What Jesus Did! 'Sad You See!' — Mark 12:18

Clearly, this period of Jesus' ministry was filled with the carefully crafted questions from his enemies. Pharisees, supporters of Herod (Mark 12:13), and Sadducees were not good friends normally. They all had their different political, religious, and social agendas. However, Jesus' popularity with the common people, his willingness to speak the truth of God boldly without relying on the support of other religious leaders, and his acceptance of the titles of Son of God, Son of David, and King of the Jews as he entered Jerusalem scared them. They did their best to try to trap him with their questions. The Sadducees had very deep differences with Jesus because they did not believe in angels or the resurrection. They were wedded to the world as they found it and survived with their faith by accommodating it to the political winds of the time. As we read the following verses, Jesus did not use polite or politically correct speech. Like the apostle Paul did in 1 Corinthians 15, Jesus directly rebuked the wrong-headed lie that denies the resurrection. Of course, Jesus' greatest exclamation mark on the truth of the resurrection was his own empty tomb and his appearances to his disciples after his death and resurrection.