you come to the scriptures, don't just treat it 714 00:41:19,600 --> 00:41:22,640 as a collection of things that you should believe and be able 715 00:41:22,640 --> 00:41:26,400 to memorize and say and defend and argue and debate. 716 00:41:27,240 --> 00:41:31,080 You know people like that. That doesn't change that. 717 00:41:31,240 --> 00:41:34,720 That that might make you more confident in the place of back 718 00:41:34,720 --> 00:41:38,360 and forth dialogue concerning what true religion is there, But 719 00:41:38,360 --> 00:41:42,120 that won't change you. I love how Jesus sets the 720 00:41:42,120 --> 00:41:44,520 present here. This is something meant for you 721 00:41:45,280 --> 00:41:47,080 when you come to the Word, no matter where you're at. 722 00:41:47,080 --> 00:41:49,320 Even in Exodus, you used to believe that God wants to speak 723 00:41:49,320 --> 00:41:52,320 to me. God wants to challenge me. 724 00:41:52,320 --> 00:41:54,120 God wants to comfort me. What is it? 725 00:41:54,120 --> 00:41:57,640 And then with the eyes and the help of Christ as he was able to 726 00:41:57,640 --> 00:42:00,720 find a resurrection truth and God declaring that he is the God 727 00:42:00,720 --> 00:42:03,360 of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, only the Lord opened our eyes to 728 00:42:03,360 --> 00:42:07,520 see deeper things in his truth. And so that is something that 729 00:42:07,520 --> 00:42:10,800 you have to constantly remember that I'm not just coming to this 730 00:42:10,800 --> 00:42:14,200 word to defend my faith, though that's important. 731 00:42:14,520 --> 00:42:18,200 I'm coming to this word to hear God's voice for me and to speak 732 00:42:18,200 --> 00:42:20,680 to me. And when you come with that 733 00:42:20,680 --> 00:42:23,680 expectation, hunger, you'd be amazed on how these eternal 734 00:42:23,680 --> 00:42:28,000 truths that have been set by God's promise that nothing will 735 00:42:28,000 --> 00:42:32,120 ever overtake or demolish or delete this truth, it can speak 736 00:42:32,120 --> 00:42:35,720 into your life in profound ways, in profound ways. 737 00:42:37,160 --> 00:42:41,320 And so Jesus was able to again divert what these Sadducees came 738 00:42:41,320 --> 00:42:43,440 up with. But it's not going to be the 739 00:42:43,440 --> 00:42:46,440 only trap. There's going to be another one 740 00:42:46,440 --> 00:42:49,000 that we're going to discover next week, but for now, let's 741 00:42:49,000 --> 00:42:52,240 pray and ask God's help to find great courage in His word once 742 00:42:52,240 --> 00:43:10,500 again. We do ask, Lord, that you would 743 00:43:10,500 --> 00:43:15,700 help us believe that you have provided exactly what is 744 00:43:15,700 --> 00:43:20,020 necessary for us to be exactly who you want us to be. 745 00:43:21,780 --> 00:43:25,400 We pray, Lord, that this Word through this message would 746 00:43:25,400 --> 00:43:29,520 ignite a fresh desire to know what you would say to us through 747 00:43:29,520 --> 00:43:32,400 it. And so we pray for that desire 748 00:43:32,400 --> 00:43:35,400 to awaken again. Lord, we pray for those who 749 00:43:35,400 --> 00:43:39,360 might be frustrated in their ability to grasp the truth. 750 00:43:40,200 --> 00:43:45,160 We pray for those who might be shy, maybe even tempted to be 751 00:43:45,160 --> 00:43:48,720 embarrassed about what the Bible has to say. 752 00:43:49,880 --> 00:43:54,600 But, Lord, we pray that, like the sun exemplified, that we 753 00:43:54,600 --> 00:43:57,840 would discuss these things, knowing that they are binding on 754 00:43:57,840 --> 00:44:01,680 all men. It is God's truth whether people 755 00:44:01,680 --> 00:44:04,960 believe it or not. We asked, Lord, that if we are 756 00:44:04,960 --> 00:44:08,960 tempted to get into speculative thoughts and arguments, rescue 757 00:44:08,960 --> 00:44:11,120 us from that. And when it comes our way, Lord, 758 00:44:11,120 --> 00:44:14,680 may we be prepared by what your word has to say to be able to 759 00:44:14,680 --> 00:44:18,760 stand strong. And so, Lord, we just pray that 760 00:44:18,760 --> 00:44:21,800 as a people of the Book, you would reinforce that conviction 761 00:44:22,560 --> 00:44:24,840 that we would indeed be people of the book. 762 00:44:25,520 --> 00:44:29,160 We look to you in Thanksgiving for giving us the example in 763 00:44:29,160 --> 00:44:31,480 this text. In Jesus name we pray. 764 00:44:32,080 --> 00:44:33,120 Amen. Amen.