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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.
John 19:25-27 (ESV)
In John 19 there is huge economy in the way the writer tells the story of the most significant event in human history. The supreme moment in Jesus’ life is conveyed so succinctly that we might be tempted to think that it is rather unimportant. John offers just seven brief cameos of the cross, the notice above Jesus’ head, the gambling for His clothes, the concern for His mother, the offer of a drink, a statement about His completed work and His death. Of those seven, two are unique to John, and one is the exchange between Jesus, His mother and the beloved disciple.
Why did John include this little episode?
It shows Jesus fulfilled all human obligations before He died. He honoured His mother.
It shows that John the author of this Gospel was present at the cross
It balances the story at the beginning of John 2, the only other account in John in which Mary features. In John 2 He turned water for the purification of water under the old covenant into the wine of the new, and in John 19 His blood is shed for the sins of the whole world.
Notice in summary six contrasts that this short incident shows about Jesus:
1. His concern for the world and individuals
2. The brutality of the cross and the gentleness of His concern
3. The selfishness of the soldiers and the unselfishness of Jesus
4. The concern of a mother for her son and of a son for His mother
5. The human family and the extended Christian family
6. The central figure and those on the periphery
I find myself drawn to Jesus through this incident. His unselfish compassion and very human concern warms my heart and I am glad John recorded it. Even as He gives up His life, He is imparting it to others. Out of His intense suffering shines the priority of human relationships, our obligations to oner another and the significance of the new family of Jesus. He said, whoever does the will of My Father in heaven is my brother, my sister and my mother. Matthew 12.50.
Right Revd Julian Henderson
President
Church of England Evangelical Council (CEEC)
