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But Wait! There’s More!-Luke 20:27-40

By Charlie Vensel | June 13, 2008

Recently I heard about a man who had spent his life in the Air Force. One of his friends suggested that the family play the Air Force theme song at his funeral. His wife vetoed that idea. With a laugh, she said, “At your father’s funeral, we are not going to play a song that begins, ‘Off we go into the wild blue yonder!’”

Arthur Schiff died last year at the age of 66. You may not recognize the name, but I guarantee you’ve heard his voice. Arthur was a TV pitchman extraordinaire. He sold everything you can think of. He accomplished this in some 2,000 late night commercials. I know you’ve heard some of them: “Buy now!” he would always say. Then he would describe his product’s amazing virtues, followed by a phrase he coined himself, “But wait! There’s more!” Then he would give you one more bonus product to sweeten the deal…and everything sold for just $19.95.

I cannot help but wonder if, as Arthur Schiff breathed his dying breath, he didn’t hear a voice saying to him, “But wait! Arthur! There’s more!”

We have, in our Gospel passage this morning, the third account of Sadducees caviling over the resurrection. Matthew records it in chapter 13 and Mark in chapter 12. Luke’s passage is the most robust, shedding more light on the resurrection, and those who will obtain it, than the other two. In all three passages, Jesus is not only rebuking the Sadducees for their attitudes, theologically he is telling them, “But wait! There’s more.” Turn now with me to Luke 20:27-40 and let us learn something about both human nature and the truth and reality of the resurrection, our great hope.

Verse 27 opens with the Sadducees trying to trip up Jesus. Who were these Sadducees? That they were associated with the Temple and priesthood is in little question. However, they were aristocrats in Jewish society. Many Sadducees were lay nobility who exercised important authority as members of the Sanhedrin. What really set the Sadducees apart from others was not clerical status, but aristocratic eminence.

The aristocratic makeup of the Sadducees, together with their power in the Sanhedrin and their control of the high-priesthood, set them up for political gain. Since their political involvements were conditioned by their interest in preserving the status quo, it follows that they pursued policies designed to appease the governing authorities of Rome. In spite of their rigid dogmatism, the primary concern of the Sadducees was to keep the nation peaceable; to avoid trouble for the Romans and, in turn, themselves.

So, what did they believe? They accepted only the writings of Moses as canonical. The Sadducees were nihilists, believing that there was no immortality of the soul; the dead just ceased to exit. Neither did they believe in angels or demons. Lastly, and most significant, the Sadducees were sad you see, because they did not believe in the resurrection. Although they were strict moralists, they are essentially the classic modern-day leaders in liberal denominations. “If so much of the faith is untrue and irrelevant, why get up and go to church on Sunday,” we ask…probably, for the power, prestige, preservation of one’s wealth and self-interest, and the comfortable status quo.

It should come as no surprise then, that when Jesus appeared on the scene, with his emphasis on the sincere religion of the heart and on God as the sole author of salvation, the Sadducees rejected him, regarding him as a threat. They were jealous too because of his miracles and the crowds he gathered. Jesus had to go. The Sadducees are trying to trip him up here, thinking that he will have to choose between the Law of Moses and the resurrection. “Surely, this will discredit him,” they thought. In essence, they are saying, “Pick one, Jesus! You can’t win!”

I think here it is important to note that in every time there have been people of corrupt minds that have tried to subvert the foundations of the Faith. It is common for them to undermine any truth of God, complicate it, and load it with endless difficulties. However, it does not take a religious leader or a real genius to do this. Anyone, before coming to faith in Christ, is at enmity with God, and does this very thing. In Romans 1, Paul says that while the creation testifies to God, such that unbelievers are left without excuse for not believing, they still suppress the truth in unrighteousness, worshipping themselves and the creation, rather than the true God. This is the condition of the unregenerate mind and heart. Man is built for worship, we cannot deny, but without the working of grace in our lives, we worship everything but God, especially our opinions, position, and the illusion that we are in control. Idol makers we are. These people are just doing what comes naturally.

