Do We Know the Living God?
Notes
Transcript
The literary unit and movement of the text
Luke intentionally places four scenes back-to-back:
20:27–40 – The Sadducees test Jesus with a resurrection “case study.”
20:41–44 – Jesus presses the deeper identity question: Who is the Christ?
20:45–47 – Jesus exposes “religion as performance” in the scribes.
21:1–4 – Jesus spotlights “devotion as trust” in the widow.
That is a built-in sermon logic: bad theology produces dead religion; true knowledge of the living God produces whole-life devotion.
Subject: Devotion
Theme: Relational Trust
(Devotion defined not as activity, but as living trust rooted in relationship with the living God.)
Thesis Statement:
True devotion flows from a living relationship with God and is revealed not by religious performance or theological precision alone, but by humble trust that entrusts one’s life to Him.
Principle Statement:
When relationship with the living God is replaced by religious control or public performance, devotion withers—but when God is trusted as living and faithful, devotion is revealed through quiet, costly dependence.
Intro
Most of us know what it feels like to do the right things on the outside, while something on the inside slowly goes quiet.
You can still read your Bible.
You can still pray.
You can still show up, serve, give, and sing.
And yet, somewhere along the way, God can begin to feel more like an idea to manage than a Person to know.
Faith keeps moving—but relationship stalls.
(Pause)
That is not something that happens overnight.
It happens slowly. Quietly. Respectably.
It happens to sincere people. Religious people. People who care deeply about truth and obedience.
And that is why it is so dangerous.
(Pause)
In Luke 20, Jesus encounters some of the most religious, biblically informed leaders of His day.
They believe in God.
They know Scripture.
They lead God’s people.
And yet, Jesus exposes something unsettling: they do not actually know the living God they claim to serve.
Their religion has become a system to preserve.
Their theology has become something to defend.
And relationship has quietly slipped into the background.
(Slow down)
This morning, Luke is not asking us how much we know.
He is not asking how religious we appear.
He is pressing a deeper question—one that every heart must eventually answer:
Are we trusting a living God… or managing a manageable one?
Let us begin in Luke 20:27, where Jesus is teaching in the temple—and a group of religious leaders come to Him with a question.
27 There came to him some Sadducees, those who deny that there is a resurrection, 28 and they asked him a question, saying, “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies, having a wife but no children, the man must take the widow and raise up offspring for his brother. 29 Now there were seven brothers. The first took a wife, and died without children. 30 And the second 31 and the third took her, and likewise all seven left no children and died. 32 Afterward the woman also died. 33 In the resurrection, therefore, whose wife will the woman be? For the seven had her as wife.” 34 And Jesus said to them, “The sons of this age marry and are given in marriage, 35 but those who are considered worthy to attain to that age and to the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage, 36 for they cannot die anymore, because they are equal to angels and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection. 37 But that the dead are raised, even Moses showed, in the passage about the bush, where he calls the Lord the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. 38 Now he is not God of the dead, but of the living, for all live to him.” 39 Then some of the scribes answered, “Teacher, you have spoken well.” 40 For they no longer dared to ask him any question. 41 But he said to them, “How can they say that the Christ is David’s son? 42 For David himself says in the Book of Psalms, “ ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, 43 until I make your enemies your footstool.” ’ 44 David thus calls him Lord, so how is he his son?” 45 And in the hearing of all the people he said to his disciples, 46 “Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes, and love greetings in the marketplaces and the best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at feasts, 47 who devour widows’ houses and for a pretense make long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.” 1 Jesus looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the offering box, 2 and he saw a poor widow put in two small copper coins. 3 And he said, “Truly, I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them. 4 For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.”
I. Religion Without Relationship
I. Religion Without Relationship
Luke 20:27–40
We pick up in verse 27 this morning while Jesus is teaching in the temple.
Our text tells us that a group of Sadducees come to Jesus.
Luke gives us an important bit if information about these individuals.
They are those who deny there is a resurrection.
When we hear words like Scribes, Sadducees, and Pharisees, it is easy to hear them as cartoon villains.
The Sadducees though were the religious and political elite whose power was tied to the temple and the stability of the present order—so resurrection was not hope to them, but a threat.
As long as the temple stood and the political system remained stable, the Sadducees remained in control.
