Let us together open the Word of our God. Our Old Testament Scripture reading is taken from 2 Kings, chapter 4, verses 8 to 37. Let us listen then to the word of our God as you find it in 2 Kings 4, beginning at verse 8. One day Elisha went to Shunem, and a well-to-do woman was there who urged him to stay for a meal. So whenever he came by, he stopped there to eat. She said to her husband, I know that this man who often comes our way is a holy man of God. Let's make a small room on the roof and put in it a bed and a table, a chair and a lamp for him. Then he can stay there whenever he comes to us. One day when Elisha came, he went up to his room and lay down there. He said to his servant Gehazi, call the Shunammite. So he called her, and she stood before him. Elisha said to him, tell her, you have gone to all this trouble for us. Now what can be done for you? Can we speak on your behalf to the king or the commander of the army? She replied, I have a home among my own people. What can be done for her? Elisha asked. Gehazi said, well, she has no son and her husband is old. Then Elisha said, call her. So he called her and she stood at the doorway. About this time next year, Elisha said, you will hold a son in your arms. No, my Lord, she objected, don't mislead your servant, O man of God. But the woman became pregnant, and the next year, about that same time, she gave birth to a son, just as Elisha had told her. The child grew, and one day he went out to his father, who was with the reapers. My head, my head, he said to his father. His father told the servant, carry him to his mother. After the servant had lifted him up and carried him to his mother, the boy sat on her lap until noon, and then he died. She went up and laid him on the bed of the man of God, then shut the door and went out. She called her husband and said, Please send me one of the servants and a donkey so I can go to the man of God quickly and return. Why go to him today, he asked. It's not the new moon or the Sabbath. It's all right, she said. She saddled the donkey and said to her servant, Lead on, don't slow down for me until I tell you. So she set out and came to the man of God at Mount Carmel. When he saw her in the distance, the man of God said to his servant Gehazi, Look, there's the Shunammite. Run to meet her and ask her, Are you all right? Is your husband all right? Is your child all right? Everything is all right, she said. When she reached the man of God at the mountain, she took hold of his feet. Gehazi came over to push her away, but the man of God said, leave her alone. She's in bitter distress, but the Lord has hidden it from me and has not told me why. Did I ask you for a son, my Lord? She said, didn't I tell you, don't raise my hopes? Elisha said to Gehazi, Tuck your cloak into your belt, take my staff in your hand, and run. If you meet anyone, do not greet him, and if anyone greets you, do not answer. Lay my staff on the boy's face. But the child's mother said, As surely as the Lord lives, and as you live, I will not leave you. So he got up and followed her. Gehazi went on ahead and laid the staff on the boy's face, but there was no sound or response. So Gehazi went back to meet Elisha and told him, the boy has not awakened. When Elisha reached the house, there was the boy lying dead on his couch. He went in, shut the door on the two of them and prayed to the Lord. Then he got on the bed and lay upon the boy, mouth to mouth, eyes to eyes, hands to hands, As he stretched himself out upon him, the boy's body grew warm. Elisha turned away and walked back and forth in the room and then got on the bed and stretched upon him once more. The boy sneezed seven times and opened his eyes. Elisha summoned Gehazi and said, Call the Shunammite, and he did. When she came, he said, Take your son. She came in, fell at his feet, and bowed to the ground. Then she took her son and went out. Thus far our Old Testament Scripture reading. Let us now also turn to the New Testament, to the Gospel according to Luke chapter 7, verses 11 to 17. Luke 7 beginning at verse 11 soon afterward Jesus went to a town called Nain and his disciples in 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 when the Lord saw her his heart went out to her and he said don't cry. 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. They were all filled with awe and praised God. A great prophet has appeared among us, they said. God has come to help his people. This news about Jesus spread throughout Judea and the surrounding country. Thus far the reading of God's holy word. May he bless it to our hearts and to our lives. After the proclamation of the gospel, we're going to respond with the singing of Psalter Hymnal 463. He leadeth me. Beloved congregation of our Lord and our Savior Jesus Christ, this life is filled with all kinds of seasons. And then I'm not so much thinking of the seasons of spring and summer, fall and winter, but I'm thinking about the seasons of life. For example, there are times when we experience seasons of health and strength, vitality and optimism, but there are also times when we encounter seasons of suffering and sickness, of setback and trouble, of sorrow, and even of death. Yes, and for quite a number of people, these past weeks have surely represented a season of sadness and grief. I