In Mark 12, we witness an exchange between Jesus and the Sadducees<<<READ FULL ARTICLE>>>
Then the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to him with a question (emphasis added).
Mark 12:18 (NIV)
The Sadducees then present Jesus with a question centered around the Levirate Law in Deuteronomy 25:5-6. After presenting the situation in Mark 12:19-22, they get to their question in Mark 12:23.
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“At the resurrection whose wife will she be, since the seven were married to her?”
Mark 12:23 (NIV)
Jesus’ response still brings up questions today.
Jesus replied, “Are you not in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God? When the dead rise, they will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven (emphasis added).
Mark 12:24-25 (NIV)
Most questions revolve around verse 25, where Jesus says the resurrected dead won’t marry and will be like the angels in heaven. One such question is, “What does it mean to be like the angels in heaven?” Another deals with the concept of marriage in heaven. Although there are many other potential questions, I’d like to address these two and see what we come up with.
Before we address either of these questions, let’s consider Jesus’ question to the Sadducees: “Are you not in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God?” (Mark 12:24, NIV).
Jesus’ response reveals the faulty logic of the Sadducees’ question, so let’s address the fault in the question. Consider what Paul said in 1 Corinthians 15:35.
But someone will ask, “How are the dead raised? With what kind of body will they come?”
1 Corinthians 15:35 (NIV)
Essentially, this is the fault in the Sadducees’ question, and when we ask about being like the angels in heaven, we, too, are asking the same question. At least, in my research, most think that being like the angels in heaven is about sex in our resurrected bodies. Some suggest angels can have sex, but only fallen angels, referring to Genesis 6:1-4, suggesting that fallen angels had sex with women and their offspring were the Nephilim. Others address procreation in various ways, which still deal with sexual organs and whether angels have them, etc. Such thinking goes back to wondering about the resurrected body, and Paul gave us an answer.
When you sow, you do not plant the body that will be, but just a seed, perhaps of wheat or of something else.
1 Corinthians 15:37 (NIV)
Our resurrected bodies will not be like our natural bodies, as Paul also reveals in 1 Corinthians 15.
So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.
1 Corinthians 15:42-44 (NIV)
Consider what Hebrews tells us about angels.
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Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?
Hebrews 1:14 (NIV)
Consider also the incident with Elisha and his servant in 2 Kings 6.
Elisha and his servant are trapped in Dothan by the Aramean army.
When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city. “Oh no, my lord! What shall we do?” the servant asked.
“Don’t be afraid,” the prophet answered. “Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.”
And Elisha prayed, “Open his eyes, Lord, so that he may see.” Then the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.
2 Kings 6:15-17 (NIV)
Elisha’s servant couldn’t see the army of God until Elisha prayed, and God opened his servant’s eyes to see them. Why couldn’t the servant see the army? Because the army is spiritual and can only be seen with spiritual eyes.
Finally, consider the tale of Balaam and his donkey in Numbers 22:21-35.
Balaam beats his donkey three times because the angel of the Lord stood in Balaam’s path, and because the donkey could see the angel in the way with a drawn sword set to kill Balaam, it turned away three times. After beating the donkey three times, it speaks to Balaam and tells him why it strayed. Only then can Balaam see the angel.
Then the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road with his sword drawn. So he bowed low and fell facedown.
Numbers 22:31 (NIV)
Why couldn’t Balaam see the angel? The angel is a spirit, and he needed the Lord to open his eyes so he could see it.
Therefore, angels are spirits; when we die and are resurrected, we will be like the angels in heaven because our bodies will be spiritual. Does this mean they cannot become corporeal like our current bodies? Angels can become corporeal, so I imagine we, too, would have this ability. Still, we don’t know. However, we can see, at least, how we might be like the angels in heaven.
The second question we’re addressing is marriage in heaven. Ephesians 5 provides this insight.
Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.
Ephesians 5:25-27 (NIV)
There is a marriage in heaven between Christ and the church (Christianity). Indeed, Paul gives us this insight in 2 Corinthians.
I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy. I promised you to one husband, to Christ, so that I might present you as a pure virgin to him.
2 Corinthians 11:2 (NIV)
And again, in Isaiah 54:5, we see the relationship of God as a husband.
For your Maker is your husband— the Lord Almighty is his name— the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer; he is called the God of all the earth.
Isaiah 54:5 (NIV)
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Indeed, many such verses (e.g., Revelation 19:7-9, Revelation 21:2, Revelation 21:9-11) reveal Christians as the Bride. Therefore, there is marriage in heaven. However, it’s not a marriage that continues with those on earth between men and women.
Considering Jesus’ response, “They will neither marry nor be given in marriage,” we can see that he’s talking about earthly marriages like the one the Sadducees described in their question.
Ultimately, the focus of Jesus’ response to the Sadducees shouldn’t be on Mark 12:25. Instead, the focus should be on the Sadducees’ faulty thinking coupled with Jesus’ response, which told them they did not understand the Scriptures and God’s power because they thought they had it all figured out (Mark 12:24-25).
When considering my thoughts on Mark 12:25, what Jesus meant when he said we’d be like the angels in heaven, and what he meant when he spoke about marriage, I must point out that I don’t have the complete picture and could be wrong. Still, I think we can find some validity in my answers, and, at the very least, we have something more to think about<<<READ FULL ARTICLE>>>
