SERMON TITLE: Jesus, here’s a tricky question about eternal life.
TEXT: Mark 12:18-27 (ESV)
SPEAKER: Josh Hanson
DATE: 11-7-21
You can find the sermon notes here.
As always it’s a joy to be with all of you this weekend at Gateway Church. And there’s one thing I want you to know — this is true if you’re worshipping with us for the first time or are joining us at our North Main campus — the one thing I want you to know is that God loves you and that I love you too.
Each week — in the gospel of Mark — we’re seeing people ask Jesus all kinds of questions. And their questions are what we’re focusing on — because — we’ve all got questions. Questions about life, about spiritual things, about relationships, and so on. And the questions — we see people asking Jesus — in Mark’s gospel — are questions many of us are still asking today.
So let’s turn to our passage and see which question Jesus will be asked today. If you have your Bible please turn with me to Mark chapter 12. We’ll be looking at verses 18 through 27. And the question Jesus will be asked this week is — well — it’s a tricky one about eternal life.
Here are the words found in Mark chapter 12. Beginning in verse 18.
“And Sadducees came to him, who say that there is no resurrection. And they asked him a question, saying, 19 “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife, but leaves no child, the man must take the widow and raise up offspring for his brother. 20 There were seven brothers; the first took a wife, and when he died left no offspring. 21 And the second took her, and died, leaving no offspring. And the third likewise. 22 And the seven left no offspring. Last of all the woman also died. 23 In the resurrection, when they rise again, whose wife will she be? For the seven had her as wife.” 24 Jesus said to them, “Is this not the reason you are wrong, because you know neither the Scriptures nor the power of God? 25 For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. 26 And as for the dead being raised, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the passage about the bush, how God spoke to him, saying, ‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? 27 He is not God of the dead, but of the living. You are quite wrong.”” (Mark 12:18-27 ESV)
If you listen to our podcast — you may remember some episodes we’ve done where we answered questions sent in by kids. Both of the episodes began with a riddle that was sent in for me to answer by one of your kids. Well — here in Mark — Jesus is being asked to answer a kind of riddle. And it’s a tricky question about eternal life. Let’s return to verse 18.
“And Sadducees came to him, who say that there is no resurrection. And they asked him a question, saying, 19 “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife, but leaves no child, the man must take the widow and raise up offspring for his brother. 20 There were seven brothers; the first took a wife, and when he died left no offspring. 21 And the second took her, and died, leaving no offspring. And the third likewise. 22 And the seven left no offspring. Last of all the woman also died. 23 In the resurrection, when they rise again, whose wife will she be? For the seven had her as wife.” 24 Jesus said to them, “Is this not the reason you are wrong, because you know neither the Scriptures nor the power of God?” (Mark 12:18-24 ESV)
Now — with the way that Mark writes here — it’s as if these Sadducees approach Jesus right after the Pharisees and Herodians got put in their place — the story we looked at two weeks ago where they tried to trap Jesus with their question about taxes. And — to help fill you in on who these folks are questioning Jesus — you should know that the Sadducees are a group of priests who are wealthy and elitish. And the average Jew didn’t like them very much. (J. D. Douglas and Merrill C. Tenney, “Sadducee,” in Zondervan Illustrated Bible Dictionary (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2011), 1267.)
Now — all of these different groups in the Bible can be confusing — Pharisees, Sadducees, Herodians, scribes, and so on. So here are some things to know about the Sadducees. If you compare them with the Pharisees — they’re a much smaller group — there are many more Pharisees than Sadducees. But — though smaller in number — the Sadducees had a much better relationship with the Roman government. They had some influence in the political sphere of Jerusalem by combining conservative religion with strongman politics. And so — as a group — they favored keeping things fairly even keeled because — the better the Jews behaved — the better their odds were of maintaining political power.
But — what Mark is highlighting — in our verses — is a misunderstanding the Sadducees have about eternity. Jesus flat out tells them that they’re view about eternity is wrong. So where did they go wrong? Well here are some of the things they believed. (Anthony J. Saldarini, “Pharisees, Scribes, and Sadducees in Palestinian Society: A Sociological Approach (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2-6; J. D. Douglas and Merrill C. Tenney, “Sadducee,” in Zondervan Illustrated Bible Dictionary (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2011), 1267.)
