Our paragraph topic is: (The Sadducees question Christ) Part 4.
They did not believe in the resurrection but they structured their question around it. The Sadducees came to Christ with this question of marriage they constructed based upon what Moses had given them concerning a widow and the issue of an heir. They stretched their question so that it would seem almost ridiculous in that it concerned seven brothers who had the task of inheriting a widow from one of their brothers. They were not concerned about the question of heirs but only about the question of resurrection. So this is how they structured their question to seek an answer from Christ.
They did not believe in resurrection after death. And they wanted to question Christ on this issue so that they could take issue with his answer with the rest of the Sanhedrin about his teachings. So they put the question to him: "And last of all the woman also died. At the resurrection, therefore, of which of the seven will she be the wife? For they all had her."
Husband, wife, son, daughter, mother, father, all earthly names that we give to the earthly flesh that we live with here on this rock. What will we be when we leave it? What will we become when our flesh is returned to the dirt from which it was formed and our souls go to another place? Are we just the flesh that we see or are we more? Who are we? Where do we come from? What are we now? These are all questions that we can ask ourselves. We seek to find something more than just the flesh that we are in this world we live. The flesh is pain. The flesh is weak. The flesh is vulnerable. The flesh grows old and dies. Is this all that we are? Or are we more than the flesh? Our search will lead us on a path of discovery to find the truth of who we are.
There are many paths to discovery in life. Much has been written on the subject. And there are many established institutions that we can follow. There is but one established institution , however, that claims to have God that came down from heaven to walk among the people of the earth to teach them how to live. And Christ came to open the doors to heaven so that anyone and everyone could have the opportunity to enter the kingdom of heaven.
The choice is yours. The directions are laid out, the path is clear for those who want to follow. Seek and you shall find, knock and it shall be opened unto you, ask and it shall be given to you. These are the words that were spoken and written for us to read, for us to follow, for us to understand today. They are simple and clear. Seek them and you will know for yourself. The truth awaits.
Read the sign of the times! Read the Highlighted New Testament Bible and lift the scales from your eyes that you may see, that you may know, that you may find the truth of who you are in Christ. Read it as though you would read a good book, from cover to cover, and see for yourself. Do not study it in parts reading one passage nd then skipping to another, but read it for understanding. Read it for knowledge. Read it for faith. Read it that your eyes may be opened, that your ears may hear, that your heart may be filled with the light of Christ . The Holy Spirit awaits you. Christ seeks to know you. Open the door and let him in.
Our paragraph topic is: (The Sadducees question Christ) Part 2.
The Sadducees were a part of the ruling party. They had their own teachings according to the Law of Moses. They believed that there was no resurrection after death. You see it had been a long time since the Jews were released from slavery in Egypt. They had wandered in the desert for forty years. So they knew of the writings of old, how God protected their forefathers from death and fed them in the desert. They knew about the prophets and all the miracles wrought in their name. But they still did not believe that their was life after death.
Christ comes on the scene and he draws large crowds. The people are talking about him everywhere. The word is spreading and the rulers do not like that they are loosing popularity to this newcomer. So now they have the opportunity to question him to determine his knowledge and education in the Law. They come, saying, "Master, Moses said, 'If a man die without having a son, his brother shall marry the widow and raise up issue to his brother.' "
And so they came with a rule from Moses that had come down through the ages to the people of the present time. They wanted to set a foundation upon which to build their premise that Christ would accept. They did not want to have contradiction so that they could then add the extra conditions. Moses was their father and he was given authority from God to rule the people. So their premise and his rule was acceptable by God was their belief and their foundation.
They had the premise right and the foundation right. For they were speaking directly with the Word of God. For Christ spoke and did what his father showed him and told him to do. He was the mouth piece of the living God. His words came directly from the mind of God. And the Spirit was his guide.
The words we see and read today have come to us down through history, down through time as written and directed by the Holy Spirit of God himself. Some believe those words and take them to heart. Some do not believe and claim the words as false, being the writings of man to control the people. Some doubt and half believe what is written. Then there are those who hate the words and use them for dark purposes to call upon evil to rise and take control of mankind.
The words are written. Take them as you choose. They are a tool to open the door to the heart. And within the heart lies the key to belief. Without belief we cannot transform. Without belief we cannot see. Without belief we are blind, living in the darkness of time and the emptiness of space. But with belief the door is open to the light of life that is given us freely through the sacrifice and the passion of Christ. It is only through this belief in him that we are able to transform ourselves and to see the truth of who we are, new beings, new life, new light.
No more emptiness. No more darkness. No more loneliness. Now we can know who we are and who he is in our lives. And the truth will be given to us through the guidance of the Holy Spirit for we are not orphans left alone. We are his children, his precious ones, his loved.
Read the sign of the times! Read the Highlighted New Testament Bible and lift the scales from your eyes that you may see, that you may know, that you may find the truth of who you are in Christ. Read it as though you would read a good book, from cover to cover, and see for yourself. Do not study it in parts reading one passage nd then skipping to another, but read it for understanding. Read it for knowledge. Read it for faith. Read it that your eyes may be opened, that your ears may hear, that your heart may be filled with the light of Christ . The Holy Spirit awaits you. Christ seeks to know you. Open the door and let him in.
Our paragraph topic is: (The Sadducees question Christ) Part 1.
