“Widow at Nain”
By
Jeff Chacon

• Introduction
• Sermon series: “Encounters with Jesus”…
• Today: Jesus encounters “The Widow at Nain”
• It’s a powerful story of:
• God’s amazing grace
• His gut-wrenching empathy
• And His jaw-dropping power!
• Let’s turn to Luke 7…
• “Soon afterward, Jesus went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went along with him. 12 As he approached the town gate, a dead person was being carried out—the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the town was with her. 13 When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her and he said, “Don’t cry.”

      14 Then he went up and touched the bier they were carrying him on, and the bearers stood still. He said, “Young man, I say to you, get up!” 15 The dead man sat up and began to talk, and Jesus gave him back to his mother.
      16 They were all filled with awe and praised God. “A great prophet has appeared among us,” they said. “God has come to help his people.” 17 This news about Jesus spread throughout Judea and the surrounding country.”

• Picture the scene:
• A funeral procession
• Moving through the small town, on their way to the city gate.
• (Jewish cemeteries were located outside of town, as dead bodies were considered “unclean”.)
• The sun is setting.
• (Burials were at sunset.)
• A fitting metaphor for a life who’s sun has set.
• The body is carried on a “bier” – a wicker conveyance or stretcher of boards, with a pallet on it.
• The body is wrapped in a burial shroud – with the face exposed.
• You can hear bitter sobs and wailing.
• But most people are silent, heads bowed, shuffling feet
• This is a particularly sad and disconcerting death.
• The text says: “…a large crowd from the town was with her.” (vs. 12b)
• As the procession comes by, people come out of their homes and shops to join them:
• Some out of empathy and love
• Others out of duty and tradition, giving a nod of solidarity to the bereaved mother.
• But she is alone in the crowd – her grief is inconsolable.
• Vs. 12 = “As he approached the town gate, a dead person was being carried out—the only son of his mother, and she was a widow.”
• The pain of widowhood was bad enough.
• But she now suffered the pain of losing her only son.
• Bad enough in any culture.
• (Psychologists say that:
• the death of a spouse
• and the death of a child
• are two of the highest kinds of stress that anyone can experience.)
• But it was even worse for this woman:
• There was no social security in that day
• Employment opportunities for women were virtually non-existent.
• Her only son was her:
• protector
• supporter
• and hope.
• In losing her son, this woman had lost everything.
• She was all alone, left to fend for herself.
• The hand that was supposed to close her eyes at the end of her life, fell lifeless before it’s time…
• Transition = But another hand would soon touch hers.
• The Lord of Life, the Abolisher of Death, was coming toward her!
• Two crowds are approaching the gate of the city:
• They’re coming from opposite directions – and about to collide!
• one is following Jesus because of his ministry of life;
• the other is following the woman because of a tragic death.
• one is joyful;
• the other mournful
• one is full of hope;
• the other is full of despair.
• The funeral procession is going to the house of death, but Life is between them and the grave, and that Life is about to rock their world!
• Read vs. 13-15 = “When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her and he said, “Don’t cry.”

      14 Then he went up and touched the bier they were carrying him on, and the bearers stood still. He said, “Young man, I say to you, get up!” 15 The dead man sat up and began to talk, and Jesus gave him back to his mother.”

• Jesus’ heart went out to her!
• And his heart moved his hand!
• And his heart moved his will!
• “Young man, I say to you, get up!”
• This was not a suggestion – this was a command!
• And somewhere in the shadow-world of death a slumbering soul was awakened – and summoned back to life by the God of all Creation!
• And that soul gladly obeyed his Maker!
• This passage sovereignly declares:
• That physical death is not the end of life!
• That the separation of body and soul is a temporary one!
• That consciousness is not simply a function of the brain (as materialists would have us believe), but a function of the immaterial soul that lives independently of scientific observation!
• One day we will hear the voice of Jesus commanding us to come out of our graves, and we, like this young man, like Lazarus, and like Jairus’ daughter, will gladly and immediately obey that voice!
• Because Jesus is Lord of the living and the dead! (Refer: Romans 14:9)
• Read vs. 16-17 = “They were all filled with awe and praised God. “A great prophet has appeared among us,” they said. “God has come to help his people.” 17 This news about Jesus spread throughout Judea and the surrounding country.”
• Two crowds collided:
• One a procession of Death
• The other a throng of Life
• And now they were one!
• Laughing, cheering, hugging complete strangers!
• And where’s Jesus?
• Watching
• Smiling
• Crying (tears of joy)
• Jesus loved happy endings! J
• Transition = So many lessons for us here, but three take home points:
• One: God’s grace does not depend on our effort.
• Many asked for help from Jesus – but not this woman.
• Many asked Jesus to help others – but not this woman.
• Many demonstrated faith to Jesus – but not this woman.
• This one was Jesus’ initiation.
• Apart from her faith!
• Apart from her initiation!
• Jesus sees her suffering, and his own heart moves him to action!
• Quote 1 John 4:10 = “This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.”
• (Preach on God’s initiation!)
• Turn to Romans 5:6-11 = “You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. 7 Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! 10 For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! 11 Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.”

