Mary
and the Cross
By Daniel Amari
The Cross
John 19:25-27 25 but standing by the cross of
Jesus were his mother and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and
Mary Magdalene. 26 When
Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to
his mother, "Woman, behold, your son!" 27 Then he said to the disciple, "Behold, your
mother!" And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home.
Many have wondered where was Mary, the mother of Jesus,
during the events of the passion of Christ and his crucifixion. What was her
attitude? What did she say and what did she do? If we examine the whole Bible,
we find only one reference about her concerning the passion, John 19:25-27.
Basically, Mary stood with her sister with the disciples of Christ at a
distance from the cross. Jesus noticed that Mary was standing and he introduced
her to the one who would be taking care of her. This particular incident was
completely ignored by Matthew, Mark and Luke. It was only mentioned by John.
This is very understandable, since John would not have mentioned it if it were
not for the fact that he was the one given this assignment. This led many
authors over the long centuries to abandon the biblical accounts and pursue
fictional accounts about Mary, even assigning a theological role for her. I
submit to the reader that these few verses, though brief, present a rich,
accurate and historical picture of Mary and the cross. This picture can only be
realized if it is seen from the context of the whole synoptic gospels. I urge
the reader to spend the time read the verses presented.
If we compare this text to the parallel accounts of the
other synoptic gospels, we find the following important testimonies:
Mark
15:40-41 40 There were also women looking on from a
distance, among whom were Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the
younger and of Joses, and Salome. 41
When he was in Galilee, they followed him and ministered to him, and there were
also many other women who came up with him to Jerusalem.
Matthew 27:55-56 55
There were also many women there, looking on from a distance, who had followed
Jesus from Galilee, ministering to him, 56 among whom were Mary
Magdalene and Mary the mother of James and Joseph and the mother of the sons of
Zebedee.
Luke 23:49 49 And all his
acquaintances and the women who had followed him from Galilee stood at a
distance watching these things.
Mark and Matthew took the time to recognize several women
who followed Jesus and were active in the ministry of Jesus. Yet, Mary was not
mentioned. The reader might ponder why Mary was not mentioned when she was
clearly standing by the other women. Some of the women were from Jerusalem and
some followed Jesus from Galilee. There were also the acquaintances of Jesus.
When we study the accounts of the gospels, we find that Mary did not follow
Jesus to Jerusalem except for one notable incident, which we will cover later
in some details. She was not from Jerusalem and She did not move there. She was
always in Galilee. Therefore, it is not surprising that she, the mother of
Jesus, was not recognized. Her ministry
was the bearing the Son of God. She was not one of those who “ministered to
him.” This should not be shocking news because it is very consistent with the
text of the Bible.
She was not present during the trials of Christ.
John 18:15-16 15 Simon Peter
followed Jesus, and so did another disciple. Since that disciple was known to
the high priest, he entered with Jesus into the court of the high priest, 16 but Peter stood outside at the
door. So the other disciple, who was known to the high priest, went out and
spoke to the servant girl who kept watch at the door, and brought Peter in.
Only John and Peter entered the court and witnessed the
trials. The rest of the disciples ran away. If Mary were present during the
trials, John would have mentioned her as he had mentioned her at the cross. If
she had any role even if it was insignificant, the WHOLE New Testament would
have mentioned it repeatedly.
Moreover, she did not accompany Jesus on the road to the
cross. Let’s read:
Luke 23:27-31 27 And there
followed him a great multitude of the people and of women who were mourning and
lamenting for him. 28 But
turning to them Jesus said, "Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me,
but weep for yourselves and for your children.
29 For behold, the days are coming when they will say,
'Blessed are the barren and the wombs that never bore and the breasts that
never nursed!' 30 Then they
will begin to say to the mountains, 'Fall on us,' and to the hills, 'Cover
us.' 31 For if they do these
things when the wood is green, what will happen when it is dry?"
Only the women of Jerusalem followed him; many of who
ministered to him and his disciples during his ministry. The most fascinating
thing is that Christ took the time to speak to them. He took the time to
console them. Even during his suffering, Christ was still ministering to his
followers and to those in need. It is not that others were consoling and
helping Jesus, but Jesus was consoling them. Again, We do not see Mary here.