Recently, Neil Peters sent me an article from Christianity Today entitled Will We Recognize Our Loved Ones in Heaven? It was a good article, pastoral and theologically accurate. I passed it on to a friend of mine who had asked me some basic questions about this and the resurrection of believers a couple of years ago. He is struggling with faith and I thought this might be an opportunity to encourage him. In response, I got this:

Charlie…The article raises another question, or rather, the idea of resurrected bodies is silly… Is it not simply the wanton notion of human nature to believe our earthly bodies will be our heavenly bodies but in perfect condition? It seems if God is so worried about our souls why bother with our bodies at all unless these notions are from an egocentric perspective, which would be Ockham’s simpler explanation…Beyond that, why keep the earth as our heavenly pasture; this seems geocentric. Additionally, there could be a population issue if all these bodies get resurrected/reconstituted to roam the ‘New Earth.’ It seems very likely to me this notion is the most relative and accessible to our antiquated imaginations or our hopeful desires and less likely the best idea God could come up with for our eternal arena…

These are very good questions, and readily answerable, but they are hardly ones coming from a heart seeking to understand God’s truth. For my fiend, Scripture is discarded as unreasonable, outdated, and fanciful, serving only to comfort the weak and ignorant. He believes that humankind has evolved into a position of superior knowledge and these mythologies are no longer useful. He quotes Ockham, the excommunicated heretic and nominalist (things only exist as ideas), as an authority. There is no sense of submitting to God, but rather, he has placed God on trial. He is doing only what comes naturally.

And, his views have serious ramifications for us here in Littleton. He has described the worldview of the typical resident in this area. We indeed live in a post-Christian society where the faith is seen as outdated and unnecessary. If you have spent any time sharing your faith with someone under the age of 40, I am almost certain you have run into this: “We are all just sojourning on this rock as grown up germs, no longer needing the wisdom of the past, but fully embrace whatever our heart’s desire, that we might be happy before we are blotted out of existence.” Pretty dismal, isn’t it? You wonder why so many people are depressed? That view does not correspond well with life’s experiences, does it? Many are depressed because they know there’s more, but they won’t believe it…they cannot win.

So how do we overcome this worldview? What do we do when confronted on matters of the faith by skeptics or heretics? Do we run? Do we acquiesce? Do we dismiss them and move on? Do we secretly agree with them? I’m afraid many of us do these things and it is not helpful.

When responding to the objections people raise about the faith, and there are many objectors here in this area, we are to respond the way Jesus did. We go to the Scriptures. In our example this morning, Jesus quoted from the story of the burning bush; he did not set out on a logical diatribe about how the resurrection is possible, other than that the Scriptures declared it so. Though he was completely capable of doing it, he did not discuss God’s plans to manipulate electrons, protons, or the space-time continuum. Even if he did, the Sadducees would not have been satisfied; their hearts were not ready. None of us, of our own accord, can answer the endless objections and rabbit trails thrown at us by modern-day Sadducees of our own accord. We must recognize we are dealing with unregenerate minds that are still fighting God. No matter what we say, they will not believe us, they do not want to believe us, and without God working first in them, they cannot believe us.

However, if we respond with God’s word and with prayer, the Holy Spirit is then in charge of the situation. That does not mean that we don’t do it intelligently or without compassion; we must be good listeners and aim to meet people where they are. Simply dismissing their objections does our cause no good; we will only reinforce their skepticism, looking unintelligent and guilty of everything they already believe of us.

It does mean, that we need not be ashamed of the Gospel. Paul understood this as he wrote, “I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes.” (Romans 1:16 NIV) God’s words are what change the heart, not our ability to quote Science Digest.

Therefore, if we aim to be used by God to lead people to Christ, we must be ready, willing and able, to wield, “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” (Ephesians 6:17 NIV) We listen intently and we state God’s word with authority without cowering while operating out of love, patience, and compassion as the Lord did for each one of us as he was drawing us to him. We do so without the burden of having to “prove” anything, confident that it is the Lord’s truth we are speaking, that is our Lord who enlightens minds, fertilizes the seeds sown in the heart, and ultimately turns the person in question from enemy of heaven to the blessed redeemed.

What can we do to prepare for such encounters? Get a good study Bible, get some good commentaries, check out the new audio tapes in our library, and pour over them. They will bless you and you will be able to bless others. If you need some recommendations for any materials, I’m happy to provide those to you. Come to church, take notes during the sermon, come to the Christian Ed classes we will start in the New Year. Learn God’s word and understand your faith, “so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” (2Timothy 3:17 NIV) Pray for these opportunities and the words to use; God will honor that. Be aware of what the rest of the world is thinking and why. Be aware of what they are thinking and feeling and why. Be able to answer the most common objections. Spend a lot more time with the people who need a physician. Trust me, there are no new objections being raised today that have not been dealt with for millennia. Contrary to what the secular intelligentsia would have us believe, “What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.” (Ecclesiastes 1:9 NIV) We have all of church history to draw on for our responses. Be able to say, “But wait. There’s more,” to those who have sincere questions.

