This past Sunday I spoke about the candles we lit for All Saints Day and how these candles show that our loved ones who passed are still alive to God. And because we are also alive, we have a flame inside of us. In our Scripture passage (Luke 20:27-38) the Sadducees, a group of elites who ran the Temple, ask Jesus a theological question. Jesus’ response is a powerful reminder for us. He says that God is the God of the living, and we should be focused on the lives of the living. Instead of asking obscure theological questions, we should be taking care of each other. I think for some of us (me included) it is too easy to get caught up in questions about God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. We get caught up in questions of who is a Christian and how Christians should act. But in this passage, Jesus is telling us to act as he does, to be a Christian. Instead of asking questions like the Sadducees, we need to focus on taking care of our neighbors and loving one another. Plenty of people around us have flickering flames. We are all struggling with something, and asking questions like the Sadducees doesn’t give life to ourselves or those around us. God fuels the flame inside of us, so let’s let our flame warm others and keep their flames alight.
