Know The Scriptures and Power of God

08 July 2018 Michael Cloete Malelane Baptist Church Know the Scriptures and Power of God! Reading: Mark 12:18-27 (NIV) “Then the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to him with a question. “Teacher,” they said, “Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife but no children, the man must marry the widow and have children for his brother. Now there were seven brothers. The first one married and died without leaving any children. The second one married the widow, but he also died, leaving no child. It was the same with the third. In fact, none of the seven left any children. Last of all, the woman died too. At the resurrection whose wife will she be, since the seven were married to her?” Jesus replied, “Are you not in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God? When the dead rise, they will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven. Now about the dead rising—have you not read in the book of Moses, in the account of the bush, how God said to him, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not the God of the dead, but of the living. You are badly mistaken!”” (Mark 12:18–27, NIV84) Introduction This morning, we consider yet another encounter that Jesus has with a group of people intent on trapping him, or asking him a difficult question in order to test him. This is the third such encounter that we’re encountering within the space of 4 weeks, of a group of people asking Christ questions. But the questions themselves are all directed at Jesus within the space of a few days, in the week that is leading up to the Passover, which Passover would mark the crucifixion of Jesus. Sinclair Fergusson, in his brief commentary on this passage, begins with these words: “In human warfare through the centuries a major tactic has been to attack the enemy in waves, striking at him before he has the opportunity to recover his defences. The same kind of assault is characteristic of spiritual warfare. In this part of his Gospel, Mark vividly describes how Jesus himself was the object of such attacks, as wave upon wave of ‘delegations’ came to question him.” [Ferguson, Let’s Study Mark p. 195] Indeed, we’ve seen these attacks being launched against Jesus: First, by the Sanhedrin (Chief Priests, Scribes, Elders), questioning Christ’s authority, and the source of that authority; secondly by the Pharisees and the Herodians being sent by the Sanhedrin with another question, also designed to put him in a bad spot, and to at the very least discredit Him, if not find Him guilty of treason against Rome, which again could have led him to be put to death by the Roman authorities. But again, Christ answered wisely, and they were literally amazed at his teaching. With both of those accounts having failed at trapping Jesus, we find this next attack which is launched at Jesus. In this case, it is the Sadducees confronting Jesus. But as with the other groups, the agenda is the same: To find fault with Jesus, to trap him in his words, and ultimately to find sufficient grounds to have Christ put to death. This is the agenda. 1. The Questioners As we begin our study, the first important aspect that we need to consider is who these people that were now approaching Jesus with their question were. In verse 18 we read: “Then the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to him with a question.” (Mark 12:18, NIV84) The group of people that approaches Jesus at this point is this group known as the Sadducees. It is evident from the way that Mark relates this account that the audience to whom he wrote would probably not be familiar with the Sadducees, or with what they believed. That is why he needs to add in the description concerning them being a group of people “who say there is no resurrection”, without which detail the entire account would make little sense. But there are a few more details about these questioners that are important for us to understand if we are going to fully appreciate what unfolds here between them and Jesus. Firstly, we need to recognise that the Sadducees were high standing members of society, and formed part of the high priests. In Acts 5:17, we read that the Sadducees were associates of the High Priests. They were powerful and influential. They would ultimately be of decisive importance in the condemnation and death of Jesus. Having said that, we must understand that the sect of the Sadducees were very much distinct from the sect of the Pharisees who had just approached Jesus in the preceding account. Some of their fundamental beliefs drew a sharp distinction between them. If you recall the account of Paul, as he was brought before the Sanhedrin in Acts 23, he saw that there were both Sadducees and Pharisees present there, and he used this fact to turn them against one another. Acts 23:6-7… “But perceiving that one group were Sadducees and the other Pharisees, Paul began crying out in the Council, “Brethren, I am a Pharisee, a son of Pharisees; I am on trial for the hope and resurrection of the dead!” As he said this, there occurred a dissension between the Pharisees and Sadducees, and the assembly was divided.” (Acts 23:6–7, NASB95) So that’s a crucial point to note. Just as the Pharisees and Herodians were very different groups, yet were united in their attack on Christ, so the Sadducees were distinct from those groups, and yet they launch their attack on Christ. They were very diverse groups, united against a common enemy. The next important aspect to know about the Sadducees is that they held strictly to the Torah (first 5 books of the Old Testament - Pentateuch). They didn’t hold to the teachings outside of the Torah as binding on them, either oral or written teachings. They were furthermore very conservative. This led them them to reject any theological beliefs that they regarded as having been arrived at or derived from any source other than the Pentateuch. They believed that the Pentateuch / Torah said nothing about resurrection life, life after death, and thus was to be rejected as a false doctrine. Interestingly enough, Acts 23:8 states that they not only didn’t believe in the resurrection, but they also didn’t believe in angels or spirits. Well, that is the people that come to Jesus and bring their question to Him in order to trap Him in His response. 