Reading Luke chapter 7 verses 11 to 17

From Death to Life

The Lord Jesus transforms people and situations. I want to look at one of many examples of how The Lord Jesus, The Eternal Son of God, transforms situations and the people involved in those situations. I started preparing this some weeks ago - before our Pastor began his series in Mark Chapter 5.

Picture the scene. There is a scene of sadness before us, a funeral procession. Visualise the slow progress out of the town of Nain toward the burial ground. The mourners weeping, the careful steps of those carrying the bier on which the body was laid. It is very likely that the death had taken place very recently - the previous day, even. Burials had to be organized quickly in that hot climate.

We know very little about the family. We are told the one who died was a young man. The Lord Jesus later addresses him as "young man." He must, therefore, have been younger than The Lord, late twenties, maybe: or younger still. He may have been ill for some time, nursed by his mother. She may have spent her meagre savings on doctors and medicine to try and restore him to health. He may have had an accident and death might have come suddenly upon him. All that is recorded is that he was young and the only son of his mother who was a widow.

An account such as this should remind us of our own frailty. None of us knows when the time for us to leave this life will come upon us. Youth is no guarantee of life. The Lord brought us safely here. We do not know if it is His will to take us back to our homes in safety. However many or few years we have lived through we do not know if we'll have another hour in the future. We should never take our life for granted. It is so important to be ready for our passing into eternity.

This funeral was a particularly sad occasion as it spelled a very trying future for the mother. She had already lost her husband. She would have relied on her son to provide for her - there was no welfare state, no widow's pension in those days. The poor woman faced poverty and destitution without her son to look after her, at least in her old age when she was no longer able to work to support herself, if not immediately. She was there in the procession weeping at the great loss she had experienced.

What suffering, misery and harm sin has brought into the world. What great damage was done to the perfection of Creation when mankind chose to rebel against God's goodness! Perfect, eternal happiness and peace was exchanged for suffering, toil and death. How utterly foolish that our sinful hearts so often cling to something so malicious and harmful - but that is another subject.

Into this sad scene comes The Eternal Son of Gd. Like a ray of bright sunshine bursting through a gap in a black cloudy sky The Lord Jesus brings light to the darkness. His presence transforms the scene.

We read of no recognition on the part of anyone in the funeral procession. There are no cries for help, not even a request for The Lord to give a few words of comfort to the bereaved widow. They were all, no doubt, feeling helpless after the sad events that had taken place. They may have felt hopeless in the face of death and its finality for the young man. They may have felt stunned and shocked, perhaps, or angry. Maybe a mixture of all sorts of feelings and emotions but especially grief and sadness for the loss of the young man and its impact on his poor widowed mother left behind alone.

How often are we like those people at the funeral? We all experience troubles and trials of life and, sometimes, awful things happen. How we get bogged down in what's happening and we see absolutely nothing else. We do not see The Eternal Son of God standing close by. We only see our present situation. It is all around us, all the time demanding our attention and all the range of emotions that are flooding through us - and how low we get sometimes! How often difficulties wear us down emotionally, physically and, sometimes spiritually. How we let satan have his way in robbing us of peace that is there for the asking. How often we are brought to the point of tears but we do not cry to The One Who can help.

The Lord Jesus was not going to just pass by. We read He had compassion. Perhaps He saw the weeping widow from a distance. All-seeing, He knew her situation in detail. The word used to describe how The Lord Jesus felt is translated two ways. "had compassion" and "moved with compassion".
· Matthew 20: 30-34. He had compassion on two blind men who asked to receive their sight. He gave them their sight.
· Mark 5:1-19. He had compassion on the man possessed by a legion of devils. He cast out the devils and freed the man.
The same word is translated as moved with compassion in other places.
· Matthew 9:36-38. He was moved with compassion when he saw great multitudes as sheep without a shepherd, lost in ignorance. He directed His disciples to pray for them.
· Matthew 14:14. He was moved with compassion when a great multitude came to Him and many among them were sick. He healed them.
· Mark 1:40-42. The Lord Jesus was moved with compassion when a leper asked for healing, He delivered him from his leprosy.
· Mark 6:34-44. He was moved with compassion when the people He'd been teaching were fainting with hunger and had nothing to eat. He fed 5000
All these examples tell what happens when The Lord Jesus has compassion, when He is moved with compassion.

Something mighty always occurs when The Eternal Son of God has compassion.

The Lord Jesus went closer and spoke to the widow. He had not been asked to intervene. Nobody had approached Him to ask if He would say a few words or help in some way. Everyone was taken up with the sad situation of the widow who had lost her only son. The Lord Jesus and His followers could, perhaps, have made way for the procession to pass and then gone on their way. The young man would have been laid to rest in his grave and his mother left to grieve and struggle on her own.

First, in His compassion He says to the widowed mother, "Weep not." Surely she has every reason to weep? Her whole future is in ruins before her. She has lost her dear son and years of struggle and poverty face her. Surely she has reason to weep? Yet The Lord Jesus, a complete stranger to her, commands her not to weep, this being the sense of His words. How often, in difficult situations, does The Lord lead us in directions we find hard to understand? Or, perhaps His declared will in scripture is hard to follow in the circumstances he brings us to. Our minds cannot grasp His purpose in these times but The Lord, neverthless, has a mighty purpose in our situation which He has yet to reveal.