think of what has happened in Asia and how many people have perished in the tsunami disaster. I'm also thinking of those here in California who lost their homes, but even more important, their lives and the lives of loved ones and torrential rains and mudslides. You know, there are families today with huge holes in them, All sorts of hard adjustments have to be made and sad feelings have to be contended with. Indeed, it has to be said that it's never easy to come to terms with the death of a loved one, much less with the grim reality of death itself. For those who are from the world, of course, it tends to create a lot of resentment and bitterness. For those of us who belong to Jesus Christ, there are also, let us not deny that, a lot of conflicting emotions to deal with. But at least we do not have to deal with all of that alone. And at least we do not have to deal with that in terms of utter despair and forsakenness where we receive the strength to bear all things in hope. We know that a better day is coming and that this life is for eternity. But we should also ask ourselves, how do we know that? And how can we be so sure and so confident as Christians? Of course, the answer is by turning repeatedly to the Word of our God, by returning, for example, to the passages of the Old Testament like we've read, and also by turning to passages in the New Testament that we've read. For there you might say we receive a preview of what is coming and also we receive a preview of the great work of the one who one day is going to make glory an unending life, an everlasting reality. And so let's turn and have a closer look at our text as you find it in Luke 7, verses 11 to 17. And I preach to you on the theme, the Lord of life conquers death in Nain. We're going to see as we look at our text that first of all, there is a contrast here between life and death. Secondly, there is the conquest of life over death. And finally, the consequences of life defeating death. Well, beloved, in chapter 7 of Luke's gospel, we are told that Jesus had been busy in the northern region of Galilee. He had been at Capernaum in that city on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, and there he had healed the servant of the Roman centurion. At the same time, he'd also been amazed by the faith shown by this heathen fellow. He'd even used him as an example and as a contrast when he says, I tell you the truth, I have not found such great faith even in Israel. After that particular incident, the Lord Jesus had decided to travel south and he comes to a town called Nain, situated in the shadows of Mount Tabor. However, upon reaching that city, a strange sight greets him. A funeral is in progress. A dead man is being carried out of the town. His mother, a widow, is in the process. we are told, of burying her one and only son. Surrounding her were a large crowd of people that were coming out of the town or the village of Nain. Now Luke doesn't say much about the woman and the crowd and what exactly they were doing. However, from the next chapter, which deals with the death of the daughter of Jairus, as well as from other sources, we know that what greeted the Lord Jesus upon coming to Nain must have been a rather tumultuous as well as emotional affair. And as a matter of fact, we know today that Jewish grieving and burial rites were rather elaborate. For example, in every Jewish house of mourning, at least three customs were followed. In the first place, there was what is called the rending of garments. And that happened to be a rather carefully defined process. Jewish sources revealed there were at least 39 different laws governing and explaining how exactly this was to be done. A father did it one way, a wife did it another way, a child did it in a different way. And without going into all kinds of details, it obviously meant that the first thing you had to do was tear some clothing that you were wearing in a rather particular way. In the second place, Jewish funerals were noted for wailing. Matthew, in describing the death of the daughter of Jairus, talks about the noisy crowd. And Luke says that all the people were wailing and mourning for her. What we need to understand is that loud wailing always accompanies a death in the Middle East. You can even see that today on your television news broadcast. In other words, there is no such thing in that part of the world of grieving in silence. No, you did it loudly. You cried out in loud voices. Why, and that's another aside to make in Israel and neighboring countries, you could even get a job as a professional whaler at funerals. you could be hired out for a certain sum of money. There's no doubt the wailers were also present in Nain, for even the poorest person had to have at least one wailer present at his or her funeral. The third place, another aspect of Jewish burial practices, has to do with flute playing. Matthew mentions this as being present at the funeral of Jairus' daughter. And this was also to be present in order to accompany as well as to assist the wailers. You just couldn't have a proper funeral or burial without flutes or pipes playing. As a matter of fact, a common phrase in those days was flutes for a corpse. My beloved, now all of this took place at the house of mourning and it also played a role in the