2. The Setup Having considered the people themselves that challenge Jesus, we can now consider the question that they bring to Jesus in order to trap him. In preparation for their question, they begin by referring Jesus to what Moses had said to them in the book of Deuteronomy. In verse 19 of our text we read: ““Teacher,” they said, “Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife but no children, the man must marry the widow and have children for his brother.” (Mark 12:19, NIV84) Notice immediately their reference to “Moses” – the author of the Pentateuch / Torah. And then they proceed to outline what’s known as the law of Levirate marriage. The law itself is found in the book of Deuteronomy, chapter 25:5-10. Verses 5-6 in that chapter read as follows: “If brothers are living together and one of them dies without a son, his widow must not marry outside the family. Her husband’s brother shall take her and marry her and fulfill the duty of a brother-in-law to her. The first son she bears shall carry on the name of the dead brother so that his name will not be blotted out from Israel.” (Deuteronomy 25:5–6, NIV84) So in summary, it was the duty of the nearest male relative of a deceased man to marry the childless widow and to father her children. This would do two things. Firstly, it would continue the name of the dead brother through his wife. Secondly, her firstborn son through the brother would then be acknowledged as the son of her deceased husband and would inherit his property.1 The Sadducees now approach Jesus on this law that was found in Deuteronomy, and they are going to use it as a basis to catch Jesus out. They describe to Jesus a rather ridiculous hypothetical situation… “Now there were seven brothers. The first one married and died without leaving any children. The second one married the widow, but he also died, leaving no child. It was the same with the third. In fact, none of the seven left any children. Last of all, the woman died too.” (Mark 12:20–22, NIV84) Any rational person would recognise that the odds of something like this happening are so small, that it is nearly impossible. This is an argument reduced to absurdity – but the argument is made in order to push forward their point. Their actual question to Jesus then follows in verse 23: “At the resurrection whose wife will she be, since the seven were married to her?”” (Mark 12:23, NIV84) The Sadducees, believing that there is no resurrection from the dead, are not asking this question from any point of sincerity. All they’re trying to do is point out the absurdity of believing in the resurrection. No doubt this was a question that had been developed by the Sadducees to use against the Pharisees and others who held to the resurrection from the dead, and had been asked by them many times before this occasion that they posed it to Jesus. Sinclair Fergusson suggests that this was… The kind of question every Sadducee’s son asked every Pharisee’s son in the primary school! No one had ever found an answer to it, and the Sadducees expected no one would.” [Ferguson, Let’s Study Mark p. 197] No doubt there would have been attempts to answer the question, and if any answer was given, the most likely one that would have been given would have been that the first brother would be the husband in the resurrection, because all the other brothers had only married in order to produce offspring for their brother. But that’s not the perspective that Jesus brings as he responds to the Sadducees. The response of Jesus goes to an altogether different dimension. 3.The Response And this is what we must now turn our attention to. Christ begins by posing His own question to them, and this question is important for us to consider. In verse 24, we read: “Jesus replied, “Are you not in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God?” (Mark 12:24, NIV84) The question by Jesus “are you not in error” is rhetorical. The answer is that they most certainly are in error. The word error here means that they have wandered off track. They are led astray. Once again, those who took pride in themselves being the knowers of God’s law were being proven to be those who in fact were lacking in understanding. In this case, their error was their view that there is no resurrection from the dead. Later on, in verse 27, we find that Christ says that they are “greatly mistaken.” This was not a small error on their part. The matter of denying the resurrection was not a second-tier aspect of lesser importance. The clearest New Testament explanation for why this was a matter of such significance is found in 1 Corinthians 15, where Paul effectively states that if there is no resurrection from the dead, then our faith is futile, and we are to be pitied above all men. Think about that. Paul was emphatic in stating that to deny the resurrection was to deny the faith. What’s the point, asks Paul, of following Jesus, living for Him, giving up your life in order to follow after Him, if it’s all just a sham, and