Dr. Ray Pritchard Christian Blog and Commentary

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Nain: A Funeral Interrupted

  • Dr. Ray Pritchard
    Dr. Ray Pritchard is the president of Keep Believing Ministries, an Internet-based ministry serving Christians in 225 countries. He is the author of 29 books, including Stealth Attack, Fire and Rain,… More
  • Published Mar 21, 2012

“Then he went up and touched the coffin, and those carrying it stood still. He said, “Young man, I say to you, get up!” The dead man sat up and began to talk, and Jesus gave him back to his mother" (Luke 7:14-15).

Only Jesus could do this.

Death has such vast power that we read this story of Jesus and the dead son of the widow of Nain (a small village a few miles southeast of Nazareth), and we wonder if it could be true.

Only Jesus could do this.

Death frightens us because we have no power against it. No matter what we do to avoid it, death lies at the end of the road for all of us. The statistics are sobering. One out of every one person dies. 

Only Jesus could do this.

We are now just a little over two weeks from Easter. The end of our Lenten journey is in view. But the road to Easter goes through Good Friday. Before the Resurrection, there is Crucifixion. Jesus himself will soon experience what the widow’s son went through. He will fully taste death. But he will not stay dead. 

Only Jesus could do this.

Here is God’s final answer to the problem of death. He will enter the realm of death himself and will come out on the other side. The world knows all about death, and so does Jesus. But the world knows nothing about resurrection. Jesus will change all of that.

For the moment the widow of Nain rejoices with her son who has come back to life. “They were all filled with awe and praised God,” and they concluded that “God has come to help his people" (v. 11).

What a Savior!
On that happy day in Nain, Jesus did what only Jesus can do. 

Lord Jesus, you even interrupt funerals because you have conquered death. Why should we fear anything now? Amen. 

You can reach the author at ray@keepbelieving.com. Click here to sign up for the free email sermon.