“A funeral procession was coming out as He approached the village gate. The young man who had died was a widow’s only son, and a large crowd from the village was with her. When the Lord saw her, His heart overflowed with compassion. ‘Don’t cry!’ He said. Then He walked over to the coffin and touched it, and the bearers stopped. ‘Young man,’ He said, ‘I tell you, get up.’ Then the dead boy sat up and began to talk! And Jesus gave him back to his mother.” (Luke 7:12-15 NLT)
Unless we’ve experienced a similar miracle, we can only begin to imagine the elation and joy that would fill our lives.
The doctor who told me of my then 16-year-old son’s leukemia said later that she was surprised that I showed so little emotion. She couldn’t see what was flooding my heart and mind. The only person I’d ever known who had leukemia was a friend in eighth grade who lived about six months.
When I heard the doctor’s words, it was as if she was stabbing me in the heart, pronouncing a death sentence over my son. I was in shock and disbelief, but beyond that, I guarded my emotions in an effort to protect my son. The doctor didn’t see me moments later in a closet agonizing in spirit, sobbing uncontrollably, begging God to give me cancer instead of my son.
But what grabs my attention in the above passage isn’t the anticipated response of the mother and her friends, but of the Lord Himself. It doesn’t specifically say that He wept, but the word used conveys His agony of spirit as He immediately made the decision to end this mother’s heartache and misery by bringing her son back to life.
It brought to my remembrance the many times tears have been caused by my own terminal disease. It’s called sin. How many times I’ve disobeyed God, resulting in weeping and begging God to forgive me, but mostly to change the series of events I set in motion by me sin. John Piper wrote: “Many people weep at the consequences of sin who still love the sin.”
Our love affair with our own sin is a hard relationship to end. All seems good and right, until we’re caught or the stench of our disobedience to the Lord becomes obvious to others. Then we’re begging God to forgive and change us – until the dust settles and the “heat” of our sin subsides. Then it becomes “business as usual” until the next time we’re called out by God or someone else in our life.
Some reading this may wonder what the big deal is. We’re sinners, so why the fuss? Isn’t sin what we do? Isn’t sin our constant companion in this life? Yes, of course it is, but we have a choice as to whether we give in to Satan’s demands or not. John wrote in 1 John 2:1: “My dear children, I am writing this to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate who pleads our case before the Father. He is Jesus Christ the One who is truly righteous.”
Yes, of course, the Lord will forgive us, but on some levels it’s like our child asking to borrow the car, then taking it out and deliberately wrecking it. The first time we forgive, but if it continues, we will forgive, but unless we have a limitless income or we’re out of our minds, we’ll revoke their driving privileges.
To believe we can sin without consequence is to not understand the Scriptures and the basis of our relationship with God. John continues in verses 3-6: “And we can be sure that we know Him if we obey His commandments. If someone claims, ‘I know God,’ but doesn’t obey God’s commandments, that person is a liar and is not living in the truth. But those who obey God’s word truly show how completely they love Him. That is how we know we are living in Him.”
Let’s look at this from another angle in tomorrow’s post. And so you know, the Lord spared my son’s life. Today he’s 48 years old and the father of my only grandchild.
Blessings, Ed 😊
Walking With Jesus 