Matthew 22:23-33; Mark 12:18-27; Luke 20:27-40
The Sadducees are a sect of Jewish leaders very similar to the Pharisees. They are both experts on the law, the Old Testament. But they disagree on the supernatural aspects of the law, such as the resurrection in this passage. The Sadducees are addressing Levirate marriage, as found in Deuteronomy 25:5-10. A woman marries a man, who dies before they have children. According to the law, the next brother would be responsible to marry her and carry on the dead brother's line. (Both were given the opportunity to refuse, but a ceremony would have to happen to cancel the responsibility.) The Sadducees are giving a scenario where 7 brothers left one woman widowed and childless, then asking whose wife she would be at the resurrection. Jesus answers the question simply by telling them they are wrong. They would know that if they truly understood the Scriptures and the power of God. Jesus then turns their attention to a scene from Moses' life--his encounter with God at the burning bush in Exodus 3. The Sadducees and the rest of the crowd are dumbfounded; according to Luke, they didn't have the courage to question Him again.
The religious leaders are reaching the end of their rope, grasping at far-fetched questions in their attempt to trap Jesus. In theory, this scenario COULD happen, but it is unlikely. I spent way too much time following the trail of Levirate marriage laws and the ceremony that would cancel this law, called a Halizah. My first thought was "This poor woman!!" This law seems very unfair from the angle of our culture, but from the culture then it would be considered very protective of the woman. A young widow would have no place in society without her husband's parents taking her in. Jesus indirectly answers the question by telling them they are worried about the wrong part of this story. They claim to be concerned with whose wife she would be in the resurrection while denying that there is life after death. The crowd wants to quote the law given to Moses by God when it fits their agenda. Jesus tells the Sadducees that comparing life here to life in Heaven is like comparing apples and oranges. Marriage and giving in marriage is an earthly institution. There is no need for it in Heaven. He says if they really knew the scripture and the power of God, they would focus more on what God said to Moses from the burning bush. God reveals Himself to Moses as I AM. God says "I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob." He doesn't say He WAS the God of each, but He IS the God of each. Each of these men, so important to the Jewish heritage, are dead to this world, but alive with God. The knowledge and authority Jesus teaches with strikes the crowd.
When I was little, I asked my mom if she would still be my mom in heaven. She said she didn't think so. She said I would know she was my mom, but I would have no need for her to be my mom anymore. That made me so sad as a child. And honestly, it still makes me sad. Just like the Sadducees, I'm trying to transfer the institutions of earth into heaven. Family is a wonderful gift, but it's for here. When my life ends in death, my soul will live on. And so will yours. Where you and I spend eternity won't depend on whose daughter or whose wife or whose mother we were. Eternal life can only come from the God who is alive forever!
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