So, that is what we can surmise of the human condition without faith, and our responsibility and methodology to help others overcome that condition. “But wait. There’s more…” Now, let us see what we can learn about the resurrection; our great hope of the Faith.

Let’s begin by recognizing that Jesus’ resurrection is the essential of the Faith. Paul writes in I Corinthians 15:

… If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead. But he did not raise him if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men…But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. But each in his own turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him…If the dead are not raised, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die…But someone may ask, “How are the dead raised? With what kind of body will they come?”… The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable…it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body…Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed…the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed…“Death has been swallowed up in victory.” “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain. (1Corinthians 15:12-58 NIV)

When confronted by the Sadducees, Jesus does not deny the Law of Moses, but turns the trap back on the “experts” of religion. First, by distinguishing between two types of people and second, by pointing out their lack of faith by quoting the Scriptures they profess to uphold, namely the account of Moses and the burning bush.

By naming the account of the burning bush, Jesus is telling the religious leaders that the doctrines of the resurrection and the after life have been from the beginning. Though Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were dead to our world, how could God say, not I was, but I am the God of Abraham? It is absurd that the living God would continue relating to them as their God, if they were no more than dust. Mark records Jesus saying it this way, “He is not the God of the dead, but of the living.” (Mark 12:27 NIV)

“But wait! There’s more!” When God called himself the God of these patriarchs, he meant that he was their “…shield, [and their] very great reward.” (Genesis 15:1 NIV) God has yet to fulfill all of his promises to them in this world, which would answer the true intent and full extent of his promises, so therefore, there must be another life after this one. There he will do that for them and that will amount to a total fulfillment of those promises. For all who live for him and by him, he has the wherewithal to make every soul happy, enough for all and enough for each.

The doctrines of the resurrection and the after life are supported throughout the Scriptures (Job 14:12-15; 19:25-27; Psalm 16:9, 10; 17:15; 49:15; Isaiah 25:8; 26:19; Ezekiel 37:1-14; Daniel 12:2, 3, 13; Hosea 13:14; Matthew 22:23-32; 24:31; 25:1-13; 27:52, 53; Mark 12:18-27; Luke 14:14; 20:27-38; John 5:21, 25, 28, 29; 6:39, 40, 44, 54; 11:23-25; 14:19; Acts 2:26-31; 4:1, 2; 17:18, 32; 23:6, 8; 24:14, 15; 26:6-8; Romans 4:16-21; 8:10, 11, 19, 21-23; 1 Corinthians 6:14; 15:12-32, 35-57; 2 Corinthians 4:14; 5:1-5; Philippians 3:10, 11, 21; 1 Thessalonians 4:14, 16; 2 Timothy 1:10; 2:18; Hebrews 6:2; 11:19, 35; Revelation 1:18; 20:4-6, 13). I won’t read them all to you, but I could list 43 explicit references from both the Old and New Testaments, and dozens more where they are implied.

The resurrection of Christ is at the center of the Faith, for without it, our faith is in vain and we are to be pitied more than all humankind. But Christ is raised and our resurrection is based on Christ’s resurrection. The two go together; you cannot believe one without the other, nor can you disbelieve one without disbelieving the other. I would suggest that the reason you believe it is that God has given you the gift of faith (Eph 2:8), for two people can read the Scriptures and one believe and one not. What distinguishes the two is not intelligence or lack therefore, but that God has done a work in one heart while not yet having done the work in the other heart. Let us always be ready, when confronted with the skeptics and heretics, like Jesus, to go to the Words that have life, the Scriptures.

Regarding two types of people I mentioned earlier, “Jesus replied, “The people of this age marry and are given in marriage. But those who are considered worthy of taking part in that age and in the resurrection from the dead will neither marry nor be given in marriage, and they can no longer die; for they are like the angels. They are God’s children, since they are children of the resurrection.”” (Luke 20:34-36 NIV)

Let’s unpack that a bit. In verses 34-36, Jesus is drawing a distinction between “this world” and “that world” or “this age” and “that age.” Clearly, there is more than one world and one age; one is present and visible while one is future and invisible.