And — they have a misunderstanding about eternity because — according to Jesus — they don’t know their Bible. And oh how we should strive to not be like them and be people who do know our Bibles — and know them well. Oh how — for me and for us — I hope it will be said, “They are people who know their Bibles well and have been deeply changed by God’s Word.”
Why is this important? Well we all need to be humble and realize there are things we don’t understand. There are things we just don’t know and there are even things we think we know — and we’re wrong. And the solution — according to Jesus — is for us to know our Bibles better. Because we all need — myself included — we all need God’s Spirit to use God’s Word to transform us in our minds and our thinking about all things — especially about eternity.
And — the reason why this renewing and transforming of our minds is so important — is because we live in a day and age where we’re bombarded with all kinds of views regarding eternity.
But did you catch what examples I just gave all have in common? Where’s Christ? He’s missing — even in the streets of gold and mansions eternity! Jesus’ presence — in eternity — seems to be unimportant for many people — even many Christians. For some — to be sure — this is unintended. But for others — the thinking about eternity is — “Sure, sure, sure — Jesus is in heaven — but he’s not what makes heaven heaven.” But as one pastor has written, “The critical question for our generation — and for every generation — is this: If you could have heaven, with no sickness, and with all the friends you ever had on earth, and all the food you ever liked, and all the leisure activities you ever enjoyed, and all the natural beauties you ever saw, all the physical pleasures you ever tasted, and no human conflict or any natural disasters, could you be satisfied with heaven, if Christ were not there?” (John Piper, God is the Gospel) And — if your answer is yes — if you would be satisfied with heaven if Christ were not there — just as long as your sweet grandma was there — or as long as you get to golf every day — or whatever — if the thought of a Christless heaven is appealing to you — then you have a grave misunderstanding of eternity.
Maybe an illustration will help. Imagine there’s a war going on and a US soldier is captured. And he’s held as a prisoner of war for years while his wife is here in the states. Every day she wakes up knowing that her husband is alive. She dreams of him being set free. She imagines and anticipates seeing him face to face. And day after day — for years — her hopes and dreams don’t come true.
Then — one day — she gets the call. The enemy’s reached an agreement with the US and her husband is going to be released. Arrangements have been made for her to fly to Hawaii where she’ll be reunited with her husband. So she takes off, runs out the door, gets on a plane, and lands in Hawaii.
Now imagine — upon arriving in Hawaii — imagine her being so amazed by the beauty of the islands, the sandy beaches, the tropical atmosphere — imagine her being so amazed by the beauty of Hawaii that she forgets about her husband. That’s unimaginable, right? Why? Because — though Hawaii may be spectacular — it’s secondary to her husband who she’s in Hawaii to meet after years of being apart. Hawaii is inconsequential. She wouldn’t care if she’s meeting him in the deserts of the Middle East, on top of the Eiffel tower, or in New Jersey. Who cares where the meeting takes place — it’s who she’s meeting that’s most important.
And what I’m saying is that this is what eternity and heaven are really about. Heaven is most about who will be there with us — Christ. The one who gave his life — in love — for us. How Christ-centered are your thoughts about eternity?
“But, Josh. That’s just your opinion about eternity. Maybe that’s true for you — Josh — but I have my own truth about eternity.” OK. What’s your truth based on? I mean — you’re not dead — so you don’t have personal experience to go on. “Well, neither do you, Josh.” You’re right. Both of us are living by faith — something we believe — but haven’t seen. So — then — the question becomes what are you basing your faith on? And — even if you’re unsure how to answer that question —know that this question isn’t meant to be tricky — it’s meant to be revealing.
The word “heaven” — when referring to eternity — means the place where God dwells. Maybe you’re not sure about which god or maybe you prefer spiritual power or whatever — but — the point is that heaven isn’t a man-centered place. Heaven is God-centered.
So — back to your view about eternity — be honest with yourself — is it man-centered? That’s what the pastor’s quote was getting at earlier — he was revealing the man-centered view of eternity that many people have. Where your view of heaven is mainly about it being a place where you won’t have to worry about cancer or sickness, all your friends and family are there, if you like to golf — eternity is gonna be one long golf game with your buddies — a place free of wars and conflict and the best food you’ve ever eaten. If your view of eternity is — maybe not that exactly — but something like that — you’ve abandoned what you instinctively know to be true about heaven — it’s God-centered — not man-centered.
