What if it really is complicated?

(89) A Tale of Seven Brothers - Interpretation

The religiously legalistic Pharisees and the securarly comfortable Herodians joined forces to question Jesus but couldn’t trip him up. So now it’s the turn of the aristocratic, worldly, theologically liberal Sadducees. They don’t believe in an afterlife or any kind of resurrection (but they do know their Scriptures, and can argue their positions very well).

Just for fun, let’s start by looking at whether the Old Testament scriptures support the Sadducees’ position. Do they have anything to say about resurrection. Read Genesis 5:24, 49:33, Job 14:15, 19:25-27, 1 Samuel 28:3,7-10, 2 Kings 2:10-11, Isaiah 25:8, 26:19, Daniel 12:1-3,13, Psalm 16:10, 49:15, 73:24-25… Then look at: Genesis 3:19, Psalm 88:10, 115:17, 146:4, Job 3:16-19, 14:10-12

1.       Does the Old Testament make a convincing case for life after death? Which was your favorite verse?

2.       Is it possible to know your Bible well and still honestly misunderstand it? Which was your least favorite verse?

3.       Are there countries where people have honestly misunderstood and wrongly applied the Bible in the past?

The Sadducees have a good reason to see life after death as illogical. Read Leviticus 18:16, 20:21, Deuteronomy 25:5-10. Yibbum (the name for Deuteronomy’s rule in the Mishna and the Talmud) is the only exception to the Levitical law against incest. But how can God’s law have exceptions?

Read Mark 12:18-27, Luke 20:27-40:

1.       Read Matthew 22:23-24. Anyone listening would know this is a good law, even if it sounds odd to us. What other Old Testament laws sound really odd to you? And what might “sounding odd” have to do with “having exceptions”? Have you ever wondered if any of our laws might sound odd and have exceptions?

2.       Read Matthew 22:25-28. What’s special about seven?

a.       This was a standard way for religious groups to argue about God’s law, and was meant to help them understand it. What’s wrong with arguing this way here?

b.       The Sadducees already knew the answer they wanted – there is no resurrection. Do we ever argue about faith from the point of view that we already know the answer?

c.       What would arguing from the point of view that we want God to show us the answer look like?

3.       Read Matthew 22:29. They do know the Scriptures, probably better than we do. What else might we need besides knowledge of the Scriptures?

4.       Read Matthew 22:30. Okay, let’s “know” the Scriptures again. Read Hebrews 1:14, John 5:28-29, Luke 24:42-43.

a.       Will we have physical bodies in the resurrection?

b.       Will we still love the same people we loved on earth?

c.       Will we still be “us”?

d.       Where does “the power of God” come into helping us answer these questions?

5.       Read Matthew 22:31-32, Exodus 3:6. Going back to that first question, does the Old Testament make a convincing case for resurrection? Do the Old and New Testament Scriptures agree?

6.       Read Matthew 22:33, Luke 20:39. Was this a quiet, subtle debate about deep religious issues, or an attempt to trip Jesus up and discredit him in front of the crowds?

a.       How can we make sure the debates between Christian churches are conducted appropriately?

b.       How can we avoid using the Bible to trip up “other” believers?