A reflection on Luke 20:27–40, that highlights Jesus’ clear teaching on resurrection and God as the God of the living.
Praise be to Jesus Christ
There is a story about a small village where the people held a strange belief. They thought it was holy to remain blind. Whenever a child was born, the elders gave the baby a special fruit. After eating it, the child slowly lost eyesight. They believed this blindness pleased their god and protected the village. Many years passed like this, and no one questioned it.
One day a social worker reached the village. He was shocked to see children growing up without sight although there was no sickness. He tried to explain to the people that their belief was harming the children. He told them that the world was full of beauty and that God wanted them to see it. But the villagers grew angry. They said that their god would punish them if they changed this practice. Some repeated old sayings from their ancestors to prove that they were right. No matter what the social worker said, they refused to listen. Finally he told them with sadness, “Physical blindness can be treated, but mental blindness cannot.”
In today’s Gospel from Luke 20:27–40, we meet the Sadducees. They were not physically blind, but they suffered from a deeper blindness. They refused to believe in the resurrection. They held on to old ideas even when Truth Himself stood in front of them. They asked Jesus a tricky question about a woman who married seven brothers, not because they wanted to learn, but because they wanted to prove Jesus wrong.
But Jesus is the only one who can truly speak about heaven because He came from heaven. He knows what happens after death. His teaching is clear. Our life does not end in the grave. Death is not the last page. Jesus teaches that in the resurrection there is no marriage. We are like the true sons and daughters of God. The prayer He taught us on earth, “Our Father,” will be fulfilled in all its richness in heaven. Our joy will be complete. There is no need to add anything to that happiness.
Jesus then takes them back to the Old Testament. God spoke to Moses and called Himself the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. These men had died long before Moses, yet God still used their names as if they were alive. Jesus uses this to show that they live in God. This proves that our God is the God of the living. This is not human imagination. It is the teaching of the One who came from heaven to reveal the truth.
Saint Augustine said that our hearts are restless until they rest in God. That rest will be complete only in the life to come. The resurrection is not an idea. It is our future. When we accept this truth, we begin to see everything with new eyes. We do not hold blindly to earthly ideas. We learn to hope in the life that never ends. Let us ask Jesus to heal the blindness of our hearts and help us live with the light of His truth.
Lord Jesus,, open my eyes and heart to see the truth.
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God Bless…
Very excellent homily 👍 thank you Father
Thank you Fr. Sebastian for this well ecplained homily. 🙏🏽