[Jesus] said to his mother, “Dear woman, here is your son,” and to the disciple [John], “Here is your mother!” John 19:26-27 (NIV)
As Mary stood at the foot of the cross, her heart must have been crying out, “My son, my son, my son…” And Jesus was saying, “You must no longer think of me as your son.”
When Jesus said, “Woman, behold, your son,” he was saying, “From now on, John is to take that place in your life—regard him as your son.” How is she to regard Jesus? He is her Savior and her Lord.
When the angel told Mary about the son she would bear, she said, “My spirit rejoices in God my Savior” (Luke 1:47). She had always looked to God as her Savior, but how would He save her?
Jesus went to the cross and laid down the life that he’d drawn from Mary. His body was broken, his blood poured out. Mary’s son died, and in his death he became her Savior.
Mary lost the love of a son who was taken from her in death; she gained the love of a Savior whose death could never be taken away. She lost the joys of a son who had brought her happiness on earth; she gained the joys of a Savior at whose right hand there are pleasures forevermore in heaven.
Mary gave him life in the flesh for a time. He gave her life in the Spirit for eternity. At the cross, Mary lost an irreplaceable son and she gained an incomparable Savior. Her gain was far greater than her loss.
React to the statement: “At the cross, Mary lost an irreplaceable son and she gained an incomparable Savior.”