Matthew 22:29-33: a reflection

29But Jesus answered them, “You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures, nor the power of God. 30For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like God’s angels in heaven. 31But concerning the resurrection of the dead, haven’t you read that which was spoken to you by God, saying, 32‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living.” 33When the multitudes heard it, they were astonished at his teaching.

When the Sadducees, who denied the resurrection, try to trip Jesus with a riddle about it, he answers by pointing them to God's own words. Have you not read, he asks, what God said: I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? And then the key: He is not the God of the dead, but of the living. God spoke of himself as still the God of the patriarchs long after they had died; and if he is still their God, then to him they live. Death did not end their relationship with him.

Notice the ground of Jesus' argument for the resurrection: God is not the God of the dead, but of the living. The patriarchs had died centuries before God spoke those words to Moses; yet God called himself their God, still, in the present. And this means they live to God; the covenant relationship God had with them was not ended by death. The God who binds himself to his people does not let death be the end of that bond.

That is a hope grounded in God's own character. Because God is the God of the living, those who belong to him are not lost to him in death; their relationship with him continues beyond the grave. If you are God's, death will not end your relationship with him; he will still be your God, and you will live to him. When you grieve those who have died in the Lord, or face your own death, hold onto this: God is not the God of the dead, but of the living. The bond between God and his people is not severed by death. Those who are his live to him; trust the God of the living, who does not let death be the end of those he calls his own.

Lord Jesus, you proved the resurrection from God's own words, that he is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and is not the God of the dead but of the living; long after they had died, God was still their God, and so to him they live. Thank you for a hope grounded in God's own character. Because you are the God of the living, those who belong to you are not lost to you in death; their relationship with you continues beyond the grave. If I am yours, death will not end my relationship with you; you will still be my God, and I will live to you. When I grieve those who have died in you, or face my own death, help me hold onto this: you are the God of the living. The bond between you and your people is not severed by death. Help me trust the God of the living, who does not let death be the end of those he calls his own.