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Trusting
the Consistency of God
Fr.
George Smiga
November
6-7, 2004
Luke
20:27-38
The
Sadducees were a group at the time of Jesus who did not believe
in the resurrection of the dead. In this respect, they disagreed
with the Pharisees who believed that life would continue after
death. In this debate, Jesus sided with the Pharisees, and
that is why the Sadducees come to him in today's gospel in
order to question his teaching. He defends it and insists
that there will be life after death. That belief has become
a central part of the Christian message. We as Christians
believe that death is not the end, but that we are called
to eternal joy with God forever.
Of
course there is no way to prove this belief. We cannot demonstrate
scientifically that there is life after death. In our worst
moments, as we struggle with grief and loss, we might be tempted
to doubt whether the promise of life eternal is real. So what
can we do to deal with these doubts? What can we say that
would, if not prove eternal life, nevertheless assist us in
believing in it?
I
would suggest two questions which can support our belief in
life after death. The first question is this: Do you believe
that God is loving you now? This question is at the heart
of the gospel. It faces the believer with a choice between
two alternative views of life: Are the events in our life
the result of random chance, or are they the result of a God
who is guiding us and loving us?
The
Christian believes that God is both Creator and Savior, that
God has a plan for our lives, that God is in fact blessing
us and loving us. Now of course this belief cannot be any
more proven than the belief in eternal life. We cannot demonstrate
scientifically how all the blessings of our life are the result
of God's love. Others could say we are just having a run of
good luck. But what the believer can do is point to concrete
people and circumstances in his or her life to support the
belief in God's love.
Look
at the way you first met your fiancé or spouse or a
life long friend. Was that meeting by chance or was God loving
you? When you hold a newly born child or grandchild in your
arms, is what you are holding the result of random chance,
or is it a personal gift from a God who cares? Even as you
struggle with the difficulties of life, with grief, with disease,
and even death itself, look at the people in your life who
continue to love you and support you. Is their presence in
your life the result of good luck, or are they there because
God is loving you?
When
we clearly look at what we have received, how we have been
blessed, the believer knows how to answer that first question:
“Is God loving me now?” Yes. I believe God is. And once we
answer that first question positively, we can move on to the
second: If God is loving me now, why would God stop loving
me after death? If God has blessed me with life, with family,
with friends, with talent, with happiness, why would God end
those blessings when I die? The Christian of course believes
that God would not stop, that God would continue to bless
us with the eternal blessing of Heaven.
Now
as I have already said, these two questions do not prove that
there is life after death. But taken together, they provide
an argument based upon the consistency of God. If God has
begun to bless us and love us now, why would we think that
God would change? Christians believe that God does not change.
What God has begun, God will continue.
Therefore,
when you are tempted to doubt what will happen after death,
look at what is happening before death. Ground yourself in
a deep thankfulness for all you have received and how deeply
you have been blessed. For the more that we can claim God's
love for us here and now, the easier it will be for us to
believe that God will continue to love us forever.
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