Theologically
The Sadducees accepted only the Torah (Genesis–Deuteronomy) as fully authoritative.
In those first books, resurrection, angels, and the afterlife are not explicitly taught about.
So they rejected those doctrines as later innovations.
Resurrection was dangerous to them.
Resurrection meant God would one day change the present order.
It meant accountability greater than the temple system.
They come to Jesus, not with sincere curiosity.
They are trying to show that resurrection belief is absurd.
If they can show through their question that belief in a resurrection is nonsense, then their theology—and their authority—remain intact.
As such, they go to scripture to support their denial of the resurrection by referencing the instructions God gave to Moses on Levirate Marriage.
Levirate marriage was prescribed in Deuteronomy 25:5–10,
In those verses Moses instructs that when brothers live together and one dies without a son, the surviving brother must marry the widow rather than allowing her to marry outside the family, fulfilling his duty as a brother-in-law.
The first son born from this union inherits the deceased brother’s name so that it is not erased from Israel.
This practice was also in Genesis 38 where Judah instructs his son Onan to marry his brother’s widow and produce offspring for his deceased brother.
The practice ensured the lineage lived on but also ensured the widow’s financial security.
But it also came at a cost to the man.
He could refuse, but if he did, the widow may bring her case before the city elders, and if he continues to refuse, she removes his sandal and spits in his face.
This is certainly a cultural part of scripture that we don’t understand, but it was a custom deeply rooted in the shame honor culture.
Core question: How am I seen?
The highest value is honor
The deepest fear is shame
Sin brings public disgrace
Restoration comes through honor being restored
Community reputation matters more than individual feelings
Think: “What will this do to my family name?”
This is still prevalent in the middle east and eastern cultures today.
It is not as familiar to us because we operates in primarily a guilt and innocence culture.
Our core question: What have I done?
The highest value is being innocent
The deepest fear is guilt
Sin is law-breaking
Justice is about punishment or acquittal
Truth is established by evidence and rules
Think: “Did I break the law, and how do I make it right?”
Luke is using this interaction to show the hearts of the religious leaders of the day.
And though it he also exposes our hearts as well.
Jesus does not just answer their question.
He shows that they do not actually know the God they claim to serve.
Because the God of Scripture is not the God of the dead, but of the living.
Jesus shows this through His response to these men.
In Mark’s account, Jesus response was even more pointed than what Luke shows us here.
24 Jesus said to them, “Is this not the reason you are wrong, because you know neither the Scriptures nor the power of God?
Luke shows intent is tho show that Jesus is providing correction on their theological understanding of marriage.
34 And Jesus said to them, “The sons of this age marry and are given in marriage, 35 but those who are considered worthy to attain to that age and to the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage,
Jesus first points out that the Sadducees have made a major mistake in assuming that (future) that age (Lk 20:35) is simply a continuation of this age.
He describes how the two are different.
Jesus emphasizes that marriage, reproduction, children, etc, is for this life on earth, not for the next life in heaven.
Marrying and giving in marriage is a normal part of the life of the sons of this age.
But there is a time to come where there is no more death.
One of the main purposes of marriage on Earth was to be fruitful and multiply - this was God’s command.
But in heaven, multiplication is not needed and we will each individually perfectly reflect God.
We will be like Jesus!
Our maleness and femaleness will be perfected in Him.
God is filling His New Heaven and New Earth with His children.
Children of faith.
That is what Jesus is referring to when He says those who are considered worthy to attain that age and to the resurrection.
This passage has made many wonder if marriage relationships will exist in heaven, or if those who are husband and wife on earth will have no special relationship in heaven.
We are not told enough about life heaven to have a definitive answer, but we can understand a few principles.
Family relationships will still be known in heaven.
The rich man Jesus described in the afterlife was aware of his family relationships (Luke 16:27-28).
The glory of heaven will be a relationship and connection with God that surpasses anything else, including present family relationships (Revelation 21:22-23).
If it seems that life in the resurrection that Jesus spoke of here does not include some of the pleasures of life we know on earth,
it is only because joys of heaven will be far greater what we know on earth.
I believe we can be certain that no-one is going to be unhappy with the arrangements in heaven.
Jesus next statement is one that is easily confused.
Those who receive eternal life are equal to angels and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection.
This does not mean that we become angels in heaven.