She was not from Jerusalem and she was not mentioned. If she were there, she
would have been mentioned by John. If She had any role even if it is
insignificant, it would have been mentioned not just by the synoptic gospels
but also by Pauline letters and the rest of the New Testament.
Mary stood at a distance and for not a long period of
time. Read on:
Luke 23:49 49 And all his acquaintances and
the women who had followed him from Galilee stood at a distance watching these
things.
John 19:25-27 25 but standing by the cross of
Jesus were his mother and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and
Mary Magdalene. 26 When
Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to
his mother, "Woman, behold, your son!" 27 Then he said to the disciple, "Behold, your
mother!" And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home.
Mary stood at a distance. Not a very far, but close
enough distance to hear Jesus. Then Jesus introduced Mary to John as the one
who will be taking care of her physically. John took Mary to his own home or
part of his own household from that “hour”. The “hour” refers to the whole
event of the passion of Christ. Prior
to this introduction, John was not responsible for her nor was he with
her. Only from the time of the cross,
John took care of Mary by providing her a shelter as the text insists.
But is this the entire story about Mary and the
Cross? Absolutely not. There is a
powerful story behind this text that requires our full attention. I submit to
the reader that the most fascinating point is that she actually was with
the disciples! In order to understand the significance of this statement, one
has to study the background context of the whole story. Let us Read On:
Luk 1:46-55
Mary said, "My heart praises the Lord; 47 my soul is glad because of God my Savior, 48 for he has
remembered me, his lowly servant! From now on all people will call me happy, 49 because of
the great things the Mighty God has done for me. His name is holy; 50 from one
generation to another he shows mercy to those who honor him. 51 He has
stretched out his mighty arm and scattered the proud with all their plans. 52 He has
brought down mighty kings from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly. 53 He has
filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away with empty hands. 54 He has
kept the promise he made to our ancestors, and has come to the help of his
servant Israel. 55 He has remembered to show mercy to Abraham and to all his
descendants forever!"
The above text was Mary’s reply to Elizabeth. The reader
may recall that the angel Gabriel brought exciting news to Mary about the birth
of the Messiah, which will be covered, in details in a future article. Gabriel
also told Mary that Elizabeth was pregnant as well. So Mary visited her. Mary’s
reply to Elizabeth tells us exactly what were her expectations and what was her
theology. It tells us about her inner thoughts. Mary was hinted by the angel that
she could confide in Elizabeth, and that Elizabeth would understand because the
Lord had done to her a great miracle as well. The following are some
observations about her reply:
First, She worshipped and praised the Lord because the
Messiah had come.
Second, she recognized that she was a sinner and that God
alone was her savior and that she like everybody else needed salvation. Devout
Jews always believed that God was their salvation; and God was the one
responsible for taking their sins away. The Angel’s clearly declared that
Messiah would save his people from their sins.
Third, she recognized that she did not have anything
special to deserve the honor to bear the Messiah. She did not come from a rich
family. She was not a daughter of the chief priest or even an ordinary priest.
She was not ultra righteous girl. She was simply an innocent young Jewish
maiden from Nazareth who was looking forward to getting married. All the Jewish
girls were dreaming that they would be the mothers of the Messiah and they
would be treated like Queens. They were told the stories about how Solomon
treated his Mother as a Queen:
1 Kings 2:19-20 19 So Bathsheba went to King
Solomon to speak on Adonijah's behalf. The king rose from his throne to meet
her, and he bowed down before her. When he sat down on his throne again, he
ordered that a throne be brought for his mother, and she sat at his right
hand. 20 "I have one
small request to make of you," she said. "I hope you won't turn me
down." "What is it, my mother?" he asked. "You know I won't
refuse you."
Now she was the fortunate one to have this honor DESPITE
her humble background and her lowly position. But from “now on”, her people
would recognize this as so and would evaluate her as “makariosin”, which means fortunate or happy. This word is
different from “blessed,” which is used in different text and different
context. I chose the above translation because it accurately reflects the
original Greek text of the Bible.
