Message
John 19:17-27
No Special Privileges
There is something special about being the oldest son.
- You have a sense of responsibility.
- You have a special bond … you just feel you are favoured.
That is how it works doesn’t it. And it was exactly the same for Jesus.
Read John 19:16b-27
This is quite a telling situation … because of who is here and who is not.
Jesus Mother is here.
Where is Jesus earthly father Joseph? By this time he has passed away. Otherwise Jesus wouldn’t need to get John to help. So here is Mary, as a widow, watching her Son die.
How black, bleak, and burdened her soul must feel seeing her sinless Son dangle in-between Heaven and Earth.
As He draws His last breaths, He does so being made a public spectacle in the presence of all. Leaders and Crowds. Romans and Locals. Gentile and Jews. Even Angels and demons. With few friends and many enemies all watch in amazement as He perishes under the curse of sin. And there stands a mother in the audience being robbed of her first begotten Son.
Jesus’ Mother’s sister was there.
We can’t be sure what her name was although if we compare John gospel with Mark’s Gospel there is a possibility that her name is Salome. If it is Salome then she is also the mother of the Apostles James and John. Which would make John and Jesus cousins.
Mary, the wife of Clopas was there.
All we know is her name, who she was married to and that her sons were James the younger and Joses (Mark 15:41).
Mary Magdalene was there.
This was the woman who was demon possessed and Jesus cast seven demons out of her (Mark 16:9). She travelled with Jesus and shared her material resources with His band of followers. After Jesus died, she was present when Joseph of Aramithea laid Jesus in the grave and on Easter Sunday she was the first one at the empty tomb.
Who else is there?
Only John. Where are all the others?
They all ran. They all hid.
For a while Peter did come back, but after his denial of Jesus, he hasn’t been seen.
The only one who turns up is John – the youngest of the group.
Even those who were closest to him – who had journeyed the whole three years – not even they would wait and see what happens. Indeed they were not even the ones to bury Him.
Only John stays.
That is the scene we have before us as we read these few verses. When you look at a passage of Scripture like this it's relatively easy to work out what is happening.
A group of people have gathered around the cross. Some are family. Some are friends. One is a disciple. All have been united by grief.
And in that moment Jesus looks down to this crowd He has concern for His mother. So, at this moment Jesus organises a replacement son … John is going to take over from where Jesus left off.
That aspect of it is easy to enough to understand. But this whole situation raises some really good questions.
Why does Jesus use this specific moment to make these arrangements?
Everyone around the cross thinks that Jesus is finished.
But we know He is not finished. He is going to rise again.
Indeed after His resurrection and before He goes to heaven Jesus will still have be around for another 40 days. So why not sort the issue out then?
Or why didn’t he sort it out earlier. He has told His disciples a number of times that He is going to die … so why not sort it out before?
Why this moment? Here on the cross?
There is a reason why these private organisation details are made so public.
Let’s think about it from the perspective of Mary.
It was the same Mary who was spoken to by Simeon when Jesus was only 8 days old.
This is part of what he said.
This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too
Luke 2:34-35
Now here she is at the cross. She has seen so much and she has given so much. One of the things she would have given to Jesus was His clothes.
When their sons left home it was traditional for Jewish mothers at the time to provide their sons with an under-garment.
A little over three years prior to this event Mary would have spent time lovingly making the travelling clothes of Jesus … including his undergarment.
What do we know about this undergarment?
When the soldiers crucified Jesus, they took his clothes, dividing them into four shares, one for each of them, with the undergarment remaining. This garment was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom. "Let's not tear it," they said to one another. "Let's decide by lot who will get it." This happened that the scripture might be fulfilled which said, "They divided my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing." So this is what the soldiers did.
John 19:23-24
Mary is at the cross where Jesus is being crucified. This was without question her most difficult moment as the mother of Jesus. Then she has to watch as her son is shamefully stripped of all He has. And then the soldiers are using His clothes as a prize in a game of dice. It was a normal part of the crucifixion event … but it was these very clothes that Mary had given to Jesus. Her last reminder of Him is gone.
It is no coincidence that Jesus uses this moment … the moment his clothes are taken … to sort out the ongoing care of His mother.
They are killing my son!
They are gambling over His clothes.
Then Jesus speaks.
Notice He doesn’t say “mother”. He says “Dear Woman”.
Dear Woman,
You were the one who gave birth to me. We have a shared DNA.
You raised and fed and clothed me. You were there when I learnt to walk, and talk and eat.
You watched me as I went off to school on my first day.
You took me to the synagogue and on annual pilgrimages to the temple.
You loved me as a mother only can love her son.
Your heart is crushed and your spirit is broken. A sword has pierced your heart.
But you can’t see me as your Son any longer.
I have to be so much more. I have to be your Saviour and your redeemer.
Our relationship has to be different. Dear woman …
By replacing Himself with John Jesus is basically saying to Mary and to us, “Don’t look at as a Son. Look to Me as your Lord”.
