SERMON SERIES "WHEN GOD GOES MISSING"

Message

Whirlpool of a missing God

Luke 2:42–52 KJV 1900

42 And when he was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast. 43 And when they had fulfilled the days, as they returned, the child Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem; and Joseph and his mother knew not of it. 44 But they, supposing him to have been in the company, went a day’s journey; and they sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance. 45 And when they found him not, they turned back again to Jerusalem, seeking him. 46 And it came to pass, that after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions. 47 And all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers. 48 And when they saw him, they were amazed: and his mother said unto him, Son, why hast thou thus dealt with us? behold, thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing. 49 And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business? 50 And they understood not the saying which he spake unto them. 51 And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them: but his mother kept all these sayings in her heart. 52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.

When God Goes Missing

luke 2:45

Luke 2:45 (KJV 1900)

45 And when they found him not, they turned back again to Jerusalem, seeking him.

The God /man was missing at the young age of 12.

They could not find HIM.

so they went seeking HIM

I] WORKBOOK OF TEMPLE CUSTOM IN THE DAY OF JESUS

Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the Passover.

And when he was twelve years old, they went up according to custom; and when the feast was ended, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem.

His parents did not know it, but supposing him to be in the company, they went a day's journey, and they sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintances; and when they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem, seeking him.

After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions; and all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers.

And when they saw him they were astonished; and his mother said to him "Son, why have you treated us so? Behold, your father and I have been looking for you anxiously."

And he said to them, "How is it that you sought me? Did you now know that I must be in my Father's house?"

And they did not understand the saying which he spoke to them. And he went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them; and his mother kept all these things in her heart.

And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature, and grew in favor with God and man.

This is the only story in the gospels about Jesus between his infancy and his public ministry as a man.

Some have argued that the story is a legend created by the early church to fill in some of the gaps in their knowledge of Jesus' life.

What shall we say to this claim?

Fact or Fiction?

First of all, we should be aware that in the second and third centuries many legends arose about the boy Jesus and were put into numerous apocryphal gospels—accounts of Jesus which the early church rejected as not having the authority of the four earliest gospels which we have in the New Testament.

Two things speak for the wisdom of the church in recognizing the authority of only Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

A.One is that there are so few stories about Jesus' childhood in them that it is clear that the writers were not interested in feeding the pious curiosity of the church with legends about Jesus' childhood.

They are content to leave almost 30 years of blank space in Jesus' life, because their interest was on the heart of the gospel not peripheral matters.

B.The other thing is that the one story which Luke does include there in Luke 2:41–52 is so reserved that it is very unlike most of the legends of Jesus' childhood.

Luke 2:41–52 KJV 1900

41 Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the passover. 42 And when he was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast. 43 And when they had fulfilled the days, as they returned, the child Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem; and Joseph and his mother knew not of it. 44 But they, supposing him to have been in the company, went a day’s journey; and they sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance. 45 And when they found him not, they turned back again to Jerusalem, seeking him. 46 And it came to pass, that after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions. 47 And all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers. 48 And when they saw him, they were amazed: and his mother said unto him, Son, why hast thou thus dealt with us? behold, thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing. 49 And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business? 50 And they understood not the saying which he spake unto them. 51 And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them: but his mother kept all these sayings in her heart. 52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.

It does not portray him as doing any supernatural deed or speaking in an unduly authoritative way.

The story reaches its climax and main point not in a supernatural feat but in the sentence:

"I must be about my Father's business (or in my Father's house)" (v. Luke 2: 49).

Luke 2:49 KJV 1900

49 And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business?

Contrast this with some of the legends which grew up later on.

From the Infancy Gospel of Thomas (2nd century):

When this boy Jesus was five years old he was playing at the ford of a brook, and he gathered together into pools the water that flowed by, and made it at once clean, and commanded it by his word alone.

But the son of Annas the scribe was standing there with Joseph; and he took a branch of a willow and (with it) dispersed the water which Jesus had gathered together.

When Jesus saw what he had done, he was enraged and said to him: "You insolent, godless dunderhead, what harm did the pools and the water do to you?

See, now you also shall wither like a tree and shall bear neither leaves nor root nor fruit."

And immediately that lad withered up completely; and Jesus departed and went into Joseph's house.

But the parents of him that was withered took him away, bewailing his youth, and brought him to Joseph and reproached him: "What a child you have who does such things."

After this again he went through the village, and a lad ran and knocked against his shoulder.

Jesus was exasperated and said to him: "You shall not go further on your way," and the child immediately fell down and died. But some, who saw what took place, said: "From where does this child spring, since every word is an accomplished deed?"

Here is one more example from the Arabic Infancy Gospel:

One day, when Jesus was running about and playing with some children, he passed by the workshop of a dyer called Salem.

They had in the workshop many cloths which he had to dye. The Lord Jesus went into the dyer's workshop, took all these cloths, and put them into a cauldron full of indigo.

When Salem came and saw that the cloths were spoiled, he began to cry aloud and asked the Lord Jesus, saying: "What have you done to me, son of Mary?

You have ruined my reputation in the eyes of all the people of the city; for everyone orders a suitable colour for himself, but you have come and spoiled everything."

And the Lord Jesus replied: "I will change for you the colour of any cloth which you wish to be changed"; and he immediately began to take the cloths out of the cauldron, each of them dyed as the dyer wished, until he had taken them all out.

When the Jews saw this miracle and wonder, they praised God.

After such stories, the account in Luke 2:41–52 seems a bit drab—and that is precisely what speaks in favor of its authenticity. It does not appear to be motivated by a desire to overplay Jesus' uniqueness.

The claim to uniqueness is much more subtle and that accords with the way Jesus acted most of the time. In addition the Greek language of the story is almost certainly a translation of the Semitic language of Palestine, which means that it was not created, like many of the legends, in Greek-speaking areas far removed from the land of the eyewitnesses.

On the contrary, it is Jewish in content and language and, therefore, probably originated in Palestine; and the most likely source for the story is Mary.

We know from Luke 1:2 that Luke puts a high premium on eyewitness confirmation.

Luke 1:2 KJV 1900

2 Even as they delivered them unto us, which from the beginning were eyewitnesses, and ministers of the word;

We also know from Acts that while Paul was imprisoned for two years in Jerusalem and in Caesarea, his sidekick Luke was probably roaming around Jerusalem interviewing old-timers and collecting information for his gospel.

And finally we have seen three times so far in Luke's gospel that he mentioned people keeping experiences in their hearts, that is, remembering them.

In Luke 1:66 he said that all who heard how John the Baptist was born "laid it up in their hearts, saying, 'What then will this child be?'"

Luke 1:66 KJV 1900

66 And all they that heard them laid them up in their hearts, saying, What manner of child shall this be! And the hand of the Lord was with him.

In Luke 2:19 after the shepherds had come to Bethlehem, Luke says, "But Mary kept all these things, pondering them in her heart."

Luke 2:19 KJV 1900

19 But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart.

And then here at the end of our text in Luke 2:51 it says, "And his mother kept all these things in her heart."

Luke 2:51 KJV 1900

51 And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them: but his mother kept all these sayings in her heart.

Isn't the most likely reason for mentioning this storing up of memories to give Theophilus and us a clue as to how he, a Gentle foreigner, was able to write as much as he did about Jesus' childhood?

Therefore, in view of how few are the gospel narratives of the child Jesus, and how much more reserved they are than the apocryphal legends, and how great Luke's concern is to trace things out carefully and confirm it with eyewitnesses, and how Jewish the setting and language is, and how easily available Mary probably was, it seems to me that the claim that this story in Luke 2:41–52 is legendary is wrong and probably stems from an unwillingness to own up to the main point of the story, namely, that Jesus is uniquely the Son of God.

Luke 2:41–52 KJV 1900

41 Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the passover. 42 And when he was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast. 43 And when they had fulfilled the days, as they returned, the child Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem; and Joseph and his mother knew not of it. 44 But they, supposing him to have been in the company, went a day’s journey; and they sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance. 45 And when they found him not, they turned back again to Jerusalem, seeking him. 46 And it came to pass, that after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions. 47 And all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers. 48 And when they saw him, they were amazed: and his mother said unto him, Son, why hast thou thus dealt with us? behold, thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing. 49 And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business? 50 And they understood not the saying which he spake unto them. 51 And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them: but his mother kept all these sayings in her heart. 52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.

