(Click here to read the passage)

Nain is only mentioned once in the Bible.  Jesus spent only a little time there, raising a widow’s son from the dead and causing quite a stir in the town and surrounding countryside.  If the archeological guesses are correct, it was a fair-sized town when Jesus entered.  Now, it is a small, Muslim village with little or no claim to fame, other than Jesus’ miracle and a Franciscan chapel on the supposed site where the widow once lived whose son was raised.

Luke’s account is almost as barren as the history of the place.  It includes mention of a gate, which subsequent archeology has been unable to find.  It includes a graveyard, which can be seen there to this day.  It includes a large crowd meeting a large crowd – one following someone because “in him was life” (John 1:4), and another following someone who was destitute because of death.  Neither appeared to expect what came next.

I’ve read accounts of people who have had so-called “near-death” experiences.  In virtually every case, the person actually dies (their heart stops, EMTs declare them dead, they’re no longer breathing, etc.), so “near” death may not be totally accurate.  By all accounts, they are apparently dead.  Many of them describe their experience in going to a place of light, of feeling completely loved, and the desire to stay in that “place,” whatever or wherever it is.  If that was the case with the widow’s son, then Jesus’ command makes perfect sense.  Jesus called him back from that wonderful place to continue to care for his mother.  Whether it was his preference or not, the young man obeyed.

“I say to you” emphasizes Jesus’ authority over the young man, as well as over his death.  He could just as easily just have said “Get up!” and I suspect the result would have been the same.  Jesus doesn’t do anything without reason, from what I read in the gospel accounts.  So, his statement was intentional.  It mattered that he was the one saying it, and not somebody else.

This is Luke’s first resurrection story, but he has carefully brought us to this point through the other miracle accounts he provides.  The end result is both amazing and expected.  God receives glory and people tell other people about the event.  Jesus brings miraculous things to pass with just that goal in mind – to give God glory!  That’s what it is all about.

One other surprise in this passage is that, unlike many other examples of Jesus’ miraculous work, it does not include a request for his help.  He just raises the son with no introduction or demand.  God knows our needs before we ask, and in this example, Jesus demonstrates his care for a widow who has never even met him.  When Jesus answers the widow’s unspoken desire, everyone is surprised (except Jesus, I presume)!

There are several potential lessons we can learn from this passage.  The primary one, in my mind, is that God, through Jesus, can and will surprise us.  It may not be as grand as a resurrection from physical death, but it will include two important aspects:  showing off God’s glory, and demonstrating Jesus’ care for someone.  It will also indicate whose authority is at work.

We’re distracted by a lot of bad news and difficult circumstances.  May I encourage us all today to look for evidence of God’s work in our lives in the midst of those circumstances?  What we see should be amazing but expected, if we are familiar with God’s ways.  If you are not currently a Jesus-follower, it may simply be amazing.  And then, once you’ve noticed it, watch carefully for more.  Finally, tell someone about it.  That’s what the folks who lived in Nain did.  Whether they knew Jesus or not, they couldn’t hold back what they had seen at the meeting of two large crowds, one focused on life, and the other on death.