“Now there stood by the cross of Jesus His mother” John 19:25.  Like her Son, Mary was not unacquainted with grief.

At the beginning we are told, “And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favored, the Lord is with thee:  blessed art thou among women.  And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be”  Luke 1:28,29.

This announcement was a short indication of many troubles to come.  Gabriel had come to announce to her the fact of the miraculous conception.  Mary was to become the mother of our Lord.  It brought with it a great honour, but it brought with it danger to Mary’s reputation and a great testing of her faith in God.

However, Mary response, “Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word” Luke 1:38.

Nevertheless she was “troubled”.

What disappointment when she learned that there was no room in the inn and her only choice was to lay her new born baby in the manger.  What anguish must have been hers when she learned of Herod’s purpose to destroy her infant’s life!  What trouble was given to her when she was forced to flee into a foreign country and live in the land of Egypt for several years.  What piercings of her soul must have been hers when she saw her Son despised and rejected by her own countrymen.  What grief must have been in her heart as she watched Him hated and persecuted by His own people.  Now who can even comprehend how she felt as she stood and watched him hanging on a cross?  If Christ was the Man of Sorrows, was she not the “woman of sorrows”?

Simeon’s Prophecy

As a child Jesus was brought to the Temple as required by the Mosaic Law.  Old Simeon took Him in his arms and said,

“Lord, now lettest Thy servant depart in peace, according to Thy word: for mine eyes have seen Thy salvation, which Thou has prepared before the face of all people; A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the Glory of Thy people Israel” Luke 2:29-32.

Than he turned to Mary and said,

“Behold, this child is set for the fall and rising again of many in Israel;
and for a sign which shall be spoken against;
(Yea, a sword shall pierce through thy own soul also)
that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed” Luke 2:34,35.

Strange words were these!

Mary who would have the greatest privilege would also have the greatest sorrow.  How truly and and how tragically did this come to pass.  Here at the Cross was this prophecy of Simeon fulfilled.

Here at the foot of the cross we see displayed a Mother’s heart.  She is the dying man’s mother.  The One who agonizes there on the Cross is her child.  She it was who first planted kisses on that brow now crowned with thorns.  She it was who guided those hands and feet in their first movements.

His disciples may have deserted Him.  His friends may have forsaken Him.  His nation may have despised Him.  But, His mother stood at the foot of the Cross.

There is no show of feminine weakness.  No wild outcry of uncontrollable anguish or fainting.  Not a word fell from her lips has been recorded by either of the four gospel writers.  She watched in silence as His brow was pierced with cruel thorns, and she could no longer smooth it with her tender touch.  She watched in silence as his pierced hands and feet grew numb.  She heard him ask for a drink but was not able to offer him any.

The crowd was mocking, the thief was taunting, the priests were jeering, the soldiers were callous and indifferent.  Her Son the Savior was bleeding and dying.  Here in the midst of it all she does not turn away.  She does not faint or even sink to the ground in her grief.  No, “she stands”!

Her action and courage show incredible fortitude.  She represses her grief, and stands there silent.  Was it not reverence for the Lord which kept her from disturbing His last moments?

Honoring His Mother

“When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple standing by whom He loved, He saith unto His mother, Woman, behold Thy Son!  Then saith He to the disciples, Behold thy mother!  And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home” 
John 19:26, 27.

On the Cross Christ set an example for each of us to follow in caring for our parents.

The fifth commandment of the Ten Commandments goes far beyond obedience to parents.  We are to show love, affection, gratitude, and respect for our parents.

The years of obedience to Mary and Joseph ended as Jesus became a man, but not the years of “honor”.  In the last awful hours of His human life, amid the infinite sufferings of the Cross, the Lord Jesus thought of her who loved Him and whom He loved.  He thought of her present necessity and provided for her future need by committing her to the care of that disciple who most deeply understood His love.

“His name shall be called Wonderful” Isaiah 9:6.  Wonderful he was in all that He did.  Wonderful He was in every relationship that He made.  Wonderful He was in life and wonderful he was in death.  Let us wonder and adore Him.

Have a GREAT day . . . someday it will be HISTORY!