Some Sadducees, those who say there is no resurrection, came to Jesus and asked him a question, "Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man's brother dies, leaving a wife but no children, the man shall marry the widow and raise up children for his brother. Now there were seven brothers; the first married, and died childless; then the second and the third married her, and so in the same way all seven died childless. Finally the woman also died. In the resurrection, therefore, whose wife will the woman be? For the seven had married her." Jesus said to them, "Those who belong to this age marry and are given in marriage; but those who are considered worthy of a place in that age and in the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage. Indeed they cannot die anymore, because they are like angels and are children of God, being children of the resurrection. And the fact that the dead are raised Moses himself showed, in the story about the bush, where he speaks of the Lord as the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Now he is God not of the dead, but of the living; for to him all of them are alive." Luke 20:27-38
One of the things that used to make very frustrated in seminary, and at times in the House of Bishops, is when folks feel they need to test others' intelligence, in order to show how smart they are. We all know people who test our patience. Some of us might have been those children that tested limits all the time and some of us have children that tested the limits constantly. I've never liked being tested, whether legitimately in school or by others. It doesn't seem to help anyone much except those who are good at testing and end up on Jeopardy. Religious leaders were testing Jesus to trap him and show that he was stupid. He turned their testing on them. He reminds us all that God is the God of the living, and we do not have to worry about our lives here or in the afterlife.
Wondrous Creator, you dwell among the living
breathing life into stagnant and broken places
and giving us joy again so we might fully live.
Lord God of the living, be present with us always.
We are tested to the very edge of our limits
often, we want to blame others for our pain
yet we forget to seek you in the dark times.
Lord God of the living, be present with us always.
Every new day is a gift from your heart
every child a unique gift to lift us all
and every season a time to love one another.
Lord God of the living, be present with us always.
The short days and long nights are upon us
and you promise to be here in the midst of us.
Lord God of the living, be present with us always.
We worry about the future without any hope
yet you are our hope, our future and our home.
Lord God of the living, be present with us always.
Help us Lord, to seek you in all seasons
so we might renew the world with your love.
Lord God of the living, be present with us always. Amen.
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