The Seven Words of the Cross~Word #3

Word #3 – “Dear woman, here is your son,” and to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” John 19:26-27

Now Jesus attention turns to his precious mother. She is indeed a unique female among all the women of Jewish history. God in his infinite wisdom reached down to this precious lady named Mary and chose her to be the earthly mother to the Messiah.

She had already experienced the virgin birth, which is one of the many miracles of the Christian faith. When her son Jesus was 12, she and her husband Joseph traced their steps a day later to the temple to find their boy Jesus questioning the teachers about the instruction of the scriptures. She was there at Cana of Galilee at Jesus’ first miracle – turning water into wine. She spoke prematurely and Jesus had to correct her by saying, “My hour has not yet come.” And now here she is at the foot of the cross.

Thirty three and a half years had rushed by so quickly. The donkey ride to Bethlehem to pay taxes with all the discomforts of pregnancy seemed like a memory of long ago. The sights and sounds and smells of the beasts of the manger were much more pleasant at the moment than those who had cruelly punished and mocked him in recent hours.

It seems obvious there was a thought running through the mind of Jesus. The thought seems to be that of aloneness. Jesus realized that his mother would soon be without him which would be forever life-changing. She was going to be alone…this was painful for the Master. But he was about to suffer and he sensed “aloneness” as well. And this time His mother could not bear the load with Him…He would have to bear it alone.

He glanced over to see his good friend John and realized that in 3 ½ years they had forged a friendship that would be severed by Christ’s death. Jesus also realized that all of us would sometime in life sense aloneness and be in dire need of company. God has indeed promised to never leave us alone. It is in this context that He issues to us these words:

“Dear woman, here is you son,” and to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” John 19:26-27

Word #3 from the Cross
by Dave Childers

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