Jesus as a Boy in the Temple

Now let's read through the narrative making some comments as we go to see if we can hit on the main point and any lessons there are for our lives.

Verse Luke 2:41: "Now his parents went up to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the Passover."

Luke 2:41 KJV 1900

41 Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the passover.

Here Luke stresses again how devout and law-abiding Jesus' parents were.

We saw in Luke 2:22, 23, 24, and 39 how Mary and Joseph did all that the Mosaic law required.

Luke 2:22 KJV 1900

22 And when the days of her purification according to the law of Moses were accomplished, they brought him to Jerusalem, to present him to the Lord;

Luke 2:23 KJV 1900

23 (As it is written in the law of the Lord, Every male that openeth the womb shall be called holy to the Lord;)

Luke 2:24 KJV 1900

24 And to offer a sacrifice according to that which is said in the law of the Lord, A pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons.

By stressing this, Luke tries to help Theophilus accept the fact that, although Jesus was killed by Jewish teachers, it was not really because he was outside the Jewish faith.

Jesus' parents, and now we will see Jesus himself, were devoted to the law of Moses.

They loved it, studied it, obeyed it.

Luke will show very soon (in chapter 4) the real reason why he, a devout Jew, could be rejected and killed by his own people.

Luke 2: 42: "And when he was 12 years old they went up according to the custom."

Luke 2:42 KJV 1900

42 And when he was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast.

The fact that this incident happened when Jesus was 12 is probably significant.

The 12th year was the final year of preparation for a lad before he entered full participation in the religious life of the synagogue.

Up until that time his parents, especially his father, were teaching him the commandments of the law, but at the end of the 12th year the child goes through a ceremony by which he formally takes on the yoke of the law and becomes a bar mitzvah or "son of the commandment."

This was the year Jesus chose to stay behind in the temple.

Perhaps, at this crucial turning point in every Jewish boy's life, Jesus wanted to demonstrate subtly for those who had eyes to see that he would be more than an ordinary Jewish bar mitzvah; his insight into the commandment was more profound than ordinary men, and his relation to God was unique.

Both of these will be evident in a moment.

Verses Luke 2: 43, 44: "And when the feast was ended, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem.

Luke 2:43 KJV 1900

43 And when they had fulfilled the days, as they returned, the child Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem; and Joseph and his mother knew not of it.

Luke 2:44 KJV 1900

44 But they, supposing him to have been in the company, went a day’s journey; and they sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance.

His parents did not know it, but supposing him to be in the company they went a day's journey."

That's like driving from Minneapolis to Chicago and realizing you left your child and having to drive back again.

Only it's worse: they were probably walking.

Two things stand out here, and they seem inconsistent.

First, there is Jesus' apparent disregard for his parents' time and feelings.

Second, there is implicit faith Mary and Joseph have in their 12 year old son.

If he had been an irresponsible child, his parents would never have gone a whole day without knowing his whereabouts.

They trusted him and knew he had good judgment.

This suggests that Jesus' motive in staying behind was not carelessness or disrespect.

Evidently he intentionally let them go in order to demonstrate something more forcefully.

Verses Luke 2: 43–46: "They sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintances; and when they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem seeking him.

Luke 2:43–46 KJV 1900

43 And when they had fulfilled the days, as they returned, the child Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem; and Joseph and his mother knew not of it. 44 But they, supposing him to have been in the company, went a day’s journey; and they sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance. 45 And when they found him not, they turned back again to Jerusalem, seeking him. 46 And it came to pass, that after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions.

After three days they found him in the temple."

There is no way to know whether this means three days since leaving Jerusalem (one out, one back, and one in search), or whether it means three days searching in Jerusalem.

It's hard to imagine three days searching in Jerusalem because, probably, Jesus and his parents would have gone to the same place to spend the night.

How Mary and Joseph and Jesus feel about this search comes out later in verses Luke 2:48- 49.

Luke 2:48–49 KJV 1900

48 And when they saw him, they were amazed: and his mother said unto him, Son, why hast thou thus dealt with us? behold, thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing. 49 And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business?

Verses Luke 2: 46, 47: "They found him in the temple sitting among the teachers listening to them and asking them questions; and all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers."

Luke 2:46 KJV 1900

46 And it came to pass, that after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions.

Luke 2:47 KJV 1900

47 And all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers.

This sentence sets my mind to thinking about all sorts of things I'd love to talk about for hours.

A. One is the relationship between teachers and students and the role of listening, querying, and answering.

B.Another is the mystery of how the divine and human natures unite in the one person, Jesus.

If he is God, how can he increase in wisdom, as verse Luke 2: 52 says he does?

Luke 2:52 KJV 1900

52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.

C. Finally, this sentence sparks in my mind a scene 18 years later when perhaps some of these very same teachers would gnash their teeth at this boy's wisdom and want to kill him.

Let me make just a few observations about each of these three topics.

Wondering About Young Jesus at the Temple

Bible Verse  Luke 2:49

Luke 2:49 KJV 1900

49 And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business?

Bible Reading:

Luke 2: 41-52 ; Eph 2:10

Luke 2:41–52 KJV 1900

41 Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the passover. 42 And when he was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast. 43 And when they had fulfilled the days, as they returned, the child Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem; and Joseph and his mother knew not of it. 44 But they, supposing him to have been in the company, went a day’s journey; and they sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance. 45 And when they found him not, they turned back again to Jerusalem, seeking him. 46 And it came to pass, that after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions. 47 And all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers. 48 And when they saw him, they were amazed: and his mother said unto him, Son, why hast thou thus dealt with us? behold, thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing. 49 And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business? 50 And they understood not the saying which he spake unto them. 51 And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them: but his mother kept all these sayings in her heart. 52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.

Ephesians 2:10 KJV 1900

10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

Unpacking the Story of Young Jesus at the Temple

The Boy Jesus at the Temple is the only biblical story of Jesus’ childhood ( Luke 2:41-52 ).

Luke 2:41–52 KJV 1900

41 Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the passover. 42 And when he was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast. 43 And when they had fulfilled the days, as they returned, the child Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem; and Joseph and his mother knew not of it. 44 But they, supposing him to have been in the company, went a day’s journey; and they sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance. 45 And when they found him not, they turned back again to Jerusalem, seeking him. 46 And it came to pass, that after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions. 47 And all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers. 48 And when they saw him, they were amazed: and his mother said unto him, Son, why hast thou thus dealt with us? behold, thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing. 49 And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business? 50 And they understood not the saying which he spake unto them. 51 And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them: but his mother kept all these sayings in her heart. 52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.

Before reading this passage, ask God for wisdom and illumination, and then listen for God’s voice as you read.

As you wonder about this story together as a family, you might ask, “What did this passage mean to those who originally read it?”

Because Luke wrote this story a long time ago and in an ancient culture, it might help to unpack scripture before we ask, “How does this apply to us today?”

Why did Jesus’ family go every year to Jerusalem?

Luke wanted to teach his non-Jewish readers about the Passover. Lasting eight days, the Passover is the major feast celebrated at the beginning of the Jewish year.

Passover commemorated the passing over of the death angel in Egypt as told in the Book of Exodus.

During this visit to the Temple, Jesus would have seen the preparations for sacrificing the Passover lambs.

Did he wonder that this entire ritual pointed toward his own sacrifice?

Jesus was raised in a good Jewish home.

In fact, his parents are profoundly strong in their faith!

We've seen it in the way that they obeyed angels' commands and how they welcomed worshipping shepherds, and now we see that they follow God's law too.

Jerusalem was 80 miles away from where Jesus and his family lived in Nazareth, so they had to travel several days to get there.

Because both Mary and Joseph made the trip each year, we see how much they loved and obeyed the law.

Imagine what it would be like if your family had to hike several days to celebrate Christmas or Easter.

What happened to Jesus?

Imagine how a boy from the small town of Nazareth would feel when visiting the big city of Jerusalem and the temple.

