When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing by, He said to His mother, “Woman, behold your son!” Then He said to the disciple, “Behold your mother!” And from that hour that disciple took her to his own home.
John 19:26-27
Behold.
That word appears often in the passion narrative as it is presented in John’s Gospel. Behold. It’s a little bit of an outdated word—I’m sure a few of us today have ever used it in conversation. But we know what it means. Look, watch, see what is before you. There’s something important in front of you, don’t miss it. There’s something important being revealed. Look at it, and do something about it.
As I mentioned, the word behold appears several times in the passion narrative in John’s Gospel. And I think one reason for that is that there’s a lot that’s important to look out for. There’s a lot that’s being revealed for us to pay attention to.
The passion of Jesus Christ reveals to us a man who is innocent, and yet condemned to death. It reveals to us a king who’s kingdom is unlike anything this world knows. It reveals to us a God who is dying to love us.
But here, in John’s Gospel, something New is revealed. For, though it’s easy to miss this, when Jesus says to his mother, “behold your son,” he’s not talking about himself. He’s talking about one of his dearest friends, John. In these two verses, Jesus gives the people he cares about to one another. He incorporates them into a family.
Of course, Jesus is here revealing something about himself. We see that he is the kind of man who, in the very midst of his own torture is more concerned about the welfare of those he loves than his own life.
But when Jesus tells his mother to behold John, and John to behold his mother, he wants them not to just look at him, but look at one another. And not to just look, but behold one another, in love, such that their lives would change. And that’s exactly what John does in verse 27. We too are ones that Jesus loves, that he knows will grieve his death, and he gives us to one another to form a new family. Friends, let us look at one another, and behold one another. Let’s do that right now. Behold your family. This Good Friday, may we see all that his passion reveals—including our bonds with one another, and behold one another in love. Amen.