HIS FINAL WORDS. The Seven Sayings of Jesus on the Cross. Message Three: Words of Affection John 19:25-27

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1 HIS FINAL WORDS The Seven Sayings of Jesus on the Cross Message Three: Words of Affection John 19:25-27 If you are just joining us, this is the third message in a series highlighting the final words of Christ from the cross. In the first message we considered His words of Acquittal when He prayed Father, forgive them for they know not what they do. Last week s message focused on His words of Acceptance as He promised salvation to the dying thief who repented of His sin and was told, Today, thou shalt be with me in paradise. As we continue to draw near the cross Where, as one writer said, all the rivers of prophecy run together in a sea of fulfillment, we re going to read of Christ s words of Affection. John 19:25-27 Four women and one man are all that were left standing close enough to the Lord to hear these tender words of affection. Let me stop here and say that this is sadly not unlike many churches of our day where the men who serve faithfully, and can be counted on day in and day out, are outnumbered by the women. I don t have a problem with women. My mom was a woman. I married a woman. My two daughtersin-law are women. I have no problem with women, and I appreciate all the good and godly women who serve the Lord so faithfully, but whatever happened to men who are willing to serve the Lord? I contend that real men love the Lord! Real men serve the Lord! Real men stand up and be counted! This small group of faithful followers who had gathered that day were no doubt stunned and silenced by all that had been enacted before their eyes, and no doubt they stood there brokenhearted, helpless, and listening. They were listening for any words that might fall from the guileless lips of the Lord Jesus. They had already heard Him ask for forgiveness for His crucifiers. They had already heard Him offer a place in heaven to a repentant thief. And now they were wondering what He might say next? Would He say something to them? About that time, Jesus lifted His head, and as He did, He saw His mother. Can you imagine what must have been going through Mary s mind as she stood there watching the blood run from the thorn-pierced brow she had once kissed so tenderly? Can you even fathom the horror that must have filled her heart as she saw the hands of her son nailed to a cross? Those were the same hands that had once grasped her fingers for balance as Jesus began to walk. Perhaps she could recall the first time the tiny, little feet of Jesus carried Him across the room by Himself. Now, here He was, some 30 years later, and those same feet have been unmercifully pierced through with a metal spike.

2 I wonder if Mary s mind went back to the time when the angel appeared to her with these words,... Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end. (Luke 1:28, 31-33) I wonder, as she stood there, near the cross, if Mary remembered the words of the prophet Simeon as he held the baby Jesus in his arms and said to her,... 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) Yea, a sword shall pierce through thy own soul also. I wonder if Mary, as she recalled those words, thought to herself, this is it. This is the sword the prophet spoke of that would pierce my soul. Only a mother can really understand the degree of sorrow Mary must have felt as she stood there watching the life slowly ebb from the battered, bruised, bleeding body of her Son. As we read, there were other ladies there that day. There was Mary s sister, Salome, the mother of James and John. There was Mary Magdalene. What a story she had. She had been delivered from seven demons. And then there was another woman named Mary, but other than her name and the fact that she was the wife of Cleophas, we know nothing about her. I m sure that Jesus saw Salome and the other two Mary s standing by the cross, but He chose not to address them, and chose rather to address Mary his mother and the man simply referred to as the disciple. In Christ s words to His mother, we see: I. A SON WHO RESPECTED HIS MOTHER The story is told of a father and son who were walking together one day when the dad asked his son what he wanted for his birthday. The son said I want a baby brother. It wasn t long and his mom gave birth, just in time to give him a brother for his birthday. A year later, the dad asked his son again what he wanted for his birthday. The son, now a year older and wiser, said, Well, what I really want is a pony, but I m afraid that would be a little hard on mom. Jesus was never one time hard on His mom. The truth is, He was the perfect child literally.

3 In Matthew 5:17 Jesus stated that He did not come to destroy the law but to fulfill it. And in speaking these words of affection, and seeing to it that His mother was cared for, I believe He fulfilled that part of the law found in Exodus 20:12. Exodus 20:12 What does it mean to honor your parents? Webster says it means to respect greatly or regard highly; treat with deference and courtesy. The Hebrew word that is used for honour in Exodus 20:12 means, in a negative sense, to make heavy. In other words, when you honor your parents, you won t be a burden to them. How a son or daughter treats his or her parents not only impacts the parents, but it impacts them as children also. According to this commandment there are grave consequences to be considered. There is a blessing or a curse based on one s treatment of his or her parents. To honor or fail to honor your parents is a choice that will take you down one of two roads. These roads will cause you to arrive at two distinctly different destinations. The journey may take you to a land of fulfillment or a land of frustration. The choice is yours. We hear a lot today about children s rights. According to God, parents had rights long before children did. Those individuals who brought you into this world, who nurtured you, who educated you, who cared for you, deserve to be honored and respected. But Pastor, you don t know my parents. Let me tell you something young people, you have the parents God wanted you to have. They may be strict (in your opinion), they may be unreasonable (in your opinion), they may be a lot of things (in your opinion), but God knew all about that. Now, let s turn the tables for just a moment, and let me remind you that your parents didn t have any say in who their children would be either. So it cuts both ways. Who your parents are or what your parents are has nothing to do with whether or not you are expected to honor them. God simply said, Honour thy father and thy mother... He didn t say honor them because they re great parents or even good parents. It s like going into a courtroom and addressing the judge as Your honor. That doesn t have a thing in the world to say about what kind of man or woman the judge may or may not be. We address him or her in that manner because of the position they hold. By the same token, you are to honor your parents, not based on their performance but based on their position. Because of their position, they deserve to be honored. How can you, as a child still living at home, honor and respect your parents? A. Live Righteously 1. Proverbs 23:24-25, The father of the righteous shall greatly rejoice: and he that begetteth a wise child shall have joy of him.

