(Study Outline sourced from “The System Bible Study” – “The Book of Life” [Zondervan])
7. Paying Tax To Caesar
In continuation of their attempt to trap the Lord Jesus, The Pharisees and Herodians “..sent spies, who pretended to be honest. They hoped to catch Jesus in something he said so that they might hand him over to the power and authority of the governor.” All three other writers give the same description of these spies, but Luke is specific in his account recording that they prefaced their question by “Teacher, we know that you speak and teach what is right, and that you do not show partiality but teach the way of God in accordance with the truth.” . They knew that what He taught was right and that He showed no partiality, which is what the Scriptures say about God , they were, however, intent to trap Jesus . Our Lord’s response thus silenced them, “Then give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.” .
8. The Sadducees Question On The Resurrection
“Some of the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to Jesus with a question.”.There had been a long-standing debate between the Sadducees and Pharisees on the subject of the resurrection, and now they attempt to involve our Lord Jesus in this dispute. They presented a situation in which a woman was married to seven brothers in succession, each brother having died leaving no children. Quoting from the Law of Moses they asked, “..at the resurrection whose wife will she be, since the seven were married to her?”.
“You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God…” . They had their own interpretation of what the Scriptures (Law) stated and refused to be taught by the Holy Spirit as to the true interpretation. Many find themselves in the same dilemma today; they can quote the Scriptures for any circumstance they encounter, justifying their actions or decisions, or to question God’s intervention or non-intervention . Jesus then gives them a direct answer to their question, “The people of this age marry and are given in marriage. But those who are considered worthy of taking part in that age and in the resurrection from the dead will neither marry nor be given in marriage, and they can no longer die; for they are like the angels. They are God’s children, since they are children of the resurrection.” .
First He declares that unlike the present age, where people marry and are given in marriage, in the resurrection there will be no marriages because there will be no death. Since elsewhere in the Scriptures we are taught that marriage is “until death”, death thus ending the marriage relationship , and since in heaven there is no death, there is no marriage.
Secondly He states that we will be children of the resurrection – God’s children – and children of the same family and father do not get married to each other, thus there will be no marriage in heaven. This is further shown “in the account of the bush” , referring to the record of Moses, “..have you not read in the book of Moses, …. 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!” . The teaching of the Sadducees is thus refuted by the teaching of our Lord Jesus.
(Continued…..)