And do you know what a man-centered view of eternity causes us to do? It causes us to ignore eternity and live for heaven here on earth. We become so earthly minded that we’re of no heavenly good. It’s where the philosophy of “Live it up now because who knows what’s going to happen after we die” comes from.
Now — my next statement is gonna feel like a strange and unexpected change of topics. But — if we look at the Sadducees tricky question again — what it unexpectedly highlights is the importance of offspring. Stay with me — this will make sense in a moment. In biblical times — children — especially a son — were the future and hope for a family. That’s what the question for Jesus is highlighting with all of the brothers being required to take the woman as their wife. But — you may wonder — where did Moses command a man’s brother to take his widow and have a son with her? Remember — the Sadducees appeal to Moses — which now — shouldn’t be surprising because Moses’ writings were the only authoritative writing in their religious system — we learned that earlier.
So where do we find this in Moses’ writings? In the book of Deuteronomy chapter 25 we read, ““If two brothers are living together on the same property and one of them dies without a son, his widow may not be married to anyone from outside the family. Instead, her husband’s brother should marry her and have intercourse with her to fulfill the duties of a brother-in-law. 6 The first son she bears to him will be considered the son of the dead brother, so that his name will not be forgotten in Israel. 7 “But if the man refuses to marry his brother’s widow, she must go to the town gate and say to the elders assembled there, ‘My husband’s brother refuses to preserve his brother’s name in Israel — he refuses to fulfill the duties of a brother-in-law by marrying me.’ 8 The elders of the town will then summon him and talk with him. If he still refuses and says, ‘I don’t want to marry her,’ 9 the widow must walk over to him in the presence of the elders, pull his sandal from his foot, and spit in his face. Then she must declare, ‘This is what happens to a man who refuses to provide his brother with children.’ 10 Ever afterward in Israel his family will be referred to as ‘the family of the man whose sandal was pulled off’!” (Deuteronomy 25:5-10 NLT)
I could’ve stopped after verse six — but didn’t want you to miss the consequences of not fulfilling your duty as the brother. OK — so back to our verses in Mark. Though this is a hypothetical situation — the scenario that the Sadducees have proposed to Jesus is a hopeless one. And not just because all of the brothers have died — I mean you’d think — at some point — brothers number 5, 6, or 7 would’ve thought, “Marrying her seems like a death sentence — here’s my sandal.” But the men dying isn’t the sole tragedy of the riddle — there’s also no son born to the woman. That’s what Moses’ words ultimately point to — the tragedy of their being no son — no offspring to carry on the name.
Why is this a tragedy? Well in a day and age when the law required property to be handed down to a firstborn son — though it may seem oppressive to women to our modern ears — know that this law was meant to protect the Israelite women. Other nations didn’t protect and care for widows in this way. But God’s people were to be different from the other nations — including in how they treated and protected and cared for women — thus the dead man’s brothers had an obligation to protect his widow by marrying her and giving her a son.
Now — maybe you’re already thinking this — but this whole riddle scenario — and there being no son born to the woman — and the desperation surrounding the need for a son to be born because of the hope he will bring in this dark situation — maybe for you this whole scenario is doing to you what it does to me because I can’t help but feel great hope as I think of Jesus — in whom we find the perfect firstborn Son of God — our elder brother — the one born into a dark and hopeless situation — our broken world due to our sin and rebellion. What the Sadducees’ riddle is meant to deliver — a hopeless and depressing situation — is the very eternal situation we found ourselves in before God’s Son came into our world. But — now that Jesus has come — what hope we have — what eternal hope we have!
Which leads us to a truth Jesus teaches about eternity. We’re in verse 25.
“For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven.” (Mark 12:25 ESV)
Jesus’ response — to their tricky question — reveals to us a truth about eternity — a truth that — if we’re honest — is bittersweet. It reveals to us the temporary nature of our earthly marriages. And the temporary nature of our earthly marriages helps us to understand how we’ll be “like angels in heaven” — something easily misunderstood.
