God is the not the God of the dead, but of the living

 The same day the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to Him and asked Him, saying:  "Teacher, Moses said that if a man dies, having no children, his brother shall marry his wife and raise up offspring for his brother.  Now there were with us seven brothers.  The first died after he had married, and having no offspring, left his wife to his brother.  Likewise the second also, and the third, even to the seventh.  Last of all the woman died also.  Therefore, in the resurrection, whose wife of the seven will she be?  For they all had her."  Jesus answered and said to them, "You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God.  For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels of God in heaven.  But concerning the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was spoken to you by God, saying, 'I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob'?  God is the not the God of the dead, but of the living."  And when the multitudes heard this, they were astonished at His teaching.

- Matthew 22:23-33

On Saturday, we read that the Pharisees went and plotted how they might entangle Jesus in His talk.  He is now in Jerusalem teaching daily in the temple. They sent to Him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, "Teacher, we know that You are true, and teach the way of God in truth; nor do You care about anyone, for You do not regard the person of men.  Tell us, therefore, what do You think?  Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?"  But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, "Why do you test Me, you hypocrites?  Show Me the tax money."  So they brought Him a denarius.  And He said to them, "Whose image and inscription is this?"  They said to Him, "Caesar's."  And He said to them, "Render therefore unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's."  When they had heard these words, they marveled, and left Him and went their way.

The same day the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to Him and asked Him, saying:  "Teacher, Moses said that if a man dies, having no children, his brother shall marry his wife and raise up offspring for his brother.  Now there were with us seven brothers.  The first died after he had married, and having no offspring, left his wife to his brother.  Likewise the second also, and the third, even to the seventh.  Last of all the woman died also.  Therefore, in the resurrection, whose wife of the seven will she be?  For they all had her."  Jesus answered and said to them, "You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God.  For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels of God in heaven.  But concerning the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was spoken to you by God, saying, 'I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob'?  God is the not the God of the dead, but of the living."  And when the multitudes heard this, they were astonished at His teaching.  As the text explains, the Sadducees did not believe in resurrection or life after death.  They formed a landowning group and were a type of aristocracy, but completely disappeared as a party after the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD.  In light of their beliefs, their question makes sense.  Jesus confirms that there will be a resurrection, but not the sort the Sadducees imagine.  They think the resurrection is just a continuation of earthly life, including earthly marriage, and so they're making fun of this absurd scenario, says my study bible.  But their understanding of Scripture is faulty and limited, because Scripture reveals a complete transfiguration of life in the resurrection, making their question irrelevant.  They also fail to understand how Abraham and his sons can be alive in God even if they are physically dead.  My study bible says, "It is the clear teaching of Christ that the souls of the faithful who have departed this life are sustained before the face of God in anticipation of the final joy of the resurrection."

 God is the God of the living, says Jesus.  We have to really consider what this means, to be living.  Not only do all live in God, but God, we know, is the source of life itself.  Jesus' doctrine is called the "way of life" by His early followers.  And Jesus has promised us "life in abundance," as well as "rivers of living water."  What does all this mean, in the context of today's reading?  The Pharisees mock the doctrine of resurrection, but Jesus teaches them that they don't really know nor understand the Scriptures which speak of the nature of God and of those who are alive in God.  "I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob" is from Exodus 3:6, in which God called to Moses from the burning bush.  The phrase I AM gives us the key:  this is the Being that is being itself, life itself.  The bush that burns with a fire that is pure energy, that doesn't consume it, is another sign of pure life.  God tells Moses God's name:  I AM THAT I AM.  God is pure life, pure being.   To live in God therefore means an ontological reality that is something that adds life to us.  The present tense of all these sentences found in Exodus in the experience of the burning bush tells us of life also:  "I am" characterizes eternal life.  That "I am" the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob" gives us present tense, an eternal present, in which all who have lived -- no matter the generation -- are all eternally present in the reality of God.  This is where "life in abundance" comes in, and the sense in which Jesus conveys what resurrection really is and means.  Christ has come to give us a sense of this life, so that we may be born or "reborn" into it, and that it may be added unto us.  To be quickened into this life is also a way of being anointed by the Holy Spirit, as in baptism.  It is a transforming kind of life, one that adds the energies of grace to who we think we are, baptizing our lives into something new and greater, and giving us resources to draw upon for a future different from the past.  All of these things, in our lives in this world and beyond, become a part of the living reality of life in Christ.  They are a part of the reality of life in abundance, and the communion of saints upon whom we can call in prayer.  It's important that we understand the abundant quality of life as that which infuses our faith, and adds to our own experience of ourselves, helping us to find forbearance, patience, a joy that passes understanding, and other qualities that add to a life in abundance in the here and now, and create growth.  These are "spiritual fruits."  Marriage, in this picture, isn't just a material joining or contract between two people.  Rather, it's a God-ordained ministry of love, in which two people grow in learning love for one another, becoming "one flesh."  This is a spiritual component to our lives that reflects a heavenly reality and adds to what we understand of our own lives.  The beauty of His word teaches us how much more there is to who we are, revealing deep mysteries of true life.