The Herodians came, questioned and tested him, and left marveling at his answer. Now we have the Sadducees coming on the same day with their questions in their attempt to gather evidence against him. They were learned men. They studied the text and the books handed down by their fathers and the prophets but they had no wisdom or insight into the meaning behind the words. The spirit of the Lord was not with them.
They were the ones who did not believe in the resurrection. They only believed that we lived for today and die tomorrow. So they had no understanding of what happened after death. They had no knowledge or belief that there was an after life, a soul or a spirit. They only believed that they lived for today and tomorrow you die and that is the end of life. So, "On that same day some of the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to him, and questioned him."
Christ was an ordinary man, an ordinary man of flesh and blood. He was not a hero. He was not a prince or a scholar, at least not in the eyes of those who practiced being a scholar in those days, those who trained with the elders and learned various schools of thought. He was just an ordinary man who would not attract the attention of anyone. Yet within this ordinary man lived the Son of Man, the Son of God.
He came down from heaven to walk among the ordinary people to be an example to them of a new way of life. He wanted to show that there is a God and a heaven and a life after death that we could all believe in and live for. He showed that he had the power of the Holy Spirit and God the Father to perform miracles that no other man or prophet had performed before him. He wanted the people to rejoice, to have hope, to be happy in the knowledge that they had a God to provide for them, to care for them, to protect them, and to love them, even if they had to suffer in the present.
For he came to suffer. He came to die for us. He came to become a substitute for us all that we might have new life. He came that the life that we lost in the garden we could have again. He came because of the passion of his love for us all. He came that we each might now have the choice to make our own decision as to whether we wanted to live with him or to die without him. The choice would be ours alone. The message would be spread to all. All would have the opportunity over and over again till the last day, to decide. The choice would be ours. We must choose or the choice will be made for us. Death will come and it will decide. Why wait.
Read the sign of the times! Read the Highlighted New Testament Bible and lift the scales from your eyes that you may see, that you may know, that you may find the truth of who you are in Christ. Read it as though you would read a good book, from cover to cover, and see for yourself. Do not study it in parts reading one passage nd then skipping to another, but read it for understanding. Read it for knowledge. Read it for faith. Read it that your eyes may be opened, that your ears may hear, that your heart may be filled with the light of Christ . The Holy Spirit awaits you. Christ seeks to know you. Open the door and let him in.
Our paragraph topic is: (The Pharisees and Sadducees ask a sign) Part 1.
And the word spread. Like wild fire the word spread and people talked about Jesus. They spoke of his miracles. They spoke of his teachings. They spoke of his words. They spoke of his peace. They spoke of his love for all man. And then the Pharisees heard. They heard and disliked. They heard and hated. They heard and plotted how to stop the word from spreading. For they were filled with evil. They were consumed with darkness and darkness did not like the teachings of Christ. Evil did not want to hear of goodness. Evil did not want peace. Evil wanted to do away with Christ. So they plotted with the Pharisees as to how they might do away with him and his teachings.
So the Pharisees and the Sadducees came to Christ with a test. They had planned their strategy and came to Christ to test him with a question. They had heard of his miracles. They had seen others who were cured. They had known those who were blind, crippled, possessed, lame, and filled with leprosy but they still did not believe. So despite all the signs and wonders, they wanted a special request. They wanted a special sign for themselves so that they could say that they could believe. But evil was with them. Evil could not work on its own but only through a person. So the evil doers came to Christ and asked for a sign. And the Pharisees and Sadducees came to him to test him, and they asked him to show them a sign from heaven.
Where are we today? Do we need a sign to believe? Do we need a cure to understand and believe? The evil within does not want us to believe. The evil within would have us blind. The evil within would have us deaf. The evil within would keep us as unbelievers or at worst deceive us to think that we believe yet continuing to do the things that indicate we do not believe.
We live in a world that is not eternal. Yet we believe that it is forever. We believe that tomorrow is given, next week is planned for, next year we will be here to enjoy the pleasures of this life. Do we need a sign? Do we need death to come and knock on our door to tell us to wake up? Do we need sickness to come into our lives to open our eyes. The thief comes in the night when least expected to steal from us. Thank you Father for not letting go of my hand. Thank you Father for not giving up on me. Thank you Father for keeping death away until I came to know you. For I faced death on many occasions. I walked the line with evil and was tempted to cross over. Yet I knew deep down inside that evil was not with me. I knew from the peace that you gave me when I was a child that this was your peace. I knew that the love that you showed me was not the hatred and anger that I faced when tempted by evil.
Thank you Father for touching me with your love and your peace. Now I know who I am and who you are. I know that your Holy Spirit is with me each day. I know that I am your child and you are my loving Father who wants to care for me and provide for me. To those who do not know or who do not believe, I am a witness for his love and his peace. Come, seek the truth of who you are and the knowledge of your Father. Christ wants to heal you. Christ wants to protect you. Christ wants to love you. And the Father will provide for you if you only believe.
Read the Highlighted New Testament Bible and lift the scales from your eyes that you may see, that you may know, that you may find the truth of who you are in Christ. Read it as though you would read a good book, from cover to cover, and see for yourself. Do not study it in parts reading one passage and then skipping to another, but read it for understanding. Read it for knowledge. Read it for faith. Read it that your eyes may be opened, that your ears may hear, that your heart may be filled with the light of Christ. The Holy Spirit awaits you. Christ seeks to know you. Open the door and let him in!