Jesus Himself didn’t rise from the dead. Now Paul wrote after Jesus had been crucified, and resurrected. So He was coming from a somewhat different perspective. Now we need to be clear that this was not the first time this aspect of the topic of the Resurrection came up in Jesus’ ministry. In fact, in John’s Gospel, it is recorded for us that Jesus very specifically identified Himself as “The Resurrection and the Life.” Now recall that one of the reasons that John writes his Gospel, according to John 20:31 is… “… so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.” One of the key and foundational reasons for the Gospel, the coming of Jesus, was so that we would have life. Not temporary earthly life – but eternal life. And so Jesus performed a number of miracles, which are recorded for us by John, and then through those miracles, applied them to Himself by way of a metaphor in order to describe who He was – that He was indeed the Son of God. One of those miracles that is recorded was the raising of Lazarus from the dead. And on that occasion, Jesus used the raising of Lazarus from the dead in order to teach his disciples through one of his “I AM” statements. (…bread of life; …light of the world; …door of the sheep; …the good shepherd; …the way the truth and the life; …the true vine)… all of these statements spoke about the very nature of Jesus, and the work that He came to do. In the case of Lazarus, the metaphor that He used was: “I am the resurrection and the life.” This was bound up in who Christ claimed to be. This was an essential truth. The Sadducees had no doubt heard about this. They knew much of what He was teaching. And I’m convinced that the reason they challenged Him was because He claimed to be the Resurrection and the life. But they were in error, as Christ tells them here. But we need to consider further then what it was that caused them to err. What was it that led them to their error? Christ very clearly states that they are lacking in two areas. They did not know the Scriptures. The first area in which they were lacking was that they did not know the Scriptures. Even though they claimed to be those who were experts in God’s law, they were in fact severely deficient in their use of God’s word. Jesus asserts that what the Sadducees claim to know best they in fact know least. They are vulnerable not at their weak points but at their strong points. They have gone astray not at the periphery or in the incidentals of their belief system but at the heart and center of their beliefs.2 Had these Sadducees known the Scriptures, they would have known that there is nothing in Deuteronomy 25:5-6 (which passage deals with the Levirate marriage) that spoke to or could be applied to the life to come. But furthermore, if they truly knew all the Scriptures, they would also have known that there were plenty of Scriptures – God’s word – which referred to resurrection life, to a life to come. In Daniel 12:2, for example, we find these words: “Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt.” (Daniel 12:2, NIV84) Isaiah 26:19 is another example… “But your dead will live; their bodies will rise. You who dwell in the dust, wake up and shout for joy. Your dew is like the dew of the morning; the earth will give birth to her dead.” (Isaiah 26:19, NIV84) Clearly the Sadducees were at a deficit for not holding to all of the Scriptures, and rather holding only to the Torah. But even so, as we’ll see later on, Jesus doesn’t even need to use these very clear passages to prove His point – He uses the Torah itself to show them that they do not know the Scriptures! (we’ll come to that in a moment). They did not know the power of God The second area in which the Sadducees were lacking was in the fact that they did not know the power of God. Indeed, if they knew the power of God, then they would have had a clear understanding of the fact that God would be more than able to raise people from the dead and give new life. In fact, it is striking in Scripture that repeatedly we find God’s working of resurrection to be a demonstration of His divine power. Which was more powerful, death or God? Was death able to defeat God? Was God powerless to overcome the grave? In Acts 2:24, we read these words: “But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him.” (Acts 2:24, NIV84) It was impossible for death to hold Christ. God’s power was far greater than the grips of death. It was this power that raised Christ from the dead that was used in order to give us our own spiritual resurrection unto new life. Paul writes to the Ephesian believers: “I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms,” (Ephesians 1:18–20, NIV84) What a profound and encouraging truth!!! That ought to stir our own hearts to a place of worship – knowing that it is the very power of the almighty God that has given us spiritual life! Christ says to these Sadducees that they have failed to recognise the power of God. Consider that even according to their own Scriptures, they should have been aware of God’s power to give life. Was it not God almighty who blew the breath of life into the nostrils of the first man Adam, and gave him life? Having stated to the Sadducees their fundamental problem (they didn’t know the Scriptures, and they denied the power of God) Christ goes on to provide some further clarity regarding their question posed. Let me explain to you, says Jesus. Verse 25… “When the dead rise, they will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven.” (Mark 12:25, NIV84) Now here is an interesting assertion by Christ. Essentially, in heaven there will be no marriage. In our world, marriage is a fundamental