Bible Reading for October 19 – Luke 7:11-17

God can fix any problem. Any problem. In New Testament times, a woman without a man to care for her and take responsibility for her was completely helpless, and that’s what happened to this widow when her only son died. So, she wasn’t just grieving the loss of a loved one – she was staring in the face of abject poverty.

Maybe you know what that kind of helpless despair is like. Maybe you feel like you’re out of options, and that there’s no hope that things will ever get better.

If that’s the case, take a look at Jesus. For He had compassion on this poor widow, and that’s good news for us too. Jesus is not indifferent to our heartaches – He had more than His own share of Him during the time when He walked this earth. He knows what it’s like to lose loved ones, to be despised, to be rejected, to be cornered and to have no way out. No matter what you are going through, Jesus loves you and He understands.

But at the same time, He is supremely powerful, able to help you no matter what your trouble may be. All He had to do was to touch the coffin and tell the corpse to arise and life came flowing back into that dead man. With a touch and a word, the widow’s grief was turned to joy, and the threat of her poverty was wiped away.

Yes, Jesus has all authority in Heaven and on Earth, even over sin and death itself. But how did He gain this power? God condemned His only son to death not just so that this one widow could have her only son alive again, but so that all who trust in Jesus might have new life with Him today and eternal life with Him forever.

So, no matter what problems we face, surely we can trust a God Who loves us in such a self-sacrificial way. Surely we can trust a God Who wields such absolute power and authority. Surely we can trust Him to save us in His way, in His time.

Luke 7:11–17 (ESV)

Soon afterward he went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a great crowd went with him. As he drew near to the gate of the town, behold, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow, and a considerable crowd from the town was with her. And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her and said to her, “Do not weep.” Then he came up and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still. And he said, “Young man, I say to you, arise.” And the dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother. Fear seized them all, and they glorified God, saying, “A great prophet has arisen among us!” and “God has visited his people!” And this report about him spread through the whole of Judea and all the surrounding country.