Fourth, She expected that the Messiah would establish the
Kingdom of Israel. She expected that finally the Lord would receive Israel
again. In other words, the nation of Israel was defeated by the Romans but the
Messiah would restore the honor, glory and promises to the nation. The Romans
would be defeated and Israel would flourish.
What does this all mean? Clearly, her expectations were
the expectation of any ordinary Jewish girl living in that time. The cross was
not part of the expectations, and the rest of the world was not part of the
salvation. Her expectation was simply Israel would be restored and She would be
a queen. That is it. But very importantly, her theology was positively and
accurately Jewish one. She was proud of her heritage as a Jew and she followed
all of the Jewish customs as the biblical text demonstrates. Furthermore, her
understanding was about an earthly kingdom. Where her expectations fulfilled?
Let us read on.
Luke 2:25-35 25
And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon, and this man
was just and devout, waiting for the Consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit
was upon him. 26 And it had
been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he
had seen the Lord's Christ. 27
So he came by the Spirit into the temple. And when the parents brought in the
Child Jesus, to do for Him according to the custom of the law, 28 he
took Him up in his arms and blessed God and said: 29 "Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart
in peace, According to Your word; 30 For my eyes have seen Your
salvation 31 Which You have prepared before the face of all
peoples, 32 A light to bring
revelation to the Gentiles, And the glory of Your people Israel." 33 And Joseph and His mother
marveled at those things which were spoken of Him. 34 Then Simeon blessed them, and said to Mary His
mother, "Behold, this Child is destined for the fall and rising of many in
Israel, and for a sign which will be spoken against 35 "(yes, a
sword will pierce through your own soul also), that the thoughts of many hearts
may be revealed."
This is one of the most of significant passages of the
Bible and it is very often misunderstood. This event occurred when Joseph and
Mary took Jesus to be dedicated at the temple. I will divide the passage into
three parts:
First, Simon looked at Jesus and said that he is the
salvation before all NATIONS. True that he will be glory of Israel; but he is
also LIGHT to the gentiles. In other words, Jesus is the salvation for ALL
human kind. The Messiah is not just for the Jews and is not just for Israel.
The Messiah is for the whole world. What a striking difference between his
prayers and what Mary expected. But to be fair it was not just Mary’s own
expectation. Let us move on.
Second, Joseph and Mary were marveled! Their expectations
were completely different about Jesus. It was not what they were accustomed to
hear. This was very significant because so many times Mary did not understand
the theology, the prophecies or even her own role. She did not understand that the Messiah was to be the salvation
and the light of the entire world. But was this the only expectation she
missed?
Third, Simon told her-He did not tell Joseph but told
her- that Jesus will be a STUMBLING block. Many will be stumbled because of
him. Albert Barnes commented on this:
“The fall - The word “fall” here denotes
“misery, suffering, disappointment,” or “ruin.” There is a plain reference to
the passage where it is said that he should be “a stone of stumbling and a rock
of offence,” Isa_8:14-15. Many expected
a temporal prince, and in this they were disappointed.”[i]
Furthermore, Simon told her that many would speak against
him. They will accuse him of being of the devil. As a result of this, their
thoughts and intentions will be revealed. Let me repeat, Simon said that Jesus
will be a Stumbling block and many will speak against him.
What happened to the good news? This sounds like a bad
news. Here is worse news. A sword will strike Mary’s heart. What does this
mean? It implies the following:
·
The
sword of the cruel accusations of men: Psalm 57:4 4
My soul is in the midst of lions; I lie down amid fiery beasts- the children of
man, whose teeth are spears and arrows, whose tongues are sharp swords. Her own people did not call her
happy. But accused her of adultery. They did not recognize that the Virgin
birth was the act of God, but the act of fornication:
John 8:19..41 19 They said to him therefore,
"Where is your Father?" Jesus answered, "You know neither me nor
my Father. If you knew me, you would know my Father also.” …39 They
answered him, "Abraham is our father." Jesus said to them, "If
you were Abraham's children, you would be doing what Abraham did, 40 but now you seek to kill me, a
man who has told you the truth that I heard from God. This is not what Abraham did. 41 You are doing what your father
did." They said to him, "We were not born of sexual immorality. We
have one Father- even God."