• (Preach on God’s ongoing grace!)
• 1 John 4:16 = “And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.”
• Q: What are you relying on?
• Your effort?
• Someone else’s opinion of you?
• Or God’s love?!
• (Preach!)
• Two: Funerals are not final.
• God hates death as much as we do!
• Quote 1 Corinthians 15:26 = “The last enemy to be destroyed is death.”
• God’s Word calls “death” an “enemy”.
• Jesus overcomes our death!
• 1 Corinthians 15:54-57
• “When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.”

 55 “Where, O death, is your victory?
   Where, O death, is your sting?”
 56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

• So we can live our lives with confidence.
• 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18
• “Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. 14 For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. 15 According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. 18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.”
• (Teach and preach!)
• Three: God’s heart goes out to us when we’re suffering.
• Human misery moves the heart of God!
• Quote Luke 7:13 = “When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her and he said, “Don’t cry.”
• God has a special heart for the suffering and disenfranchised.
• The widow from Nain was “a nobody from nowhere”.
• We don’t even know her name.
• And Nain was a small, insignificant town.
• But Jesus too was “a nobody from nowhere”:
• Born to an unwed mother
• Born in a barn
• Raised in a small town
• Misunderstood by most
• Jesus was an outsider – just like this son-less widow was sure to be.
• Jesus could relate to:
• The pain of his heavenly father, losing his only son…
• The pain of his earthly mother (most likely a widow), who would lose her first born son…
• The pain of feeling forsaken by God (on the cross)…
• M.P. = Jesus cares because he can relate to our pain!
• The greatest miracle of all could be “The Incarnation”!... (preach!)
• God can relate!
• And God cares!
• Q: Objection: But why doesn’t he alleviate all pain and suffering now?
• A: We’ve taught on this many times before (a deep and complex subject).
• Suffice to say that:
• Like a good parent, God allows his children to suffer so we can grow.
• Like a good parent, God feels with his children in their suffering.
• While God’s plan includes suffering, his heart is still moved.
• Share: times that I cry out for God and I picture him being held back by the angels because he wants so badly to come to the aid of his son… (but it’s not time yet; not yet…)
• Beyond the ability of a good parent, God:
• redeems all suffering
• and in his providence, uses it for good…
• One day we will all be the comforted widow:
• Quote Revelation 21:4 = “He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”
• God is “The Compassionate Drier of all Tears”.
• But this is our season of trial… and God knows it’s best for us to go through it – for a season…
• God has a special heart for women…
• Notice how God’s heart is moved by women to raise the dead:
• Widow at Nain
• Quote Luke 7:13 = “When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her and he said, “Don’t cry.”
• Jairus’ daughter
• Quote Luke 8:41 = “Then a man named Jairus, a synagogue leader, came and fell at Jesus’ feet, pleading with him to come to his house 42 because his only daughter, a girl of about twelve, was dying.”
• Lazarus
• Quote John 11:32-35 = “When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. 34 “Where have you laid him?” he asked.

 “Come and see, Lord,” they replied.
 35 Jesus wept.”

• Dorcus
• Quote Acts 9:39 = “Peter went with them, and when he arrived he was taken upstairs to the room. All the widows stood around him, crying and showing him the robes and other clothing that Dorcas had made while she was still with them.”
• Old Testament:
• God is moved by a widow’s tears to raise her son from the dead through Elijah.
• God is moved to raise a Shummanite’s dead son through Elisha.
• M.P. = God is moved by our suffering.
• And has a special heart for women…
• Lisa share…
• Close
• Concluding comments…
• Summary:
• One: God’s grace does not depend on our effort.
• Two: Funerals are not final.
• Three: God’s heart goes out to us when we’re suffering.
• (And God has a special heart for women…)