John 19:1-27

40 Days of John

Day 35: John 19:1-27

Jesus is beaten, tortured, forced to carry His own cross, nailed to it, and left to die.

All the while, Jesus' mother, aunt, and friend are watching the whole scene unfold before their eyes.

The clothes of God's Son, our Savior, are divided and lots cast for His undergarment.

It's horrific.  Disgusting.

And like so many times when tragedy strikes, I find myself at a loss.

And here's the human "why" behind it all from the reading today-

The Jewish leaders insisted, “We have a law, and according to that law he must die, because he claimed to be the Son of God.”

John 19:7

Jesus claimed to be who He was.  That's it, far from a crime.

And we know, His life, death, and resurrection are so much more than we can figure out in this very moment.  True to our human limits, our perspective struggles to fully grasp God's bigger plan.

Yet, Jesus offers us comfort as He speaks some last words to His beloved disciple and His mother.  Jesus says,

When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to her, “Woman, here is your son,” 27 and to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” From that time on, this disciple took her into his home.

John 19:26-27

Even on His deathbed, nailed to a cross between two guilty men, Jesus is redefining our connections to each other and to Him.  Through Him, we are called to take care of each other.  Jesus asks us to think and act outside the box for Him, to love as He has loved.  He defines who we are...even as the world is confused.

In Christ, we are called to be gifts to each other.

A prayer for today-

Dear God,

Thank You for Jesus who died on the cross for me.  Thank You for redefining who I am and for purposefully connecting me to others.

Lord, forgive me when I fall short of loving the way You do.

Help me to take this time to remember You, my Savior, with every person that crosses my path.

I pray for all those who don't fully know who Jesus really is in their lives.  I pray for all those who are struggling and suffering as they take up their cross.  I pray for all those who are having to watch those near and dear suffer.

Help us all to find strength and hope and unshakeable purpose in You, Lord.  Unite us, Lord, as we seek You, and inspire us to be the people You have created us to be.

In the name of Jesus I pray,

Amen

Peace of Christ,

*This post is part of A Mind-Maker-Upper's Everyday Reading Project.  Click here to read more.