Has your family ever visited a big city for the first time? What was that new adventure like?

Luke doesn’t tell his readers how Joseph and Mary traveled for a day before discovering that Jesus was missing, or why they hadn’t been looking for him sooner.

In verse 44, he says that they assumed Jesus was with friends or relatives.

Traveling safely in a group, men would gather with other men and women with women. Children played together.

Mary and Joseph were worried.

What happened to Jesus?

Did he get hurt?

Was he lost?

Where was Jesus?

Luke shows that even from a young age, people could tell that Jesus was special.

Luke shows that the young child Jesus spoke with real wisdom and authority as he sat among the teachers in the temple.

He spoke that way because God is his Father!

As was seen in a Jewish school at the time, Jesus was listening to the teachers and asking them good questions.

They were amazed to hear such good answers from a twelve-year-old boy.

It’s interesting to wonder if some of these teachers of the law would many years later hear Jesus speak again and maybe even attend his trial.

What is Jesus’ mission?

When Joseph and Mary finally found Jesus, they asked him why he had done this. Mary says, “Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you.”

Now Jesus spoke his first recorded words in scripture.

“‘Why were you searching for me?’ he asked.

‘Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?’” (v. Luke 2: 49).

Luke 2:49 KJV 1900

49 And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business?

Jesus’ parents—and Luke’s readers—needed to understand that Jesus knew his mission.

In hindsight we can see that Jesus was telling his parents that he is God’s Son and that God has a purpose for him.

At that time, the parents didn’t understand.

Luke tells us that Mary “treasured all these things in her heart.”

Today, we can do that same thing—wonder at how Jesus is God’s Son yet fully human, how amazing it is that he gave his life for us, and how we can do our Father’s work that he has “prepared in advance for us to do” (Ephesians 2:10).

Ephesians 2:10 KJV 1900

10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

Some Wanderings

Here are some wanderings that we could share after reading the story.

Why is it important for Jesus to be 100% human?

Why is it important for Jesus to be 100% God?

How is it possible for Jesus to be 100% God and 100% human?

If Jesus is fully God, how did he grow up and learn things?

So Jesus knew, even at age 12, that he would have to die for our sins?

What was it like for Mary and Joseph to raise Jesus as their son?

What was Jesus like as a kid? How was he like me?

What mission has God chosen for me? What is God calling me to do?

Story Overview:

While visiting the temple in Jerusalem at age twelve, Jesus became separated from his parents and was inadvertently left behind.

Upon returning to Jerusalem three days later, his worried parents found him at the temple listening to the teachers and amazing those around him with his understanding.

Background Study:

Joseph and Mary had kept Jesus in Egypt to protect him from King Herod.

Matthew tells us ( Matthew 2:19-23) that the angel came to Joseph in Egypt and told him to take Mary and Jesus back to Israel.

Matthew 2:19–23 KJV 1900

19 But when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeareth in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, 20 Saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel: for they are dead which sought the young child’s life. 21 And he arose, and took the young child and his mother, and came into the land of Israel. 22 But when he heard that Archelaus did reign in Judaea in the room of his father Herod, he was afraid to go thither: notwithstanding, being warned of God in a dream, he turned aside into the parts of Galilee: 23 And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, He shall be called a Nazarene.

They ended up back in the town of Nazareth.

This fulfilled prophecy that Jesus would be called a Nazarene (verse 23).

Jesus was raised as a normal Jewish boy of his time. He was known as Joseph’s son and learned his “father’s” trade of carpentry.

Jesus would have attended synagogue school and would have observed the Sabbath and the Jewish feast days.

When Jesus was twelve years old, it was time for him to take his place as an adult male in the religious community.

He was now old enough to take part in the observances of the Jewish faith.

Jewish men were required to attend the religious celebrations surrounding the Feast of the Passover in Jerusalem.

Sometimes their wives and children accompanied them.

Jerusalem was just over 100 kilometres (approximately 64 miles) south of Nazareth.

People travelled in groups for safety reasons.

This may or may not have been Jesus’ first trip since he was a baby.

Joseph and Mary stayed the full seven days of the festival, although they were required to stay only two.

The day they left Jerusalem, they probably thought Jesus was with the other members of their family who had also attended the feast.

When night came, they anxiously looked for him.

After searching the caravan they knew they had to return to Jerusalem.

The city would have been full of people so it must have been quite a job finding Jesus.

It seems they travelled one day away from Jerusalem and one day back.

The third day was spent searching Jerusalem for their son.

They finally found him in the temple courts totally absorbed in listening to the teachers and asking them questions.

Others were amazed at Jesus’ understanding but his parents were just worried about their son.

As a teacher you might use this time to talk about how important it is to tell your parents where you are going to be.

Parents need to know where we are at all times.

As parents we can imagine how Joseph and Mary must have felt.

This seems to be the first time that Jesus struck out on his own faith.

This would have been difficult for his parents to understand. Jesus still needed to mature and grow before he was ready to begin his ministry in the full sense.

He returned home to obey his parents and grow in all of the areas humans must grow in.

Wisdom: education. Stature:

physical growth. Favour with God:

spiritual growth. Favour with men:

social growth.

The Story:

When Jesus was a little boy his family moved to the town of Nazareth.

Jesus grew up doing the things that little boys do.

He played games with his friends and he went to school.

Joseph was a carpenter so Jesus learned how to help him make things from wood.

Every year Jesus travelled to Jerusalem to attend the Passover Feast.

This was a religious holiday and a special ceremony.

Joseph always took part in the celebration.

Jesus knew that someday he would be a grown man like Joseph.

Someday he would go to Jerusalem and visit the temple where the teachers were.

Finally, the time had come. Jesus was twelve years old.

This meant that he could go to the temple and take part in the

Passover Feast like the other men.

Jesus and his family travelled all the way to Jerusalem.

It took many days to get there. Sometimes there were robbers on the roads so Jesus’ family travelled along with lots of other families to be safe.

Jesus probably liked walking with his friends and cousins.

He might have played games and talked with them as they walked along the way to Jerusalem.

Joseph and Mary would have seen many of their friends in Jerusalem to.

It was a beautiful city and everyone was there to worship God. After the festivities it was time to go back home to Nazareth.

But as they headed home Joseph and Mary began to notice someone was missing.

At first they probably thought he was walking with his friends because they had been travelling a whole day when they finally realised he was not there.

After looking everywhere, they knew that he must still be back in Jerusalem.

Where was their son, Jesus?

They searched for him and finally found him.

Can you guess where Jesus was?

Joseph and Mary found Jesus in the temple courts. He was with the teachers of the Law and he was asking them questions.

It seems Jesus had enjoyed learning and listening so much that he had stayed to hear more.

Everyone there was amazed at how much this boy understood God’s word.

Mary told Jesus they had been searching and searching.

She wanted to know why he was still there at the temple.

Jesus surprised them with his answer.

“Why were you searching for me?”

he asked, “Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?”

Jesus knew that God was his father and that the temple was God’s special house.

When Mary and Joseph heard this they knew that Jesus was growing up. 

He was understanding more and more about his heavenly father. 

They knew that it would not be long before he was a man. But he was not a man yet!

He was only twelve years old.

Jesus travelled back to Nazareth and he obeyed his parents in everything they said.

Jesus helped the family and was a good son.

Jesus worked along with Joseph and learned to be a carpenter.

He made his mother and Joseph very happy.

Jesus was indeed growing but not just in his body. Jesus grew in four ways

1) He grew in wisdom.

That meant that he learned about God and the world and how to live a good life in the world. 

2) He grew physically.

That means he ate good food and exercised so he could grow big and strong.

3) He grew spiritually.

That means in the way he knew and loved God.

4) He grew socially.

That means he learned how to make friends and how to treat people nicely.

Jesus grew in all of these ways because he knew that someday he would die a special Death for all the World. John 3:16

John 3:16 KJV 1900

16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

I. Introduction  A. Read Luke 2:41–51, the only incident of Jesus’ childhood recorded in Scripture.

 B. Story: After a week of celebrating the Passover in Jerusalem, Joseph and Mary and many friends and relatives began the trek home to Nazareth.