4 Thy father and thy mother shall be glad, and she that bare thee shall rejoice. 2. Proverbs 23:15-16, My son, if thine heart be wise, my heart shall rejoice, even mine. Yea, my reins shall rejoice, when thy lips speak right things. 3. This is a picture of proud parents. 4. The flip side of this is found in Proverbs 10:1,... a foolish son is the heaviness of his mother. 5. Proverbs 17:25, A foolish son is a grief to his father, and bitterness to her that bare him. B. Speak Respectfully 1. Proverbs 20:20, Whoso curseth his father or his mother, his lamp shall be put out in obscure darkness. 2. Proverbs 30:17, The eye that mocketh at his father, and despiseth to obey his mother, the ravens of the valley shall pick it out, and the young eagles shall eat it. 3. There s a pretty high price to pay for disrespecting, mocking, ridiculing, and making fun of your parents. C. Listen Attentively 1. Proverbs 23:22, Hearken unto thy father that begat thee Young people, learn to listen to your parents. They ve been where you re at but you ve not been where they re at. D. Obey Completely 1. Ephesians 6:1 2. This verse fits within the context of Ephesians 5:21 and submitting to one another. The idea is that of conforming to a command or authority. 3. Authority. Many children struggle with the concept of authority. 4. The family is the basic structure of human civilization. If you have a problem respecting the authority of your parents within the context of the home and family, you re going to have problems respecting the authority of others in your life as well. I m talking about teachers, coaches, employers, law enforcement personnel, and most importantly, God. 5. If a child will begin giving due honor and respect to his or her parents because it s right, not necessarily because they re right (parents do make mistakes), they will be surprised what it will do for them on the inside. It will cause them to begin feeling good about themselves, and before they know it, many of the negative attitudes they had before will be gone. 6. That kind of behavior will do some good things on the outside as well. For one thing, it will earn their parent s trust, which in turn, will gain them more freedom as mom and dad learn to have greater faith in their judgment. 7. And let me say this, this thing of honoring parents doesn t end when we leave home. Even as adults we are to honor and respect and care for our parents. We are to give them love, affirmation, encouragement, and maybe even food, shelter, and physical assistance should they be in need of it.

5 II. A SERVANT WHO RETURNED TO HIS MASTER Verse 26 mentions the disciple, whom He loved. Who was this disciple? We know from studying the Scriptures that it was John himself. The thing that I want us to consider about John is though he was greatly loved by the Lord, he could not always be found as close to the Lord as we see him in this scene at the cross. A. John s Retreat 1. Matthew 26:31-35 (Note that all the disciples chimed in with Peter.) 2. Matthew 26:56 (Note again, all the disciples forsook Him, and fled.) 3. John was among those who said they would never deny Jesus, but unfortunately, he did. But before we condemn him, let s examine our own lives. 4. How many times have we let the Lord down? How many times have we fallen when we should have stood? How many times have we ran when we should have stayed? How many times have we become cold and indifferent toward the things of the Lord and allowed our lives to fall into a backslidden state? 5. Let s learn from this that no one is exempt from backsliding. It doesn t make any difference how close you are to the Lord today, tomorrow could be a different story if you do not put forth the effort to maintain a strong and vibrant walk with God. 6. Some of you know what I m talking about because you ve been there and done that. Some of you are there right now. Your life is a living testimony of William Kirkpatrick s hymn, Lord, I m Coming Home. I ve wandered far away from God, Now I m coming home; The paths of sin too long I ve trod, Lord, I m coming home. I ve wasted many precious years, Now I m coming home; I now repent with bitter tears, Lord, I m coming home. I m tired of sin and straying, Lord, Now I m coming home; I ll trust Thy love, believe Thy word, Lord, I m coming home. My soul is sick, my heart is sore, Now I m coming home; My strength renew, my hope restore, Lord, I m coming home. Coming home, coming home, Nevermore to roam; Open wide Thine arms of love, Lord, I m coming home. 7. Here s the wonderful thing, the Lord is waiting for you to come home. He s been waiting for your soul to get sick and tired of sin and straying. He s been waiting for your heart to break and wanting to restore you to fellowship with Him again. All you have to do is return like John did. B. John s Return 1. No other disciple but John is standing close enough to the cross to be noticed. No other disciple but John has enough courage to take a stand for Jesus when it counted the most. 2. Just as we can learn from John s retreat, we can learn from his return.

6 3. No matter how far you ve gotten away, you can always return. AND, you can be used again. 4. Jesus receives backsliders. Jesus restores backsliders. Jesus reuses backsliders. CLOSING: As we come to the invitation, I want to ask you a couple of questions. 1. Are you showing your parents the respect they deserve? Are you honoring them, not based on their performance, but based on their position not because they necessarily do everything right but simply because it s the right thing to do? 2. Are you as close to the Lord as you ought to be? Are you as close to the Lord as you used to be?