Context: All of His men had forsaken Him. Now He was on the cross. He felt pain from old wounds & from fresh ones. Jesus can hear mocking and nasty statements. Two common criminals gnash their teeth at Him; after a while one of them has his heart changed and tells his friend to be quiet. He begins his relationship with his Maker at the end of his life…late…BUT not too late! There are women at the cross - followers of our Lord Jesus Christ. Also one of His disciples stopped running and turned around and was now at the cross. It was John, who referred to himself in his gospel as the "disciple whom the Lord loved."

It is in this light that we hear our Lord utter His third statement from the cross.

John 19:26–27  When Jesus then 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!” From that hour the disciple took her into his own household.

The Lord's compassion and sense of stewardship is...