The Heart of Christ (Good Friday 2023)
This sermon was preached on April 7, 2023, as part of the Seven Last Words of Christ on the Cross service at Second Baptist Church in Pedricktown, NJ.
I want to first preface my remarks here today by saying how exciting it is to be back in this service. I have missed this. The Good Friday community service has become one of my favorite services of the year, not just to preach at, but to attend - to receive the word of Christ who died for our sins as he hung on the cross. Since 2014 I have managed to preach on all seven of the words, even in 2020 when we began the Covid lockdown, preaching to an empty sanctuary in Auburn. Why? Because this service has power. There is power in the cross of Christ.
Second, I also want to preface my remarks by saying that I was given ten to fifteen minutes to speak on this. So for those of you who regularly attend my services, you know that you are about to witness a miracle.
The Third Word of Christ on the cross comes to us from the Gospel according to St. John, chapter 19, verses 25-27. Hear now the word of the Lord:
...but standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold, your son!” Then he said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother!” And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home.
Lord, may the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be found acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, our rock and our redeemer. Amen.
I wonder how many of us give much thought to this word. It doesn’t seem like much, just some last will and testament stuff. Jesus is making sure that his mother will be taken care of in his absence. And he’s giving this assignment to the beloved disciple, John, the only one of Jesus’ twelve disciples who is present at his execution.
I think about the logistics of it all. Here was a society where women could not care for themselves. From the beginning of their lives, men were taking care of them, first their fathers, then their husbands, and if their husbands were to die, it falls on the children, especially the firstborn males, to provide for their widowed mother. And we know from Luke’s gospel that Jesus was Mary’s firstborn. And so it would stand to reason that this firstborn son of Mary, after his father Joseph had died, would take care of his mother, and that was what he was doing here.
Jesus had other brothers, four that are named in the gospels, and at least two sisters whose names are not recorded. Yet they were not present at the crucifixion. They were not followers of Christ until after his death and resurrection. Then we see Jesus’ brother James leading the church in Jerusalem, and both James and Jude wrote epistles kept for us in the New Testament. But they were not here as their oldest brother languished on the cross. And so Jesus turned to his beloved disciple John, and betrothed his mother into his care.
I think that what we see here is deeper than a son’s care for his mother. I think that what we see here is more evidence that Jesus Christ is who he said he is: the Word of God made flesh, the very Spirit of God dwelling in him, in fact, God himself.
All throughout scripture, God’s heart is for those who cannot take care of themselves. He delivered the Hebrews from slavery in Egypt. Their very cry came to his ears and he acted quickly and mightily to deliver them from the oppressive hand of Pharaoh. And when he led them from Egypt, he warned them sternly: (Exodus 22:21-24)
“You shall not wrong a sojourner or oppress him, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt. You shall not mistreat any widow or fatherless child. If you do mistreat them, and they cry out to me, I will surely hear their cry, and my wrath will burn, and I will kill you with the sword, and your wives shall become widows and your children fatherless.
Because God has a heart for those who cannot take care of themselves. God acted mightily to bring his people out of slavery and into the promised land, and he says to his people, now go and do likewise. Care for the stranger in your land. Provide for the widow and the orphan. I am the Lord your God.
Indeed, Moses reminds the people of this just before they cross the Jordan. He says: (Deuteronomy 10:17-22)
For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who is not partial and takes no bribe. He executes justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the sojourner, giving him food and clothing. Love the sojourner, therefore, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt. You shall fear the LORD your God. You shall serve him and hold fast to him, and by his name you shall swear. He is your praise. He is your God, who has done for you these great and terrifying things that your eyes have seen. Your fathers went down to Egypt seventy persons, and now the LORD your God has made you as numerous as the stars of heaven.
Moses reminds the Hebrews, and indeed, all of us here, that God is mighty to save. That God has a heart for the widow and the orphan and the stranger in the land. He reminds them of what God has wrought, acting mightily on their behalf to bring them out of Egypt, deliver them from slavery, and bring them to the land that he promised to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. And then he says, you are my people. Care for my people. Provide for the widow and the orphan. Be kind to the stranger living among you, for you were once strangers in the land. I am the Lord your God.
So what we are seeing here in this third word on the cross is Jesus, the Wonderful Counselor, the mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace, saying to those who follow him: I have delivered you from slavery to sin and death. Now go and care for the widow and the fatherless.
John had a father, with whom he and his brother James worked as fishermen. He had a mother as well, one who asked of Jesus that her sons would sit on his right and his left when he came into his kingdom. Perhaps now as she saw the thieves hanging on Jesus’ right and left, she was grateful for unanswered prayer. But John was also the disciple whom Jesus loved, the one who leaned against Jesus as he named his betrayer, the one to whom Jesus would give a vision of the end times. In this moment, he became the disciple to whom Jesus would say, I have delivered you from sin and death. Go and provide for this widowed mother of mine.
Jesus, fully God and fully man, demonstrates his connection to God the Father by calling on us to care for the widows, the orphans, and the strangers in our land. He has delivered us from sin and death by his own death on the cross, by his resurrection on the third day. That’s what God has done for us. What then are we called upon to do for God? To care for those who cannot care for themselves, to be the hands and feet of Christ, and to love one another as he loved us, a sacrificial and giving love without end.
And so, on this Good Friday, as we observe the death of our savior on our behalf, let us remember that he acted powerfully to rescue us from sin and death, and calls upon us to care for those who cannot care for themselves.
Lord Jesus we hear your words from the cross this day, echoing across the ages to our ears, recorded for us by your faithful followers. As you have entrusted to John’s care your own widowed mother, let us hear your words calling to us now to care for the widow, for the orphan, and for the stranger among us. Pour out your Holy Spirit upon us and send us from this place with joy to proclaim the good news of your salvation. For we ask it in the name above all names, Jesus Christ, Lord of all. Amen.
