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Jesus replied, \u201cThe people of this age marry and are given in marriage. But those who are considered worthy of taking part in the age to come 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\u2019s children, since they are children of the resurrection. But in the account of the burning bush, even Moses showed that the dead rise, for he calls the Lord \u2018the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.\u2019 He is not the God of the dead, but of the living, for to him all are alive\u201d (Luke 20:34-38).

As we know, Jesus loved to tell stories. He often answered a question with a story. In our text, his opponents decide to use his own device against him. The Sadducees come to him with a story about a woman who marries seven times. They conclude with a question, \u201cAt the resurrection whose wife will she be?\u201d

The Jewish leadership of the day was broken roughly into two parties: the Pharisees and the Sadducees. One of the differences between the two groups concerned their belief in the afterlife. The Sadducees did not believe in the resurrection. Thus, their question is not honest.

In his response, Jesus tells them that they haven\u2019t read the Bible very well. God clearly told Moses that he was the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Present tense. The implication is clear: Abraham, Isaac and Jacob all died, but if God was their God some 400 plus years after their deaths, then there must be life after death.

Before he gets there, Jesus tells them that in the age to come there will be no marriage and like the angels, we will no longer be subject to death. Honestly, I don\u2019t like the sound of that first part. I like being married. Recently, as many of you know, Helena and I became grandparents. Does the lack of marriage mean that no more children will be born? No grandchildren? Not a fan of that either.

One of my colleagues once quipped that Jesus might have said this \u2018tongue in cheek\u2019. After all, the Sadducees were trying to trick him. I haven\u2019t found anyone else who takes this position, so we should probably not travel that road too far.

It is worth noting that the Bible gives very little detail about life after death. In fact, this is one of the rare passages that gives a glimpse and since there is trickery at stake, we ought not press it for information it doesn\u2019t give. But it does suggest that maybe we put too much stock in marriage. It is not the only way to live a fulfilling life that glorifies God. In 1 Corinthians 7, Paul highly recommends staying single.

What ought we to take from this passage? First and most clearly, there is life after physical death. This is comfort for all who have lost loved ones in the Lord. Jesus rarely engaged in the scholarly debates of his time, but here he does. The Sadducees are plainly wrong. There is life after death. To God, all are alive.

Regarding the resurrection, Jesus hints that life will be different. We do not just go to heaven when we are raised from the dead; we are transformed (1 Cor. 15:35\u201358). Life after the resurrection takes place in a transformed community, where sin no longer exists. We live in a world so full of sin, including our own, that it is hard to appreciate how wonderful such an existence will be. Yet God assures us that he will make us like himself.

It is not just where we are going that makes the hope so great, but who we will be when we get there. The quality and purity of relationships will extend far beyond what marriage provides today. Sin will no longer cloud our relationships, and the quality of personal interaction will be directed fully by the presence of God.

In the resurrection, life will be better because we will be better. Maybe we ought to spend more time pondering what we will be like, than the streets of gold.