Luke 20:27-47: What You Can Look Forward To If You Believe

Introduction

https://www.foxnews.com/lifestyle/dog-shocks-family-chowing-down-4k-cash-shredded-room - Money - Easy come, easy go.

Life = easy come, easy go. Some day all your money is going to be gone - left to your kids, charity, etc. Some day someone else is going to live in your house, drive your car. If you take your clothes to Good Will, someone else will wear your clothes. Nick Saban… Easy come, easy go…

Not only is your stuff easy come, easy go. Your health is easy come, easy go. Sometimes, relationships seem like they are easy come, easy go.

Everything in this life is temporary, and your life on earth is temporary (Ecclesiastes 1:2). Probably many times you feel like life is futile. Everyone of us long for something more than what this life offers.

Why do we long for more? Because life is NOT temporary. “He has also put eternity in their hearts…” (Ecclesiastes 3:11)

If you are a follower of Jesus, eternal life with God awaits you. The goal of life is to be with God forever.

Most people believe in afterlife. 2021 Pew research report: 73% of ALL US adults believe in heaven. That doesn’t mean that 73% of all US adults believe faith in Christ is the only way to heaven, but most people want to believe there is something better after this life. Shockingly, 60% of Christians believe that many faiths lead to heaven.

Jesus talks about eternal life a lot because He came to give us eternal life. He wants to be with us forever! Luke 20:27-47 talks about eternal life in response to a question by the Sadducees. Look at this text and answer two questions: 1. What do I need to believe about eternal life? 2. How should my belief about eternal life affect my present life?

What do I need to believe about eternal life?

Tuesday of Holy Week - Religious leaders want Jesus dead.

Previous passage, Pharisees and Herodians tried to trap Jesus with a political question.

Only place in Luke’s Gospel where Sadducees mentioned. Sadducees very different than Pharisees.

vs. 27 “Who say there is no resurrection.” Sadducees were powerful and wealthy aristocrats. Many priests were Sadducees. The Pharisees were middle class. Regular people related far better to the Pharisees than the Sadducees. Sadducees worked to keep peace with Rome.

Theologically, they didn’t believe in a resurrection. The Pharisees did. Sadducees believed that once this life was over, that was it. They believed only the Torah was inspired by God, not the prophets and writings.

They knew Jesus taught about eternal life, resurrection from the dead. So, their turn to try to stump Jesus and expose Him as a fraud.

Appeal to Deuteronomy 25:5 and levirate marriage. If your husband died and left you childless, it was the job of your brother-in-law to take you as his wife to produce a child that would carry on the your dead husband’s family line. (You didn’t marry for love.) Family line was important for ancient Israel - in an economy that was tied up in land that would be passed down the family line.

Sadducees used this verse to try to stump Jesus. Absurd, hypothetical question - Man marries a woman, dies, leaves her childless, brother takes her as wife, dies, on down the line. 7 brothers all take this woman as a wife, none give her a child. Since no child, none has a significant claim on her. So, in the afterlife, whose wife will she be? For the Sadducees, The afterlife would be quite awkward for these brothers.

People still ask absurd questions. Why it’s important to know the truth. Jesus gives the truth - what we need to believe about eternal life.

Eternal life with God is a gift; not a guarantee. vs. 35 - those who are counted worthy… You are only worthy because of faith. Numerous time in Luke’s Gospel Jesus condemned religious leaders for their lack of faith. You cannot make yourself worthy of eternal life. You must depend on the One who is worthy (Romans 6:23). Many world religions, but only one religion (Christianity) that offers salvation as a gift.

Eternal life is resurrected life. The debate isn’t simply over eternal life, it’s over resurrection. Jesus is the firstfruits of the resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:20-22) - implying that His resurrection paved the way for our resurrection. Right now, a believer dies, soul goes to be with Jesus (2 Cor. 5:8 OR thief on cross in paradise). In intermediate state awaiting resurrection. Intermediate state is good , but it’s not the end of the story. You will eagerly anticipate resurrection - where you will receive a glorified body. A body that will not deteriorate, be stricken with disease, etc. Can you imagine?

You will be like angels but you will not be an angel. You will not get your wings. You will not become someone’s guardian angel. You will be like angels in the sense that you will finally be immortal (1 Corinthians 15:54). Immortal, yet fully human - fully alive.

In eternity, your relationships will be better but different. No marriage in heaven. Some of us don’t know how to take that. For some of us, marriage on earth has been a nightmare, so no marriage doesn’t sound like a bad thing. For others, our marriages have been what God intended: a gift.

Remember ultimate purpose of marriage: 1. divine illustration of heavenly reality - a picture of the relationship between Jesus and His church (Ephesians 5). Eternal life - the bride (the church) will be with the groom (Jesus). What your marriage is a picture of will become your reality. 2. procreation - Gen. 1:28 - A major purpose of marriage is to fill the earth with people who bear the image of God. That purpose will no longer be needed.

