Grow As Christ

Good morning!

Today we are moving forward in our study of the Gospel of Luke, and it is an exciting passage because this is the first time that Jesus speaks for himself.

Until this moment in the narrative, many have spoken on his behalf, but today we see Jesus respond to his father and mother and, in doing so, reveals an important part of his nature to us.

I am excited for that.

Last week we learned about Anna the Prophetess and how she proclaimed the good news that the Messiah had arrived.

In studying that passage, we affirmed the ministry of women in the church and their ability to hear and speak on God’s behalf as his spokesperson.

We saw in both the Old and new testaments that this was a well-established and verified ministry.

This moment in the birth narrative is important because Anna’s prophecy is held up as the second reliable witness to his circumcision and presentation at the temple.

And then, many of us came together Friday night for Secret Church and learned together about the heart of God for all people.

That heart of God was also contrasted against our hearts as fallen people.

It was incredible, to say the least, and you will see a few glimpses of that in the message today.

Earlier in the week, as I was preparing for this message, I felt led by God to build some time into our worship service for us to have some intentional prayer time.

I wanted to give you a heads-up so that when that happens at the end of the sermon, you won’t be surprised by it.

I’ll lead that time, and David is going to come up and play.

In today’s passage, we are going to see the narrative skip forward about twelve years.

Again, Mary and Joseph have brought Jesus to the temple to celebrate the Passover, and that is where our story will pick up.

Before we get to that, I want to take a moment to discuss some theology.

Remember, theology is just a fancy word for what we believe about God.

We need to talk about this prior to reading this passage to be reminded about the nature of Jesus.

This is often referred to as the “hypostatic union,” and it helps us to understand the incarnation of Jesus.

This is what some call the great mystery of the christian faith because it is somewhat difficult to wrap your head around.

Jesus was 100% man and 100% God.

The Unity of Jesus’ Person

Lexham Survey of Theology The Unity of Jesus’ Person

The unity of Christ is the doctrine that Jesus, although he possesses two distinct and complete natures—he is simultaneously fully God and fully man—is nevertheless one integral person, God the Son incarnate.

The incarnation of the person of the eternal Son as Jesus Christ is one of the great mysteries of the Christian faith. This personal incarnation, in which “the Word became flesh” (John 1:14), is often referred to as the “hypostatic union” (after the Greek word hypostasis, which came to function in the patristic era as a technical term for a “person”).

John 1:14 CSB

14 The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. We observed his glory, the glory as the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Within Jesus, we see both his divinity and his humanity.

Jesus’ Divinity

Lexham Survey of Theology The Unity of Jesus’ Person

The Bible affirms repeatedly that Christ is fully God, speaking even of “the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood” (Acts 20:28). He is the “image of the invisible God,” the one through whom and for whom “all things were created,” and in whom “all things hold together” (Col 1:15–18). He is “the exact imprint of [God’s] nature” (Heb 1:3), and is addressed by God as God: “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever” (Heb 1:8). Before his incarnation (and during it), he had “equality with God” (Phil 2:6).

Jesus is God.

Lexham Survey of Theology Jesus’ Divinity

This doctrine affirms that Jesus Christ was not merely an extraordinary human being but the incarnate Son of God, who by nature is coequal and coeternal with God the Father.

Jesus’ Humanity

Lexham Survey of Theology The Unity of Jesus’ Person

The Bible also affirms repeatedly that Christ is fully man, speaking of “the man Christ Jesus” (1 Tim 2:5) and the Word who “became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:14). “Though he was in the form of God … [he] emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men,” Paul says, “and being found in human form,” he did what only a human can do: “he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross” (Phil 2:6–8).

Jesus is a man.

Lexham Survey of Theology The Unity of Jesus’ Person

And yet there is only one Jesus, one will (Luke 22:42), one Jesus who knew the hearts of men because he was omniscient God and yet a man himself (John 2:24–25), one unified divine person.

Lexham Survey of Theology Jesus’ Humanity

The humanity of Christ is his nature as a man, which is, of course, distinct from his divine nature.

So, as we dive in today.

Remember that Jesus is both fully divine that is, God, and also fully human.

They are separate yet distinct, and we are going to see how that plays out in the life of a young Jesus.

We are also going to see how that affects our relationship with Jesus and the Father.

Let’s read together the word of God as found in Luke 2:39-52.

Luke 2:39–52 CSB

39 When they had completed everything according to the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. 40 The boy grew up and became strong, filled with wisdom, and God’s grace was on him. 41 Every year his parents traveled to Jerusalem for the Passover Festival. 42 When he was twelve years old, they went up according to the custom of the festival. 43 After those days were over, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but his parents did not know it. 44 Assuming he was in the traveling party, they went a day’s journey. Then they began looking for him among their relatives and friends. 45 When they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem to search for him. 46 After three days, they found him in the temple sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. 47 And all those who heard him were astounded at his understanding and his answers. 48 When his parents saw him, they were astonished, and his mother said to him, “Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you.” 49 “Why were you searching for me?” he asked them. “Didn’t you know that it was necessary for me to be in my Father’s house?” 50 But they did not understand what he said to them. 51 Then he went down with them and came to Nazareth and was obedient to them. His mother kept all these things in her heart. 52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and with people.