So how will we be like angels in heaven? First, know that Jesus didn’t say that we will be angels in heaven. This kind of poor theology is prevalent in Christian and non-Christian circles. We see this when someone dies and we call them an “angel in heaven” — or we say “heaven’s got a new angel.” We don’t become angels when we die — according to Jesus — we become like them. But — even here — Jesus doesn’t say we’ll be like angels in every respect. Jesus’ focus is on a very specific topic — marriage. So the way in which we’ll be like angels — in heaven — is in regards to marriage. And angels in heaven aren’t married — thus — the way in which we’ll be like angels in heaven — is that we won’t be married to one another like we are here on earth. But there’s good news.
The good news is what all of this “we’ll be like angels and won’t be married to each other” talk is pointing us to — the marriage of Jesus to his bride — the Church. Our marriages — now — are meant to prepare us for our eternal marriage with Christ. Our earthly marriages are meant to be signposts pointing to the gospel and what Christ has accomplished in his life, death, and resurrection for his bride — the Church.
This is what Paul shows us in Ephesians chapter 5 where he writes, “Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord, 23 because the husband is the head of the wife as also Christ is the head of the church – he himself being the savior of the body. 24 But as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything. 25 Husbands, love your wives just as Christ loved the church and gave himself for her 26 to sanctify her by cleansing her with the washing of the water by the word, 27 so that he may present the church to himself as glorious – not having a stain or wrinkle, or any such blemish, but holy and blameless. 28 In the same way husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 For no one has ever hated his own body but he feeds it and takes care of it, just as Christ also does the church, 30 for we are members of his body. 31 For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and will be joined to his wife, and the two will become one flesh. 32 This mystery is great – but I am actually speaking with reference to Christ and the church. 33 Nevertheless, each one of you must also love his own wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.” (Ephesians 5:22-33 NET)
An earthly marriage — of a husband and wife — is meant to point others to the eternal marriage of Christ and his bride. And — in eternity — the signpost won’t be needed any longer. Earthly marriages will no longer be needed because the heavenly eternal marriage will be our reality. As one author has written, “In Heaven there will be one marriage, not many. That marriage will be what earthly marriage symbolized and pointed to, the marriage of Christ to his bride. So we will all be married — but to Christ...Our marriage to him is the true marriage, of which the best of earthly marriages was a symbol and shadow. Those who did not experience marriage or had only a poor marriage on earth will be delighted with their eternal Bridegroom, who has already gone to prepare a place for them. One day all heaven will attend the ultimate wedding, and we will be his bride.” (Randy Alcorn, “Will There Be Marriage in Heaven?,” February 3, 2010. https://www.epm.org/resources/2010/Feb/3/will-there-be-marriage-heaven/.)
And as the book of Revelation records for us, “Then I heard again what sounded like the shout of a vast crowd or the roar of mighty ocean waves or the crash of loud thunder: “Praise the Lord! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns. 7 Let us be glad and rejoice, and let us give honor to him. For the time has come for the wedding feast of the Lamb, and his bride has prepared herself. 8 She has been given the finest of pure white linen to wear.”” (Revelation 19:6-8a NLT)
Heaven — eternity — is going to be a glorious wedding feast celebrating the marriage of Christ and the Church. And though — again — this can be bittersweet news — may the fact that our earthly marriages are temporary — that they are meant to be signposts pointing to a better and more perfect marriage — may this truth compel us to live God-honoring lives in God-glorifying, gospel-proclaiming marriages here on earth.
And you may be wondering — if you’re single — well how then am I being prepared for my eternal marriage? Know that preparation for eternity isn’t attached to the hip with earthly marriage. In fact — being single is a great advantage in preparing for eternity.
