Behold Your Son; Behold Your Mother!
Last Words of Jesus on the Cross • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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The First Word: Forgiveness - Mercy
The Second Word: Heaven - Grace
The Third Word: Family - Love
Let’s set the scene.
Read John 19:23-27
The Indifference of the Soldiers - vs 23 - 24
The Indifference of the Soldiers - vs 23 - 24
Gambled away
Plunder - Fringe Benefits
Fulfillment of Scripture: Pslm 22.18
For dogs have surrounded me; A band of evildoers has encompassed me; They pierced my hands and my feet. I can count all my bones. They look, they stare at me; They divide my garments among them, And for my clothing they cast lots.
Then there is a big huge contrasting statement inserted.
Therefore the soldiers did these things, BUT standing by the cross of Jesus were His Mother...
Mary’s Love For Her Son - Vs. 25
Mary’s Love For Her Son - Vs. 25
Mary’s Love For Her Son Is Seen By Being At The Cross.
She knew this day was coming.
Fulfillment of Simeon’s prophecy.
And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary His mother, “Behold, this Child is appointed for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and for a sign to be opposed— and a sword will pierce even your own soul—to the end that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.”
Knowing the truth and seeing Scripture fulfilled doesn’t make the agony of grief any less real.
Her sorrow was real and acute.
She can’t take the crown of thorns off His head.
She can’t put any salve on His wounds.
She can’t stop the soldiers from gambling away His garments.
Her inability to care for her child when He cries out, “I am thirsty.”
Mary is standing rather than in a puddle on the ground.
What courage she exhibits in the midst of the pain.
His disciples may desert Him, but she never would.
This love is not just sentimental, but a deep reverence for God Almighty.
And Mary said, “Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.
“For the Mighty One has done great things for me; And holy is His name.
But Mary treasured all these things, pondering them in her heart.
And He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and He continued in subjection to them; and His mother treasured all these things in her heart.
Jesus’ Love For His Mom vs. 26
Jesus’ Love For His Mom vs. 26
Showing Honor
Even performing His great work of redemption, He was performing His duty as a son.
“Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be prolonged in the land which the Lord your God gives you.
As the eldest son, he was responsible for the care of his aging mother.
Listen to your father who begot you, And do not despise your mother when she is old.
Where was Joseph?
Mary’s widowhood - although we don’t read about it in the Gospels, it is most certain that Joseph had died some time before the Lord began His public ministry.
By the wedding in Cana, we don’t see mention of Joseph, which could explain one reason she went to Jesus with the problem of running out of wine rather than going to Joseph about it.
Being Obedient
God’s command to care for widows.
“When you reap your harvest in your field and have forgotten a sheaf in the field, you shall not go back to get it; it shall be for the alien, for the orphan, and for the widow, in order that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hands.
Even more importantly providing for one’s own widowed parent.
but if any widow has children or grandchildren, they must first learn to practice piety in regard to their own family and to make some return to their parents; for this is acceptable in the sight of God.
The Family Of Jesus Vs. 25
The Family Of Jesus Vs. 25
The Care of the Family: Standing by the cross of Jesus
His mother Mary and his aunt.
Mary’s sister is named in Mark 15:40, Matt 27.56
There were also some women looking on from a distance, among whom were Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the Less and Joses, and Salome.
Among them was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of the sons of Zebedee.
The Mother of the Sons of Zebedee (Solome).
James and John.
John describes himself throughout the book as the disciple whom Jesus loved or the beloved disciple.
Of course this is the John that was present at the cross - Jesus’ cousin.
So, James and John were cousins.
Mary the wife of Clopas - one tradition has Clopas as the brother of Joseph.
If so, James the lesser was also a cousin through Joseph.
Also mean this is a family gathering plus one.
The plus one - Mary Magdalene - close family friend.
I believe this is important for 2 reasons.
Jesus distinguished between His natural and spiritual family.
And Mary Magdalene included here would seemingly place an emphasis on the spiritual family.
Then His mother and His brothers arrived, and standing outside they sent word to Him and called Him. A crowd was sitting around Him, and they said to Him, “Behold, Your mother and Your brothers are outside looking for You.” Answering them, He said, “Who are My mother and My brothers?” Looking about at those who were sitting around Him, He said, “Behold My mother and My brothers! “For whoever does the will of God, he is My brother and sister and mother.”
