11?Soon afterwards he went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went with him. 12As he approached the gate of the town, a man who had died was being carried out. He was his mother?s only son, and she was a widow; and with her was a large crowd from the town. 13When the Lord saw her, he had compassion for her and said to her, ?Do not weep.? 14Then he came forward and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still. And he said, ?Young man, I say to you, rise!? 15The dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother. 16Fear seized all of them; and they glorified God, saying, ?A great prophet has risen among us!? and ?God has looked favorably on his people!? 17This word about him spread throughout Judea and all the surrounding country.

There are times in life when we share our love with people through compassion and there are other times in life when we aren?t aware of the ways our kindness is received as compassion. Compassion is something that is needed more and more in our country that ever. It seems to be lacking in our society; it is affecting our lives, our families, our communities, our views of other people, and our politics. Compassion is defined as a feeling of wanting to help someone who is sick, hungry, in trouble, etc. and sympathetic consciousness of others’ distress together with a desire to alleviate it?( http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/compassion). Wanting to help and the desire to alleviate it. I invite you to join me in prayer as we prepare our hearts and minds to continue in our journey of life through Luke chapter 7.

I think we can all think through our lives and see moments where we have been compassionate and when we have received compassion from another person. It is almost as if something changes in your life when you have these experiences. Can you remember the first time you truly felt compassion? When you remember that moment and that feeling, it causes you to stop and remember. The moment that comes to mind is when I was in college. I had decided to volunteer at the hospital and was shadowing different professionals trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my life. That day I was assigned with the medical social worker and when I arrived she asked me if I liked to hold babies. I said absolutely, who doesn?t like to hold babies! She took me down to the NICU where there was a baby boy who had been born premature, was addicted to drugs, and whose mother?s maternal rights had just been terminated. The social worker asked me to hold him as long as I could that day and that if his mother came by, I was to hold on to that baby with my life and not let her have her son. As I thought back to that day, I remember holding on to the baby boy and wanting to protect him from the one who gave birth to him. I prayed for that little boy, rocked him in the rocking chair in the NICU, kept him warm, fed him, and loved him in the only way I knew how. I just wanted to help him and had a huge desire to take away the distress. Yet, I knew I could only do so much in that day.? But this moment is engraved in my memory and one I pray I never forget.

Our passage for today is a story that continues to show Jesus? compassion for those who are poor, held captive, blind, and oppressed where the words of Isaiah are said by Jesus in Luke 4:16-21. Jesus continues to show those who are following him that he is the prophet and God of the broken people. Which is such a relief, because all of us are broken in some way and need to feel the compassion of Jesus daily! Here are some key elements in this passage:

?12As he approached the gate of the town, a man who had died was being carried out.? Gates typically represent places of transitions in the bible. Jesus is getting ready to go into a city while a man who died is being carried away. This is a moment when life changes.
?He was his mother?s only son, and she was a widow;? What we learn in this sentence is important only if we understand the culture of the time. ?The cultural and financial structures of the day tell us she has been utterly left behind?more than sad, more than mournful, she is totally bereft, without sustenance, as good as dead(Kayla McClung, Inward/Outward 6/5/16).? The mother would have no economic support because she was a widow.
13When the Lord saw her, he had compassion for her and said to her, ?Do not weep.? Jesus came alongside the mother and wanted to alleviate her pain ?bring good news to the poor.? He was probably also taken back and moved by the strength she demonstrated by faithfully walking alongside her loss.
?14Then he came forward and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still. And he said, ?Young man, I say to you, rise!? 15The dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother.? Jesus was moved to heal the man, restore him back to life, and gave him back to his mother. Jesus was truly moved to compassion without having a conversation with the woman about her faith, her history, her family, anything?Jesus didn?t offer judgment, but offered compassion. Can you imagine what the mother would have felt in that moment? And in thinking about how the course of her life had changed yet again?
16Fear seized all of them; and they glorified God, saying, ?A great prophet has risen among us!? and ?God has looked favorably on his people!?? I love that fear and glorify God are in the same sentence! People are beginning to see something in this man Jesus that hasn?t been seen or experienced in a long time. Through the acts of love, compassion, healing, and more, people are beginning to see that God is dwelling with the people again. Hope in the restoration of the kingdom would begin to be felt by the people. Yet, they didn?t know that this kingdom would be different.
17This word about him spread throughout Judea and all the surrounding country.? Jesus? ability to heal and for people to begin to recognize him as a prophet, will lead to conflict; yet with the word spreading, more and more people wanted to know Jesus more and understand who he really was.

Luke is also wanting to remind those who were seeing the healing and experiencing the story to remember when Elijah would have raised the widow?s son in Sarepta (1 Kings 17:20). This is one of the ways where Luke shows the power of Jesus through connecting the experiences of Jesus with the stories of the Old Testament.? It is also another way to show that when Jesus said those words of Isaiah, that Jesus would be fulfilling the prophecy immediately. This passage reminds me of the importance of being present with people. It also reminds me of in importance of beginning relationships with people even when you don?t know their story. And lastly, it calls me to think about how are we being compassionate with those who we meet on a daily basis. Over this week, think about some of the moments where you remember being compassionate or receiving compassion from someone else. It is my prayer that we remember that the message of the gospel is for everyone, not just the people we deem worthy. Because Jesus deemed everyone worthy, especially those who were outcasts in society. Amen.