Those who live in this world marry and are given in marriage; that includes both types of people. But those, not by any merit of their own, but by God’s grace, are worthy of partaking in the glories of the coming age, the new heaven and earth, neither marry nor are given in marriage in the coming age; that is the second group of people. It is here that Jesus issues a rebuke. Those who are worthy are contrasted against those of hard hearts and unbelief, namely the Sadducees, and those like them.

I think our response as believers is to be one of recognizing the distinction between “this world” and “that world,” and forever be gearing our hearts and minds to the one which deserves our attention; “that world,” through “this world.” As Paul writes, and particularly fitting for the American disease, “Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.” (1Timothy 6:17-19 NIV) Let us remember our destiny and that our treasure lies in heaven; proper perspective leads to proper performance. In light of this, I don’t think we can do everything for ourselves and then give God the leftover time, talent, and treasure. We must start with God, and we will find that what is left over is more than adequate for us now, and that we experience great abundance in the life to come. God is our first priority.

Moving on, why don’t believers marry in the new age? One reason is stated in verse 36; they do not die. The wages of sin is death, and this is the place of perfection where no sin exists; there will be no death. Marriage, with a view toward propagation of the race, will no longer be necessary. A second reason is that marriage, as an earthly institution, is symbolic of Christ’s relationship to the church (Psalm 45:10-17; Ezekiel 16:8-14; Revelation 19:7, 8; 21:2, 9; 22:17, Eph 5, Col 3). In the new age, both bride and bridegroom will have joined and the institution that points to that union will have been fulfilled. A third reason is that for all the other reasons one might marry including love, protection, companionship, provision, and purity, these too will have been fulfilled in Christ with our perfected states.

Will we recognize our loved ones in heaven? Yes. Our resurrection bodies are not merely immortal duplicates of our present ones. Consider Paul’s analogy of the wheat seed (1 Cor. 15:35-38). A mortal body is like the seed, while an immortal body is like the full-grown plant. Both are physical, with an intrinsic continuity between the two. But what a difference between the seed and the plant in appearance, in attribute, and in potential! If we presently have the capacity to recognize our loved ones, that ability will be magnified, not lessened, in the immortal state.

It is in these extraordinary resurrected bodies that we will dwell together with Christ for all eternity in the new earth (Rev. 21:1-22:6). There, we will commune not only with the exalted Christ, but also with all those who are numbered among his children, including our believing loved ones. We will be like the angels. We will see the same sight, be employed in the same work, and share in the same joys as the holy angels. Saints, when we go to heaven, we will be naturalized, and, though by nature we were strangers, we will join with the angels that are natives. We shall join all the company of heaven. It will no longer be invisible in the Eucharist and worship, but visible.

Of course, there are many unanswerable questions about our resurrection and the life to come. How old will we appear? Will we all be equally strong or smart? How can we possibly be happy without marriage? The Scriptures do not answer those questions directly, but Paul offers us some comforting words in these circumstances, “… No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him.” (1Corinthians 2:9 NIV) Let us trust in the Lord’s goodness and know that we will in no way be dissatisfied when we enter the coming age. It will be all we dream of and much, much more.

Jesus’ response about the resurrection must have struck a note of authenticity in the lives of the Sadducees. God had been a source of life for them before their religious forms replaced their substance of faith. It was their people who had told the story of God forming Adam and Eve out of the clay of the earth and breathing the breath of life into them. Their fathers and mothers had told them how the God of life came to them through Moses to lead their people out of bondage to a new life in their own land. Jesus was sternly reminding them of something old, something they already knew. God was alive and giving life on this, and the other side, of physical death.

This reminder is good news to us also. God is alive and giving life now and in the future. In the fullness of time, God sent us the light of life. Christ was born, and in the birth of Christ, God proclaimed the importance of life. Jesus made it clear when he said, “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” (John 10:10 NIV) In the wake of the death of Jesus, his followers seemed to “die” with despair and again God sent the Spirit of life. Paul, filled with this spirit, wrote to the church at Rome, “And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you.” (Romans 8:11 NIV) In our own journeys we have experienced the God of life. That’s the good news we proclaim as Christians.

Today, we, like the Sadducees, are encouraged because of our inheritance when we are reminded, “But wait. There’s more!” God is alive and giving life! If God has been our source of life on earth, then God will be our source of life in heaven. That’s good news! Amen!

Topics: Luke |

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