The Widow’s Dead Son
Luke 7:11-17 NLT
“Soon afterward Jesus went with his disciples to the village of Nain, and a large crowd followed him. A funeral procession was coming out as he approached the village gate. The young man who had died was a widow’s only son, and a large crowd from the village was with her. When the Lord saw her, his heart overflowed with compassion. ‘Don’t cry!’ he said.”- Luke 7:11-13
The village of Nain was just a few miles southeast of Jesus’ hometown of Nazareth. As was the norm, once again a large crowd (no number is given) was following him. Wherever he went, whatever he was doing, there were throngs of people. This was only after his deeds had been broadcast throughout the land of Israel and beyond. Word of mouth travels fast and Jesus case was certainly no different.
We see in this story that Jesus saw the widow in the funeral procession and felt deep compassion for her loss. Because of whom he was he knew she had no husband, and the deceased was her only son. In those days a widow would become destitute without a male figure in her life to provide for and protect her. There would be no work for her to do so she would have to fall on the mercy of her community. In this case Jesus corrected a desperate situation for this widow by merely touching the coffin and speaking a few words.
This miraculous event served as an illustration as to how the people themselves were dead in their sins and were in need of a spiritual resurrection. It also began to solidify Jesus as the oft prophesied Messiah that was to come. The news of this raising of the dead reached the ears of John the Baptist who sent his own disciples to ask Jesus if he was the expected Messiah. Jesus told them to tell John what they had seen. He didn’t answer them directly with a ’yes’ or ‘no’ answer, but rather allowed his actions to speak for him. It was true then and is still true today that you can know more about a person not by what they say, but by what they do. Hence the familiar phrase, “actions speak louder than words”.*
How does this relate to us today? As mentioned above, without God we are all just dead men and women walking. Of course, we don’t realize this until we are confronted by the reality of Christ. As Christians it is our responsibility to BE Christ to the world around us so that they begin to realize that they are in need of redemption. Salvation from sin is available to all, regardless of who they are or what they’ve done in their life. Even though they must suffer the consequences of their sins this side of heaven, they are still not beyond the reach of God. We must learn to see others thru the eyes of God, for his eyes are not tainted with prejudice and/or judgment. If we ask Him to bless us in this way then we can attain more of a likeness to Christ for all to see. Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing.
In His name & for His glory,
Richard Keller
Bread of Life Ministries
Resources: The Life Application Study Bible, c.2007; Expositor's Bible Commentary (Abridged Edition): New Testament, Copyright 2004.
* Mark Twain said that, but the entire quote is: “Actions speak louder than words, but not nearly as often.”
No comments:
Post a Comment