Day 29: Practical Questions

Deuteronomy 6:4-9
*Mark 12:18-34* 
Titus 3:1-9

"Some Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to Jesus and asked him a question, saying, ‘Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies, leaving a wife but no child, the man shall marry the widow and raise up children for his brother.... In the resurrection whose wife will she be?" ~Mark 12:18-23

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“Kingdom Debate” by Rev. Emily

In today’s scene from Mark, Jesus gets pulled aside by a group of scholastic types (the kind who like to sit around and debate religious and scriptural ‘what ifs’). In this case, they’re asking about the “levirate marriage law” discussed in Deuteronomy 25:5-10. In its original context, the law was designed to provide for women (who had no legal right to inherit or own property on their own) from being “cut off” if their husbands died without male heirs. But the Sadducees aren’t interested in provision.      If a woman has seven legal husbands in life, how does that work in the resurrection?

It isn’t a bad question, but verse 18 warns us—right away—that these are scholars who ‘deny the resurrection.’ They don’t actually believe Jesus’ teaching. This means their questions are either detached speculation or—worse—manipulative logic traps (If Jesus says the men aren’t her husband, he speaks against Jewish law. If he refutes the encounter, he denies resurrection).

Either way, Jesus refuses to play their game and has very little patience:
“...are you wrong because you don’t know Scripture or because you don’t know God’s power?”

He doesn’t debate with them or attempt to convince them that he’s right—he simply says the resurrection is bigger than our understanding. And he shifts the conversation to more practical matters.  

As an openly-professed nerd who loved every minute of her seminary studies, I’ll confess that I relish debates. I am exhilarated by logic puzzles and theological challenges… and I don’t think they’re wrong. In fact, rolling up our sleeves and challenging one another on the details of what we believe and why —this is important church work. It’s one of the best parts about our United Methodist tradition. (Our Book of Discipline has a whole section devoted to “Our Theological Task” and it’s awesome. Seriously.)

...but we can’t enter into these debates unattached. We have to think details through as believers open to the newness of resurrection. And we have to know (meaning actually read) the Bible.

Moreover,  we need to be aware of why we’re debating issues:

Are we being malicious (could ‘discussing scripture’ be our attempt to prove others wrong)?
Are we pushing hollow or disembodied questions (wasting time because we have nothing better to do)?   
...or are we genuinely open to God’s nudging?

And we need to ask the practical questions:

ARE we actively Loving God and neighbor? (Are we building people up in the name of Christ?)
ARE we bearing fruit in the kingdom of God? (Are we making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world?)

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Jesus Christ, you are the way and the truth.
Protect our mouths from false words and pointless debates.
Clean our hearts of malicious  intentions and call us to good, life-giving discussions. Amen 

("Shema" by Anna Brooks)
To fully appreciate this song, make sure to read Deuteronomy 6:4 and Mark 12:9