The Bible provides clear distinctions between humans and angels that indicate they remain separate categories of beings throughout eternity.
Jesus is stating that in the same way that angelic beings do not marry or procreate, the resurrected state ends the practice of marriage and brings about new relationships between resurrected humans as I already mentioned.
Both Elijah and Moses were recognizable on the Mount of Transfiguration.
They had not transformed into angels, but appeared as themselves—although glorified—and were recognizable to Peter, James and John.
The Bible describes some fundamental differences between humans and angels.
Angels are beings created by God and are entirely different from humans.
They are God’s special agents to carry out His plan and to minister to the followers of Christ.
After correcting their theology, Jesus next corrects their interpretation of the OT in one of the books that they hold to be true.
Jesus appeals to scripture and Moses himself to show them the error in their interpretation.
English Standard Version Chapter 20
even Moses showed, in the passage about the bush, where he calls the Lord the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. 38 Now he is not God of the dead, but of the living, for all live to him.
Jesus does not dismiss Scripture, and He does not appeal to some obscure passage they would never accept.
He goes straight to the part of the Bible they claim to stand on most firmly.
Jesus takes them to Moses.
Specifically, He takes them to the burning bush.
To the moment when God speaks to Moses and says, ‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’
And that matters, because Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were already dead when God said those words.
God does not say, ‘I was their God.’
He says, ‘I am.’
Jesus is showing them that resurrection hope is not built on speculation about the future—it is built on the character of God Himself.
If God binds Himself to His people by covenant, then death cannot sever that relationship.
The problem with the Sadducees is not that they read the wrong Scriptures.
It is that they read the Scriptures without actually knowing the God who speaks in them.
And that is why Jesus says, ‘He is not the God of the dead, but of the living—for all live to Him.’
That is a warning for us today as we read our Bibles.
We do have an advantage over them in that if we have trusted in Jesus, we have the Holy Spirit residing within us.
He will help us to interpret scripture rightly.
But we must know God.
When we read our Bibles we should consider
Am I primarily looking for information to manage my faith—or am I listening for the living God who speaks and calls me to trust Him?
The Sadducees believed in God, believed in Scripture, and led God’s people—
but they did not believe God was still actively at work beyond what they could control.
When devotion becomes about preserving systems rather than trusting the living God, even good theology can become a barrier to relationship.
Any time we are more comfortable with a manageable God than a living God, we are closer to the Sadducees than we realize.
Any time we try to put God in our box, believing He only works how we tell Him to.
Any time faith is reduced to maintaining traditions rather than trusting promises, resurrection hope quietly fades.
A question we might ask ourselves here is
Is my faith shaped more by what feels safe and manageable—or by trust in the living God who is free to act beyond what I can control?
Jesus is not simply winning an argument here.
He is trying to show these men, and us, that knowing God is not just about knowing a book, it is about knowing the God who speaks through that book, who lives, and who keeps His promises.
But Luke is not finished yet.
Because next, Jesus turns from theological denial to religious performance—and exposes another way devotion can quietly disappear.
Theology is not the only way relationship can be replaced—sometimes it is replaced by performance.
II. Religion Without Relationship Turns Devotion Into Performance
II. Religion Without Relationship Turns Devotion Into Performance
Luke 20:41–47
The scribes, knowing that Jesus had answered their question in a way they didn’t really understand, were silenced.
But Jesus shifts and asks his own question once again.
41 But he said to them, “How can they say that the Christ is David’s son? 42 For David himself says in the Book of Psalms, “ ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, 43 until I make your enemies your footstool.” ’ 44 David thus calls him Lord, so how is he his son?”
If you have noticed, the religious leaders continually missed the point.
This question shows why they kept missing God, even with scripture right in front of them.
Jesus quotes and asks about Psalm 110 and presses one issue:
How can the Messiah be David’s son and David’s Lord?
1 The Lord says to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.”
When properly interpreted shows that the Messiah would be a man (David's son) and would also be God (David's Lord).
The Jews then believed Messiah would be human but not God.
The Jews of Jesus' day believed Messiah would descend from the line of David.
And in Jesus day, they still had the records in the temple and could validate Jesus line.
That was lost when the temple was destroyed in 70 AD.
But the Jewish people are still looking.
They believe the Messiah will be a great political leader descended from King David (Jeremiah 23:5).
