Hope for the Broken

Week 1: Hope for the Broken

Scripture: Luke 2:11-17 // Romans 8:26-28

Luke 7:11–13 “Soon afterwards He went to a city called Nain; and His disciples were going along with Him, accompanied by a large crowd. Now as He approached the gate of the city, a dead man was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow; and a sizeable crowd from the city was with her. When the Lord saw her, He felt compassion for her, and said to her, “Do not weep.””

Romans 8:26–28 “In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words; and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”

Introduction

Good morning, church.

Over the next several weeks, we will prepare our hearts to fully embrace the miraculous resurrection of Jesus Christ. But this series is not only about remembering what happened on Easter morning, but it’s also about understanding what that moment set in motion. The resurrection of Jesus was not simply a powerful event in history; it was a turning point for all of creation. What took place nearly 2,000 years ago continues to shape our lives today...The empty tomb declared that sin does not have the final word, death is not the end, and hope is alive and well.

STORY: There are moments in life that feel small when they’re happening, but we only realize later how much they changed everything. Think about a single conversation that altered the direction of your life. One phone call. One doctor’s appointment. One knock on the door. In the moment, it may have lasted only a few minutes, but the ripple effects continued for years. Careers change. Relationships shift. Entire futures are rewritten, not because of a long process, but because of one defining interruption. Some of you can point to a moment like that. The moment you heard, “I’m sorry, but…” The moment you heard, “We need to talk.” The moment you heard, “There’s nothing more we can do.” Those moments didn’t stay contained to that day; in fact, they reshaped everything that followed. But here’s what’s also true: not all defining moments bring loss. Some moments bring life. For some of us, it was the moment someone believed in us when we were ready to quit. The moment grace was extended instead of judgment. The moment God showed up in a way we never expected. At the time, it felt brief, almost ordinary, but looking back, we realize it was holy. It was a turning point.

Luke chapter 7 introduces us to a moment in Jesus’ ministry that is powerful. Jesus is traveling from town to town, teaching, healing, and serving the least and the lost. As He approaches the small town of Nain, He encounters a scene that stops Him in His tracks.

–Luke 7:11-13

As Jesus approaches the town gate, Luke tells us He meets a funeral procession. A mother is burying her only son. Luke is intentional with his words. This woman is a widow, which means she has already buried her husband. In the ancient world, this wasn’t just emotional loss; it was economic disaster. No husband. No son. No provider. No protection. Her grief is layered with fear about her future. She isn’t just mourning who she has lost; she’s mourning the life she will never have. And notice where this happens. It’s at the gate of the city, the place where people from all walks of life flow in and out. One crowd is entering with Jesus, full of anticipation and hope. Another crowd is leaving, carrying death and despair.

I. Jesus Meets Us In Our Brokenness

STORY: A few years ago, my wife walked through one of the hardest seasons of her life when her dad passed away after battling cancer. It was the kind of loss that rearranges everything. You can prepare yourself for the reality of death, but nothing truly prepares you for the quiet afterward, the empty chair, the unanswered phone calls, the moments when grief hits without warning. What surprised her most during that season wasn’t that the pain was intense; it was, but that in the middle of that pain, she sensed the closeness of God in a way she never had before. God didn’t erase her hurt. He didn’t reverse the diagnosis. He didn’t bring her dad back. But he was present. In hospital rooms, in long drives home, in tear-filled prayers that didn’t have the right words. She often said it felt like God was sitting with her in the grief, not rushing her through it. And that nearness didn’t remove the sorrow, but it reminded her she wasn’t alone. (Pastor - you might share your own story here like this one.)

Sometimes resurrection hope doesn’t look like immediate healing; it looks like the steady, faithful presence of Jesus meeting us right where we are broken. Jesus doesn’t start with power; He starts with presence. He doesn’t rush past the pain to get to the resurrection. He stops. He sees. He feels.

Some of you need to hear that today. Because you’ve been telling yourself that God must be distant since nothing has changed yet. You’ve assumed that because the grief still hurts, because the prayer hasn’t been answered. After all, the situation hasn’t been reversed, that God must be silent or absent. But this passage tells us something different. God’s nearness is not measured by how fast He fixes things. His compassion is not proven only by outcomes. Sometimes His greatest ministry to us is simply that He draws near. After Jesus tells her not to cry, he intervenes.

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!" The dead man sat up and began to talk, and Jesus gave him back to his mother. 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." This news about Jesus spread throughout Judea and the surrounding country.

