My Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ Jesus our Lord,
On this Monday, I want ask that you do some reflecting with me upon one of the most riveting scenes from the life of Jesus. We discover this extraordinary episode in the Gospel of John.
John tells us that just after Jesus was crucified, there was something that our Savior declared in regard to His mother Mary. In John 19:25-27 we read:
but standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold, your son!” Then he said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother!” And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home.
As He was about to die, Jesus made specific arrangements for the continued care of Mary. And the passage tells us that He lovingly committed her to the watch-care of the Apostle John. With the words, “ Behold, your mother!” our Lord made it apparent that He wanted John to take official, or legal, responsibility for the protection and provision of Mary from that day forward.
That John clearly understood the serious implications of the Lord’s words is clear from his actions that followed immediately. From that moment on, Mary lived with John, and the Apostle obediently treated her as if she was his very own mother.
I bring this episode to our attention today because I think it has a couple of very encouraging things to tell us that are especially relevant in light of our current crisis. Let me begin with the most apparent of the two.
First, how could anyone not be deeply moved by this scene of such tender affection and love on the part of the Lord? Here is a son’s love for his mother on display during the last few moments of the Savior’s earthly life. The magnitude and world-embracing scope of His mission to redeem fallen humanity did not eclipse, even in the slightest, His love for Mary as His mother. While He was the Incarnate Savior of the world–the divine Son of God–He remained the son of a peasant woman.
If there were any doubts as to the genuine humanity of our Lord, this one transaction erases them all! He suffered in His humanity. He felt every pain and terror, fully. And at that moment, just a matter of minutes before He breathed His last, He did what a loving son must do in such a situation. He discharged one final responsibility, that of removing from His mother any fears she might have concerning her future following His death.
Then secondly, what makes this scene even more connected to us at this present moment is something that Jesus had declared earlier. It is recorded for us in the Gospel of Matthew. In chapter 12 we find Jesus teaching a group of people. Note Verses 46-50 and what soon transpired:
While he was still speaking to the people, behold, his mother and his brothers stood outside, asking to speak to him. But he replied to the man who told him, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?” And stretching out his hand toward his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.”
Here, our Lord teaches (by way of His rhetorical question in v. 48) that by means of His grace and love, which would soon be on public display at the cross, He has created a new spiritual family! Those who trust in Him for salvation, and then by that same faith walk the pathway that He has established–the way that is consistent with the will of the Father–are His true family!
Of course, we know that Jesus had other biological brothers, and even sisters (see Mark 6:3; Matthew 13:55-56). And we also know that at least two of His brothers did not believe in Him until after the resurrection (James and Jude). It also seems quite apparent that by this time Joseph, our Lord’s earthly father, had died since he is not mentioned at all.
But the greater point of this passage is that those who do believe in Christ as the Lord and Savior, and, subsequently, follow Him obediently, are members of His real family, His “ mother” and “ brothers”!
So, by putting all of this together we can find our encouragement for today, and it may be expressed in a question:
What did Jesus do for His family, and especially for His mother, at a time of great crisis, the greatest crisis of all?
The answer: He made sure that His dear mother, who was there to witness the horrible death of her son, would be cared for.
From the cross He looked down with compassion upon the one who gave Him life, carried Him in her womb, and faithfully raised Him. And then, moved by that love, He ensured her welfare and safety. What compassion! What love!
And now, in the midst of our crisis, that very same Son–the son of Mary–has deemed us to be His brothers, sisters, and mothers in a way that far transcends any biological connections!
We are His family! We are the ones He desperately loves! And He loves us not from the cross where He once hung in utter weakness and shame, but from His throne where He reigns as the exalted, all-glorious Sovereign Lord of the universe!
Now, even today, Jesus looks down upon us with eternal, incomprehensible, and unconquerable love! And He has guaranteed our welfare! Nothing shall ever be able to separate us from the love that is in Christ Jesus! No one will ever snatch us out of His mighty hands! If our Brother Jesus is for us, then who, or what, could ever be against us!
May the very Spirit of the One who loves us so richly fill your hearts today with His joy and peace!
I love you all so dearly, and my heart misses you greatly.
Mike