Jesus gives the priestly Sadducees definitive Biblical proof to support his dissertation that physical death is not the end of human existence, and that there will be a physical resurrection in the age to come. More so, he provides it from the Law, the first five books, the only books that the Sadducees recognized as canonical (Exodus 3:6)
Moses was meandering with his father-in-law’s flock through the far side of the desert when he saw a bush that appeared to be on fire, but did not burn (Exodus 3:1-3). What does one do when one sees a bush burning, but it is not consumed? Well, we’ll check it out, of course. So Moses marked his course and started investigating. “Strange, why the bush does not burn up?” he thought.
What do you know, but the bush was not on fire. It was Lord Jesus dressed in bright glory. “Do not come any closer,” God said, “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” Whew. Moses wasn’t expecting that. God was talking to him from within the bush. It is impossible to camouflage glory. By the way, that glory is how Jesus appeared on the Mount of Transfiguration and to the apostle John, as recorded in the book of Revelation. Now that is a resurrection body.
Then God Jesus said to Moses something that Jesus, the Son of Man, states to the Sadducees, “I am the God…” Every phrase of the Bible stresses something. In this case, the active present tense indicates Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were alive even though they were generations before Moses. The human soul and spirit do not die when the physical body dies (1 Corinthians 15). Hope exists for modern man through Christ Jesus.