way to the burial place. The body was washed, anointed, wrapped in elaborate cloths and carried on what was called a bier. The face was left uncovered. The arms were folded on one's chest. And in front went the professional wailing women tossing their arms into the air, tearing away at their hair, gesturing wildly, and shrieking at the top of their lungs. And beside them would walk the flute players. And then the mourners would follow, the buyer, and then a crowd of people, family members, next of kin, friends, and villagers. And as a matter of fact, everyone in the local town who could possibly join the procession was expected to do so. not to join in was considered to be a rather serious sin. And so, beloved, we need to understand that when our Lord Jesus came to Nain, he was confronted by quite a sight. A whole procession of people were coming towards him, only they were not coming towards him out of faith and seeking new life. No, they were busy with death. They were on the way to a burial. It was death that was on their lips and sorrow that filled their thoughts and their hearts. It was grief either real or put on for the occasion that dominated and ruled. And now, beloved, look very carefully at our text and what do you see? you can see that actually there was not just one procession at Nain. No, in actual fact, there were two of them. For our text tells us that Jesus was accompanied by his disciples and a large crowd. All kinds of people had followed him from Capernaum. They had tagged along. They wanted to hear more words from him. they wanted to see more mighty deeds from him. They were thinking of making him their rabbi and their teacher. And therefore you see what takes place at Nain is the coming, the meeting together of these two processions. Outside of the gates of that town these people suddenly came face to face. Yes, and if you think of it the contrast could not have been greater. For what comes out of the town represents nothing else but sadness, sorrow, and death. But on the other hand, what is coming towards the town represents healing, salvation, and life. Jesus Christ has come to name. And who is Jesus? None other than the Messiah of Israel, none other than the healer of Israel, none other than the counselor of Israel, none other than the hope of Israel. You can say, beloved, here life meets death. Here light confronts darkness. Here wholeness confronts brokenness. and indeed you can say that whenever and wherever our Savior and His gospel meet the world it's a case of life meeting death and yet outside of Maine more than just an accidental meeting or a freak encounter is taking place for you'll notice that as this one procession comes out of the town the Lord Jesus doesn't step aside and allow them to pass. No, he does something else. Before he does that, however, Luke tells us that when our Savior saw all of this, he was moved deeply. Verse 13 states, when the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her. I think we all know who the her is. The her is the mother. who's lost her only son. And Luke says he was overcome with compassion. You know, the word that Luke uses here is just about the strongest word in the vocabulary of that time that he could find. It means to be moved to the very depths of one's being. And indeed, it's a word that's used repeatedly in the Gospels to describe the reaction of our Savior. when he saw the multitude with all of those sick people, his heart was moved. When he saw the crowds acting like sheep without a shepherd, his heart was moved. When he saw all of those hungry masses so far away from home, his heart was moved. Why, the remarkable thing in the Gospels is that this word is used only of Jesus, and not of anyone else. quite simply you can say it's a word that describes him and sets him apart it tells us that he never comes away from suffering any scene of suffering unmoved indifferent cold heartless now the brokenness of life the problems of life the sorrows of life they all affect him deeply yes and all of us but especially those of you who are suffering today need to realize this you do not have a high priest who is indifferent to your sorrows you do not have a savior who is unmoved by your burdens you do not have a redeemer who is ignorant of your needs now even today at the right hand of God the Father in heaven Jesus Christ cares and he bears the hurts of his people in his heart and the result is that we never suffer alone or in isolation but still beloved our text tells us not only how Jesus was feeling it also goes on to tell us what he did for openers he addressed himself to the grieving mother and he told her don't cry now you have to wonder about those words don't you why would he bother to utter them surely he must have known that they would fall on deaf ears who in the world tells a mother in this kind of situation or predicament not to weep. What good will that do? None at all. Unless, of course, he can really do something about this sad situation. But then after uttering what must have been interpreted by all those who heard them as empty and kind of silly words, he went on and up to the great procession and he stopped it in its tracks. Verse 14 states, Then he went up, touched the coffin, and those carrying it stood still. Now that represented a most unusual action, if