Doubly Wrong

"Jesus replied, "You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God." Matthew 22:29

Jesus is replying to a tricky question the Sadducees are asking Him about marriage. They want to know in a complicated situation who a childless woman is married to in heaven if she legally is married to seven brothers from the same family who happen to meet successive untimely deaths. (Somebody might want to test her cooking eh?) A ridiculous scenario to say the least since the Sadducees don't believe in any Resurrection, ever. (That is why they are 'sad you see') lol.

Anyway, Jesus addresses their ignorance and error very directly by explaining that there is no marriage in heaven. Which is true, by the way. Jesus taught it and we need to accept that, even as unromantic as it can sound to not be married forever. I may get some feedback about this one. We are only brothers and sisters in heaven, no husbands and wives. That is the teaching of Scripture, and it is clear. That is where the comment from this verse about them being "in error" comes in. Then to address their additional misunderstanding about Resurrection he says they also don't understand "the power of God".

Great, simple, profound and irrefutable answers. Jesus is flat-out the best at this of anyone ever. Straight to the point too. When we are wrong in the first place, we can sure ask stupid questions. It would seem to me that the only thing they could possibly say after Jesus made it clear is......" Uhhhhhh, ok." But we, like they, hang on to our misunderstanding, even when corrected. Why is that? Pride and arrogance is why I do it. I detest being wrong, or proven wrong. But, when I am, I must relent. I must stand corrected. The Sadducees non-belief in the Resurrection is trumped by the power of God. Just because I don't believe something, doesn't make it so. The truth is the truth is the truth is the truth.

So how does this translate into life application? These two corrections work together and it isn't good enough to only get one of them. We must know the power of God and Him as the final authority AND we must know the Scriptures. We too often look for the Bible to back up what we already think and not what it is actually teaching us. We take things out of context to substantiate our beliefs and opinions. We do that in general, but even with reference to the Word. I suggest we start with this premise....... The power of God supercedes the power of my thinking and my logic. Only He is omniscient and only He is omnipotent. Only He knows all and only He is all powerful. With that premise I then add the understanding of the Word, I am most likely to find the truth.

So I encourage us to be less 'sad you see' and accept that Jesus corrects us correctly and we can accept that willingly. Know His Word and know His power and you won't face His correction as often.

Learning His word with you,
Pastor Fred

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