Listen to Paul’s words — a man who never married — by the way. He writes, “I want you to be free from the concerns of this life. An unmarried man can spend his time doing the Lord’s work and thinking how to please him. 33 But a married man has to think about his earthly responsibilities and how to please his wife. 34 His interests are divided. In the same way, a woman who is no longer married or has never been married can be devoted to the Lord and holy in body and in spirit. But a married woman has to think about her earthly responsibilities and how to please her husband. 35 I am saying this for your benefit, not to place restrictions on you. I want you to do whatever will help you serve the Lord best, with as few distractions as possible.” (1 Corinthians 7:32-35 NLT)
Know that singleness — whether for a season or for life — is an opportunity to serve the Lord with as few distractions as possible or — as Paul says it — “without your interests being divided.” Now — for sure — being single — doesn’t mean having no relationships. It doesn’t mean being without a family. And the church — in fact — should be a place where all know that — regardless of marital status — they have a family. This is why I’m encouraged when I hear of families — often couples with multiple children — inviting someone single from our congregation into their lives. And I’m thankful when I hear of those who are single welcoming the idea of being part of a family. Because we all need each other and we’re all part of God’s family through our faith in Christ.
But not only — if you’re single — do you have the opportunity to serve the Lord without divided interests — know that there are biblical blessings that God bestows upon those who serve him in this life in singleness. For example, the prophet Isaiah writes these words of promised eternal blessing to those who are single. “For this is what the Lord says: I will bless those eunuchs who keep my Sabbath days holy and who choose to do what pleases me and commit their lives to me. 5 I will give them — within the walls of my house — a memorial and a name far greater than sons and daughters could give. For the name I give them is an everlasting one. It will never disappear!” (Isaiah 56:4-5 NLT)
Singleness is not second-class Christianity. Singleness is not an eternal punishment. In fact — earthly marriages — are temporary — just like singleness. For in eternity — all who are in Christ — will be married to him. And — I know that for guys — being married to Christ sounds and feels weird. Just know that what this means is that — in eternity — we’ll all submit ourselves joyfully and trustingly to Christ’s authority and leadership. We’ll submit ourselves to his guidance and to his Word. He will be our eternal protector, our comforter, and our victor — the One who defeated our enemy. This is what it means to be married to him.
Which leads us to eternity now — eternity that is presently happening. Verse 26.
“And as for the dead being raised, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the passage about the bush, how God spoke to him, saying, ‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? 27 He is not God of the dead, but of the living. You are quite wrong.”” (Mark 12:26-27 ESV)
Eternity is happening right now. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob may have physically died thousands of years ago — but they’re eternally alive right now — as are all who have died in Christ. Though death feels final — in this life — and our relationship with loved ones — who have died — seems to have come to an end. Know that they are alive — eternally alive — more alive than you or I have ever experienced — if they believed in Christ. For — through their faith in Christ — they are face to face with the God of the living — he is not the God of the dead — he is the God of the living.
And this promise is guaranteed because Jesus — the Son of God who’s come into the world — is the resurrection and the life. Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying. 26 Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never ever die.” (John 11:25b-26a NLT)
Remember — the Sadducees didn’t believe in a resurrection. “When you die — that’s it — it’s over” — according to their beliefs. But our hope — the hope of the Christian faith is that the power — behind our promised resurrection — is the resurrection of Christ. He who raised Christ up from the grave — will raise up all who’ve put their faith and hope in Christ. Your resurrection day is coming — if you believe in Christ. A resurrection day that will be the beginning of all your eternal days.
And — remember — God has graciously given us his Word so that we can know and study and learn about eternity — now — so we will long for it. Longing for our eternity — while living in the present — an eternity with our faithful Lord and Savior. Let’s pray.
Heavenly Father, thank you for your Word to us and the power of the Spirit of God who lives in all who believe in your Son. We’re grateful for your Word because it teaches us truth, rebukes us when we’re wrong, corrects us when we misunderstand, and trains us how to live godly lives. And the Spirit of God in us empowers us to live the godly lives we’re called to live.
Jesus, thank you for teaching us about eternity but — more importantly — blessing us with the gift of eternity with you. Without your life, death, and resurrection on our behalf — without you defeating Satan, sin, death, and hell — we would have no hope. We’d be left in darkness. We’d be in an eternally terrifying situation. But because of what you’ve done on our behalf — on behalf of all who turn to you in faith — we are people who have hope. Eternal hope. Eternal hope with you at the center. For both this life — and the life to come — have you at the center — have you as the focus. May this be true for me and for all who hear my voice — Christ may be you be the focus of our lives. We pray all of this in your name. Amen.
May you go living in light of your eternity — allowing your life to be a signpost pointing others to Christ and his Good News. Amen.
God loves you. I love you. You are sent.
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