“…Behold your son!” John 19:26&27
Amid great suffering, Jesus cared for others. By His words to Mary, His mother, and John,” Woman, behold your son,” and to John, “Behold your mother,” we see that Jesus’ priority, at all times, was to regard the experience of an “other” over His own.
Just as Paul recognized in Philippians chapter 2, Jesus regarded the care of others as more highly than what He was going through at the time. Jesus never stopped connecting on a human level with those God had placed in His life.
Consider the fullness of this picture. Over three years of ministry, Jesus, a young man in his 30s, developed close relationships with 12 men who lived with Him and studied His life and teachings. A public icon of His day, crowds of people followed, watched, and listened to what He had to say. While many people were drawn to Jesus and loved Him, respected religious leaders were jealous of His following and hated Him. And this controversy brought Jesus to the place of hanging on a cross to die.
Accustomed to being surrounded by His followers and sharing intimately with people from all walks of life, Jesus was suddenly alone. From some, He experienced genuine love; from others, intrigue, infatuation, and jealousy. Some heralded His innate powers, others a contrived potential that expected something other than God’s plan. Now, while Jesus suffered the physical pain of crucifixion, He also experienced the emotional pain of disrespect, vulnerability, betrayal, and rejection. Knowing and understanding what He was called to do, Jesus felt utterly alone. Yet, in the face of this, Jesus turned. Seeing Mary and John, two people He knew and loved, He said: “Behold, your son, …..your mother!” And from that time on, John took her into his home and cared for her.
Could you? Would you… recognize and address someone else’s need and disregard the personal suffering of such magnitude?
In his letter to the church in Philippi, Paul encourages us to follow Jesus’ example in our relationships by prioritizing others’ experiences. Such compassion for others is outside our capability if we have focused on anything other than Christ Himself. Only by God working through our life and experience does God, by His Spirit, enable us to act in such a way. And this is the power of Jesus’ love bestowed on us at the cross!
John 19:1-27, Philippians 2:1-11
Pictured: Some things that make amaZioni services unique are the harmony of a cappella voices, metered by mouth percussion, which is strongly characteristic of amaZioni worship. Christians dance as a community to celebrate the joy of the Lord and the joy they experience in community with one another.