Date: October 12, 2025 • Preacher: Fr. Stephen Osburn • Parish: St. Mary Magdalene Orthodox Church

Gospel: Luke 7:11–16. Christ meets a funeral procession at the gates of Nain, touches the open bier, and says, “Young man, I say to you, arise.” The dead sits up and speaks, and Jesus presents him to his mother.

The Gate Where Death Met the Lord of Life

• St. Cyril of Alexandria poetically names Nain the city of death because death stands at its gates when Christ arrives.
• At that meeting place, the Lord previews His own Pascha. He will destroy death by death and present humanity to the Father as living sons and daughters.
• The miracle at Nain is not only comfort for one widow. It is a sign of what Christ is doing for all creation.

Christ Touches What We Fear

• In Israel, touching a coffin meant ritual defilement. Christ is not defiled by death. Instead He purifies and conquers it.
• He draws near to our deepest sadness, not as an observer, but as the One who carries it and overturns it.
• What we avoid, He approaches. What we cannot move, He speaks to, and it rises.

“Young Man, I Say to You, Arise”

• The voice that called the worlds into being now calls a single person by a simple command: arise.
• The crowd sees a prophet. The Church recognizes the Lord of life. Fear falls on them and they glorify God.
• At Nain, the resurrection breaks into time ahead of schedule, a first light before dawn.

Presented to His Mother

• Fathers note that Christ presents the son to his mother as He will entrust His beloved disciple to His own Mother at the Cross.
• The Church, as mother, receives back her children alive in Christ. What death seizes, Christ returns.
• To be Christian is to be given back to the Church as living members, not as names on a list.

The Eucharist: From Death to Life

• St. Cyril also reads Nain as an image of the Eucharist. In Holy Communion, Christ gives Himself to raise us from spiritual death.
• Communion is not a habit to maintain but a meeting with the Living God. We come empty and leave alive.
• Strengthened at the Chalice, we are sent to carry His life into our homes, work, and city.

Inner Peace that Saves the World

• St. Seraphim of Sarov teaches: acquire the Spirit of peace, and thousands around you will be saved.
• The peace of Christ is not escape. It is the stillness that comes from knowing death is overthrown.
• When we abide in that peace, our words gain weight, our service gains warmth, and our trials lose their sting.

Worship God the Way He Wants

• Christ does not abolish the holy things. He fulfills them and brings them to their fullness in Himself.
• The Church’s worship is His gift to us, a road He built so we can walk with Him. We do not invent our own map.
• To worship as the Church worships is to let Christ lead us out of the city of death into the Kingdom.

Practical Ways to Walk Out of Nain

1. Come to the Chalice with longing. Prepare by prayer, fasting as appointed, and confession when needed. Expect to meet the Living One.
2. Guard your peace. Begin and end the day with the Jesus Prayer. In conflict, breathe, bow your heart, and ask Christ for mercy before you speak.
3. Serve someone hidden. Visit, call, or bring a meal to someone who cannot repay you. Life multiplies where love becomes concrete.
4. Read the Gospel daily. Let Christ’s voice be the first and last word in your day. A few verses with attention bring much light.
5. Keep the feast, keep the fast. Live by the calendar of the Church so your time belongs to God, not to anxiety.

When the Funeral Stops

• Every sin begins a little funeral inside us. Christ interrupts it when we turn to Him.
• Confession is the moment the procession stops and His hand rests on the coffin. The burden lifts, and we breathe again.
• The goal is not survival. The goal is life abundant in the Kingdom that begins now.

Invitation

If you feel close to the gates of Nain, take heart. The Lord is already walking toward you. He touches what you cannot carry. He speaks, and you rise. Come and see. Come and live.

• Join us at St. Mary Magdalene Orthodox Church. Come hear the Gospel, enter the holy worship, and receive the Bread of life.
• Bring your questions, your griefs, your hopes. Christ is here, and He gives back what death has taken.