Luke 10:27
Loving God
He answered, "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'"
Luke 7:11-17
Jesus Raises a Widow’s Son
11 Soon afterward, Jesus went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went along with him. 12 As he approached the town gate, a dead person was being carried out—the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the town was with her. 13 When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her and he said, “Don’t cry.”
14 Then he went up and touched the bier they were carrying him on, and the bearers stood still. He said, “Young man, I say to you, get up!” 15 The dead man sat up and began to talk, and Jesus gave him back to his mother.
16 They were all filled with awe and praised God. “A great prophet has appeared among us,” they said. “God has come to help his people.” 17 This news about Jesus spread throughout Judea and the surrounding country.
Matthew 13:53-58
A Prophet Without Honor
53 When Jesus had finished these parables, he moved on from there. 54 Coming to his hometown, he began teaching the people in their synagogue, and they were amazed. “Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers?” they asked. 55 “Isn't this the carpenter’s son? Isn't his mother’s name Mary, and aren't his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas? 56 Aren’t all his sisters with us? Where then did this man get all these things?” 57 And they took offense at him.
But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own town and in his own home.”
58 And he did not do many miracles there because of their lack of faith.
Miracles take faith to believe in them...But when Jesus wants to do a miracle, He, of course can do one...Now Jesus, at times seems two thousand years away from us, even though He lives...
As we read about Jesus raising a widow's son in the town of Nain, it is done so casually, yet so dramatically...For those who believe in Jesus, we understand there are things we just don't know...We don't know, what we don't know...Trying to believe that miracles are rational, most of the time does not work (at least for me)...As we read about Jesus, I think, sadly many of His miracles have become cliche, partly because of this two thousand year passage...There is a resurrection miracle in each of the gospels...And even as I read through all the great resurrections done by Jesus in each of the four gospels, Lazarus, for me, is the most detailed and dramatic of all His resurrections of those who had passed away...Anyone reading the resurrection miracles and if you believe in them, one has to know that He is Divine, and from heaven...
In this miracle, Jesus shows His compassion for the mother who has lost her son...When the LORD saw the widow, His heart went our to her...Jesus told her not to cry...And as the people watched, He touched the casket and said, “Young man, I say to you, get up!”...The dead man sat up and began to talk, and Jesus gave him back to his mother...All the people watching were all filled with awe and praised God...“A Great Prophet has appeared among us,” they said...“God has come to help His people.”...This news about Jesus spread throughout Judea and the surrounding country...Being there would certainly help one's faith (I tend to believe)...Everyone reading this today, should be shouting Hallelujah!...Yet, I think the two thousand years, and us hearing about Jesus, keeps us from standing up and shouting about it...Maybe we just expect it from Him...But do we believe it?...
Jesus became very popular via His miracles...Yet, today, we seem to overlook the power of His miracles and to me the world seems somewhat like His own hometown...It was like His hometown knew Him, and wondering how He could do miracles...Maybe since they knew Him, in His hometown, they took His abilities, authority, and great power for granted...They lacked faith, and because of this lack of faith, He could not do many miracles...
Miracles go beyond our thinking and our thought processes...They take faith...Miracles are a part of the Holy Spirit and less a part of our rational thinking...Miracles are more about faith than about our personal thoughts...Some things that happen in life are a part of the soul and spirit, and are not are part of the mental events of our thoughts...These things are a part of God, and our connection to Him...Jesus having the ability to not only heal people, but raise them from the dead takes us beyond how we think and our thoughts, and involves faith...Loving God requires faith, and takes not only all of our mind, but also all of our heart, all our strength, and all our soul...