At the end of a long day’s travel, His parents suddenly realize Jesus is not with them.

  1. They return and on the third day finally find Him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions.

  2. “Son, why have You treated us this way?

Behold, Your father and I have been anxiously looking for You.”

Mary is irritated that Jesus wasn’t with the rest of them headed toward his father’s house.

But Jesus had headed to His heavenly Father’s house, “Why is it that you were looking for Me?

Did you not know that I had to be in My Father’s house?

”(these are the first recorded words of our Lord – v .Luke 2: 48-49).

Luke 2:48–49 KJV 1900

48 And when they saw him, they were amazed: and his mother said unto him, Son, why hast thou thus dealt with us? behold, thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing. 49 And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business?

  3. This story gives us tantalizing little  glimpses into the fact that Jesus is not just Mary’s son, but the Son of God in heaven.

In this way, He was gently and tenderly discipling His mother.

  4. At this point He compliantly returned home with them.

II. Explanations

 A. Mary has frequently been criticized for what happens here. How do you lose Jesus?

How do you lose track of the Messiah?

How can you get a whole day’s journey down the road before you realize He’s not with you?

  1. But this is perfectly understandable to anyone who has a big family.

  2. Jesus was the oldest of at least seven children ( Matt.13:55-56 “Is not this the carpenter’s son?

Matthew 13:55–56 KJV 1900

55 Is not this the carpenter’s son? is not his mother called Mary? and his brethren, James, and Joses, and Simon, and Judas? 56 And his sisters, are they not all with us? Whence then hath this man all these things?

Is not his mother called Mary?

And are not his brothers James and Joseph and Simon and Judas?

Matt 13: 56 And are not all his sisters with us?”) – and probably more. 

Matthew 13:56 KJV 1900

56 And his sisters, are they not all with us? Whence then hath this man all these things?

  3. Assuming they were all born at this point, Joseph and Mary had six or more other children under 11.

  4. We know something about this family.

Things were a little crazy. His parents were very busy.

  5. All those who have seven children can understand it easily.

Virtually all families of that size have their stories about how they left a kid here or there and didn’t realize it.

   a. He was the oldest. He was the last one they were worried about.

They also knew He was trustworthy. (Mary & Joseph must have experienced quite a let-down when the second child came along.)

  6. I’m not suggesting that Mary & Joseph felt no grief when they realized Jesus was not with them.

Every parent has grief when they lose a child!

   a. But how much more intense was the grief of Mary and Joseph when they lost not only their child but the salvation of the world!

   b. The 3 days of missing Jesus foreshadowed the three days of Mary’s grief after the cross. 

 B. What was going on in the temple for those three days? Luke 2:46–47 “After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions.

Luke 2:46–47 KJV 1900

46 And it came to pass, that after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions. 47 And all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers.

Luke 2: 47 And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers.”

Luke 2:47 KJV 1900

47 And all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers.

  1. Listening to them explain things and asking them questions

  2. Explaining things to them and answering their questions

  3. There was back and forth, teaching and learning from each other.

III. To grasp the power of this story, we need to understand the relationship between Jesus & the temple.

 A. The foundations of the threshold must have shaken (Is.6:4) when this little 12 year old wandered in.

Isaiah 6:4 KJV 1900

4 And the posts of the door moved at the voice of him that cried, and the house was filled with smoke.

 B. A temple is the house of a god.

And the OT temple  was God’s house.

He dwelt there in the glory cloud which hovered over the ark of the covenant.

But before the exile to Babylon the glory cloud departed from the temple (Ezek.10).

Ezekiel 10 KJV 1900

1 Then I looked, and, behold, in the firmament that was above the head of the cherubims there appeared over them as it were a sapphire stone, as the appearance of the likeness of a throne. 2 And he spake unto the man clothed with linen, and said, Go in between the wheels, even under the cherub, and fill thine hand with coals of fire from between the cherubims, and scatter them over the city. And he went in in my sight. 3 Now the cherubims stood on the right side of the house, when the man went in; and the cloud filled the inner court. 4 Then the glory of the Lord went up from the cherub, and stood over the threshold of the house; and the house was filled with the cloud, and the court was full of the brightness of the Lord’s glory. 5 And the sound of the cherubims’ wings was heard even to the outer court, as the voice of the Almighty God when he speaketh. 6 And it came to pass, that when he had commanded the man clothed with linen, saying, Take fire from between the wheels, from between the cherubims; then he went in, and stood beside the wheels. 7 And one cherub stretched forth his hand from between the cherubims unto the fire that was between the cherubims, and took thereof, and put it into the hands of him that was clothed with linen: who took it, and went out. 8 And there appeared in the cherubims the form of a man’s hand under their wings. 9 And when I looked, behold the four wheels by the cherubims, one wheel by one cherub, and another wheel by another cherub: and the appearance of the wheels was as the colour of a beryl stone. 10 And as for their appearances, they four had one likeness, as if a wheel had been in the midst of a wheel. 11 When they went, they went upon their four sides; they turned not as they went, but to the place whither the head looked they followed it; they turned not as they went. 12 And their whole body, and their backs, and their hands, and their wings, and the wheels, were full of eyes round about, even the wheels that they four had. 13 As for the wheels, it was cried unto them in my hearing, O wheel. 14 And every one had four faces: the first face was the face of a cherub, and the second face was the face of a man, and the third the face of a lion, and the fourth the face of an eagle. 15 And the cherubims were lifted up. This is the living creature that I saw by the river of Chebar. 16 And when the cherubims went, the wheels went by them: and when the cherubims lifted up their wings to mount up from the earth, the same wheels also turned not from beside them. 17 When they stood, these stood; and when they were lifted up, these lifted up themselves also: for the spirit of the living creature was in them. 18 Then the glory of the Lord departed from off the threshold of the house, and stood over the cherubims. 19 And the cherubims lifted up their wings, and mounted up from the earth in my sight: when they went out, the wheels also were beside them, and every one stood at the door of the east gate of the Lord’s house; and the glory of the God of Israel was over them above. 20 This is the living creature that I saw under the God of Israel by the river of Chebar; and I knew that they were the cherubims. 21 Every one had four faces apiece, and every one four wings; and the likeness of the hands of a man was under their wings. 22 And the likeness of their faces was the same faces which I saw by the river of Chebar, their appearances and themselves: they went every one straight forward.

In the destruction of Jerusalem the ark of the covenant was lost.

And after the people returned from exile and rebuilt the temple, the temple had no ark of the covenant and no glory cloud.

When Solomon’s temple was built, the glory cloud came and entered into the temple in spectacular fashion.

But when this temple was built, there was no such entrance.

For many years it sat, triumphant and glorious in terms of beauty and architecture, but its real beauty was missing, for God was not in it.

 C. So, when Jesus comes to the temple, the temple is suddenly fulfilled, the temple becomes what it is supposed to be.

The owner of the house is back at home.

Finally, the temple was the way it was supposed to be.

 D. So, it’s no wonder that when Jesus enters at age 12 the whole place gets stirred up at His presence.

 E. And this was just the beginning: Jesus did a lot of teaching and healing in the temple.

 F. Later He shook things up even more when He overturned the tables of the moneychangers and said, “My Father’s house is to be a house of prayer!” (Matt.21:13)

Matthew 21:13 KJV 1900

13 And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.

 G. But what’s most interesting is His final departure from the temple in the last days before the cross.

  1. Matthew 23:37–24:2 “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! 38 See, your house [not My Father’s house] is left to you desolate [tragically empty]...

Matthew 23:37–24:2 KJV 1900

37 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! 38 Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. 39 For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord. 1 And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to him for to shew him the buildings of the temple. 2 And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.

1 Jesus left the temple and was going away, when his disciples came to point out to him the buildings of the temple.

2 But he answered them, “You see all these, do you not? Truly, I say to you, there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.” (Predicting the destruction of the temple).

  2. That Day ( i Believe to be Wednesday), at His crucifixion, the veil in the temple which separated the place of the priests from the Holy of Holies was torn in half from top to bottom, signifying that the entrance into God’s presence had now been opened through Christ’s death.

