Touching of Love

Funerals are always so difficult to attend and yet it is a part of life and all of us will eventually have to attend at least one in our lifetime. It is so hard to know what to say and really the only thing one can do is just hug that person and tell them that you are praying for them. That if there is anything you can do for them to let you know.

In Luke 7:11-18 we read about a funeral that was also taking place and how Jesus showed up and provided a miracle for the grieving mother of that child. The scriptures say that Jesus and His disciples along with a large crowd were in a city called Nain when they saw a funeral procession taking place. They saw a large crowd of people grieving and pall bearers who were carrying out the casket of a man. The man who had died was his mother’s only son and she was also a widow. Jesus after seeing this mother goes up to her and says “ Do not weep” and then touched the coffin and when He did the pall bearers came to a halt. The Bible says that Jesus then said “ Young man, I say to you arise!” and the dead man immediately arose and started to speak. The Bible then goes on to say that Jesus then gave him back to his mother and that fear then gripped the people that witnessed this and they began glorifying God by saying “ A great prophet has risen among us and God has visited His people.” The news of this miracle quickly spread and went out all over the town of Judea and even in all the surrounding districts.

The love of Jesus in this story is truly amazing. Imagine this woman- this mother and what she had to have gone through. We do not know her story or even her sons story. All we know is that her son died and for her that had to have been extremely devastating. So she goes and does what any person would do and that is give her child a funeral and appointed pall bearers and then along comes Jesus. He comes and by one touch of His hand on that coffin He restored to her not only her son again but I’m sure her and the whole towns faith in God. There have been people that I love which have passed away and preparing a funeral for them has been very difficult, because it is so hard to say goodbye to someone that you love. However to have happen to me what happened to her that day would in fact be overwhelming and maybe a little frightening at first. I wish for me that this had happened, but thankfully even though it has not I know that one day I will be with those that have gone on before me some day in heaven. So for now it is a just a matter of time before we can be together again.

This woman though was able to have her son brought back to life by Jesus and also think that she didn’t even ask Jesus do this for her. Here she was watching her son actually being carried away to his burial site and Jesus and His disciples show up and then without even telling her what He’s going to do He just does it. Imagine what the people had to have been thinking and saying at that moment. Imagine also what that mother had to been thinking as she saw her dead son arise and start to talk. The Bible does not say what he or even his mother said but I imagine that had to have been a wonderful moment. I’m sure there was a lot of hugging and crying going on and also think about what this young man had to have been thinking himself. Imagine him being on his death bed knowing he was dying and then the next thing he knows he’s awake and is in a coffin being carried around by a bunch of people that most likely he knew!! What a day that had to have been for him as well.

Now while it is possible that we might be able to see a person resurrected from the dead most likely we won’t. However this story should remind us of the great love and compassion that Jesus has and how He is so concerned with our emotional well-being. He may not resurrect those we have lost but He will take care of the emotions that go along with it. He is so compassionate and yet I do not think we hardly can comprehend how much love He has for us. There is so much hope for the living because of the great love that He has for all of us.

From Gardens of Splendor by Gina Burns