God of the living. Now We See.

11.9.2025

[Texts]

Job 19:23-27a I know that my Redeemer lives and I shall see God

Psalm 17:1-9 Keep me as the apple of your eye; hide me under the shadow of your wings. (Ps. 17:8)

2 Thessalonians 2:1-5, 13-17 The coming of the Lord Jesus

Luke 20:27-38 Jesus speaks of the resurrection; the God of the living

Grace and Peace to you, beloved church!

Let’s begin with a question: Who were the Sadducees?

The Sadducees were deeply tied to the Temple system for roughly 200 years, up until the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE. They were primarily priests and aristocrats—an influential group in Jewish society. Their power came from their control of the Temple and their alignment with political authorities, including Roman rulers. Theologically, they held to a strict interpretation of the written Torah—the first five books of Moses—and rejected beliefs in resurrection, angels, and any form of afterlife (see Acts 23:8).

So when they approached Jesus in Luke 20 with a question about resurrection, it wasn’t sincere. It was a test. They were trying to trap him. But Jesus, as always, responded with wisdom - revealing not only their misunderstanding, but the deeper truth of God’s power and promise.

And that promise helps us see the Good News for today: We believe in the God of the living.

That’s the truth Jesus proclaims: God is not the God of the dead, but of the living (Luke 20:38). This isn’t just theology. It’s good news for people in the first century, and for us now.

Jesus saw that God’s people had lost sight of who they were and to whom they belonged. The religious leaders were clinging to power, status, and control. Earlier in Luke 20, Jesus tells a parable about tenants who kill the landowner’s messengers, and even his son. Jesus, like that son, rejected and cast aside, becomes the cornerstone of God’s kingdom (Luke 20:17).

Then, when asked whether to pay taxes to Caesar, Jesus responded plainly: Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s (Luke 20:25).

What belongs to God? Our lives. Our hearts and minds. The unchanging essence of who we are that God invites us to see.

But Jesus doesn’t just win the argument. He opens a window. A window into how God sees. And a window into how we might begin to see our own lives, and the lives of others, through that same divine lens.

That brings us to a story from Thailand. In the mid-18th century, monks covered a golden Buddha statue with clay and fragments of colored glass to protect it from invading Burmese armies. After the fall of Ayutthaya in 1767, the monks were tragically killed, and the treasure was forgotten.

For nearly 200 years, the clay fooled everyone until 1955, when the statue was being moved and cracked. And people saw what had always been there: gold. Out of fear, the monks had hidden what was most precious.

And don’t we do the same? We live beneath layers of clay and fragments of colored glass, like labels, fears, roles, wounds, or expectations. Some give us status. Others weigh us down. Depending on who we’re with, we might feel powerful or invisible.

Some of the most painful moments come when our ways of seeing ourselves and one another are distorted by those same layers. But perhaps the most painful of all is when we start to believe that our way of seeing is the way God sees.

But here’s the good news: Through every layer, God sees the gold. God sees the unchanging essence of life. God sees us—created, beloved, and redeemed.

Nothing can change how God sees us. And the moment we become aware of that, we begin to see who God truly is. This isn’t just theology. It’s the unchanging essence of life, God's gift to you and me.

That’s the heart of resurrection. Resurrection is not just a future hope, but a present reality.

In uncertain times, it’s easy to slip into survival mode, believing we don’t have enough, trying to protect what feels fragile. But resurrection invites us to trust that God is already at work—restoring, renewing, revealing. For we believe the God of the living.

Job cried out, “I know that my Redeemer lives… I shall see God” (Job 19:25–26). It is a declaration of hope not just for the end, but for the present.

The psalmist prayed, “Keep me as the apple of your eye… hide me under the shadow of your wings” (Psalm 17:8). It is a plea for protection and intimacy, here and now.

Paul reminded the Thessalonians that the coming of the Lord Jesus has already given us eternal encouragement and good hope. They are strength and comfort not just for someday, but for today (2 Thessalonians 2:16–17).

And Jesus, in Luke 20, affirms it plainly: God is not the God of the dead, but of the living. Resurrection is not just a future promise. It is a present reality.

So what does this mean for us today, as we prepare to conclude our church year in two weeks and step into the Advent season, a new beginning?

In this week’s newsletter, I shared two questions for us to reflect on as we prepare to vote on the 2026 budget next Sunday: Are we voting out of survival mode or thriving mode?

This isn’t just a vote. And it’s not just about numbers. It’s a declaration of trust. A chance to say: we believe God is still calling us forward, not to preserve what was, but to participate in what’s becoming. It’s a way to affirm that the unchanging essence of life is gathering here now, and will shape our mission in 2026 and beyond.

We’ve seen God’s faithfulness in this place, in baptisms and confirmations, weddings and funerals, in fellowship and care packs for kids, in preschool classrooms, and in learning the Word of God. And that same God is still speaking. Still calling us to life.

So what does it mean to be called to life?

It means we let go of the labels that blind us and the fears that bury us. It means we begin to see the unchanging essence of life itself as God sees us: created, beloved, and redeemed.

A Question to Carry with You:

What layers like labels, fears, roles, wounds, or expectations might be covering the gold God sees in you or someone else?

Since God is the God of the living, then every act of justice, every word of encouragement, every gift you offer generously—whatever role you play in your neighborhood, at home, at school, at work, or at church—it’s all resurrection work. For we are helping others see the gold God already sees.

Benediction

Beloved of God,

Live each day with eyes open to the gold beneath the clay,

With hearts tuned to the voice of the living God,

And with courage to live as if resurrection is already here.

God sees. God loves. God lives. And now—we see. Amen.