·
The
sword of unfulfilled expectations. Her own expectation will not be fulfilled. A
nation of Israel will not be established. Rome will not be defeated. She will
not be a Queen. Jesus will not be supported by Political Jewish Authority of
his time. In fact, he will be spoken against; he will be attacked and he will
be opposed. But furthermore, she, Mary, will stumble because her own
expectations were not fulfilled.
Some try to suggest that this sword denotes the grief and
disappointment she will suffer at the cross. But this view is completely
unbiblical. First, the context of this text does not speak of the cross but of
stumbling and verbal accusations.
Second, the synoptic accounts clearly show that Mary stumbled in Christ
and that Mary was accused of adultery. Third, Mary did not have any role, even
insignificant one, in the suffering of Christ, as we have seen. Fourth, this
view completely opposes prophecies about Christ:
Psalm 69:8-12 8 I have become a stranger to my
brothers, And an alien to my mother's children; 9 Because zeal for Your house has eaten me up, And the
reproaches of those who reproach You have fallen on me. 10 When I wept and chastened my
soul with fasting, That became my reproach.
11 I also made sackcloth my garment; I became a byword to
them. 12 Those who sit in
the gate speak against me, And I am the song of the drunkards.
Psalm 69:20-21 20 Reproach has broken my heart,
And I am full of heaviness; I looked for someone to take pity, but there was
none; And for comforters, but I found none.
21 They also gave me gall for my food, And for my thirst they
gave me vinegar to drink.
It was precisely because NONE of his family, friends, and
disciples stood with him in his own trials that added to his sufferings. The
fact that his family opposed him and even spoke against him was a fulfillment
of the prophecy. But when and where did Mary stumble in Christ?
Mark 3:21-35 21 When his family heard about
this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, "He is out of his
mind… 31 Then Jesus' mother and brothers arrived. Standing outside,
they sent someone in to call him. 32
A crowd was sitting around him, and they told him, "Your mother and
brothers are outside looking for you."
33 "Who are my mother and my brothers?" he
asked. 34 Then he looked at
those seated in a circle around him and said, "Here are my mother and my
brothers! 35 Whoever does
God's will is my brother and sister and mother."
This is one of the most amazing passages that despite
most theologians understand, it is not well known. It can be divided into the
following sequences:
First, Jesus started his
ministry and chose his disciples. Prior to this, he was the main breadwinner
for his family for Joseph was dead at this point. During Cana’s wedding, Jesus
said to Mary, “John 2:4 And Jesus said to her, "Woman,
what do I have to do with you? My hour has not yet come." Dr. DA Carson[ii]
states eloquently, “We must not avoid the conclusion that Jesus by rebuking his
mother, however courteously, declares, at the beginning of his ministry, his
utter freedom from any kind of human advice, agenda or manipulation.” He also
adds, “It is a remarkable fact that everywhere Mary appears during the course
of Jesus’ ministry, Jesus is at pains to establish distance between them… For
no-one could this lesson have been more difficult than for Jesus’ mother;
perhaps that was part of the sword that would pierce her soul.” The weddings
passage will be fully analyzed in a future article but it is sufficient for us
to understand that there was complete separation between Jesus’ ministry and
Mary.
Second, in Mark 3-21 passage,
his family heard of his ministry. In particular, they heard about the events in
which Jesus opposed the Jewish Authority, healed on the Sabbath, and caused
many to stumble. His family had been embarrassed by his ministry. But clearly
he was an embarrassment to the Jewish mother who strongly conformed to all
Jewish religious customs. Some might suggest that she claimed that he was out
of his mind to save him from the Jewish authority. Some might suggest that she
was pressured by her children, the brothers of Christ. We do not know why
exactly but we do know that she thought he was out of his mind and she was part
of the group that set out to take charge of him.
Third, observe that when his family heard this, they started a journey
or set out to bring him to his house in verse 21. They did not arrive yet. In
the mean time, the Jewish Authority accused Jesus of being possessed with a
demon and sent some to debate him. They were closer in distance to Christ so
they arrived earlier than his family. In verse 31, his family arrived.