He will be well-versed in Jewish law, and observant of its commandments (Isaiah 11:2-5-my note).
He will be a charismatic leader, inspiring others to follow his example.
He will be a great military leader, who will win battles for Israel.
He will be a great judge, who makes righteous decisions.
Jesus is using just one of many Old Testament passages that the Jews accepted as Messianic prophecies to prove that the Messiah would be fully man and fully God.
The religious leaders responded with rejection.
How should you and I respond to the prophecy of Psalm 110?
In two words, very seriously.
The message of the psalm is even more powerful today than it was in David’s time.
In the first place, the final fulfillment of the psalm is still future.
We look forward to its fulfillment just as men in that day did.
If God has faithfully fulfilled the first part of His promise, how much more sure is the completion of God’s purpose as spelled out in this psalm?
I think this was probably one of those moments where everything went silent in the crowd, you probably could have heard a pin drop.
Luke has just shown us:
Leaders who deny God’s power (Sadducees)
Leaders who misunderstand the Messiah (vv. 41–44)
Now Jesus exposes what inevitably follows:
When God is no longer known relationally, religion becomes performative.
So Jesus turns—not to the leaders—but to His disciples, “in the hearing of all the people.”
That detail matters.
Jesus knows how easily devotion can drift. So He names the danger before His disciples repeat it.
This is not “Look how bad they are.”
This is “Guard your own hearts.”
A message just as relevant for us today as it was for them.
The religion of the leaders of Jesus day was in large part one of show.
If you say the right words, do the right actions, you are ok.
We still see this in areas of the Christian church today.
Before we try to locate this danger ‘out there,’ we need to be honest about the fact that Jesus is not describing one denomination, one movement, or one tradition.
He is describing what happens any time religion becomes detached from relationship.
That means this danger can show up in any church, including ours
What did the religious leaders love?
Visibility – “to walk around in long robes”
Recognition – “greetings in the marketplaces”
Status – “the best seats… places of honor”
None of these things are sinful by themselves.
The issue is what the heart is aiming at.
It was all about performance based religion.
Performance based religion is not measured by what we do, but by who we are trying to be seen by.
This type of performance doesn’t only hurt ourselves.
It also hurts others.
Jesus says they devour widows’ houses
The verb is violent: to consume, to eat up.
Widows represent the most vulnerable, legally and economically.
Luke is intentional:
If you have read ahead, who does Jesus point out, a widow.
A stinging contrast.
Religion without relationship does not remain neutral.
It always spills over and harms others.
I have witnessed this for myself, likely you have as well.
Performance based religion feeds on people.
It uses spiritual practices as a cover.
Jesus tells how they for a pretense make long prayers.”
The root of the Greek word for pretense there is to shine.
They think long prayers make them look shiny!
Prayer—the most intimate expression of devotion—has become camouflage.
The problem is not length, but intent.
When prayer is used to impress people rather than depend on God, it stops being devotion and becomes theater.
Jesus says the verdict is Greater Accountability
“They will receive the greater condemnation.”
This is not said with delight.
It is said with authority.
The more religious influence we have, the more devastating empty devotion becomes.
That is why Jesus warns His disciples before they lead.
As I was preparing for this sermon, I have had to ask myself these tough questions and pray, Lord let me not lead out of empty devotion!
I am reminded and hope to remind you as well that Jesus is not saying that visible leadership, public prayer, or spiritual influence are wrong.
He is warning us about what happens when devotion is slowly replaced by performance—when being seen becomes more important than being with God.”
The frightening thing is not how extreme this sounds.
It is how ordinary it feels.
Jesus does not condemn:
structure
leadership
public prayer
visible ministry
He condemns a pattern:
Spiritual authority + visibility + loss of relationship = performance religion
In some parts of the Protestant church, devotion is measured primarily by outward markers—how you dress, how you worship, what you abstain from, how visible your holiness appears.
Those things can begin as sincere efforts to honor God, but over time they can quietly replace relationship with performance.
In other parts of the church, devotion is measured by how spiritual we sound—
how passionately we pray, how long we pray, how dramatic our experiences with God appear.
But even spiritual language becomes a mask when it is no longer rooted in daily trust and obedience.
Sometimes devotion is measured by how busy we are—how many ministries we run, how many people we lead, how visible our service becomes.
