disciple recorded as witnessing the
actual crucifixion. In John 20 we
learn that because he outran Peter,
he was the first disciple to see the
empty tomb. He was also given the
great vision of the future that we
call the book of Revelation.
the cross of Jesus stood His mother,
His mother's sister, Mary the wife
of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.
When Jesus saw His mother there,
and the disciple whom He loved
standing nearby, He said to her,
`Woman, here is your son,' and to
the disciple, `Here is your mother.'
From that time on, this disciple
took her into his home" (vs. 25-27,
NIV). Christ trusted John so im-
plicitly that He charged John with
His mother's care. Theirs was a so-
ciety in which widowhood placed a
woman in the lowest class. James
1:27 states, "Religion that God our
Father accepts as pure and fault-
less is this: to look after orphans
and widows in their distress"
(NIV). We know that Christ must
have trusted John unreservedly to