  3. This temple was totally destroyed in 70AD, about 40 years later, and has never been rebuilt.

 H. But this doesn’t mean there is no temple today.

There is a temple, though it is a different kind of temple.

  1. OT temple versus NT temple

  2. John 4:23 “An hour is coming and now is when people will worship God in spirit and in truth.”

John 4:23 KJV 1900

23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.

  3. 1Pet.2:4-5 a temple made of living stones (see also Hebrews 3:6, 10:21)

1 Peter 2:4–5a KJV 1900

4 To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious,

Hebrews 3:6 KJV 1900

6 But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.

Hebrews 10:21 KJV 1900

21 And having an high priest over the house of God;

IV. In light of all this, the story of Jesus in the temple at 12 is amazing!

 A. Jesus, the Son of God, the very glory of the temple, humbled Himself by immersing Himself in the human structures God had instituted in order to grow in the knowledge and wisdom of God.

 B. He submitted Himself to the institution of teaching.

  1. He learned from the teachers of the law. He asked them questions and listened to their answers.

  2. He put Himself under the teaching of others.

  3. He could have been transfigured at that moment instead of much later.

Then everyone could have seen that He was the glory cloud in human form.

But instead He humbled Himself and listened and asked questions and explained things.

  4. We’re told elsewhere (Luke 4:16) that, as he was growing up, each week He went to synagogue.

Luke 4:16 KJV 1900

16 And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.

   a. To know the Bible this well at the age of 12, He must have spent a lot of time in God’s word as a child.

Did His family have a Bible?

Probably not.

Very few had copies, and virtually none among the poor.

   b. He learned His Bible in the synagogue and in conversations with others. 

   c. Think about how He must have listened in the synagogue, listening to the word of God, but also listening to fallible men.

   d. Jesus’ attentiveness to the word of God – even as taught by fallible men – is a calling to give our attention to the word of God.

  5. One of the gifts of the Spirit by which the Spirit blesses His church is the gift of teaching: the ministry of teaching and explaining the Scriptures, along with the building collection of understanding and insight about the Scriptures which as been passed down through the ages.

   a. And that gift has never been more accessible to God’s people that it is today.

   b. Commentaries, books, Sunday school, online resources, Sermon audio app, etc.

besides sermons at church.

And there are many great teachers of the Bible accessible to us today!

  6. If Jesus was willing to learn God’s word from fallible teachers, who are we to turn away?

 C. God’s word is significantly understandable even to a 12 year old.

Do we have any 12 year olds here?

  1. Jesus has two minds, a divine mind and a human mind. Jesus using His human mind here.

   a. Ordinarily Jesus used His human mind, except for a few times.

   b. We see His human mind in Matthew 24:36 when He says, “Of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven nor the Son, but the Father only.”

Matthew 24:36 KJV 1900

36 But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.

   c. Luke 2:52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.

Luke 2:52 KJV 1900

52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.

   d. How can the mind of God increase in wisdom?

This is clearly referring to Jesus in His humanity.

In His deity He couldn’t learn anything – for God knows everything.

   e. If the point of this story was to work a miracle, it would have been done when Jesus was two or three years of age. But He’s 12.

  2. Here was a mind fully engaged in what you should be engaged in when you’re 12 years old.

  3. He eagerly absorbed everything that came His way – so that He grew in wisdom.

He had a hunger to do right, a passion to become wise, a zeal to please His Father in heaven.

  4. Would the author of all the Bible’s commands to give close attention to the word of God and to have His word upon one’s heart, would He not practice this Himself?

  5. What does this story say about what a 12 year old is capable of? What does this say about the human capacity to grasp the truth of Scripture?

  6. Our problem with the Scriptures is not an intellectual one but a spiritual one.

  7. Jesus was this way not because He was God but because He was sinless. (God doesn’t have to learn anything or debate with anybody.)

  8. We are NOT this way NOT because we are not God, but because we are not sinless.

Or to put it another way, we are not this way because we are sinful.

  9. We often have the wrong idea re: sin.

We think what is normal is OK.

And when I do what is extraordinarily bad, that is sin.

But Jesus is the standard. We need to repent not only when we lie or disobey.

We need to repent that we're not like Jesus.

And this makes it very clear why we cannot rely on our own righteousness but only on His!

Praise God that He lived the life we – in our sin –  couldn’t live.

 D. And finally, if we want to follow Christ, we need to go where He goes.

We need to go with love into the world of sinners.

We need to go into places of need. We need to be willing to go into places of danger and risk.

And we also need to go to the temple, even if it means going without our family.

  1. The church has an earthly dimension to it and a heavenly one.

There is the visible church and the invisible church.

And the relationship between the two is complicated.

  2. But there is a temple for us – made of living stones — which is our home.

  3. It is our Father’s house, where we live with our brothers and sisters.

It’s where we have supper together.

It’s where we pray for each other and learn about each other and get to know our Father.

  4. It’s the place of the Book, which our Father opens and tells us its wonderful stories.

  5. In this story Jesus neglects His family to attend to a higher family.

  6. And by His example He calls us to forsake even the best things of this world, in order to seek the things above, in order to go to that place God has designated for people to connect with Him.

And what is that place?

It is where 2 or 3 gather in His name, and He is in the midst of them (Mt.18:20).

Matthew 18:20 KJV 1900

20 For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.

  7. It is the place where God’s people dwell, the place where the Scriptures are read and studied and discussed and cherished, the a place where our questions get answered, the place where God lives.

  8. In this story, Jesus is pointing us to His temple, a home more important than our family’s home.

  9. Jesus wants us to follow Him there:into God’s presence, into the house of Scripture, in the house of prayer, into the house of God’s people.

Twelve-year-old Jesus in the Temple at Passover

On Sunday, the 10th of April, 2017, the Jewish people begin celebrating Pesach –

Evening of Wed, Apr 5, 2023 - Evening of Thu, Apr 13, 2023

Passover 2023 starts at sundown on Wednesday, April 5 and ends on Thursday night, April 13 or Wednesday, April 12 depending on family tradition. The first Passover seder occurs on the evening of April 5, and the second Passover seder occurs on the evening of April 6.

Jewish Passover. That is one week earlier than Easter. However, in this blog post we would like to remember the time that Jesus as a twelve-year-old visited the Temple during Passover for the first time in his life.

Reconstruction drawing showing young Jesus (in blue) on the steps of the Temple Terrace (ḥel)  with the rabbis.

The Temple in the time of Christ was a magnificent building. From the Temple Court (azarah), 12 steps led up to the Porch that was as high as the Temple itself. In front of the entrance to the Sanctuary, a

Golden Vine was attached to four columns.

📷According to Josephus, Herod’s Temple looked like a snow-clad mountain, for all that was not overlaid with gold was of the purest white and it lacked nothing that could astound either mind or eye. 

No wonder that some of Jesus’ disciples remarked “how the Temple was adorned with beautiful stones and with gifts dedicated to God” ( Matthew 24.1; Luke 21.5).

Matthew 24:1 KJV 1900

1 And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to him for to shew him the buildings of the temple.

Luke 21:5 KJV 1900

5 And as some spake of the temple, how it was adorned with goodly stones and gifts, he said,

The central feature of this complex, the Holy of Holies, was located deep inside, at the west end of the Sanctuary. No one could enter this place of utmost sanctity but the High Priest once a year on the Day of Atonement.

A veil separated the Holy of Holies from a place of lesser sanctity, the Holy Place.

The Temple Court lay in front of the Temple and it contained the Altar, the Laver and the Place of Slaughtering (or Shambles).

This was the closest court to the Temple and out of bounds to anyone like Jesus who was not a priest.

📷This reconstruction drawing shows the Temple, viewed from the east. It was surrounded by a court, called the Temple Court or azarah in Hebrew.

In front of the Temple stood the Altar, the Laver (Basin) and the pillars and tables that were used in the preparation of sacrifices.

Several gates and other buildings stood to the north and south of the Temple. This Temple Court was separated by the Nicanor Gate from the Court of Women, which lay to the east of the Temple.

 Buildings, called gates, surrounded this complex. In front of the gates was a terrace (ḥel – pronounced chel with the “ch” sounding guttural as in the Scottish “loch”) of 10 cubits wide, which was reached by a flight of steps of half a cubit high and deep.

