There was a widow in the city of Nain. Her son, her only son died. We do not know how he died and we do not know why he died at a young age.
One of the most hardest things in life is when a parent has to bury his or her their own son or daughter. It’s supposed to be the other way around. Grown adults are supposed to bury their parents. Parents are not supposed to bury their children. No wonder there was a large crowd gathered around the widow of Nain.
Death was not part of God’s original creation. In the beginning, everything God made was very good. There was no death. Death entered the world through the sin of Adam and Eve. As St. Paul writes, “Sin came into the world through one man [namely, Adam] and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned” (Romans 5:12). Therefore, death was not a part of God’s original design. Death is the consequence of sin. As St. Paul says, “The wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23).
As we all know, death is a reality in our fallen world. It is painful. Death is not our friend. It is our enemy. It separates husbands from wives, parents from children, and friends from one another. Death brings grief and sorrow. Every funeral reminds us not only of the person who has died but also of our own mortality. Someday, we will all physically die. We may prolong life, but we cannot prevent death.
The widow of Nain experienced the consequences of death. She has already lost her husband, and now her only son died. Without her husband or her son, who will provide for her? Who will protect her? Her days will be filled with sorrow and loneliness.
So, in the city of Nain, a funeral procession was making its way out of the city toward the cemetery. First, came the young man, being carried on an open stretcher by the pall bearers. Then came his mother, followed by family and friends. It was good that many people were there to comfort the widow. It is good for us to attend the funeral of a family member or a friend and to support those who mourn.
But then, behold, another large crowd was coming into the city. This crowd was led by Jesus, who is the Lord of Life. Following Jesus were His disciples and many others.
The crowd of death and the crowd of life meet. They come together.
Jesus doesn’t say to the widow, “I’m sorry. If only I had been here earlier, I could have prevented this death. But it’s too late now.” Jesus doesn’t step aside, bow his head, and allow the funeral procession to continue. The crowd of life does not yield to the crowd of death.
The remarkable thing is that the widow does not ask Jesus for help. She makes no request and offers no prayer. Jesus simply sees her and has compassion on her. He is deeply moved by her suffering. Jesus takes the initiative. He comes to her.
This reveals something essential about the grace of God. Salvation does not begin with us seeking God. It begins with God seeking us sinners. We are spiritually dead in our trespasses and sins. We are unable to rescue ourselves. Yet Jesus comes to us. He does not wait for us to make ourselves worthy of Him. He comes to us to save us.
Jesus sees the widow’s suffering and says, “Do no weep.” He is not saying that death does not hurt. It does. He is not telling her not to grieve. Jesus Himself wept at the death of Lazarus. We rightly grieve over death. Rather, Jesus tells her not to weep because He is about to do something. He has come to give life. After all, He is the resurrection and the life.
Jesus then touches the open stretcher. He touches the dead man. According to the Old Testament Law, contact with a dead body would make a person ceremonially unclean. Jesus touches what is unclean, yet it does not make Him unclean.
Jesus then speaks: “Young man, I say to you, arise.” Jesus’ Word accomplishes exactly what He says. The young man sits up and begins to speak. In the beginning, God spoke and creation came into being. Now Jesus speaks to a dead man, and the dead man comes alive. Jesus’ Word is not merely information or advice. It is a powerful, life-giving Word.
Jesus’ words put life back into this young man. Life overcomes death. Jesus does not yield to death. He conquers it. Death is turned into life. Jesus turns the widow’s tears of sorrow into tears of joy. He turns her grief into hope. Jesus gives this young man life again.
The raising of the young man points beyond the miracle itself. This miracle reveals who Jesus is and what He has come to accomplish. Jesus is true God and true man. He has come to pay for our sin and to defeat our enemies of death and the devil.
On Good Friday, there was another procession – a procession out of the city of Jerusalem to Mount Calvary. Leading this procession was Jesus, carrying his own cross. A large crowd followed Him, including soldiers and His own mother.
When Jesus entered the city of Nain, death yielded to Jesus, and life was restored to the young man. But on Good Friday, Jesus willingly yielded Himself to death. Jesus must die because He has taken our sin upon Himself. Our sin has made Him unclean. The Lord of life enters death in order to destroy death from within. The cross reveals the depth of Christ’s compassion because there He gives Himself for us sinners.
On the cross Jesus said, “Father, into your hands I commend My spirit” (Luke 23:46). Then He bowed His head and died. At the foot of the cross was a widow. Mary, the mother of our Lord, stood there and watched her Son die.
We don’t have a God who knows nothing about death. Rather, Jesus died. He experienced the darkness and agony of death on the cross.
If Jesus has the power to give life back to Jairus’ daughter, if Jesus has the power to give life back to the widow’s son of Nain, and if Jesus has the power to give life back to Lazarus, then He surely has the power to overcome death Himself. Jesus once said, “I have the power to lay my life down and I have the power to take it up again” (Jn 10:18). And sure enough, on Easter Sunday, Jesus rose from the dead, defeating our enemy death. Death has been defeated by the resurrection of Jesus.
Christ’s victory over death was personally given to you through Holy Baptism. According to Romans 6, your Baptism joined you to Christ’s death and resurrection. In Baptism, you were buried with Christ and you were raised with Him to newness of life. It is as though Jesus said to you, “Arise” and you came out of the baptismal water a living being who now walks in the newness of life. Baptism, therefore, is not merely a symbol of something we do. It is God’s gracious work through water and the Word. In Baptism, God gives you Christ, His forgiveness and the promise of eternal life.
After Jesus raised the widow’s son at Nain, the people said, “God has visited His people.” This is true even now. God comes to you today, not in wrath and punishment, but in mercy and compassion. He comes because He loves you. He comes to comfort you, to dry your tears, to speak a Word of life and hope, and to speak words of forgiveness.
Jesus gives you life through His Word. Through the preaching of the Gospel, Christ speaks His Gospel to you. Through His Word, He creates and sustains faith. You are justified through faith in Christ. God’s Word accomplishes what it declares.
Here at this altar, Jesus touches you. You who are unclean are made clean with the blood of Christ. You who are sick with sin and death receive the Lord’s Supper. The early church fathers called this meal the medicine of immortality. Here Jesus touches you with His own body and blood, giving you the forgiveness of sins and strengthening your faith in Christ.
There will be a day when we will walk through the valley of the shadow of death. We don’t know when we will die, but we will die. Our survivors will place our body in a coffin and lower it into the ground.
But just as Jesus said to the young man “arise,” so also on the last day Christ will say “arise” and we will come out of our graves with an immortal and incorruptible body. Then our days of glory will begin with no sin, no suffering, and no death.
But while we remain here on earth, what are we to do? Nurture your faith in Christ with the Gospel and the Sacrament. Attend church on a regular basis making the Divine Service a high priority in your life. Whatever vocation you have, live the life God has given you. Love your family and spend time with them. If you are married, be faithful to your spouse. If you are a parent, pass the knowledge of God’s Word on to your children. If you are a student, do well in school. Enjoy the blessings of this life according to God’s Word. Love one another and help those who are in need. Let the light of Christ shine in and through you. Let others know that you believe in Christ as your Savior and that you look forward to the day when you will be with Him forever.
Death is our enemy, but death does not have the final word. Jesus has the final word.
Because Jesus died and rose again from the dead, your grave is not the end. Jesus’ Word gives you the promise of eternal life.
Therefore, do not fear death as those who have no hope. We grieve, but we do not grieve as those who have no hope. Jesus entered death for us. He conquered death for us, and He rose from the grave for us.
Jesus is the Lord of both death and life. Because Jesus lives, you will live also. Thanks be to God. Amen.
