By Pastor Tope BANSO
“Soon afterward Jesus went with his disciples to the village of Nain, and a large crowd followed him. 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. Great fear swept the crowd, and they praised God, saying, ‘A mighty prophet has risen among us,’ and ‘God has visited his people today.’ And the news about Jesus spread throughout Judea and the surrounding countryside” (Luke 7:11-17 New Living Translation).
If you don’t desire a turnaround, you don’t have to read this. A dictionary defines turnaround as “a big change that turns a bad situation into a good one.” It is also defined as “an abrupt or unexpected change, especially one that results in a more favourable situation.” In the context of this message, the turnaround is divine because it is done by the Lord.
The Lord has sent me to only those who expect a significant change in their present situation, those who are trusting God for a visitation that will result in experiencing something positively different from what they’ve always had. No matter what has been your negative experience before now, God shall visit you and cause a turnaround in your life.
In the Bible passage above, the widow of Nain had been dealt the greatest blow of her life. She had lost her only son and was about to be buried before Jesus intercepted the funeral procession. This season, Jesus will intercept you for a divine turnaround. You shall not lose to premature death anyone precious to you.
There shall be no funeral procession for the young in your family in Jesus’ name.
Any time I read this story, I always remark that the devil is a bad devil. Yes, a bad devil (just to qualify the devil not because there is a good devil). Before the death of the young man, the devil had killed his father; he had killed the husband of the woman. It must have been a painful loss to the woman and the young man if he was old enough at the time to feel the impact of his father’s death.
But as if the devil was not satisfied, he came for the young man too. How devilish the devil could be! If you give the devil an inch, he will take a mile! Why should he kill the only son of a widow? The devil probably knew that would be more painful. A widow losing her only son will feel the loss more than a mother of five children losing one of them.
The devil is a bad devil! Never give him any room at all to operate in your life. Don’t say it is an ordinary headache! Don’t say it’s just a little cut! If he steals something small from you and you tolerate him, he’ll come to steal something big. If you allow him to enter your house, you’ll require more effort to get him out. Always deny him access from the gate! Keep him far away from your abode. The devil shall not come near your house. No plague shall come near your dwelling in Jesus’ name (Psalm 91:10).
The devil killed both the father and the son, leaving this woman with nothing! If she had thought that with the death of her husband, she still had hope in the son, the devil struck a second time to steal what she had left. The devil did a similar thing to Naomi in the book of Ruth. “Then Elimelech died, and Naomi was left with her two sons. The two sons married Moabite women. One married a woman named Orpah, and the other a woman named Ruth. But about ten years later, both Mahlon and Kilion died. This left Naomi alone, without her two sons or her husband” (Ruth 1:3-5 New Living Translation).
The devil killed Naomi’s husband and about ten years later killed the two sons leaving her with two childless in-laws. If these daughters-in-law had gotten children or had been pregnant before their husbands died, Naomi’s pains would have been mitigated. The devil was so wicked that he prevented them from having children which they would have taken solace in. But in the end God turned around the hopelessness of Naomi. Beloved, all hope is not lost for you. Don’t lose hope. The God of restoration shall visit you; He’ll do a new thing in your life.
Timely interception; divine intervention
Back to the widow of Nain – The funeral procession was coming and Jesus met the procession at the village gate. What a coincidence! But it wasn’t really a coincidence. It was divinely orchestrated. God knew the devil would kill this young man and had provided a way of escape for this widow. The Father of the fatherless and the Husband of the widows showed up in defence of this widow in the nick of time. The Lord will show up in your case in Jesus’ name. God is not a late comer! He’ll intervene in your situation and turn your life around.
A large crowd was with this woman. Who knows whether those who killed the widow’s son and the husband were even in this procession! Yes, they could be there – terrible things happen in the village! That’s why many run away from the village to the city and even when they go on visits, they sneak in and out for fear of attacks! But tragedies are common occurrences in the city too! It is only Jesus that can deliver you from the fear of demonic attacks, and he will if you entrust your life to him.
The Bible says when Jesus saw this woman, his heart overflowed with compassion and he said, “Don’t cry!” But what else should the woman be doing if not weeping? Anyone asking her not to weep or cry must be ignorant of what had happened to her or must be callous. The other possibility, of course, was that the person must have solution to her problem. And the third option applied to Jesus Christ – he had solution to the problem of the woman. In fact, he was the Solution. Jesus had compassion on her, not just showing concern like human beings often do offering only care but not cure! Whatever the condition you’re in now, God will have compassion on you and turn around your life, your marriage, your family, your business, your career, etc. in Jesus’ name.
Jesus’ compassion moved him to touch the coffin and the bearers stopped. Jesus commanded the young man to get up as if he was sleeping and could hear him if he spoke up. He spoke to the dead young man as if he was alive, and the Bible says the dead boy sat up and began to talk. Jesus gave him back to his mother, and what was the reaction of the people? “Great fear swept the crowd, and they praised God, saying, ‘A mighty prophet has risen among us,’ and ‘God has visited his people today.’ And the news about Jesus spread throughout Judea and the surrounding countryside” (Luke 7:16-17 New Living Translation).
What have you lost? What has the enemy stolen from you? Receive it back now in Jesus’ name. I command restoration in the mighty name of Jesus. I pray that the Lord, like he did for that widow, will do in your life a turnaround that will cause fear to come upon those who know you. An awesome turnaround, you’ll experience this season in Jesus’ name. You shall testify to the power of God.
Permit me to stop here. I’ll conclude this message next week. I pray for a divine turnaround of every negative situation in your life as you begin a new week tomorrow in Jesus name. Do have a successful week ahead.
TAKE ACTION!
If you’re not born again, kindly say this prayer now: “0 Lord God, I come unto you today. I know I am a sinner and I cannot save myself. I believe that Jesus is the Son of God who died on the cross to save me and resurrected the third day. I confess Jesus as my Lord and Saviour and surrender my life to him today. I invite Jesus into my heart today. By this prayer, I know I am saved. Thank you Jesus for saving me and making me a child of God.”
I believe you’ve said this prayer from your heart. Congratulations! You’ll need to join a Bible-believing, Bible-teaching church in your area where you’ll be taught how to live your new life in Christ Jesus. I pray that you flourish like the palm tree and grow like the cedar of Lebanon. May you grow into Christ in all things becoming all God wants you to be. I’ll be glad to hear from you.
●●BANSO heads CEDAR MINISTRY INTERNATIONAL,
Abuja, Nigeria.
Phone No: +2348155744752, +2348033113523 WhatsApp No: +23481295947
Website: www.cedarministry.org
Email: cedarministryintl@yahoo.com; cedarministryng@gmail.com