Divine restoration is one of the themes that runs through the ministry of Jesus. When one receives Divine restoration, something that was lost is returned back to its original state. Jesus made it clear in His ministry that "the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10; Matthew 18:11). Bringing the lost back to their old state is the divine restoration. Jesus also performed amazing miracles such as healing the sick and raising the dead back to life. These miracles were very significant to the people who benefited from it. Also, Jesus' fame spread far and wide because the testimonies of these miracles were shared in the surrounding towns and cities. One beneficiary of such an extraordinary encounter was a widow. This woman would be referred to as the widow of Nain because her real name was not mentioned in the Bible. Nain is only mentioned in the Bible in connection with the miraculous encounter between Jesus and the restoration of the son of the widow.
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. (Luke 7:12)
According to the gospel of Luke, Jesus' encounter in Nain happened sometime after the miraculous restoration of the servant of the centurion. Jesus and His disciples went to a town called Nain, and a large crowd went along with him (Luke 7:11). Obviously the fame of Jesus had spread abroad so everywhere He went, people followed Him to catch a glimpse of God's power at work. Luke 7:12 states that, as Jesus approached the town gate, a dead person was being carried out and this dead person was the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. Following the widow and the bier carrying the dead son was a large crowd from the town. Imagine the pain of this widow. She had lost her husband and now her only son was dead. Thus, her lineage was at risk of being cut off. Who would extend her lineage? The only lamp of hers had been snuffed off. The widow would have been extremely sad and hopeless. Walking behind the bier, this widow would have questioned God and her faith in the God of Israel.
The people walking along with her might have tried to comfort this widow. Her pain might have touched the heart of the town. She had no husband and no one to take care of her. In this very sad and hopeless situation, Jesus intercepted the bier carriers. When Jesus saw the widow, His heart went out to her (compassionate) and He said, “Don’t cry.” (Luke 7:13). At that instant, Jesus' words might have calmed the widow briefly but she would have still been sad within her. The widow might have heard of the fame of Jesus or she might have not. However, she allowed Jesus to intercept her mourning. She didn't rant at Jesus for interrupting the funeral of her son. Sometimes, we need to leave the situation into the hands of Jesus and allow Him to interrupt our own plans. The plan for this funeral was to carry the dead man and to bury Him. That was not the plan of Jesus. If the widow had stuck to her own plan, she would have missed the perfect miracle. Our plans without God could potentially lead to doom.
Jesus went up and touched the bier they were carrying the dead man on, and the bearers stood still. Jesus 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 (Luke 7:14-15). Imagine the shock and the happiness! The man was being carried to the grave but Jesus gave a change of trajectory. The dead man was restored back to life and instead of the grave, he went back home with his mother. This was no small encounter. The people were all filled with awe and praised God saying: “A great prophet has appeared among us. God has come to help his people.” And this news about Jesus spread throughout Judea and the surrounding country (Luke 7:16-17). The power of Jesus brought divine restoration to the hopeless widow.
Nothing is impossible for the Lord. If we give Him the first place in our plans, and allow Him to interfere with our plans, His results are always mind-blowing testimonies. Remember, until the widow met Jesus, her son remained dead. But, after she encountered Jesus and allowed Him to take charge of the situation, the story changed. Who is in charge of your life? Who is driving the affairs of your life? Jesus or you?
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