institution for the welfare of society. We cannot imagine life without marriage, and in fact, life without marriage would be entirely dysfunctional. But this is only the case because this world has been so designed by God. Purposes of Marriage If one goes back to the book of Genesis, and considers the fundamental relationship that is formed between a man and wife, you’ll see that the purpose of the creation of the woman was in order to be a companion and helper to man. It was not good for man to be alone. Furthermore, the woman was also placed there in order that there could be procreation – that they could have offspring and multiply, and so fill the earth. This, according to God’s word, would always be within the confines of marriage. But there was a further purpose for marriage, and that is that it would be a picture of Christ and the church, a living, breathing example of Christ’s headship over and love for the church, and the churches humble submission under and love for Christ. Things Change in Heaven But in heaven, all of those purposes will effectively be done away with. For in glory, all of us who are in Christ will be united with and in fellowship with Christ and God, and thus our perfect companionship will be realised. When those who are in Christ rise to be with Christ forever we will no longer have need for marriage or the marriage act, because the point of them both are to display to us and the world the greatness of Jesus. Marriage is a living parable that tells us and the watching world how amazing God’s mercy, love, and grace are in Christ. It shows us His faithfulness to His covenants. Marriage points us to Christ, and in the resurrection, the new heaven-new earth, there will be no more need for something to point to Christ in this way because Christ will be there among us. In Revelation 21:3 we read… “And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.” (Revelation 21:3, NIV84) Earthly marriage in this age points to the great day of the Marriage Supper of the Lamb when the church, Christ’s bride, will be fully sanctified, ready for the celebration of perfect and complete communion with its Bridegroom. King Jesus (Revelation 21:6-8). And this is what Jesus is getting at when He says the church will be like angels in heaven. It’s very important for us to recognise that Christ is not saying here that we will be angels with halos around our heads, sitting on the clouds playing harps. He’s not even saying that we’ll be angels at all (even if you have a more biblical conception of angels in your mind). We will not have the function of angels. Christ is simply saying that in the same way that the angels in heaven do not marry, so we too will not marry. The purpose for marriage will be done away with. Does that scare some of you? Particularly the ladies? Don’t let it! Heaven will be far more glorious than earth! 4. The Confirmation Well Christ goes on to not only tell them about the abolishment of marriage in the life to come, but to re-assert the reality that indeed, there is a life to come. In Verses 26-27, Christ says… “Now about the dead rising—have you not read in the book of Moses, in the account of the bush, how God said to him, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not the God of the dead, but of the living. You are badly mistaken!”” (Mark 12:26–27, NIV84) Jesus does as the Sadducees do in his argument, by referring them back to Moses. Christ knows what portions of the Scriptures they hold to be true. And so, He uses that which they hold to in order to demonstrate their own lack of understanding. The account that he refers them to is the one of the burning bush. This is not a chapter and verse reference – it’s simply a recorded event in the Scriptures. The argument is simple. God appeared to Moses, and said to Moses in present tense form, I am the God of Abraham, I am the God of Isaac and I am the God of Jacob. Now by the time Moses was living on the earth, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob were long gone off the scene and had died. And Christ’s argument here is that God referred to them in the present tense. Some have thought this argument to be somewhat weak. They would argue that God was merely saying that when Abraham was alive, he worshiped this God, and that when Isaac was alive, he also worshipped this God etc. But this is not what Christ is arguing here. “…a study of the context in which Exod. 3:6 and all similar passages occur, quickly proves that the One who reveals himself as “the God of Abraham …” is the unchangeable, eternal covenant God who blesses, loves, encourages, protects, etc. his people, and whose favors do not suddenly stop when a person dies but go with that person beyond death3 God implied through his words to Moses that the patriarchs were still alive and that He had a continuing relationship with them as their covenant-keeping God, even though they had died long before. The conclusion of this is that God is not the God of the dead, but rather He is the God of the living! Even according to your own Scriptures, dear Sadducees, God is the God of the living. You are badly mistaken!!! Applications Let us go on to make a few important practical observations and applications for ourselves today. A.1. We must know the Scriptures The first very important application that I want to make us that we as Christians must know the Scriptures!!! The Apostle Peter, in writing to Christians who were scattered around throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia…. Ordinary Christians – not pastors or teachers, but normal Christians, writes to them and encourages them with these words in 1 Peter 