not a rather improper one. And surely it does so even today. Can you imagine being in the process of bringing one of your loved ones to the grave and a stranger comes along, stops the pallbearers and touches the coffin. Wouldn't you consider that to be rather unusual behavior? As a matter of fact, wouldn't you consider it to be a case of very bad manners? But nevertheless, that's exactly what our Savior does. He goes through the strong, Goes up to the body and he touches the buyer that carries the body. And we're not told, but probably the Jews present must have gasped in astonishment. You just didn't do that kind of thing. It was unheard of and especially unheard of among the Jews because any person who touched a coffin or a buyer made himself unclean for seven days. Had Jesus forgotten that? Was he not worried about making himself unclean? Not at all. The one who would soon put an end to all distinctions between clean and unclean apparently is not concerned about such things at all. No, he goes straight to the coffin. He touches it, and then he does something even more amazing. He spoke to it. He addressed the corpse. He spoke to the dead person. He said, young man, I say to you, get up. Well, if we can hardly imagine someone interfering with a funeral procession, How much more difficult is it not to imagine someone not only interfering, but also proceeding to give orders to a dead body? I think anyone today who would do such a thing would probably consider to be exceedingly deranged and probably should be sent to an asylum. Or, and that's the only other plausible or, or that person has to be exceedingly powerful in an unheard of kind of way. Anyone who tells a corpse to get up is either a madman or, you might say, a superman. Well, in this case, there's no doubt whatsoever that we are dealing with the latter. Because words of madmen always fall on deaf ears, but not the words of this man. They accomplished something. As we read, they made that young man sit up and no sooner does he sit up and he starts to talk and he's obviously alive again. Christ Jesus raised him from the dead. Jesus brought him back to life. Jesus showed to him, to his mother, to all the family and the bystanders as well as all of those of us who read this today that with him and him alone resides the power over death itself. He's able to do what no other person in the world can do. And he proves it then and there. And later on he will prove it again with the raising of the daughter of Jairus with Lazarus. Later on in the book of Acts, his apostles will do exactly the same thing through his power as the prophets had done in the Old Testament. And it all illustrates the fact that he has power over the grave. You know, soon the disciples of John the Baptist are going to come and they're going to ask Jesus, Are you the one who is to come or shall we look for someone else? And you know the answer the Lord Jesus gives them? He says, Go back. You go back to John and you report what you have seen and what you have heard. The blind receive their sight. The lame walk, those who have leprosy, are cured. The death here and the dead are raised. And I might add there's even a greater work and the good news is preached to the poor. But notice, the dead are raised. And that along with all of these other works proves that the Savior of the world has come. The jubilee has started. The second ad has arrived. From now on, death is no longer going to have the last word in our life and in our world. And that is not just what those spectators in Ney needed to realize. But you know, that's something that we all need to realize. When Jesus Christ came into the world, then the great offensive against sin and death began in earnest. And then the dawning of a whole new age became reality. Yes, and all of you and all of your loved ones who believe in this Savior will one day experience what it means to be conquerors, even more than conquerors over death and hell. but still as we look at our text there is one more thing that Jesus did that we also shouldn't overlook Luke tells us that Jesus gave him back to his mother you might wonder why Luke added that comment some of the commentators say well this just shows that Jesus has a sentimental side to his nature how nice that he did this and one will not deny that totally but I think there's something else at play here because you see by doing what the Lord Jesus does here our Savior is reminding us surely that he is the one who ultimately restores and brings all things back together what death does is always tear apart whether it's body and soul that's torn apart whether it's the living who are torn out of this life and away from their families and their work and their church and their home death always erects a barrier between the living and the dead that none of us can climb over but yet what does Jesus do? He's able to bring the dead back to the living he's able to reunite the living and the dead he's able to renew and to rebuild all things that's what he did in name yes and that is also what he will do in much greater measure and for vastly greater numbers on the day when he comes again oh if you think of it doesn't it make you hopeful doesn't it make you look forward doesn't it act as an incentive to pray come Lord Jesus Maranatha I think beloved