I want to first preface my remarks here today by saying how exciting it is to be back in this service. I have missed this. The Good Friday community service has become one of my favorite services of the year, not just to preach at, but to attend - to receive the word of Christ who died for our sins as he hung on the cross. Since 2014 I have managed to preach on all seven of the words, even in 2020 when we began the Covid lockdown, preaching to an empty sanctuary in Auburn. Why? Because this service has power. There is power in the cross of Christ.
Second, I also want to preface my remarks by saying that I was given ten to fifteen minutes to speak on this. So for those of you who regularly attend my services, you know that you are about to witness a miracle.
The Third Word of Christ on the cross comes to us from the Gospel according to St. John, chapter 19, verses 25-27. Hear now the word of the Lord:
...but standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold, your son!” Then he said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother!” And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home.
Lord, may the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be found acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, our rock and our redeemer. Amen.
I wonder how many of us give much thought to this word. It doesn’t seem like much, just some last will and testament stuff. Jesus is making sure that his mother will be taken care of in his absence. And he’s giving this assignment to the beloved disciple, John, the only one of Jesus’ twelve disciples who is present at his execution.
I think about the logistics of it all. Here was a society where women could not care for themselves. From the beginning of their lives, men were taking care of them, first their fathers, then their husbands, and if their husbands were to die, it falls on the children, especially the firstborn males, to provide for their widowed mother. And we know from Luke’s gospel that Jesus was Mary’s firstborn. And so it would stand to reason that this firstborn son of Mary, after his father Joseph had died, would take care of his mother, and that was what he was doing here.
Jesus had other brothers, four that are named in the gospels, and at least two sisters whose names are not recorded. Yet they were not present at the crucifixion. They were not followers of Christ until after his death and resurrection. Then we see Jesus’ brother James leading the church in Jerusalem, and both James and Jude wrote epistles kept for us in the New Testament. But they were not here as their oldest brother languished on the cross. And so Jesus turned to his beloved disciple John, and betrothed his mother into his care.
I think that what we see here is deeper than a son’s care for his mother. I think that what we see here is more evidence that Jesus Christ is who he said he is: the Word of God made flesh, the very Spirit of God dwelling in him, in fact, God himself.
All throughout scripture, God’s heart is for those who cannot take care of themselves. He delivered the Hebrews from slavery in Egypt. Their very cry came to his ears and he acted quickly and mightily to deliver them from the oppressive hand of Pharaoh. And when he led them from Egypt, he warned them sternly: (Exodus 22:21-24)
“You shall not wrong a sojourner or oppress him, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt. You shall not mistreat any widow or fatherless child. If you do mistreat them, and they cry out to me, I will surely hear their cry, and my wrath will burn, and I will kill you with the sword, and your wives shall become widows and your children fatherless.
Because God has a heart for those who cannot take care of themselves. God acted mightily to bring his people out of slavery and into the promised land, and he says to his people, now go and do likewise. Care for the stranger in your land. Provide for the widow and the orphan. I am the Lord your God.
Indeed, Moses reminds the people of this just before they cross the Jordan. He says: (Deuteronomy 10:17-22)
For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who is not partial and takes no bribe. He executes justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the sojourner, giving him food and clothing. Love the sojourner, therefore, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt. You shall fear the LORD your God. You shall serve him and hold fast to him, and by his name you shall swear. He is your praise. He is your God, who has done for you these great and terrifying things that your eyes have seen. Your fathers went down to Egypt seventy persons, and now the LORD your God has made you as numerous as the stars of heaven.
Moses reminds the Hebrews, and indeed, all of us here, that God is mighty to save. That God has a heart for the widow and the orphan and the stranger in the land. He reminds them of what God has wrought, acting mightily on their behalf to bring them out of Egypt, deliver them from slavery, and bring them to the land that he promised to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. And then he says, you are my people. Care for my people. Provide for the widow and the orphan. Be kind to the stranger living among you, for you were once strangers in the land. I am the Lord your God.
So what we are seeing here in this third word on the cross is Jesus, the Wonderful Counselor, the mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace, saying to those who follow him: I have delivered you from slavery to sin and death. Now go and care for the widow and the fatherless.
John had a father, with whom he and his brother James worked as fishermen. He had a mother as well, one who asked of Jesus that her sons would sit on his right and his left when he came into his kingdom. Perhaps now as she saw the thieves hanging on Jesus’ right and left, she was grateful for unanswered prayer. But John was also the disciple whom Jesus loved, the one who leaned against Jesus as he named his betrayer, the one to whom Jesus would give a vision of the end times. In this moment, he became the disciple to whom Jesus would say, I have delivered you from sin and death. Go and provide for this widowed mother of mine.
Jesus, fully God and fully man, demonstrates his connection to God the Father by calling on us to care for the widows, the orphans, and the strangers in our land. He has delivered us from sin and death by his own death on the cross, by his resurrection on the third day. That’s what God has done for us. What then are we called upon to do for God? To care for those who cannot care for themselves, to be the hands and feet of Christ, and to love one another as he loved us, a sacrificial and giving love without end.
And so, on this Good Friday, as we observe the death of our savior on our behalf, let us remember that he acted powerfully to rescue us from sin and death, and calls upon us to care for those who cannot care for themselves.
Lord Jesus we hear your words from the cross this day, echoing across the ages to our ears, recorded for us by your faithful followers. As you have entrusted to John’s care your own widowed mother, let us hear your words calling to us now to care for the widow, for the orphan, and for the stranger among us. Pour out your Holy Spirit upon us and send us from this place with joy to proclaim the good news of your salvation. For we ask it in the name above all names, Jesus Christ, Lord of all. Amen.