“Soon afterward, Jesus
went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went along with
him. 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.”
Luke
7:11-12
Have you ever been in what seemed like a hopeless situation?
As I read this story I thought about this poor woman, who being a widow, at
some point had went through the agonizing process of losing a husband and now
she must relive the heartache with the passing of her son. This, without,
taking into consideration the impact this would have on her very livelihood. As
I was sympathizing for her and how difficult her situation was, the Lord
quickened my spirit and said… “What about him?”
As I sympathized with the plight of this woman I had never
stopped to consider the dead man. Is he beyond saving? It got me thinking…Are
there people who are just so hopeless that they are beyond saving? Are there people whose situations, health or
spiritual condition is just so bad that the only thing left to do is “carry the
body out?” Do we only have hope for an individual if we can “see” how they can
be helped in their condition?
In this story, the focus is primarily on the grieving mother
and as awful as her situation is there is reason to believe that she can be
helped because she is still living! The son, however, had passed a point that
everyone assumed put him beyond saving. That is until Jesus came!
“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
The first thing I noticed was that those carrying the coffin
stood still. Sometimes we are too quick to give up and bury those who we feel
are beyond saving! Have you ever stopped to consider that maybe God allowed
them get to this point for a reason? What you and I consider to be “beyond
saving” is often the opportunity God is looking for to demonstrate His Glory:
“Now a man named
Lazarus was sick. He was from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister
Martha. This, Mary whose brother Lazarus now lay sick, was the same one who
poured perfume on the Lord and wiped his feet with her hair. So the sisters
sent word to Jesus. “Lord the one you love is sick.” When he heard this Jesus
said, “This sickness will not end in death. No it is for God’s glory so that
God’s Son may be glorified through it.” Jesus loved Martha and her sister and
Lazarus. Yet when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two
more days.”
John
11:1-6
During those two days Lazarus went from bad to worse. He
went from sick to being dead! Have you ever known anyone who has gone from bad
to worse?
“On his arrival, Jesus
found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days.”
John
11:17
Unlike the widow’s son, they had already carried him out,
wrapped the body, placed him in the tomb and began the days of mourning. The
funeral had been over for days by the time Jesus showed up. If there was anyone
in their minds that was “beyond saving” it was Lazarus!
Pastor Scott Burr
http://faithandworshipseries.blogspot.com/
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