what happens here in Nain should fill us all with great anticipation and joy and of course you can see in the last part of our text that's also what it did at that time Luke tells us that upon seeing this particular miracle the people of that town and all of those who were with Jesus were all filled with awe and praise God and thereafter they said a great prophet has appeared among us and next they said God has come to help his people and finally the news about Jesus spread if you like you can say there's a third procession a procession of words and deeds and blessings first these people you can imagine they must have been stunned and dumbfounded what do you say when something like this happens before your very eyes Where do you find the words to describe this miracle of our Lord Jesus Christ? And I think that's why Luke says they were just filled with awe. And second, when these people did catch their tongues, they realized that God must have been working among them because they also understood that no one, just no one can do this kind of work. No one else has that sword of power, not even the devil. Only God. And the third place, all of this also caused them to take still another look at Jesus. And they realized suddenly that anyone who does this kind of thing has to be special, really, truly special. And fourth, they also took a closer look at the miracle. And they realize this is not just the sake or the case of a miracle for the sake of a miracle. This is a miracle that produces all kinds of great, glorious benefits, blessings, implications, repercussions. It not only gives this woman back her son, but it does so much more than that. And fifth, the people realized that this is the kind of thing that all the world needed to know about. I'm sure that if they had email in those days, everybody would have run home, turned on their computers and cyberspace would have been filled with messages in no time at all. In short, you see here you have a miracle with all kinds of fallen, blessed fallen. And not the least of that is what they say about our Savior. They call him a great prophet. Now, when we read this text, we note that, but we don't really think too much of it. But there is some significance to that, some special significance. And it's tied to the town of Nain. Do you know what Nain was called in the Old Testament? guess. It was called Shunem. Yes, and Shunem, as we read together in 2 Kings 4, was none other than that particular place where the prophet Elisha did one of his greatest miracles. That's where he too raised an only son. The son of the Shunemite woman. And so, if you are aware of all of that, you say to yourself, well, history is obviously repeating itself. It's repeating itself in that little town in the shadows of the hills of Galilee. But, of course, beloved, history is not just repeating itself. Those of us who understand how history and salvation moves on realizes that history is surpassing itself. For the one who comes to Nain is not just another Elisha, but someone infinitely greater. Here the greatest prophet of all has come to town. Here is the prophet who had only to speak as the great Creator spoke in the beginning and the dead are raised. Jesus doesn't have to lie upon the buyer hand on hand, feet to feet, mouth to mouth. None of that. Just the word of command. Here's a prophet. The greatest prophet, but also the Lord. If you go back to verse 13, Luke uses the name entitled Lord for the very first time and applies it to Jesus of Nazareth. And thereby he's saying to us that the one who came to name is not only the greatest prophet. No, this is the Lord. This is the Lord of life and the Lord of glory. That should appear. That's the one who raised the dead. And he's the one who one day will come again and will raise the dead in such a way that they will never, ever die again. For later on, that young man in Nain, the daughter of Jairus, Lazarus, those people mentioned in the book of Acts, they all died again. But one day God's people will be raised never ever more to die. There's not what applies. And that's the beauty of the gospel. What applies to those people of long ago that still applies to all of those who believe in this prophet and this Lord today. Whether you're living here in California or in Canada or in Asia. It applies. Do you believe in Him? Then don't cry. Do your loved ones believe in Him? Then fear not for them. Jesus Christ lives today in glory. And one day all of His people will be living with Him too in glory. What a hope we have. What a future we have. What a Savior we have. Let us pray. Almighty God and Heavenly Father, we thank you. We thank you for the gift of your son Jesus Christ. The one who saves us from our sins. And the one who is Lord of life and glory. We thank you Father that through this miracle once again we are reminded so very clearly about who he is. what He has done and what one day He will do for all of His people. Father, we pray that in each and every one of our hearts and lives there may be faith in this Savior and Lord that we may cling to Him that we may listen to Him that we may serve Him that we may live our lives out of His grace and through the power of His Spirit and that so we may rejoice all of our days and live forever in the hope of eternal life through Christ. Amen.