This terrace bounded the wall of the gate buildings on their southern, western and northern sides.

📷Reconstruction model of the Temple Mount, showing the southern terrace (ḥel) .

The little blue figure at middle right represents young Jesus.

It is on this ḥel that we get our first glimpse of Jesus after the birth narratives in the Gospels.

Scripture is silent about his youth although it is clear from the observations of nature and Biblical history later attributed to him by the Gospel writers that he absorbed every spiritual and historical lesson that was provided by his upbringing in the countryside around Nazareth.

Now he was twelve years of age and his first words are recorded for us (Luke 2. 41-52).

Luke 2:41–52 KJV 1900

41 Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the passover. 42 And when he was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast. 43 And when they had fulfilled the days, as they returned, the child Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem; and Joseph and his mother knew not of it. 44 But they, supposing him to have been in the company, went a day’s journey; and they sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance. 45 And when they found him not, they turned back again to Jerusalem, seeking him. 46 And it came to pass, that after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions. 47 And all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers. 48 And when they saw him, they were amazed: and his mother said unto him, Son, why hast thou thus dealt with us? behold, thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing. 49 And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business? 50 And they understood not the saying which he spake unto them. 51 And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them: but his mother kept all these sayings in her heart. 52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.

Luke 2:41–52 KJV 1900

41 Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the passover. 42 And when he was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast. 43 And when they had fulfilled the days, as they returned, the child Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem; and Joseph and his mother knew not of it. 44 But they, supposing him to have been in the company, went a day’s journey; and they sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance. 45 And when they found him not, they turned back again to Jerusalem, seeking him. 46 And it came to pass, that after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions. 47 And all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers. 48 And when they saw him, they were amazed: and his mother said unto him, Son, why hast thou thus dealt with us? behold, thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing. 49 And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business? 50 And they understood not the saying which he spake unto them. 51 And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them: but his mother kept all these sayings in her heart. 52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.

Under the law, attendance at the feasts in Jerusalem was obligatory for boys from the age of thirteen, a birthday that was a milestone in the life of a Jewish boy, when they became a Son of the Commandment or Bar Mitzvah.

In practice, this legal age was pushed forward by one or two years so that Jesus, after he had passed his twelfth year, came up to Jerusalem for the Passover with his family.

Jesus’ first view of the Temple must have filled him with a great sense of the purpose he had been developing during the quiet years in Nazareth.

Attendance at the Temple was obligatory only for the first two days of Passover, after which many of the pilgrims would have returned home again.

It would appear that Joseph and Mary and their “company” did indeed start to return home and had travelled for a day. When they finally realized that Jesus was missing, it took them three days to find him and when they did, he was “in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them and asking them questions.” The ḥel is the only place in the Temple he could have been. We learn this from a tractate of the Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 88b, which tells us:

“It has been taught; R. Jose said; Originally there were not many disputes in Israel, but one Beth din of seventy-one members sat in the Hall of Hewn Stones, and two courts of twenty-three sat, one at the entrance of the Temple Mount and one at the door of the [Temple] Court, and other courts of twenty-three sat in all Jewish cities.”

 “The Great Sanhedrin] sat from the morning tamid (daily sacrifice) until the evening tamid [in the Hall of Hewn Stones]; on Sabbaths and festivals they sat within the ḥel.”

So, Passover would have been one such festival when members of the Temple Sanhedrin would come out to teach in this area.

Ordinary people, who normally had no access to the classrooms where young priests were taught, could come and question them. Jesus must have eagerly made use of this opportunity and never would they have had such a sharp student as him.

During this visit to the Temple, he would have seen the preparations for sacrificing the Passover lambs and realized, perhaps for the first time in his young life, that the entire ritual pointed forward to his own sacrifice.

He would have been so absorbed by all these experiences that he would not have wanted to leave. He forgot about his natural family, for here he was at home – in his Father’s house.

Background Scripture (read 2-3 times during the week)

Luke 2:41-52

Luke 2:41–52 KJV 1900

41 Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the passover. 42 And when he was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast. 43 And when they had fulfilled the days, as they returned, the child Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem; and Joseph and his mother knew not of it. 44 But they, supposing him to have been in the company, went a day’s journey; and they sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance. 45 And when they found him not, they turned back again to Jerusalem, seeking him. 46 And it came to pass, that after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions. 47 And all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers. 48 And when they saw him, they were amazed: and his mother said unto him, Son, why hast thou thus dealt with us? behold, thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing. 49 And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business? 50 And they understood not the saying which he spake unto them. 51 And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them: but his mother kept all these sayings in her heart. 52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.

Story Summary

Wisdom (mentally)Stature (physically)Favor with God (fellowship with the Father)Favor with all the people (socially)When Jesus was 12 years old, his parents took him to the temple to begin his Jewish education.

Although this is a short story, there are several important keys:

Jesus stayed behind when his family had left to go back home.

This is actually a difficult little detail for kids to understand, because if they did something like this, it would be seen as disobedient to their parents.

Be sure to teach this in a way that does not make it look like Jesus did this out of disobedience.

From the narrative, it seems like there was a large group of people all traveling together.

The traveling party must have gotten a little loose in their accounting for the children.

Also, he was 12 by this time and would have been given a little more liberty than a small child.

Verse 50 specifically calls out that he was obedient to his earthly parents.

Jesus amazed the teachers with his understanding (indication of his divine nature).

It was remarkable to all those in attendance how he was answering the teachers' questions.

There seems to be an indication here that Jesus was aware of his divine nature at this point in his life.

He tells them they should have known to find him in his “Father's” house.

Had he talked to his family about his divine nature by this point?

How did Joseph feel when Jesus says that the temple is his Father's house?

Jesus grew and developed as a boy turning into a man (indication of his human nature).

Luke calls out 4 specific ways Jesus grew:

Jesus in the Temple

Luke 2: 39–52

Luke 2:39–52 KJV 1900

39 And when they had performed all things according to the law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own city Nazareth. 40 And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon him. 41 Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the passover. 42 And when he was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast. 43 And when they had fulfilled the days, as they returned, the child Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem; and Joseph and his mother knew not of it. 44 But they, supposing him to have been in the company, went a day’s journey; and they sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance. 45 And when they found him not, they turned back again to Jerusalem, seeking him. 46 And it came to pass, that after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions. 47 And all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers. 48 And when they saw him, they were amazed: and his mother said unto him, Son, why hast thou thus dealt with us? behold, thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing. 49 And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business? 50 And they understood not the saying which he spake unto them. 51 And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them: but his mother kept all these sayings in her heart. 52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.

When Jesus was 12 years old, He was brought to Jerusalem, where He entered deep conversations with the teachers in the temple.

In this sermon, R.C. Sproul continues his exposition of the gospel of Luke to explain what Jesus’ profound wisdom at this young age teaches us about the incarnation of Christ.

We’re going to continue our study this morning of the Gospel According to Saint Luke. We’re in Luke 2:39–52 . So when they had performed all things according to the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own city, Nazareth.

Luke 2:39–52 KJV 1900

39 And when they had performed all things according to the law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own city Nazareth. 40 And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon him. 41 Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the passover. 42 And when he was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast. 43 And when they had fulfilled the days, as they returned, the child Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem; and Joseph and his mother knew not of it. 44 But they, supposing him to have been in the company, went a day’s journey; and they sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance. 45 And when they found him not, they turned back again to Jerusalem, seeking him. 46 And it came to pass, that after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions. 47 And all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers. 48 And when they saw him, they were amazed: and his mother said unto him, Son, why hast thou thus dealt with us? behold, thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing. 49 And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business? 50 And they understood not the saying which he spake unto them. 51 And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them: but his mother kept all these sayings in her heart. 52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.

And the Child grew and became strong in spirit, filled with wisdom; and the grace of God was upon Him.

His parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover.

And when He was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem according to the custom of the feast.

When they had finished the days, as they returned, the Boy Jesus lingered behind in Jerusalem.

And Joseph and His mother did not know it; but supposing Him to have been in the company, they went a day’s journey, and sought Him among their relatives and acquaintances.

