Luke 7:11-17 CORPSE COMES TO LIFE AND CONVERSES

Luke 7:11-17

CORPSE COMES TO LIFE

AND CONVERSES

Luke 7:11 And it came to pass the day after, that he went into a city called Nain; and many of his disciples went with him, and much people.

Susie: Once again Luke documents when and where this event occurred. Nain was a city southeast of Nazareth where Jesus had been raised. Along with His faithful disciples, Jesus was followed by a large crowd. Luke is reminding us that this incident was not in secret but in front of many witnesses.

Luke 7:12 Now when he came nigh to the gate of the city, behold, there was a dead man carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow: and much people of the city was with her.

Susie: Luke gives us the detail that the man who died was the only son of his widowed mother. Why is that significant?

Susan: Without her son, the widow would be destitute, probably reduced to begging in the streets because there would be no means of support for her.

Susie: In addition to the group accompanying Jesus, the grieving mother had an entourage of her own, meaning more people would be witnesses to what was about to happen.

Luke 7:13 And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her, and said unto her, Weep not.

Susan: When the Lord laid eyes on the widow, He immediately had empathy for her and said, “Don’t cry.”

Susie: Compassion is a consistent character trait of our great God.

Psalm 86:15 But thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion, and gracious, long suffering, and plenteous in mercy and truth.

Psalm 68:5 A father of the fatherless, and a judge of the widows, is God in his holy habitation.

Susie: As the followers of Jesus, we should be like Him. We, too, should be known for our compassion:

James 1:27 Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.

Luke 7:14 And he came and touched the bier: and they that bare him stood still. And he said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise.

Susie: Touching a dead body or even the coffin was a defiling act that would render a person “unclean” until certain rituals were performed. Jesus had no fear of what touching the dead would do to Him because He knew what He would do to death!

      

Susan: The funeral procession stood at attention awaiting what Jesus would say and do. Jesus fearlessly, without reservation of the defilement of death, touched the coffin, and commanded the young man to get up.

Susie: I’m sure those words peaked the interest of the crowd!

Luke 7:15 And he that was dead sat up, and began to speak. And he delivered him to his mother.

Susan: The young man on the way to his own burial, sat up in the coffin and began talking.

Susie: I wonder what he said?

Susan: We don’t know. Jesus then presented the young man restored completely whole to his mother. I wonder what emotions coursed through her mind?

Susie: Relief, shock, gratitude? God had a thing for taking care of people whose only child had died.

1 Kings 17:23 And Elijah took the child, and brought him down out of the chamber into the house, and delivered him unto his mother: and Elijah said, See, thy son liveth.

Luke 8:41-42, 54-55 And, behold, there came a man named Jairus, and he was a ruler of the synagogue: and he fell down at Jesus' feet, and besought him that he would come into his house: For he had one only daughter, about twelve years of age, and she lay a dying. But as he went the people thronged him. . . And he put them all out, and took her by the hand, and called, saying, Maid, arise. And her spirit came again, and she arose straightway: and he commanded to give her meat.

Luke 7:16-17 And there came a fear on all: and they glorified God, saying, That a great prophet is risen up among us; and, That God hath visited his people. And this rumour of him went forth throughout all Judaea, and throughout all the region round about.

Susie: We preferred reading these two verses in the Complete Jewish Bible:

Luke 7:16-17 (CJB) They were all filled with awe and gave glory to God, saying, “A great prophet has appeared among us,” and, “God has come to help his people.”  This report about him spread throughout all Y’hudah and the surrounding countryside.

Susie: Imagine being in the crowd and seeing a dead man rise up and talk! They were amazed, probably speechless for a moment or two. Then they called Jesus a “great prophet” and exclaimed that God was visiting His people.

Susan: They were not wrong in referring to Jesus as a prophet. However, He was much greater than this—He was God in the flesh (John 1:14).

Susie: The news of this miracle and other works of Jesus spread like wildfire, not only in the small town of Nain but throughout the province of Judea and the countryside nearby.

Ponder this and Apply it: Jesus demonstrated compassion by raising the widow’s son to continue providing for her. We are to be compassionate toward people in need that God places in our paths. Over and over, Jesus demonstrated that He has authority over sickness and even death. We can be confident that nothing can ever separate us from His love because He conquered death and the grave and now sits at the right hand of God interceding on our behalf: Romans 8:34, “Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.” Tackle life with confidence that God is in control and is on your side:

Romans 8:31-32 What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?  He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?