Fourth, when Mary and her
children arrived, they stood outside. There is one reference that suggests the
crowd kept them outside. Luke 8:19 “Then his
mother and his brothers came to him, but they could not reach him because of
the crowd.”
Jesus refused to meet them.
Let the reader not miss the following three observations:
1)
Mary
stood outside. Robertson paints a grim picture of this
event, “Pathetic
picture of the mother and brothers standing on the outside of the house
thinking that Jesus inside is beside himself and wanting to take him home. They
were crowded out.”[iii] Matthew Henry comments as well
on this, “The
disrespect which Christ's kindred, according to the flesh, showed to him, when
he was preaching (and they knew very well that he was then in his element);
they not only stood without, having no desire to come in, and hear him, but
they sent in a message to call him out to them, as if he must leave his work,
to hearken to their impertinences.”[iv]
Mary was not part of Jesus inner circle. Her
intention in this instance was not to learn from him. Jesus recognized this,
pointed to his disciples and said that they are his true mother, brothers and
sisters.
2)
Jesus
said, “Whoever does God's will is my brother and sister and mother.” In other words, according to
Jesus, Mary and her children were not doing God’s will at that time.
3)
The
clear implications are of course that physical relationships do not translate
into spiritual relationships. The fact that Mary was his physical mother did
not translate into a spiritual role. This is not a reactionary teaching of the
Lord. He always taught the same and was very consistent in his relationship
with Mary: She was like any other woman to him.
4)
This
incident demonstrates that Mary was not a perfect sinless woman. But a normal
woman with sins and weaknesses like any other human. She did not have the great
theological insights or deep prophetical understanding. She was not the
spiritual warrior nor she was the holy saint with superior spiritual roles.
The picture this passage imprints on our mind is one of a
stumbled woman with children who refused to believe in Christ and relatives
that were very hostile to Jesus. She had to choose between losing all for
Christ and between her children, her family, her society and her culture. The
disciples made their choice when they told Jesus that they left everything and
followed him. One might ponder why Mary stumbled in Christ? How could she, the
mother who received the message from the angel, resist the ministry of Jesus?
Did she return to the Lord? What was her reaction at the cross?
John 19:25-27 25 but standing by the cross of
Jesus were his mother and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and
Mary Magdalene. 26 When
Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to
his mother, "Woman, behold, your son!" 27 Then he said to the disciple, "Behold, your
mother!" And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home.
We return back to the cross where Mary, the mother of
Jesus, was standing at a distance from the cross. The most fascinating aspect
of this picture is that Mary was standing by the disciples. Mary made a choice.
She chose to be with the disciples instead of her children. She came as a
repentant woman at the cross. It was the irony of the ironies: The cross, the
symbol of stumbling, was the means of God the Father to provide the salvation
for the world. What was the most stumbling to this Jewish woman was exactly the
source of her own salvation. God did not make her a queen. God did not defeat
the Romans. But Jesus became her Savior. Furthermore, the Lord Jesus provided
not just for her spiritual need but also for her physical one. She could not
have returned back to her unbelieving children; not after she had abandoned
them for Jesus. She needed a shelter and someone to take care of her as a
mother. And the Lord provided for her. A good question is, why did not her own
physical children, the brothers of Jesus, take care of her? The answer requires
chapters of study but John provided an insight on why:
John 7:5 5
For not even his brothers believed in him.
The Story of Mary demonstrates God’s faithfulness in
bringing his promises to fulfillment. Mary in her journey of faith received
promises. She made up her own expectations, which led to stumbling. But she
could not receive fulfillment of the promises until she took the step of faith
in obedience to the word and plan of Christ. Finally, one might ask whether she
continued with the disciples? What about her children, did they continue in
their state of disbelief?
1 Corinthians 15:7 7 Then he appeared to James, then
to all the apostles.
Acts 1:14 14 All these with one accord were
devoting themselves to prayer, together with the women and Mary the mother of
Jesus, and his brothers.
The Lord Jesus appeared to James, his brother, after the
resurrection. Mary spent her life with the disciples, fellowshipping with them
and learning with them. James became one of the primary elders of the church of
Jerusalem and Jude his brother became one as well. Both wrote the two books of
the Bible.