EVENING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 10/3/2026
8:40 PM
My
Worship Time Focus:
“His
Perspective”
Bible
Reading & Meditation Reference:
Luke
8:51-53
Message of the verses: “When
He came to the house, He did not allow anyone to enter with Him, except Peter
and John and James, and the girl’s father and mother. Now they were all weeping and lamenting for
her; but He said, “Stop weeping, for she has not died, but is asleep.” And they began laughing at Him, knowing that
she had died.”
Now this part of the story has taken a while to get to
and the reason we know that is because it was long enough to have gotten the
professional mourners to come to their house.
So Jesus finally came to Jairus’s house. Since the Jews did not embalm, the
mourners would have been put on notice that the girl was dying, and I suppose
because of his position this did not really take all that long for them to get
there. So by the time the Lord arrived,
the funeral was in full swing. Now in
contrast to modern Jewish funeral was a scene of barely-controlled chaos. The mourners, both the friends and family of
the loved ones as well as the traditional hired female mourners, would be
loudly screaming, wailing, and tearing their clothes. Others would be playing dissonant music on
high -pitched flues. Now the end result was a cacophony of confusion, and just
recently having to go through the funeral of my wife I can say that it was not
at all hectic, but God honoring. Since
Jairus was a well-respected leader in the community, the funeral for his
daughter would have been even larger and louder than most. We can compare this funeral with the one we
recently looked at when Jesus also raised someone from the dead and in that
case it was a young man.
Now having arrived at the house,
Jesus did not allow anyone to enter with Him, except Peter and John and
James MacArthur then writes (“here singled out from the rest of the
disciples for the first time as they would often be in the future), and the
girl’s father and mother. The resto
of the disciples and the crowd remained outside. Once inside the Lord witnessed ‘a commotion’
(Mark 5:38), with ‘the flute-players and the crowd in noisy disorder (Matt.
9:23) all weeping and lamenting for the dead girl.”
(Mark 5:38)
“38 They came to the house of the ruler of the
synagogue, and Jesus saw a commotion, people weeping and wailing loudly.”
(Matt. 9:23)
“23 And when Jesus came to the ruler’s house and
saw the flute players and the crowd making a commotion,”
“He
abruptly ended the funeral by commanding the hired mourners to “stop
weeping, for she has not died, but is asleep.’ Astonished, they began
laughing at Him, knowing that she had died.
But the Lord put the mocking mourners out (Mark 5:40).”
(Mark 5:40)
“40 And they laughed at him. But he put them all
outside and took the child’s father and mother and those who were with him and
went in where the child was.”
“Jesus’ declaration that the girl
had not died, but was sleeping brought a revolutionary new
perspective to death. By likening it to
sleep, He redefined death as temporary; thus sleep is used in Scripture as a
metaphor for the body in death. (John
11:11-14; Acts 13:36; 1 Cor. 11:30; 15:6, 18, 20, 51; 1 Thess 4:14-15; 5:10; 2
Peter 3:4).”
(John 11:11-14; Acts 13:36; 1 Cor.
11:30; 15:6, 18, 20, 51; 1 Thess 4:14-15; 5:10; 2 Peter 3:4).”
“11 After saying these things, he said to them,
“Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awaken him.” 12 The disciples said to him, “Lord, if he has
fallen asleep, he will recover.” 13 Now
Jesus had spoken of his death, but they thought that he meant taking rest in
sleep. 14 Then Jesus told them plainly,
"Lazarus has died,”
“36 For David, after he had served the purpose of
God in his own generation, fell asleep and was laid with his fathers and saw
corruption,”
“30 That is why many of you are weak and ill, and
some have died.”
“6 Then he appeared to more than five hundred
brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen
asleep.”
“18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ
have perished.”
“20 ¶ But in fact Christ has been raised from the
dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.”
“51 ¶ Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not
all sleep, but we shall all be changed,”
“14 For since we believe that Jesus died and rose
again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen
asleep. 15 For this we declare to you by
a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of
the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep.”
“10 who died for us so that whether we are awake
or asleep we might live with him.”
“4 They will say, “Where is the promise of his
coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as
they were from the beginning of creation.”
“But while
the body sleeps temporarily in death, the soul does not (cf. 16:19-31; 23:43; 2
Cor. 5:8; Phil. 1:23; Rev. 6:9-11).”
“19 ¶ "There was a rich man who was clothed in
purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. 20 And at his gate was laid a poor man named Lazarus,
covered with sores, 21 who desired to be
fed with what fell from the rich man’s table. Moreover, even the dogs came and
licked his sores. 22 The poor man died
and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was
buried, 23 and in Hades, being in
torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side.
24 And he called out, ‘Father Abraham,
have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and
cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.’ 25 But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that you
in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad
things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish. 26 And besides all this, between us and you a
great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you
may not be able, and none may cross from there to us.’ 27 And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, to send
him to my father’s house— 28 for I have
five brothers—so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of
torment.’ 29 But Abraham said, ‘They
have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’ 30 And he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if
someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ 31 He said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses
and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from
the dead.’"
“43 And he said to him, “Truly, I say to you,
today you will be with me in Paradise.”
“8 Yes, we are of good courage, and we would
rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord.”
“23 I am hard pressed between the two. My desire
is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better.”
“9 ¶ When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under
the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the
witness they had borne. 10 They cried
out with a loud voice, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you
will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” 11 Then they were each given a white robe and
told to rest a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and
their brothers should be complete, who were to be killed as they themselves had
been.”
I have to say that these are very
comforting verses for me since I wife just took that journey to heaven on the
29th of July this year.
10/3/2026
9:20 PM
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