–Luke 7:14-17

Luke tells us that Jesus steps forward and touches the bier, which is the open coffin carrying the young man’s body. That detail matters because, according to Jewish law, touching a dead body made someone ceremonially unclean. Most people would have stepped back. Jesus steps closer. He places His hand on what everyone else avoids. And then He speaks four simple words that change everything: “Young man, I say to you, get up.” Immediately, the dead man sits up and begins to talk. And I love this next line, “Jesus gave him back to his mother.” That’s resurrection, yes, but it’s also restoration. Jesus doesn’t just raise the son; He restores a family, a future, and a hope that had been buried.

II. Jesus Speaks Life Into What We Think Is Final

Everyone in that procession believed this story was over. Death had the final word. The crowd wasn’t praying for a miracle; they were attending a funeral. But Jesus interrupts what they assumed was permanent. And that’s what resurrection hope does, it challenges our definition of “final” and can put back the pieces to what is broken in our lives. Some of you have been standing at the grave of something in your life for a long time. A marriage. A calling. A dream. A relationship. And you’ve accepted that this is just how it is now. But Jesus has a way of stepping into situations we’ve already written off and speaking life where we assumed only death remained.

STORY: In Japan, there’s an art called Kintsugi, where broken pottery isn’t thrown away but repaired with gold. Instead of hiding the cracks, the gold highlights them, turning the damage into beauty. What was once shattered becomes more valuable and more striking because the repair itself tells a story of restoration and beauty.

That’s exactly what Jesus does in our lives. The places we think are beyond repair, failed dreams, broken relationships, grief, shame, He doesn’t discard them. He steps in, fills the cracks with His life, and transforms what’s broken into something beautiful. Resurrection hope isn’t just about returning to what was; it’s about God creating something better than we could have imagined from the pieces we thought were lost.

The result of Jesus’ resurrection work in this story is that people all around the countryside begin to see that God has come to help His people. When we allow Jesus to do work in our lives, we can be a message of hope to others that God is our source of help and hope. Even when life feels over, God is just getting started.

The apostle Paul experienced the life-giving power of God’s work in his own life. That is the reason he writes this account to the early church in Rome.

In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God's people in accordance with the will of God. And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

–Romans 8:26-28

Paul writes in Romans 8 that even when we don’t know what to pray, the Spirit intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. God is never passive in our brokenness. Even when life feels chaotic, confusing, or unfair, God is at work behind the scenes, weaving together a story of hope, restoration, and purpose. Sometimes we see only the fragments of our lives—the broken pieces, the unanswered prayers, the closed doors—and we wonder how they could ever come together. But Paul assures us that God can take even the hardest, most painful moments and use them for good. That doesn’t mean He will always remove the difficulty right away, but it does mean He will transform it, redeem it, and bring beauty out of it.

III. God Is Always Working

The resurrection doesn’t only remind us of what Jesus did on that first Easter morning, it reminds us that the same power that raised Christ from the dead is actively working in our lives today. God is always weaving, repairing, and restoring, even in ways we can’t yet see. Sometimes it feels like nothing is happening, but His timing is perfect, and His purposes are good.

STORY: God’s work is kind of like putting together a puzzle. We only see the pieces. Incomplete. Limited. Only a portion of the whole. God, however, sees the whole picture. Our job is to trust that as God takes the pieces and puts them together, He will tell a beautiful story in us and through us.

God’s work is often invisible at first; it takes time to unfold. Having a resurrection hope means trusting that even when we don’t see the full picture, He is moving. So, church, as we travel through the season of Lent, back to the cross, remember that resurrection hope is not reserved for Easter morning; it is alive today. Jesus meets us in our brokenness, speaks life where we thought there was only death, and God is never, ever not working. The hope of the resurrection begins now, in our grief, in our fear, in our unanswered prayers, and in the middle of our brokenness. This week, notice where God is already at work in your life—even in the small, quiet, unseen moments. Write them down. Thank Him for them. And trust that He is not finished; the story isn’t over.

PRAY

Discussion Questions:

Provide these questions to your Sunday School classes or small groups, or send them home with families to discuss during the week. They are also a great way to engage with your online audience before, during, or after each service.

In Luke 7, why do you think Jesus stopped for the widow at Nain even though she didn’t ask for help? How does this shape your understanding of God’s compassion?

What are some “funerals” in your life, dreams, relationships, or hopes, that you feel are over? How does knowing that Jesus can speak life into them change your perspective?

How does the story of Kintsugi help you visualize God’s work in your own brokenness? Can you think of areas in your life that He is turning into something beautiful?

Romans 8:26-28 reminds us that God is working even when we don’t understand. How can we practice trusting Him when we can’t see the full picture?

How can your experience of resurrection hope in your own life serve as a message of hope to others around you?