There is no opportunity for the widow to answer Him. No pause to query what he has said. The Lord Jesus steps forward and touches the bier, the stretcher upon which the young mans body is being carried to the grave. This was a striking action. The people carrying the bier stopped - and well they might. What was going through their minds? Perhaps they were wondering Who this person was who was "disrupting" the funeral. If they'd heard Him command the widow to stop weeping then this was another reason for surprise, perhaps even anger. Surely this person should have stood aside and let them through. "What did He think He was doing?" they might have thought.

The Lord Jesus had everyone's' attention with the exception of the young man on the bier. The funeral procession had stopped so the people there would be looking to see what was going on.

Jesus' followers would be stopped and, perhaps, wondering what The Master was doing getting involved in this strangers' funeral. Perhaps the cries of the mourners tailed off to nothing. Perhaps, for a few moments everyone was still and quiet, stood there in the road: all waiting, wondering what was happening, all manner of thoughts going through their minds. If they had been surprised at proceedings so far there was more to come.

Luke 7:14 And he said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise. The Lord Jesus addressed a command to the deceased. If it had been anyone else there saying those words it would have served only to distress the mourners. The young man would have continued silent, incapable and helpless. If someone with special gifts from God had said " In the name of The Lord Jesus arise." Then we'd have seen the same result as that recorded in the scripture. Only The Lord Jesus, God manifest in the flesh, could say, "I say unto thee, Arise."

Let us all be very clear. There was nothing in the young man that could achieve what happened. There was no contribution he could make. He was dead and on his way to burial. There was no spark of life in him waiting to restore him to the land of the living. The young man was dead, incapable, helpless and still. No thoughts of life were going through his brain. He was 100% dysfunctional with no possibility of any change in his situation if left to himself.

The account illustrates how sinners are saved by the transforming power of The Lord Jesus Christ.

The Bible speaks of people being dead even though they might be able to do all sorts of things. In Ephesians 2:1 And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;
Ephesians 2:5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
Colossians 2:13 And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;

People don't look dead in sin. Looking at them from the outside you would think they were fine, fit and healthy. The world thinks only of people being dead when their body dies but the Bible explains how God looks deeper. 1 Samuel 16:7 But the LORD said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart. God sees peoples' souls, the part of each human being that is really the us, and that part of us which goes on into eternity, even when separated from our body by physical death. The Bible speaks of people being dead in trespasses and sins. They are spiritually dead because they are sinful. Such people are born sinful; they are cut off from spiritual life. They do not understand what spiritual life is and do not look for it. In spiritual things, the things of God and of eternity they are totally ignorant, uninterested and incapable of doing anything about their spiritual situation.

In John 17:3 And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. the Bible speaks of real life, eternal life, consisting of Knowing The Only True God and Jesus Christ whom He sent. Those who are dead in trespasses and sins are just as much out of spiritual life as that young man lying on the bier at his funeral was out of physical life.

Who are these people? Who is dead in sin? The solemn truth is that all have sinned. Each of us here were born sinful, dead in sin and there might be some of us here that are dead still.
There is no hope for anyone who is dead in sin other than in a word of power from The Lord Jesus Christ.

Left to himself that young man would have gone to his grave and been buried, his life over. A sinner, dead while he lives, left to himself, will go to a lost eternity in the sufferings of hell, cut off from God and from all peace and comfort and with no prospect of escape or deliverance - ever.

But that word of power did come to the young man.
"I say unto thee, Arise." Uninvited and unasked The Lord Jesus chose, in his compassion to speak the words of power. As God he spoke with the same power and authority as when He created the universe in 6 actual days. There is no limit to what He can do.

Just as He can speak a word of power and raise a dead young man to life from the dead so he can speak a word of power and bring a sinner, dead in trespasses and sins to eternal, spiritual life. This is what it takes to make a Christian - the new creating power of God.
Luke 7:5 And he that was dead sat up, and began to speak. No convalescence. The young man was transformed from death to life.

So it is for the sinner to whom The Lord Jesus speaks a word of power. There is no in-between state. The moment the word of power is spoken there is instant transformation. There is a separation from the death of sin; that spiritual death that leads to eternity in hell cut off from God. John 5:24 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.

Bringing dead sinners to life is not the only circumstance that this word of power transforms. Once brought to new life in Christ a sinner will never be lost but like the sheep that strayed from the fold a believer can wander away, new life imperceptible.

There is a maritime saying about a ship being "dead in the water". Her means of propulsion gone, her hull holed, split and taking in water. It might be from battle damage or from lack of maintenance and abuse. The ship is incapable of going anywhere, all power is gone, a sitting duck for any hostile force and no use for the purpose it was built.

Believers can get "dead in the water". They drift away ever further into danger. Looking at their lives you wouldn't be able to tell them from any godless soul in the world. That same word of power is what it takes to restore such a one.

"I say unto thee arise!" The young man sat up and began to speak. We do not know what he said but we know the effect on all who witnessed this event from Luke 7: 16 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. All is a little word but it includes a lot. Here we read fear came on all, a great respect and awe for God. All means everyone. Jesus' disciples, the mourners, the widowed mother and the young man.
Also, all glorified God. They praised Him for this demonstration of His power. A situation of mourning and sadness was transformed to rejoicing and praise to God.
So it is when The Lord Jesus speaks a word of power to bring a dead sinner to eternal life. What joy comes to the saved sinner! Transformed from conviction of sin and fear of judgement to new life and rejoicing over sins forgiven and peace with God. Luke 15:10 Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth. Not only in the heavens is there rejoicing, but we on earth, surrounded by the angels and therefore in their presence, also rejoice when a soul is saved. It is a matter that glorifies God alone because it is the work of God alone and God should receive all the praise.

May it be that we see more souls transformed in these days and may it be so for each one of us here today.