Even Death

Luke 7:11-17

¹¹Soon afterward he went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a great crowd went with him. ¹²As he drew near to the gate of the town, behold, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow, and a considerable crowd from the town was with her. ¹³And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her and said to her, “Do not weep.” ¹⁴Then he came up and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still. And he said, “Young man, I say to you, arise.” ¹⁵And the dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother. ¹⁶Fear seized them all, and they glorified God, saying, “A great prophet has arisen among us!” and “God has visited his people!” ¹⁷And this report about him spread through the whole of Judea and all the surrounding country.

Today we have another story where it is helpful to use what Eugene Peterson calls your “sanctified imagination”. Jesus is headed in the direction Nain along with a great crowd of followers. Coming from the city of Nain is another great crowd comprised of a funeral procession. A dead man is being carried on his funeral bier to be buried. His mother is bereft. Not only has she lost her son, she is now going to be destitute and alone. These two crowds come together to witness a great miracle born out of Jesus’ power and His incredible compassion.

The reader is immediately reminded of two other Biblical incidents where a son was raised not by Jesus, but by His prophets. The context of 1 Kings 17 (Elijah raises a boy) and 2 Kings 4 (Elisha raises a boy) are almost the same as this story in Luke.

1 Kings 17:22–24

²²And the Lord listened to the voice of Elijah. And the life of the child came into him again, and he revived. ²³And Elijah took the child and brought him down from the upper chamber into the house and delivered him to his mother. And Elijah said, “See, your son lives.” ²⁴And the woman said to Elijah, “Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in your mouth is truth.”

2 Kings 4:32–37

³²When Elisha came into the house, he saw the child lying dead on his bed. ³³So he went in and shut the door behind the two of them and prayed to the Lord. ³⁴Then he went up and lay on the child, putting his mouth on his mouth, his eyes on his eyes, and his hands on his hands. And as he stretched himself upon him, the flesh of the child became warm. ³⁵Then he got up again and walked once back and forth in the house, and went up and stretched himself upon him. The child sneezed seven times, and the child opened his eyes. ³⁶Then he summoned Gehazi and said, “Call this Shunammite.” So he called her. And when she came to him, he said, “Pick up your son.” ³⁷She came and fell at his feet, bowing to the ground. Then she picked up her son and went out.

First, let’s take note of what moves Jesus to work this miracle. The text says, “And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her.” The word for compassion (ἐσπλαγχνίσθη) is a graphic one that if taken literally would mean the complete outpouring of the inward parts. Compassion is the motive for the miracle. When we think of the English word compassion, we don’t envision the outpouring of our guts. But that is what Jesus felt. He was completely in touch with the pain of this woman and it became His pain. The blessing for the woman is that Jesus had the power to do something about her pain. But even with the knowledge of His own power, He embraces her pain and experiences it for Himself. He reaches out, touching the dead man and speaks life back into His body. By touching the casket Jesus risks becoming ritually unclean. Instead of being defiled, Jesus cleanses and heals. The power of holiness and of life is in him. He brings purity to the unclean situation, not vice versa.

For us, this story is yet another reminder of Jesus’ power over our own death. Since He had the power to raise that man from the dead, we can assume He holds that same power over our own lives. In His resurrection is our own, for He holds the keys to life and death. In this miracle He gives but a glimpse into what is in store for all of us.