Matthew 22:23-33 "More Games With God"

That same day the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to him with a question.  “Teacher,” they said, “Moses told us that if a man dies without having children, his brother must marry the widow and raise up offspring for him.  Now there were seven brothers among us. The first one married and died, and since he had no children, he left his wife to his brother.  The same thing happened to the second and third brother, right on down to the seventh.  Finally, the woman died.  Now then, at the resurrection, whose wife will she be of the seven, since all of them were married to her?”
Jesus replied, “You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God.  At the resurrection people will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven.  But about the resurrection of the dead—have you not read what God said to you,  ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not the God of the dead but of the living.” 
When the crowds heard this, they were astonished at his teaching. 

We sometimes think of the Saducees and the Pharisees as being pretty much the same -probably because neither party (they were more than just religious factions, they were political parties within the Jewish Theocratic system of government) especially liked Jesus and both parties were always asking trick questions trying to trap Jesus in saying something that the general population would find offensive.  But the Pharisees and the Saducees were quite different.

The Pharisees believed that if they could keep the Law of Moses perfectly, God would be impressed with their diligence and would then be convinced to relent and deliver them from the hands of the Roman Empire.  Accordingly, they were all about the Law.  This is why they were so legalistic -they believed that their deliverance from Rome depended upon everyone keeping the Law.  The Saducees, on the other hand, didn't believe this at all -they weren't even convinced of the reality of God, and certainly didn't think that God was going to deliver them from Rome.  They were Jewish by birth and practiced the Jewish religion for reasons of tradition and patriotism and heritage and the better good of society, etc.

In this story, the Saducees came to Jesus with a trick question.  The question isn't as important here as Jesus' response.  I believe that His response covers all our tricky Theological strawmen as we snipe at one another over theological issues that don't reflect God's heart.  Jesus didn't debate them.  There would be no point.  He simply said, “You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God."

The inference in Jesus' response is that we need two things to even approach theological correctness.  First is a knowledge of Scripture -and the second is knowledge (experiential knowledge) of the power of God.  Experiential knowledge does not come from studying textbooks or even from listening to good teaching -or even from studying Scripture.  Experiential knowledge of the power of God comes only from an authentic, personal encounter with the living God.

People who are always arguing over theology are, at best, immature and and lacking wisdom -and at worst, lacking any real relationship with God at all.  We would be well to take Jesus' approach and not enter into their foolishness.  “You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God."