And slowly, serving God replaces being with God.
Many churches that emphasize holiness and reverence are trying to honor God sincerely—and that desire is good.
But when holiness becomes primarily about how it looks rather than who we love, devotion turns into performance.
This danger, while propagated by some, is not confined to certain traditions.
It shows up anywhere people lead, serve, teach, pray publicly, or carry spiritual responsibility.
It shows up whenever being seen doing godly things becomes more important than quietly walking with God.
If no one saw my spiritual life—no one heard my prayers, noticed my service, or affirmed my faith—would my devotion to God remain the same?
In my spiritual life, am I more concerned with how I appear before others—or with whether my heart is genuinely oriented toward God?
Jesus has shown us religion that argues about God, and religion that performs for people. And it would be easy to leave this section feeling heavy—exposed, even discouraged.
But Luke does not leave us there. He does not end with a warning. He ends with a picture.
Immediately after exposing the scribes, Jesus looks up—and He sees someone else. Not a leader. Not a teacher. Not someone dressed in long robes.
He sees a poor widow.
And in her act of trust, Jesus shows us what devotion rooted in relationship actually looks like.
Devotion Rooted in Relationship Is Revealed Through Trust
Devotion Rooted in Relationship Is Revealed Through Trust
Luke 21:1–4
He points out to everyone a widow placing two small copper coins in the offering box.
3 And he said, “Truly, I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them. 4 For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.”
Nothing about this moment would have stood out—unless Jesus had drawn our attention to it.
No title.
No influence.
No recognition.
Just quiet trust.
She gives two small coins, if you are reading in the KJV it says she cast her two mites into the treasury.
She is giving not to be impressive, but because she trusts God.
She is not giving out of surplus.
She is giving out of dependence.
And Jesus says she has given more than all the others—not because of the amount, but because of her heart.
This is where Luke wants us to end—not with ourselves under a microscope, but with Jesus watching, knowing, and valuing devotion that flows from relationship.
The widow already believes God is faithful.
And that is the difference between religion and relationship.
Religion tries to secure something from God.
A relationship rests in who God already is.
If we are honest, this kind of trust feels costly—maybe even impossible.
But Luke is not telling us to admire the widow and try harder.
He is inviting us to look at the One who is watching her.
Adrian Rogers shared this saying I want to remind you who Jesus is:
To the artist He’s the One Altogether Lovely.
To the architect He’s the Chief Cornerstone.
To the baker He’s the Living Bread.
To the banker He’s the Hidden Treasure.
To the biologist He’s the Life.
To the builder He’s the Sure Foundation.
To the doctor He’s the Great Physician.
To the educator He’s the Great Teacher.
To the farmer He’s the Lord of the Harvest.
To the florist He’s the Rose of Sharon.
To the geologist He’s the Rock of Ages.
To the judge He’s the Righteous Judge.
To the jeweler He’s the Pearl of Great Price.
To the lawyer He is the Advocate.
To the publisher He is Good Tidings of Great Joy.
To the philosopher He is the Wisdom of God.
To the preacher He is the Word of God.
To the sculptor He is the Living Stone.
To the statesman He is the Desire of All Nations.
To the theologian He is the Author and Finisher of Our Faith.
To the traveler He is the New and Living Way.
To the sinner He is the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world.
To the Christian He is forever the Son of the Living God, Savior, Redeemer, Lord, Everlasting Father, Mighty God, Prince of Peace.
The same Jesus who speaks of resurrection.
The same Jesus who exposes religious performance.
The same Jesus who sees what no one else notices.
He is not calling us into a religious system.
He is calling us into relationship with Himself.”
“The invitation of this passage is not, Know more, do more, give more.’
It is, ‘Trust Me more.’
Devotion does not begin with what we do for Jesus.
It begins with knowing who He is—and believing He is worth trusting with our lives.”
Perhaps some of us have been living like the Sadducees—trying to manage God.
Maybe you have drifted toward the scribes—performing faith for others.
And Jesus, in His kindness, invites us back to something simpler, deeper, and more freeing: a living relationship with Him.
A relationship where we do not have to be impressive.
A relationship where we do not have to stay in control.
A relationship where we can trust Him—even with what feels small and fragile.”
“Do I want to be known for my religious activity—or do I want to truly know Jesus?”
