Young man, I say to you, get up!
Luke 7:11-17
The parade of Jesus met the parade of a dead person. It was an encounter between the life and the death.
Who was this dead person? He was the only son of a widow.
Widow means a woman whose spouse has died. A widow is sad, lonely and helpless. The Holy Bible teaches us to take care of the alien, the fatherless and the widow[1].
This widow had one and only son. This son was her only hope in her life. But she lost him at his young age. This was the heart-breaking and unbearably sad situation. This son is supposed to grow up, get a job, marry with a right person, live happily and take care of his mother. Nothing could replace this son. When she lost her son, she lost the whole world. She lost what she should not.
Jesus comforted her by saying “Don’t cry” (13b).
Jesus sympathises our weaknesses[2]. He takes our hunger, thirst, loneliness, poverty, sickness, and misery as His own[3]. Jesus initiated the following miracle because He sympathised the situation.
Jesus touched the coffin and the parade stopped. Jesus said “Young man, I say to you, get up!” (14b)
At His Word, what happened to the dead man? See v15a.
The dead man sat up and began to talk (15a)
At his Word, the dead man was raised. As shown in Mark 4:39, when Jesus said to the wind and the waves, “Quiet! Be Still!”, they obeyed[4]. Jesus is son of God, and God almighty created the heavens and the earth by his Word (Genesis 1). Jesus is God[5]. The Word spoken by Jesus was of God almighty.
Jesus gave him back to his mother (15b). Here, I want to pay attention to the word ‘gave back’. This word teaches us the sovereignty of Jesus. When this widow lost her son, it was final in human eyes. But in Jesus, God almighty, it is not. There is no fate in Jesus. Never ask a fortune-teller about the future. Believe God and create the brightest future.
Through Jesus, the parade of the death, sorrow and anxiety turned into the parade of life, joy and praise (16-17).
What is your current situation that Jesus sympathises?
Have you ever disappointed someone or your family member who you are important to?
Are you powerlessly lying in coffin of any failure?
I pray that you may be wakened up at the command of Jesus:
“Young man, I say to you, get up!” (14b)
[1] Isaiah 1:17b Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow.
Hebrews 13:2 (NASB) Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by this some have entertained angels without knowing it.
James 1:27Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.
Exodus 22:22 Do not take advantage of a widow or an orphan.
Jeremiah 7:6-7 6 if you do not oppress the alien, the fatherless or the widow and do not shed innocent blood in this place, and if you do not follow other gods to your own harm, 7 then I will let you live in this place, in the land I gave your forefathers for ever and ever.
[2] Hebrew 4:15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin.
[3] Matthew 25:34 - 45 34"Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'
37"Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'
40"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'
41"Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.'
44"They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?'
45"He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.'
[4] Mark 4:39 39He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, "Quiet! Be still!" Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.
[5] Colossians 1:15 – 16 15He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him.
