Mt. 22:23-33
The same day Sadducees came to him, who say that there is no resurrection, and they asked him a question, saying, “Teacher, Moses said, ‘If a man dies having no children, his brother must marry the widow and raise up offspring for his brother.’ Now there were seven brothers among us. The first married and died, and having no offspring left his wife to his brother. So too the second and third, down to the seventh. After them all, the woman died. In the resurrection, therefore, of the seven, whose wife will she be? For they all had her.” But Jesus answered them, “You are wrong, because you know neither the Scriptures nor the power of God. For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. And as for the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was said to you by God: I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not God of the dead, but of the living.” And when the crowd heard it, they were astonished at his teaching.
When her grandfather died, it felt like her whole world changed. The Saturday nights she spent staying over with her grandparents would be different without him there. The family photos taken at their holiday dinners would be missing a face. She would dream about seeing him again after this life, that ruddy face and wry smile. He was a godly man and a faithful patriarch. She missed him because she loved him, but this was not just about missing a person. What she really missed was the relationship they had. He was her only grandfather, and she would have that no more. Their reunion would come one day, but it would not look the way she had imagined.
The scriptures give us some insight into what awaits us beyond this order of things, but our glimpse is miniscule. The word of God tells us that we cannot envision or imagine what He has waiting for us. [Isa. 64:4; 1 Cor. 2:9] Jesus paints a picture here that might be difficult for us to imagine. The relationships we hold so dear in this world exist only for this world. We live now as people, but we will live then as the angels. There will be only one Father, and we will be his children. The loss of these relationships might tempt some to be sad, but we should not mourn. We must trust that the Lord has a much more glorious life for us there. We must trust that we will miss nothing of this place once we arrive there.
I miss my father, and I pray that he will be raised to life everlasting on that day, but I understand that he will never be my father again. Unimaginable now, it would be good and glorious then. Along with this great hope of ours come great mysteries. Our Lord has said, and we must believe, that wonders beyond our current comprehension await us. He is gracious not to withhold all these truths from us but to give us such mysterious things to look forward to. Whatever we dream is up ahead, our future reality is infinitely more of a dream. Father, thank You for the glimpses of eternity You have given us in your word, and help us to keep hoping in that great future with You.
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