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Sound & Season is a daily audio devotional designed to connect the routine moments of life to the rhythms of the Church seasons.
This is Sound in Season. It's Tuesday, the 30th day of Lent. Our passage today comes from the gospel of Mark chapter 12 verses 13 through 27. And they sent to him some of the Pharisees and some of the Herodians to trap him in his talk, and they came and said to him, teacher, we know that you are true and do not care about anyone's opinion, for you are not swayed by appearances, but truly teach the way of God. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not?
Lauren Starnes:Should we pay them or should we not? But knowing their hypocrisy, He said to them, why put me to the test? Bring me a denarius and let me look at it. And they brought 1, and he said to them, whose likeness and inscription is this? They said to him, Caesar's.
Lauren Starnes:Jesus said to them, render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's. And they marveled at him. And Sadducees came to him, who say that there is no resurrection, and they asked him a question saying, teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man's brother dies and leaves a wife, but leaves no child, the man must take the widow and raise up offspring for his brother. There were 7 brothers. The first took a wife, and when he died, left no offspring.
Lauren Starnes:And the second took her and died, leaving no offspring. And the third, likewise. And the 7 left no offspring. Last of all, the woman also died. In the resurrection, when they rise again, whose wife will she be?
Lauren Starnes:The 7 had her as wife. Jesus said to them, is this not the reason you are wrong, Because you know neither the scriptures nor the power of God. For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. And as for the dead being raised, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the passage about the bush, how God spoke to him saying, 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.
Lauren Starnes:You are quite wrong. This is the word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.
Jeffrey Heine:Yahweh is the God of the living, and he reigns over everything. In the words of Tertullian, we can give Caesar only money, but to God, we give our whole selves. Further, we read that as the God of the living, Jesus promises to raise the dead to new and perfect life with God. Augustine wrote, God is able to restore what is lost, to raise what is dead to life, to revive what has rotted away, to gather together what is corruptible and finite. The Lord promised to do this, and he gives as a guarantee the promises he's already fulfilling.
Jeffrey Heine:So let your faith speak of this to you, since your hope will not be disappointed.
Lauren Starnes:Lord, hear our prayer and let our cry come to you. Let us pray. Mighty savior, the one who breathes new life into dry bones, help us, oh, lord, to trust in your unshakable character and power. Now and will be forever. Amen.