In resurrection, marriage no longer needed. Does not mean you will not know your spouse, but your relationship with your spouse will be different and better because your relationship with your spouse will not be tainted by sin. While we don’t know what our relationships will look like in eternity, we can trust that all of our relationships will be better and full of love and joy.

In eternity, life will no longer be a tragedy. That’s the joy of eternal, resurrected life. No more tragedy. A lot of good in this life, lots to enjoy because God is gracious and kind, but ultimately this life is tragic - every life ends in death. Sin, brokenness, relational hurt, disease, death, divorce, rebellion, etc. Rev. 21:4 - a day coming of “no mores.”

vs. 27 - Sadducees only saw Torah as divine Word of God. Torah doesn’t speak of a resurrection, so they didn’t believe in a resurrection. Yet, Jesus proves His point by taking the Sadducees back to the Book of Exodus, in the Torah. When God appeared to Moses - present tense in Ex. 3:6 - “I am the God of…” NOT “I was the God of…” Because of faith, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob will share in the resurrection. God is the God of the living, not the dead.

Scribes are in the crowd listening. They are amazed and silenced. They no longer ask Jesus questions. Jesus reminds scribes, who believed the Law, Prophets, and Writings, that even David pointed to Jesus as the Messiah (Ps. 110:1). While Jesus from the lineage of David, he is not merely a “son” or “descendant” of David. He’s greater than David. He’s David’s Lord. Jesus is the divine Son of God - those who are trying to trap Him should listen to Him.

vs. 45-47 - Jesus warns his disciples to beware of the scribes who are trying to trap Him.

If Jesus is King of kings and Lord of lords - if He is God in the flesh - then we should listen to and believe what He says about eternal life. The King has come to give us eternal life (John 3:16).

How should my belief about eternal life affect my present life?

Medical procedure - dreaded it - 2 minutes felt like forever… Other hand, vacation goes by so fast…Slowly anticipate but when it arrives, minutes fly by… House in Gatlinburg - vacation is coming… Reminding boys, thinking about it… BUT it won’t last.

Reality: These truths about eternal life are beautiful truths, but how often do you think about them? The more you think about eternal life the more it affects your present life. “Too heavenly minded to do any earthly good.” Truth is, more heavenly minded you are, the more earthly good you will do. When I I’m more aware of eternal life I realize:

I need to be far more hopeful and far less pessimistic. 1 Peter 1 - Jesus is our “living hope.” Resurrected life is our guaranteed future. A future where sin and death will never affect us again. Imagine a life that is free from disease, free from war. Imagine perfect peace, perfect relationships, and unceasing joy. Imagine a world where there’s never a tragedy again. Lift your head and look up. Life is going to get much better. Knowing that helps us to endure the hardships of this life. (Paul in Philippi)

I need to see my relationships as opportunities to prepare for eternity instead of opportunities for self-centered gratification. In this life, we see relationships as opportunities for us to have our earthly desires met. We want friends to affirm us, a spouse to love us, a lover for physical intimacy, children to adore us, etc. In most of your relationships, you want something from the people you are in relationship with. Instead of wanting something from people, we should want something for people. What we want for people is that they would grow in the knowledge of Christ and the character of Christ. On this side of heaven, I have the opportunity to prepare for eternity by investing the Gospel in my marriage, in my parenting, etc. Nothing more important than investing the Gospel into the people I love. No greater joy than to live out the fruit of the Spirit in our relationships. Earthly relationships struggle because you don’t regularly practice those qualities that are eternal qualities.

I need to let go of a lot of stuff this world offers and embrace a richer life. Some of you still believe the lie, “The more you have the happier you will be.” The truth is, “The more you give away, the happier you will be.” A simple life, a life focused on God and His mission looking toward eternity is a richer life. Stop trying to keep up - stop thinking you have to have your kids involved in every sport, theatre group, music lesson, etc. Stop thinking you have to live in the right neighborhood, drive the right car, go to the right school, etc. More money, more stuff= more problems. That’s just facts. BUT More Jesus = more joy and contentment. Phil. 4:13 - Jesus will give me contentment as I seek Him first.

What are the simple things you can do to embrace a richer life?

What if you made time for a discipleship group and dropped a couple of hours of media consumption each week?

What if you shared the Gospel with five people this year?

What if you actually gave away 10% of your income to Kingdom work instead of overspending on stuff you don’t need? (Eternal investment)

What if you got up an hour earlier to spend time with the Lord before heading out the door, and what if you went to bed an hour earlier instead of staying up to binge on Netflix?

What if you sat down for family dinners several nights a week instead of eating in transition to the next thing?

Jesus has come to give you a richer life, an eternal life. He gives you a rich life by becoming poor for your sake (2 Cor. 8:9). The only way to have rich, eternal life is to repent of your sins and believe in the One who died in your place and rose again. Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6). Turn to Him.