40 Days of MiraclesНамуна

Jesus Raises a Widow's Son From the Dead in Nain

We believe that children were meant to bury parents, not the other way around, so this story plucks at our modern heartstrings. However, in Jesus' day, the mortality rate for infants and children was much higher. Parents regularly mourned children who passed early. This case was different, though, because there was no social safety net. The family was that net, so when the widow in this story loses her only adult son, she's endangered by poverty and desperation in a deeply patriarchal culture. So, this miracle restores life and hope for both the son and his mother. It is proper, then, that the crowd exclaims, "God has come to help his people!" Of course, she is overjoyed to see her son alive again, but she also resorts to a place of honor and security within her community. This miracle includes the spreading goodness of God's renewal of all things.

Questions for Reflection

• What does God want to bring back to life in you — for you — but also for the sake of others?
• What miracle might you be for someone else as God seeks to restore his goodness in the lives of those around you?
• How might God come among you and your people to help you?