Luke 20:37-42

Luke 20:37 (KJB)
Now that the dead are raised, even Moses showed at the bush, when he calleth the Lord the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.

Jesus continues His dialogue with the Sadducees concerning the resurrection. Jesus goes to the Scriptures on this subject as He does all. There are quite a number of Hebrew Scriptures which speak of the resurrection such as Psalms 49:14-15. (Psa 49:14-15 KJV) Like sheep they are laid in the grave; death shall feed on them; and the upright shall have dominion over them in the morning; and their beauty shall consume in the grave from their dwelling. {15} But God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave: for he shall receive me. Selah. However, the Sadducees did not accept the Hebrew Scriptures outside the five books of Moses. So what Jesus does is direct them to a passage of Scripture, Exodus 3:4-6 which speaks of the resurrection and that the believers are alive after physical death. (Exo 3:4-6 KJV) And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I. {5} And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground. {6} Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God.

Luke 20:38 (KJB)
For he is not a God of the dead, but of the living: for all live unto him.

(Exo 3:6 KJV) Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God. In Exodus 3:6 the Scripture is stating that God is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. If you notice, He did not say that He “was” their God, which means that this is in the present tense because they are still alive. This truth is stated in both verses which means the Old Testament Saints are as alive as the New Testament Saints. God is not the God of the dead as if He were some type of keeper of the dead but those whom He has redeemed from the time of Abel are alive and well in Heaven. Heaven is not a place of the dead but of the living.

Luke 20:39 (KJB)
Then certain of the scribes answering said, Master, thou hast well said.

(Mat 22:33 KJV) And when the multitude heard this, they were astonished at his doctrine. Matthew states that the people were astonished at what Jesus taught concerning the resurrection. This was probably the first time that the Sadducees were answered into silence. They could not refute what Jesus taught on the resurrection so they had to drop the subject because they were at the end of their knowledge. They thought they would trap Jesus, but He trapped them. So the scribes saw that the Sadducees were at the end of their argument and commended Jesus that He had well spoken.

Luke 20:40 (KJB)
And after that they durst not ask him any question at all.

Since Jesus silenced the Sadducees, no one else who was present would dare ask Him any questions fearing that they too would not be able to match the wisdom and understanding of Jesus. This conversation had taken place on Thursday.

Luke 20:41 (KJB)
And he said unto them, How say they that Christ is David's son?

The Pharisees, Sadducees, and Scribes had questioned Jesus and now Jesus in turn asks them a question as to what they thought about the Christ. He asked them how say they that Christ is David’s son? The subject of the Messiah was a very vital issue. The Pharisees had responded in the normal fashion concerning their thoughts on a Messiah who would be a political leader of Israel instead of being a spiritual leader. By stating that Christ was the son of David, they were turning the question into a question of nationalism. Jesus was about to reveal His authority in a different way in these final questions. (Mat 12:23 KJV) And all the people were amazed, and said, Is not this the son of David? Even the people saw Jesus as the son of David when they saw the healings that He did.

Luke 20:42 (KJB)
And David himself saith in the book of Psalms, The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand,

To one who is unsaved and only sees the Scriptures through unsaved eyes and understanding, a statement like the one above would cause one to stumble. (2 Pet 3:16 KJV) As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction. The fact that they had rejected Jesus as Messiah while the Scriptures clearly pointed to Him, caused their own destruction. Jesus wanted to show them that the Messiah was more than just a political and national leader but was also the heavenly God man who came to them as prophesied in the Scriptures. The Messiah is Lord over David and in this passage, it is God the Father telling God the Son to sit on His right hand until all the enemies of earth are subdued. (Mat 26:64 KJV) Jesus saith unto him, Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.

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