So when they did not find Him, they returned to Jerusalem, seeking Him. Now so it was that after three days they found Him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the teachers, both listening to them and asking them questions.

And all who heard Him were astonished at His understanding and answers.

So when they saw Him, they were amazed; and His mother said to Him, “Son, why have You done this to us?

Look, Your father and I have sought You anxiously.”

And He said to them, “Why did you seek Me?

Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?”

But they did not understand the statement which He spoke to them. Then He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was subject to them, but His mother kept all these things in her heart.

And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.

This is a wonderful narrative that Luke provides for us, and I pray that the truth found in it will be meaningful to you as you contemplate it this day. Let us pray.

Again, our Father and our God, we ask that You would stoop to our weakness.

The frailty of our understanding is complex.

We need Your help.

So please send Your Spirit to us this morning, for we ask it in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Jesus’ Childhood

. looking at His presentation in the temple when He was about six weeks old.Then there’s a gap from six weeks old to twelve years old, where we hear this narrative that I just read to you.

After that, we have another gap from age twelve to about age thirty, when Jesus appears to begin His public ministry.

We’ve often wondered why the gospel writers don’t fill us in with details of Jesus’ childhood.

The fraudulent writings of the second-century Gnostics in the so-called apocryphal gospels attempted to do that.

They told fanciful stories of the child Jesus being lonely as He was playing in the dirt, so He shaped figures of birds with mud, then did hocus-pocus and turned these dirt birds into living birds to play with.

Such nonsense really did not add any honor to the understanding of Jesus.

All we’re told in this text initially is that from the time He was presented in the temple until the time He appeared again at age twelve, He grew, became strong in spirit, became filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon Him.

It’s probable that Jewish young men became sons of the law or experienced what they called bar mitzvah at age thirteen.

It was the custom of the Jews at that time that a year before bar mitzvah, when the boy reached the age of twelve, the parents would take him to Jerusalem and show him all around the temple and the different sites around the Holy City to prepare him for the following year’s ceremony of bar mitzvah.

That’s probably why Jesus’ parents brought Him along to Jerusalem for this feast of the Passover.

Jesus Goes Missing

Luke tells us that when the time was finished for the celebration of the Passover, the pilgrims returned to their homes.

The custom in the day was to travel by caravan.

The caravan would be quite big, including the immediate family, aunts, uncles, and cousins, the extended family, and neighbors from the village and adjoining villages.

In this case, you would have all the family and friends from Nazareth and probably from Cana, Capernaum, and the other cities nearby.

The custom in these caravans was that the women and the children would be at the front, and the men and the young men at the back.

Jesus was on the threshold between child and young man, so I think it’s safe for us to assume that Mary assumed that Jesus was at the back of the caravan with Joseph, because she realized He certainly wasn’t with her.

In like manner, Joseph was coming up at the rear of the caravan with other men and young men and noticed that Jesus wasn’t with him, and so he probably assumed Jesus must be with his mother.

Safe assumption, but unfortunately, he was wrong.

At the end of the day, they would pitch their camp, and all the friends and relatives would get together around the campfire and spend time talking about their experiences in Jerusalem.

It was at that point that Mary and Joseph realized their son was missing. The question that filled them with anxiety was simply: “Where’s Jesus?

Where’s Jesus? Where’s my son?”

“I thought he was with you,” Joseph said. “No, no, no, I thought he was with you,” Mary said.

They looked all through the caravan, and they couldn’t find Him.

Dreadfully frightened and anxious, Mary and Joseph alone began the day-long journey back to Jerusalem, and all along the road they were hollering for Jesus and looking for Jesus.

Friends, it’s one thing to forget Your own child ., but to forget Jesus, that’s another story altogether.

Mary and Joseph came back to Jerusalem, spending a whole day on the journey.

When they arrived, Jesus wasn’t waiting for them at the front gate of the city.

They scoured the city, looking at the bazaar and all the shops that dotted the streets even in those days.

They went to the playground to see if He was playing with some of the other children.

They spent the whole day scouring the city of Jerusalem, and they couldn’t find Him.

Jesus Confounds the Rabbis

The last place Mary and Joseph expected to find Jesus was in the temple.

But finally, in desperation, they went into the temple.

It was the custom at that time that after the celebration of the Passover, the visiting rabbis and scholars, the theologians of the day—the PhDs of Israel—stayed around the city.

This was one of the few times during the year that they had the opportunity to sit down and discuss matters of theology.

These men were buzzing back and forth, talking about their theological theories.

To Mary and Joseph’s astonishment, they find Jesus sitting among these doctors, participating in the theological dialogue.

He was twelve years old, and not only was He participating, but it’s not like these elders were saying, “Go away son, you’re bothering me;” they were even more astonished than Mary and Joseph.

They couldn’t believe the insight and provocative questions coming from the mouth of this twelve-year-old boy.

He was obviously a child prodigy, but a child prodigy of such advanced learning that they had never ever witnessed anything like this in their lives.

They saw clearly that this child knew more than they did at every point.

The question for this morning is this: How did He know so much?

How is it possible for this twelve-year-old boy, Jesus, to confound the experts in the Law and the Scriptures?

Many people give one particularly quick and simple answer that I think is patently incorrect.

People often look at this event and say: “Why wouldn’t Jesus know all this?

He is God incarnate, and God is omniscient. God doesn’t have to be taught by the scholars.

God is not in need of learning from anybody, because He is omniscient.

He knows everything.

If Jesus is God incarnate, doesn’t that mean that He knew everything?”

Well, yes and no.

Two Fifth-Century Heresies

As we consider this, we bump right up against one of the greatest mysteries, as well as one of the most important doctrines of the Christian faith—the mystery of the incarnation of Christ.

We confess Him to be the God-Man, and we profess that He was in fact the very incarnation of God.

During the fifth century A.D., the church faced one of the most critical crises it had endured yet with the rise of two distinct and separate heresies at the same time, both of which seriously threatened the well-being of the church.

The first heresy was called the monophysite heresy, which had been advanced by a man by the name of Eutyches.

The monophysite heresy taught that, if Jesus was one person, He must have only had one nature, like every other person. It’s one-to-a-customer when it comes to humanity.

So, if Jesus was a single individual, He must have had a single nature.

Mono, which is the prefix of the word monophysite, means “one.” The root of this word, physis, is the word from which we get “physics,” the study of substance, the study of nature.

The monophysites, like Eutyches, believed that Jesus only had one nature.

So, if He only had one nature, was it divine or was it human? If you would ask a monophysite, “Was Jesus’ single nature divine or was it human?”

he would answer, “Yes.” He would say that Christ’s one nature was a blend, a mixture between deity and humanity.

Here’s a fifty-cent word for you: the monophysites called Jesus’ nature the one theanthropic nature.

Is that a great word or what?

That is one of these words that we call a “bastard word.”

It’s a word whose parents are questionable.

It’s an attempt to take two distinct words and jam them together to create this bastardized word, theanthropic.

Theos means God, anthropos means man, and so they say one theanthropic nature means Jesus that had one nature, a divinely human nature, or was it a humanly divine nature?

Under analysis, the church looked at that closely at the Council of Chalcedon in 451, and they said: “In this idea you have Jesus, whose one nature is both human and divine, but really it is neither. If His human nature has been deified, then it’s no longer human.

If His divine nature has been humanized, then it’s no longer divine.” So, the church said “absolutely no” to the monophysite heresy.

From the other aisle came the Nestorians, who said that if Christ has two natures, a human nature and a divine nature, then He must be two people.

It’s just like we have people today who don’t understand the Trinity, so instead of teaching the Trinity, they teach tritheism, or the idea of three gods. No—God is one in essence, three in person.

Jesus is just the opposite.

He’s one in person, two in essence.

The Four Negatives of Chalcedon

The Council at Chalcedon first made a positive affirmation.

They said that Jesus, in the mystery of the incarnation, is vera homo, vera Deus, “truly man and truly God.”

We must affirm both the true humanity of Jesus in the incarnation and affirm His true deity.

Then, they produced the famous four “negatives” of Chalcedon.

At this point, the church very wisely didn’t totally unpack the mystery of the incarnation.

