Daily devotion – The widow of Nain is a story each of us can can relate to.
Luke 7:11–15
“Now it happened, the day after, that He went into a city called Nain; and many of His disciples went with Him, and a large crowd. And when He came near the gate of the city, behold, a dead man was being carried out, the only son of his mother; and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the city was with her. When the Lord saw her, He had compassion on her and said to her, ‘Do not weep.’ Then He came and touched the open coffin, and those who carried him stood still. And He said, ‘Young man, I say to you, arise.’ So he who was dead sat up and began to speak. And He presented him to his mother.”
This is one of my favourite passages in the Bible.
Here we find a heart-wrenching scene: a mother, already a widow, now burying her only son. A large crowd accompanies her, mourning with her—but One far greater is also aware of her pain. Our Lord!
Nain is about 40 km from Capernaum—a full day’s journey. And yet Jesus arrives precisely at the right moment. He wasn’t summoned or sent for. But in God’s perfect timing, He comes—just as the funeral is leaving the city gates. Since Jewish tradition calls for burial on the day of death, Jesus and His disciples likely arrived late in the afternoon, just in time for this divine encounter.
At that moment, two only sons meet:
– One alive but destined to die (Jesus),
– The other dead, but destined to live again.
And two sufferers meet:
Jesus, the “Man of Sorrows,” intimately acquainted with grief, feels the pain this mother bears. He is not cold or distant. He feels her loss—the sting of sin and death in a world that was once perfect. And He acts.
And lastly, two enemies meet:
Jesus confronts death, the final enemy (1 Cor. 15:26). But unlike anyone else, Jesus possesses both the power and the willingness to overcome it. He simply speaks the word: “Young man, I say to you, arise.” And life returns.
What a reunion! The son is restored and presented to his mother.
And this is a picture of a greater reunion yet to come. When Jesus returns, we will be reunited with our loved ones who have gone before us into glory—just as this mother was with her son. What a day of celebration that will be!
Some may mock the Christian faith and ridicule our hope. But the story of the widow of Nain silences those voices. For in Christ, we see the One who brings life, hope, and joy—of a kind and quality that only He can give.
Let us give thanks this week—every morning we rise—for God’s great love, for the compassion of Christ, and for the wonder of walking each day with Him.