Loud wails filled the air as the funeral procession slowly walked out through the gate of the city of Nain. Though most of the wailing was being produced by paid mourners the pain in the hearts of the crowd following the coffin was real. There walking just behind the pallbearers was the deceased’s poor, widowed, mother. Her only son lay in the traditional open coffin (or bier) made of wickerwork shrouded in folds of linen. After her husband had died he had been all she had left. Now he was gone too. It seemed that sorrow must be her lot for the rest of her life. It is unclear why such a large crowed attended the casket. Perhaps this young man had been well loved and respected in his town. Or maybe they just felt sorry for his widowed mother since, in her culture, women just had to have a man to care for them and now she had none. Whatever the reason this funeral was a large event and now the sad procession made their way to the burial ground to lay their loved one to rest.

The city of Nain “is not mentioned elsewhere, either in the Bible or in secular sources, but is generally identified with the modern Nein, on the northern slopes of a mountain overlooking the broad plain of Esdraelon to the north. Nein is situated about 25 mi. southwest of the site of ancient Capernaum and about 5 mi. south of Nazareth. There is but one approach to the village, along a steep and rocky path (see DA 318) [sic] that comes in from the east. About half a mile east of the village is a rock-hewn burial ground still in use today.—SDA Bible Commentary Vol. 5, p.757

As the funeral procession traversed that rocky path to the burial ground they met up with another large group of people coming from the other direction. At the head of this crowd was a rabbi (or spiritual teacher) named Jesus. When the two groups met Jesus saw the widow and knew her situation. He knew that her heart was breaking. And not only hers, It seemed that the only one in the group that wasn’t sad was the dead man, who obviously didn’t know anything was going on.

After comforting the mother Jesus touched the coffin. The pallbearers stopped short in astonishment. By touching the coffin Jesus risked ceremonial uncleanness (see Numbers 19:11). But Jesus was about to do a lot more than become ceremonially unclean to bring eternal life to mankind. He was about to take on all the guilt and sins of the whole world—become “sin for us”—bearing our guilt and uncleanness to the cross so a little ceremonial uncleanness wasn’t a big deal to Him.

Although this man was dead and had no clue what was going on Jesus spoke to him commanding him to arise. Even death itself cannot defy God’s word so the man sat up in the coffin fully alive and started talking as if nothing had happened. I imagine that Jesus helped the man out of his coffin as He presented him alive to his mother. After their original shock at this experience the crowd recognized that they had had supernatural power visit their town and their wailing turned into joyful praises, glorifying God. (Story is found in Luke 7:11-17)

The Bible tells us another story about people who got out of their coffins filled with new life. But unlike the above story this is a continuing story with chapters still being written to this very day. For more about this story please read the PDF handout and newspaper article or listen to the sermon in Real Audio format.