They didn’t answer all the questions. Instead, they set the borders, a border on one side and a border on the other side.

They defined the incarnation in terms of what it was not, with these four negatives.

They said that Jesus is truly human, truly divine, with two natures perfectly united, but without mixture or confusion: “You hear that you monophysites?

No mixture, no confusion, no blending.”

Then they continued, saying that Jesus’ two natures are also without separation or division:

A pox on both houses was pronounced at Chalcedon.

They said that however we understand the incarnation, we can’t understand it in terms of a mixture or blend of deity and humanity, nor can we understand it in terms of a separation or division between the two natures.

After the comma, Chalcedon went on to say, “each nature retains its own attributes.”

That simple theological affirmation, “each nature retained its own attributes,” has been trampled on and brutally violated throughout church history and even today.

If we could just get those four negatives and “each nature retained its own attributes,” we would spare ourselves so much grief in trying to understand the God-Man.

So, how did Jesus know all these things in the temple?

Those that say that He knew all of it because of His divine nature are saying that, because the divine nature is omniscient, then the human nature must be omniscient, too.

In answer to this, we can’t divide the two natures, but we must distinguish them.

When Jesus walked down the street, He had physical legs, physical arms, fingers, and toes, and I’m going to ask you this: Were His legs and arms and fingers and toes a manifestation of His deity? Of course not.

God is not physical.

The divine nature doesn’t have legs.

It doesn’t have arms, it doesn’t have fingers, it doesn’t have toes.

How about when Jesus got hungry or thirsty?

Did that show forth His deity or His humanity?

I’m distinguishing, not separating. Even when He was thirsty in His human nature, His thirsty human nature was still perfectly united to His divine nature, but it wasn’t the divine nature that was thirsty.

God never gets thirsty, but humans get thirsty. That’s easy enough to understand when we’re talking about flesh and blood, getting thirsty and hungry.

But what about when it comes to knowledge?

One of the things that drove the great theologian Thomas Aquinas to distraction was the problem in Mark’s gospel, where at the end of His life, the disciples ask Jesus, “When are You coming back?”

He gave some general answers to the question, and He said, “But of the day and of the hour, no man knows, only the Father and not even the Son” (Mark 13:32)

Mark 13:32 KJV 1900

32 But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father.

. Thomas Aquinas said: “That can’t be. Jesus had to know the day and the hour.

He was God incarnate.”

Aquinas was saying, “Certainly, the divine nature knew, and if they were perfectly united, then the human nature had to know, too.”

You say: “No, Thomas. Jesus’ human knowledge was as limited as anybody else’s human knowledge, unless the divine nature communicated information to the human nature.”

We know, for example, in the Old Testament, that there were prophets like Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel, who had supernatural knowledge of the future.

Did they gain that knowledge out of their own insight, or from going to synagogue school?

No, they gained that knowledge because God revealed it to them. Just like Jesus said, touching His humanity, “I say nothing on My own authority, but only what the Father teaches Me.”

The Communication of Attributes

There were times where Jesus displayed supernatural knowledge, such as when He knew Nathaniel before He ever met him, or when He knew all about the woman at the well.

But again, that didn’t rise from Jesus’ reservoir of human knowledge, but the Father or the divine nature revealed it to Him on that occasion.

It’s possible that when Jesus was at the temple, the divine nature whispered into His human ear and gave Him all the answers for the questions posed by the rabbis.

But I don’t think it’s necessary for us to speculate that Jesus showed such prodigious knowledge at age twelve because the divine nature was giving Him this insight.

Another heresy in the history of the church that Rome and some Protestants embrace relates to the communication of attributes.

This heresy says that in the incarnation, not only is knowledge communicated from the divine to the human, but the very substance of deity can be communicated from the divine to the human.

That takes us right back to the monophysites, because now you have that blending and mixing of the divine and the human, so we deny that line of thinking.

The divine nature could communicate information, but it couldn’t communicate a divine attribute to the human nature.

The divine attribute of omniscience belongs to the divine nature, not to the human nature.

Jesus’ Sinless Mind

If it wasn’t the divine nature whispering in the ear of the human nature, how was Jesus able to amaze the PhDs in the temple with His prodigious knowledge?

If I would have been there that day, I know I would have been put to shame by this twelve-year-old boy’s knowledge of theology.

He was twelve and I’m about to be seventy-three.

I’ve been studying theology seriously for well over fifty years, but I would have been confounded by the twelve-year-old Jesus.

In His human nature, by the time He was twelve, He knew an awful lot more about theology than I know today. Why?

The great commandment is that we’re to love the Lord our God with all of our hearts and all of our might and all of our minds.

I have a confession to make to you that should be obvious: I haven’t loved God with all of my mind for one minute in my life.

The ravages of sin that fall upon humanity from the fall don’t just affect the body and the will, but they also have a terrible effect on the mind.

When we reject God, which is our nature, our foolish minds are darkened.

We’re still able to add two and two and to come up with four. We’re still able to follow a logical argument sometimes, but we make all kinds of errors in math and logic even after much education because our minds have been weakened by the influence of sin.

I’m embarrassed to stand before my Lord at the end of my day and have revealed how much I don’t know about the Bible and how much I don’t know about the things of God that I would know if I would have applied myself more seriously and ardently throughout my lifetime.

I said that to a group of men in a Bible study recently, and after I confessed that what I fear the most at the judgment day is my lack of theological knowledge, one of them said, “If that’s the case, I’m doomed.” We may all be doomed.

Can you imagine a twelve-year-old boy who didn’t have the slightest influence of original sin in his life, whose thinking was for not one second ever clouded by darkness, that for every second of his twelve years loved the Lord his God with his entire mind?

You want to see a child prodigy that would turn the world upside down?

Find a perfect human being and see what they can learn in twelve years.

Jesus didn’t have to rely on His divine nature to astound anybody.

He could do it with His hands tied behind His back in His perfect humanity.

This wasn’t really like great musicians watching a five-year-old Mozart amaze them with his prodigious skill, because Mozart was fallen. He had to deal with the ravages of sin, and Jesus didn’t.

He knew His Father like no twelve-year-old had ever known before. Now think about this: it kept getting better for the next eighteen years. He was growing in His wisdom.

He was growing in His knowledge.

By the time Jesus was thirty, the people would say: “This man speaks like no other man we’ve ever heard.

He speaks as one having authority, not like the scribes and the Pharisees.”

If He was amazing everybody with His knowledge at twelve, what was He like at age thirty?

In any case, Mary and Joseph were amazed, but not as amazed as the scholars who were there.

So, Mary came up to Jesus and said to Him, “Son, why have you done this to us?”

Jesus Teaches His Parents

This may have the first time in His twelve years that Mary had to correct Jesus for anything: “Why have you done this to us? What kind of a son are you that hangs back in Jerusalem?

Didn’t you know we would be worried to death?

Look, your father and I have sought you anxiously.” So, she asked Him, “Why?”

Jesus answered a question with a question. He asked them:

“Why did you seek Me?

What are you so anxious about?

Why was I so hard for you to find?

Didn’t you know that I must be in my Father’s house?

Didn’t you understand it, mother, that I wasn’t here trying to be defiant to your authority?

I was here because I’m compelled to be in my Father’s house.

I’m not talking about Joseph’s house; I’m talking about God’s house.

Mother, I had to be here because this is where my Heavenly Father wanted me to be.”

We are never to disobey our parents unless our parents command us to do something God forbids or forbid us from doing something God commands.

So, Jesus not only had to teach the teachers, but He had to teach His parents about the truth of God.

Wouldn’t you have loved to have been a fly on a wall for that exchange?

“Then,” Luke tells us, “He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was subject to them,” that is, to Mary and Joseph, “but His mother kept all these things in her heart.

And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and with men.”

The next time we see Him is when He comes to be baptized by John. Let’s pray.

Father, help us to be amazed at what perfect humanity looks like, what sinlessness acts like, that we may not be surprised at the prodigious wisdom and knowledge that our Lord displayed in His humanity at so young an age.

For we ask it in His name. Amen.

Seek the Lord while he may be found.

A. THE SEARCH IS ON

B. NOWHERE TO BE FOUND

DOUBT ARRIVES