Luke 7:11-1611And it came to pass the day after, that he went into a city called Nain; and many of his disciples went with him, and much people. 12Now when he came nigh to the gate of the city, behold, there was a dead man carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow: and much people of the city was with her. 13And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her, and said unto her, Weep not. 14And he came and touched the bier: and they that bare him stood still. And he said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise. 15And he that was dead sat up, and began to speak. And he delivered him to his mother. 16And 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. (Luke 7:11‑16).
THROUGH the door of death our sins made, the Holy Redeemer went, having borne our sins in His own body on the tree; and now for those who believe in Him that dark and dreadful door has lost its terrors―it has become the opening to the heavens, to light and joy.
Observe, while the sorrowing band is wending its way to the grave, the Son of God approaches. A few disciples, and some wondering strangers, follow Him. His heart is full of tenderness. “When the Lord saw her” ―who had twice suffered the pangs of separation― “He had compassion on her.” He came from heaven to bless us. He grieved over our death. In His words, “Weep not,” there was divine consolation; and if Jesus says, “Weep not,” our tears must tease. But the widow needed more than divine compassion; if her cup should run over, she needed the living in her bosom; and almighty power was exercised, as well as almighty compassion, to give the poor widow joy; death was to become life; it was not to go further; the lifeless body was not permitted to reach the grave. The Lord “came and touched the bier: and they that bare stood still. And He said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise;” and, quickened by His Almighty voice, “He that was dead sat up, and began to speak. And He delivered him to his mother.”
Beloved reader, you long for life, eternal life; you feel your wretched state. Oh, learn in the love and power of Jesus rest and peace! He came to Nain to give life to the widow’s son; He came to this earth that we, dead in sins, might have everlasting life. “He that believeth in Me, though he were dead, yet shall he live.” Believe, then, in the Lord Jesus, and receive God’s gift.
When the dead man heard the voice of the Lord, he had life; he sat up in the vigor of it. Thus when the sinner, dead in sins, hears the voice of the Son of God, he is a new creature. Are you living in the energy of divine life? Do your lips show forth Jesus’ praise? The young man was in himself the living witness to the work of Jesus; and so should we be who have heard His voice. “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.”
Out of the city of Nain a dead young man was carried, the only son of his widowed mother. In this touching scene of human grief which the Holy Ghost has brought before us, the most cherished ties are broken; helplessness and sorrow are mingled together. The widow’s tears fail to deliver her only child from death; the respect of all the city avails not to heal her wounded spirit; and thus the mournful company follows the bier to the ledge hewn in the rocky hillside.
This world was once beautiful; no sorrow, no sigh, no tear clouded it; its inhabitants dreaded no departure; for then there was no gateway out of it; but sin entered the world, and all became changed, and death―the door―was made. Through this gateway men are now carried: “It is appointed unto men once to die”
While you are still in the world, still where you may find mercy, pause and consider. Are you prepared to die? ready to be carried out, to leave the world, remembering, “after death the judgment?”
Utterly helpless and hopeless in himself, man could not save himself from death; for he could not live without sin; but God saw his bitterness. The Father and the Son agreed in holy counsel for man’s salvation, and the Son said, “Lo, I come to do thy will, O God.” Gracious purpose! Mighty plan! All conceived, all accomplished by God! Man the object of it; but man no worker in it; all of God, and all love to man. The will of God is our sanctification; the means whereby we are sanctified, the blood of God’s Lamb. “By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once.”