3:14-15… “But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. “Do not fear what they fear; do not be frightened.” But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,” (1 Peter 3:14–15, NIV84) Well, what is the way in which one does that? Through a sound knowledge of the Scriptures. Through a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures. The Sadducees erred from truth because they didn’t know the Scriptures. They didn’t know what God’s word taught. Friends, if we are to avoid the pitfalls of falling into erroneous teaching, then each one of us has a responsibility to know the Scriptures. It is a knowledge of the Scriptures that will keep us following Christ according to sound doctrine. In Ephesians 4:11-13, Paul says concerning Christ, that … “It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.” (Ephesians 4:11–13, NIV84) So, there are certain key people that Christ placed in the church in order to My question to you this morning is: How seriously do you take this aspect of having a sound knowledge of the Scriptures. Do I ask this because I think you should all be foremost theologians? No. But you certainly should be a theologian of some level. At the very least an aspiring theologian! We should be growing in our knowledge. No 17- or 18-year old in South Africa, having just obtained their learners licence, goes for their first drive in a car, and then gives up driving altogether because they’ve recognised they’re not the world’s best driver. Instead, they know that to master this thing called driving, they’re going to need to train, practice, develop their skills over time. Precisely the same is involved in us knowing the Scriptures. It takes time to learn and to grow in the Scriptures. It takes time to learn to properly handle the Scriptures. But that doesn’t put the Christians off. The believer in Christ should want to take up God’s word and study it to grow in their knowledge and understanding so that they may apply that to their own lives. The same ought to be true for each person in our use of the Scriptures. Are you practicing using the Scriptures in the week? Do you open the Scriptures in the week and read? Are you studying the Scriptures? It is impossible for us to make proper sense of the world around us without developing an understanding of the Scriptures. Preaching is one avenue. Bible Study in the week is another. But using the Scriptures yourselves at home will have a significant impact on your life. Don’t rob yourself of that privilege and joy. A.2. We must recognise that we need the entirety of Scripture is important Taking this one step further, we must recognise that we need to study the entirety of Scripture in order to fully know God and His ways and will. One of the errors that the Sadducees made was that of basing their views and deductions on only a part of God’s revelation. They only considered the Torah. They didn’t listen to the prophets, the wisdom literature etc. Well in our day, there are many that would suggest that we only need to read the New Testament, since the Old has disappeared and has no bearing on the church. This is most certainly a grave error. As Christians, we hold to the view that the entirety of the Scriptures are God’s revealed will, and it is this full body of Scripture that directs and guides us in our lives as Christians. To forsake or neglect certain portions of Scriptures because we think they have less relevance or bearing on our lives is to deprive ourselves of a balanced spiritual diet. A.3. We must know the Power of God As we live our lives as Christians in this world, we need to live those lives knowing the power of God, and particularly living with freedom from fear and the power of death. You’ve probably heard the expression concerning the Sadducees: “They believed that there was no resurrection, so they were Sad-u-cee.” Our view on God’s power has an impact on our lives as Christians. Do you believe in the sovereign power of God? Do you believe that He has all power, to do anything that He chooses to do, and that nothing can thwart His purposes? Do you believe that? Do you believe that He has the power to raise the dead? If so (and you should believe that) then you ought to live a life of freedom and joy. You ought to live a life filled with hope and expectancy of the fact that we serve the living and true God, and that one day we will be raised up from the grave, and will be united with Him in glory, if we are in Christ! Are you looking forward to that day?!? John 5:28-29… ““Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out—those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned.” (John 5:28–29, NIV84) I must ask you the question this morning: Are you going to be raised to go to eternal life with the Father, or are you going to be raised to be condemned. This is a question that we must ask ourselves. For it is only those who have placed Jesus Christ as Lord of their life, those who are living lives in submission to Christ, being not only hearers of the word, but doers of the word, bearing fruit in Christ, who will be raised to life. Have you repented of your sin this morning? Have you confessed that sin before our Holy God? If not I urge you to do that without delay. If you have, then you can rejoice and live your life looking forward to the day of Christ’s return. As a Christian, your focusing your mind on that great day of Christ’s return, should profoundly impact how you live every other day of your life. In Revelation 22:20, Christ’s words were: “Yes, I am coming soon…” May it be that as we focus our hearts and our minds every day on that great day, that we can say with the Apostle John: “Amen. Come Lord Jesus.”