Jesus' Grace in Every Situation

Luke 7:13a
“And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her….”

I have come to a remarkable reinforcement of the purpose of grace as it is shown in this passage.  I must remember that I am not alone either in my personal situations or in Jesus' purpose for my life.

First, let me look at the incident in its contexts.  In comparison to the healing of the centurion’s servant, this account of the raising of the widow’s son at Nain shows some remarkable similarities and contrasts in the conditions Jesus encountered and in His responses.

·         No request was made of Jesus in the widow’s situation.  The widow with her mourners simply encounters Jesus and the His followers almost as if by accident or coincidence.  It is obvious that she is on her way to bury her son and is not seeking Jesus, she makes no request of Him, and she makes expressions of faith.

·         The motivation and actions of Jesus are on full display.  The text states that Jesus had compassion on her.  She did not know Jesus, but Jesus was fully aware of her situation and her sorrow.  In His compassion, Jesus told the woman not to weep.

Note: the word used here of Jesus’ compassion is – σπλαγχνίζομαι – splagchizomai, literally to be moved in one’s bowels.  The verb is in the middle voice with indicates that this compassion was completely internal to Jesus meaning He created this compassion in Himself.  Interestingly, this word is only used in the Gospels and only used in direct reference to Jesus.

·         Jesus touched the open coffin which would render Him ceremonially unclean.  In the same way, He would have been unclean had he entered the house of the centurion.  When Jesus raised the dead man and healed the centurion’s servant, the requirements of the law and custom were rendered moot.

·         Jesus spoke to the dead man, whereas He never met the centurion’s servant.  Here Jesus was directly involved working in the personal presence of the one in need.

Sometimes Jesus responds to our prayers as with the centurion, and at other times He responds to our situation as with the widow when we do not even know to pray and have no hope or expectation of relief.  Though this was a remarkable event for the young man, we must also see that the young man was not raised to meet his own need of life but to meet the needs of his mother.  Often the blessings of God in our lives are there for the ultimate benefit of someone else to whom we must minister.

My prayer is that I will have eyes to see God’s purpose in His blessing that stretch beyond my own satisfaction and relief.  By His grace, I must minister in the lives of those around me. 

God’s grace is NEVER for selfish, personal consumption but for His glory and His service.

Coram deo