Mary doesn’t have any special privileges just because she gave birth to Jesus. She needs to have the same faith in Jesus that everyone else has, or else she cannot be part of the family of God.
Look to Me as Lord.
As your Lord I can help you beyond the grief.
As your Lord I can show you where this is all going to lead.
As your Lord I can turn your grief for a Son, into adoration for a Saviour.
When we see these events in this light we see just how important faith really is. Not even Mary has enough good works in her to enable her to be eternally safe.
In the eyes of Jesus Mary is just the same as everybody else.
She too will need to bow before Him in faith.
If that is the case for Mary, then how much more is it the case for us?
The only way we will have any hope of successfully making it through this life … and all the grief and difficulties of life … is to put our hope in Jesus who is Lord.
Lord of creation.
Lord of salvation.
Lord of the new heaven and earth.
Our Lord who calls us to trust.
Jesus uses this moment because Jesus wants us to see these important truths.
But there is more. You see you have to ask another significant question
Why does Jesus need to bother at all – why does Jesus need to sort out where His mother lives?
To see why I ask this question let’s put a few verses together. In Matthew 13 we read about people who were taking offence to the ministry of Jesus. In verse 55 they are saying:-
Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t His mother’s name Mary, and aren’t His brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas? Aren’t all His sisters with us?
There it is clearly in Scripture. Jesus had brothers and sisters. Obviously, from a verse like this, it is clear that there are plenty of people in the family of Jesus who will be able to look after Mary. Why organise a disciple to take His place? Why not leave it to family?
I think the answer lies in John 7:1-5
After this, Jesus went around in Galilee, purposely staying away from Judea because the Jews there were waiting to take his life. But when the Jewish Feast of Tabernacles was near, Jesus' brothers said to him, "You ought to leave here and go to Judea, so that your disciples may see the miracles you do. No one who wants to become a public figure acts in secret. Since you are doing these things, show yourself to the world." For even his own brothers did not believe in him.
This partly explains why none of the other family as at the crucifixion. They are not there because they do not have a real connection. Even Jesus suffered with an unbelieving family.
So, with no other family nearby, Jesus turns to John.
This is now going to be your mother.
Now we have to be very careful at this point to push the passage too far.
Because the perception could come across that living with John is better than living with the non-believing family of Jesus.
But that can’t be the point because no-one knows what is going to happen.
You see
… All those who are standing in front of the cross
… And the disciples who have run off
… And the soldiers who are putting Jesus to death
… And the Pharisees who think Jesus is gone
… And the city which has given up and gone home
All of them have forgotten some significant words of Jesus. Let me read Mark 8:31 for you:-
Jesus began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and teachers of the law, and that He must be killed and after three days rise again.
Mark 8:31
From very early on in His ministry Jesus made it clear that His death was not going to be the end. The words to Mary and John were reinforcing the need for belief. Belief in the One who said He was going to rise and have victory.
When Jesus connects His mother to John it isn’t primarily about the oldest son making sure that His elderly mum is cared for.
The other family members are more than capable to do that. Especially because we know that a number of Jesus brothers do become believers. James is one. Jude is another.
Rather what we are being shown here is the importance of a spiritual connection.
By replacing Himself with John Jesus is demonstrating to us all just how significant the body of Christ … the church … really is.
John at the moment is the only one that represents the earthly founders of the church … that being the disciples.
Jesus has determined that Mary needs the support that can only be given by one who is in the household of faith.
So Jesus puts Mary into the hands of someone who represents the faith to demonstrate just how important it is to be a part of the family of God.
We should never underestimate the significance of being part of the church.
Not church as a building, or an institution.
But church as a group of people interacting with “one another”. Indeed there are many “one another passages” in Scripture which tell us exactly how the church should function.
Be devoted to one another ... (Rom 12:10)
Be kind and compassionate to one another … (Eph 4:32)
Live in harmony with one another … (Rom 12:16)
Accept one another just as Christ accepted you ... (Rom 15:7)
Serve one another in love ... (Gal 5:13)
Forgive one another ... (Col 3:13)
Spur one another toward love and good deeds ... (Heb 10:24)
Encourage one another ... (1 Thess 5:11)
All of these “One Another passages are spoken to the church and those who are members of the church. Jesus died and gave His own blood so that grieving mothers find sons and sons find mothers. In other words there should be no one who is uncared for when they are in the body of Christ.
It all comes back to what we said earlier.
Not even Mary has a special privilege.
And even Mary, the Mother of Jesus, needs the support of the people who are the church.
Let’s remember the importance of Christ in the middle of all the needs of our lives.
Let’s remember the importance of the Church as we travel the spiritual journey together.
For we need Christ.
And we need “one another”.
All of this is possible because Jesus looked and saw His mum and did what He does for all of us … He loved her and gave her a future.
Prayer
