The ancient world was not an easy place for any woman, but for one woman from Nain, a town southeast of Nazareth, life had been particularly brutal. She was a widow and that likely meant poverty. But she did have one thing in her life, her son. Though her husband was gone and she would have no more children, this son would carry on the family name. But tragedy struck. We don't know if he was sick or met some kind of accident, but the widow's only son died. I cannot imagine the grief and sorrow that this woman felt.
Then Jesus came by. The Jewish people did not embalm bodies and therefore buried their dead within a day. The whole town turned out for the burial, and the procession was making its way out of the city gates toward the tomb. Jesus happened by at that moment. Just at that moment - seemingly a coincidence, but we can see the hand of God's sovereignty in the timing.
When Jesus came by, everything changed. He stopped the procession and told the bereft mother, "Don't cry." (Luke 7:13) Don't cry? What a thing to say to a widow burying her only son! But Jesus was not telling her to deny her pain, he was promising her that he was going to undo what was causing it.
Jesus spoke to the dead man (Luke 7:14) and said, "Young man, I tell you, get up." Gnaw on that bone for a minute. Jesus walked up to a dead man and spoke! He did no CPR, no hocus-pocus, nothing but words. But the words of the man from Nazareth were so strong, so powerful, that the young man woke up, sat up and started talking.
Jesus handed him back to his mother. There was no more need to tell her not to cry - at least not tears of sorrow. The rejoicing was great in Nain that night, and no one could stop talking about the man who broke up the funeral.
When Jesus came by, everything changed! Despair turned to hope. Death gave way to life. Joy overwhelmed sorrow.
How often do we deal with life's challenges and hardships as if we were on our own? On her own, the widow was in a hopeless place. But when Jesus came by, she had hope and joy; she had a son! Death became life. Whatever we are facing we can know this - Jesus is here! He spoke to a dead man and he came alive. His word is powerful and active! He speaks and things change.
Serving Jesus does not mean we will never see hardship or that they will magically go away. But it does mean that we can expect Jesus to come by and speak his power and grace into our lives, to sustain and empower, to encourage and uplift, to strengthen and to protect.
Think about it. Jesus walked up to a dead guy at a funeral and spoke. When he spoke, the dead man came back to life. Is there anything going on in your life that is going to intimidate someone like that?
It is a happy coincidence that in 2015, this passage is our Easter Sunday reading. Remember that the resurrection is a work of God that is ours through Jesus Christ our Savior. He lived the perfect and sinless life we couldn't live, then died on the Cross taking the penalty for our sins. He was buried and then rose again on the third day. Exalted to the right hand of God, he now offers life to all who believe in him.
Lord Jesus, come by! I need you every day - your strength, protection and encouragement. Without you, life would be bereft of joy and hope, but you change all of that.
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