Mark 12:18-27

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TALKS FOR GROWING CHRISTIANS

The Sadducees Try to Discredit the Lord

BACKGROUND NOTES



DOCTRINAL POINT(S)

  1. There is no marriage in heaven.

  2. There is no soul sleep after death.

  3. Every word in Scripture is inspired and important.

PRACTICAL APPLICATION

  1. It's not wrong to outsmart the opposition.

QUESTIONS

  1. Who were the Sadducees? Were they influential?

  2. Did the Sadducees believe in the resurrection of the dead? Did they believe in all the Scriptures?

  3. How did they test the Lord Jesus? How did He answer them?

  4. Is there marriage in heaven? Support with Scripture.

  5. Do we turn into angels in heaven?

  6. What is meant by "soul sleep?" Is it scriptural?

  7. Why did the Lord use a quotation from Exodus when He spoke to the Sadducees?

ANSWERS

  1. They were a religious part of Judaism, the liberals of their day. They were not as numerous as the Pharisees, but they were influential because they came from wealthy and priestly families, and they occupied a number of seats in the Sanhedrin.

  2. No, to them, death was the end and there was not judgment. No, they accepted only the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Bible.

  3. By asking Him about marriages in heaven, and who would be the eventual heir. Jesus answered by telling them that they didn't know the Scriptures nor the power of God. He went a step further, quoting from Exodus, a book in which they believed.

  4. No. Read Mark 12:24-25.

  5. No. Angels were a separate creation of God.

  6. It is the concept that when a believer dies, his soul and spirit go into a state of unconsciousness until after the resurrection. It is a false teaching. See 2 Corinthians 5:8; Mark 12:26 (a quote from Exodus 3:6, 15); and Job 19:25-26).

  7. Because the Sadducees believed in the first five books of Scripture, and it showed the present tense of God ("I AM") as the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

DISCUSS/CONSIDER

  1. Be sure of your understanding of the resurrection by studying God's word on the subject.

  2. If someone should challenge you concerning the resurrection and heaven, how would you answer them? Write out your answer to clarify it.

CHALLENGE

  1. Do you find it easier to defend your faith or just to be quiet about it? How should you defend your faith?

KEY VERSES

  • "Jesus said, 'Are you not mistaken, because you do not know the Scriptures nor the power of God?" (Mark 12:24)



Mark, Talks, New TestamentDeb HarmsMarak 12:18-27