Behold Your Son! vs. 26
Behold Your Son! vs. 26
Technically, we have two words from Christ in this exchange.
To His Mother: “Behold, your son!”
It is possible that Jesus had a play on words going on here.
What did John the Baptist say?
The next day he saw Jesus coming to him and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!
Mom, look at me and let me be your Savior. Behold, your son!
Just because you’re my mom doesn’t mean you don’t need my salvation.
Fulfillment of Gen 3.15
And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”
Here, Jesus, the seed of the woman, Mary, is crushing the head of the serpent.
How?
What did Jesus say about Himself?
“As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; so that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life.
If you don’t know the context of this...
Israelites sin against God by complaining and not being grateful for His provision for them in the wilderness.
God punishes them by sending poisonous serpents to bite the people and many died.
Moses prays for the people and God tells him to make a bronze serpent and put it on a pole and if anyone looks upon the bronze serpent he will be healed.
Jesus then equates Himself to the serpent on the pole in foreshadowing of His dying on the cross.
The symbolism here is striking.
Satan in the form of a serpent brings sin and thus both physical and spiritual death into the world.
The serpent becomes a representation of sin.
And since the human race are slaves to sin due to Adam’s sin in the Garden, we have become slaves to Satan.
Thus the serpent becomes a representation of you and me.
The serpent, or sin must be hung on a pole, crucified, brought to death, in order to bring justice and thus forgiveness, healing, and life.
Jesus became the serpent for us.
He became sin for us.
Look on the Son of Man who has just taken on the representation of the serpent on the pole.
The serpent struck the seed of the woman by hanging Him on the cross without realizing that was the very thing that would crush his own head.
Behold Your Mother! Vs. 27
Behold Your Mother! Vs. 27
John had returned to the Savior’s side.
We have to remember that John fled and deserted Christ along with the others.
Although John was ashamed in the Garden of Gethsemane we see him at the cross of shame. Trading His shame for His glory.
“Fear not, for you will not be put to shame; And do not feel humiliated, for you will not be disgraced; But you will forget the shame of your youth, And the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more.
Metaphorically, we are widowed.
We are without a husband, and then Jesus comes and picks us up and calls us His own.
“For your husband is your Maker, Whose name is the Lord of hosts; And your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel, Who is called the God of all the earth.
Have you wandered from the side of the Savior?
Perhaps, like John, in an hour of trial you denied Him.
Perhaps, like John, in a time of testing you failed.
Take note - Jesus did not rebuke John upon returning.
You can come back and find your shame forgiven and removed.
Behold Your Mother
Jesus did not entrust the care of His mother to His own brothers. It sounds like they didn’t believe until after His resurrection.
For not even His brothers were believing in Him.
And sticking to the point mentioned earlier, Jesus was demonstrating the importance of the spiritual family over the physical family.
He could have said to John, ask my brother James to take care of mom.
He tells John, let her be to you as your own mother.
Even as John’s mother was standing right there.
From that hour on John took Mary into his own household.
Tradition says that John cared for Mary until her death.
The Awesome Blending Of Christ’s Perfections.
The Awesome Blending Of Christ’s Perfections.
Engaged in a divine transaction making atonement for the sins of all his people, grappling with the powers of darkness, and yet amidst it all, he still has the same human tenderness, which shows the perfection of the man Jesus Christ.
Even though He Himself was in tremendous physical agony, He was mindful of the pain she was experiencing and made provision for her by entrusting her to the care of John, the beloved disciple.
Even while suffering on the cross, Jesus had some unfinished business he needed to take care of. He wasn’t going to shirk his responsibility, but even to the end was faithful to be responsible and obedient.
The Third Word Of Christ On The Cross: Family
The Third Word Of Christ On The Cross: Family
Jesus did not come to build a physical family, but a spiritual one.
He came to prove His love for that family by becoming the serpent on the pole so that if the potential spiritual family member looked upon Him, they would receive forgiveness and eternal life.
Behold The Son! Look upon the Savior and be saved!
Closing Song: The Wonderful Cross
