Luke 7:11-15
And it came to pass the day after, that he went into a city called Nain; and many of his disciples went with him, and much people. Now when he came nigh to the gate of the city, behold, there was a dead man carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow: and much people of the city was with her. And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her, and said unto her, Weep not. And he came and touched the bier: and they that bare him stood still. And he said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise. And he that was dead sat up, and began to speak. And he delivered him to his mother.

Times of loss are often the most difficult moments we’ll face in this world. In this sin-cursed place, the sting of death is real and painful. This woman Jesus encountered was a widow, so she had already lost her husband, and now her only son has died, too. And what were the implications of that? Would she be alone? Would she have anyone to help her or provide for her? She faced this uncertain future in the midst of the overwhelming grief that must certainly come when a mother loses a child. Surely in this moment it could have seemed like there was no comfort and no hope.

But Jesus sees her there in that sorrowful state and has compassion. He draws near to the weeping and the brokenhearted. Near the end of His ministry, He would enter into the mourning of Mary and Martha and grieve with them. He sees people here in this world enduring the reality of death and the sorrow that accompanies it, and He weeps with us. He weeps for us and our pitiful condition, the overbearing burden that sin and its consequences has placed on His beloved creation. He knows very personally what it is to lose the ones He loves.

But Jesus has such a compassionate solution, and it is, of course, to give life where death seems to reign and the grave appears to have the victory. For this widow, it looked like raising her son back to life and resorting him to her. A physical body that had died would breathe and speak and move again. What joy must have come, what relief, what hope. And beyond that, Jesus gained the victory over this seemingly unbeatable enemy, because He Himself died, He was buried in a grave, but then He rose to life again and conquered death. And now we say, “Death, where is your sting? Grave, where is your victory?” It is swallowed up by the victory that Christ has won for us.