Pentecost 2, 06/06/2010

Sermon on Luke 7:11-17, by Carl A Voges

For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man's gospel. For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ. [Galatians 1.11-12]

The Passage

Soon afterward he went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a great crowd went with him. As he drew near to the gate of the town, behold, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow, and a considerable crowd from the town was with her. And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her and said to her, "Do not weep." Then he came up and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still. And he said, "Young man, I say to you, arise." And the dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother. Fear seized them all, and they glorified God, saying, "A great prophet has arisen among us!" and "God has visited his people!" And this report about him spread through the whole of Judea and all the surrounding country. [English Standard Version]

In the Name of Christ + Jesus our Lord

Much of the time, we notice things and are able to react to them:

The person who is running a red light and blaring his horn at the same time!

The person who is in the express check-out line with a cart full of twenty-some items!

The person who screams an obscenity at you because you cut into their thoughtlessness!

But then there are times when we notice things and are not able to react to them:

When your attempts to quit destructive habits keep stumbling and missing!

When an abusive and chaotic relationship just does not get better!

When a surgeon opens you up and finds so much cancer that all he can do is close

the cut!

When all you think about is yourself!

What does a person do then? Turn to the One who is worth noticing, the One who is able to react to everything!

The people in today's Gospel noticed when Jesus brought a widow's son back to life! Luke tells us that this dramatic restoration took place after Jesus had healed a centurion's servant. Accompanied by his disciples and a great number of people, Jesus goes to the town of Nain (this town is in the same region where the event in today's First Lesson takes place through Elijah).

As Jesus nears the town gate, he meets a procession coming out for the burial of a young man. Most likely he had died earlier that day and now it was toward evening (this practice would be in line with Eastern customs). This is a very distressing situation. The son's mother is a widow and so she is really left alone (there was no such thing as Social Security in those days!). The extreme distress helps explain why there are so many people from the town going with the woman to the cemetery.

This story actually turns on verse 13. There Luke tells us that when Jesus saw the widow, he "had compassion" for her. The Greek word for "compassion" literally means that he was moved in his intestines. While the Greeks regarded the intestines as the source of violent passions such as anger and hatred, the Hebrews regarded them as the center of kindness, compassion and pity. Today our understanding of all these feelings places them in the heart, not in the intestines.

From the very depths of his life, Jesus feels compassion for this woman and so he breaks into her life. His command that she stop crying is remarkable because it was the custom in those times to lament greatly and to hire mourners to assist in that lament. Even more remarkable is that Jesus, a noted teacher in Israel, touches the litter on which the son was being carried! It was believed that contact with the dead defiled a person!

Jesus does not contract any defilement - he removes it! He encounters this disaster at its depth. His own body, which will soon lie in death, is now an instrument of Life!

The dead man is not just a corpse or a soul, that's why Jesus addresses him personally. While Elijah had to pray three times for a child to be restored to life, Jesus speaks once on his own authority and the response is immediate. There is no delay in the restoration of the man's powers, he begins to speak right away. As Elijah had done with the widow, so Jesus gives the son back to his mother. Death had destroyed the relationship between them, but Jesus now restores that relationship.

Luke concludes by noting that the crowd recognized the Lord's power being displayed in their midst. They are overwhelmed with awe and erupt with their praise of the Lord God! They exclaim that a great prophet has appeared among them and that the Lord has visited them! They noticed when Jesus walked into their lives and brought a widow's son back to life!

As we pull away from this passage, we may be wondering - How do we notice Jesus Christ today? Do we look for a person who is interrupting funeral processions that criss-cross our city every day? Of course not!

Instinctively we turn to the realities of this world. Perhaps we think of a stunning sunset or a gorgeous flower - Is that where we notice Jesus Christ today! Not directly! Perhaps we think of a great relationship or a generous act of thoughtfulness - Is that where we notice Jesus Christ today! Not directly! Perhaps we think of a well-kept home or a satisfying job - Is that where we notice Jesus Christ today? Not directly!

Mindful that we have been marked permanently as the Lord's sons and daughters, we are turned to and look in those places where Lord carries his Life to us:

The water that tumbles over our baptized heads!

The words from the holy Writings that flash into our eyes and ears and hearts!

The Body and Blood that enters our bodies through eating and drinking!

The actions of Forgiveness that flow into and around our relationships!

When distressing circumstances settle in on us, it is these holy places which steady and sustain us. They do that because they are the carriers of the Lord's Life to our own!

It does not matter even when we are focused exclusively on ourselves - his Life is pouring in on us! It does not matter even when deadly illnesses overwhelm our bodies - his Life is pouring in on us! It does not matter even when we are caught in awful relationships - his Life is pouring in on us! It does not matter even when we keep stumbling over our destructive habits - his Life is pouring in on us!

When distressing circumstances settle in on us, we are turned to the One who is worth noticing, the One who is able to react to everything. When distressing circumstances settle in on us, we are to look in those places where the Lord carries his Life to us. Consequently, we will have his Life moving in and around our lives. And it is from those holy places where we will experience his kindness, pity and compassion! Amen.

Now may the peace of the Lord God, which is beyond all understanding, keep our hearts and minds through Christ + Jesus our Lord.

STS Carl A Voges

E-Mail: cavoges@bellsouth.net

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