As an infant Jesus Christ was consecrated in the temple, accompanied by prophetic messages regarding his future ministry.

His childhood was characterized by a growth in wisdom and grace and, in particular, a strong desire to learn of God his Father and to understand the Scriptures.

Jesus grew in wisdom and knowledge of God.

This is why I wanted to take the time today to talk about the unity of Jesus’ person.

If we don’t stop to think about what we are reading, we would run right past this.

Jesus didn’t come to earth with the wisdom and knowledge of God.

He gave all that up in order to be born as a human and to experience life exactly as we do.

Jesus wasn’t born with God’s wisdom and knowledge; he learned it by studying and spending time with God.

Look at verse 40 again.

Luke 2:40 CSB

40 The boy grew up and became strong, filled with wisdom, and God’s grace was on him.

If you already have wisdom, you don’t need to be filled with it.

But just like Jesus, you and I are born without wisdom, and there is only one way to get it.

Philippians 2:5–8 CSB

5 Adopt the same attitude as that of Christ Jesus, 6 who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God as something to be exploited. 7 Instead he emptied himself by assuming the form of a servant, taking on the likeness of humanity. And when he had come as a man, 8 he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death— even to death on a cross.

Jesus emptied himself so that he could become like us.

He, therefore, had to regain what he had given up.

This is why we see him here in the temple.

Just like Jesus, we gain wisdom by spending time with God and studying his word.

The result of Jesus spending time coming to know God was his perfect life and ministry.

We can see from the testimony of John that Jesus was, in fact, the word of God.

John 1:1 CSB

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

John 1:14 CSB

14 The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. We observed his glory, the glory as the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

1 John 1:1 CSB

1 What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have observed and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life—

While we will never be like Jesus, we will benefit greatly from knowing God as much as humanly possible.

It is through spending time with the Father, studying his word, and understanding all that God is doing to redeem people is how we become more like Jesus.

It is how the world comes to know about Jesus.

Friday night we spent six hours in intense study of God’s word and it enlarged my understanding of God’s heart for people.

It also revealed places in my own heart where I desperately need Jesus.

If we want to truly know God, then we must spend time with him and learning from him.

It was through spending time with God and the testimony of his parents and relatives that Jesus understood who he was and what God wanted with his life.

Jesus understood His purpose in life.

Look at Luke 2:41-50 again because I want us to see that even at the age of twelve, Jesus was aware of who he was.

We don’t know yet if he knew all that his life would entail, but he knows who his father is.

Luke 2:41–50 CSB

41 Every year his parents traveled to Jerusalem for the Passover Festival. 42 When he was twelve years old, they went up according to the custom of the festival. 43 After those days were over, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but his parents did not know it. 44 Assuming he was in the traveling party, they went a day’s journey. Then they began looking for him among their relatives and friends. 45 When they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem to search for him. 46 After three days, they found him in the temple sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. 47 And all those who heard him were astounded at his understanding and his answers. 48 When his parents saw him, they were astonished, and his mother said to him, “Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you.” 49 “Why were you searching for me?” he asked them. “Didn’t you know that it was necessary for me to be in my Father’s house?” 50 But they did not understand what he said to them.

They are celebrating the Passover, which is a seven-day feast, and after it was over, Joseph’s family and people head back home to Nazareth.

But Jesus doesn’t go.

He stays behind to do what?

Luke 2:46-48

Jesus was in the temple, listening and asking questions.

He was learning about God, his people, and his redemption plan.

Not only were the teachers amazed, but his parents were also!

In Secret Church, David Platt points out that all through scripture, the idea of three days points towards the death of something.

In this passage, the three days that transpire between when Mary and Joseph realize Jesus is missing and when they find them could represent the change in Jesus’ life.

The childhood stage was ending, and Jesus was beginning to step into a new phase of life.

At the age of twelve, there was a significant shift in the life of boys in Judaism.

Luke Luke 2:41–45

Jesus is twelve years old. If the Mishna is relevant to the first-century Jewish practice, which is likely in this case, then religious instruction would have become more intense for Jesus upon his reaching twelve (m. Niddah 5:6; m. Megilla 4:6; m. ‘Abot 5:12).

Religious training intensified at the age of twelve, and because Jesus knew who he was, but more specifically, who his father was, he took that very seriously.

This is why he responds to Mary the way that he does.

“didn’t you know that it was necessary for me to be in my Father’s house?”

But Mary and Joseph did not understand what Jesus said to them.

This won’t be the only time in Jesus’ life that people don’t understand what Jesus is saying.

His life was very different from theirs because Jesus understood his purpose, and his whole life became focused on it.

God has a purpose for your life’ and it begins with salvation and grows into your call to make disciples.

This is our purpose, to know God and to make Him known.

Just like Jesus, we must grow in knowledge and understanding of God.

Look what happens when Jesus grows in this way.

Luke 2:51–52 CSB

51 Then he went down with them and came to Nazareth and was obedient to them. His mother kept all these things in her heart. 52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and with people.

Jesus grew into his calling, and it drew people to Him.

There are a couple of key words in verse 52 that are worth calling out.

It says that Jesus increased. prokopto -(pro-cope-toe), which means to progress, increase, accomplish, and draw to a close.

This is a progressive growth, one that moves forward until completion.

If it was necessary for Jesus to progressively grow until completion, the same would be necessary for you and me.

Jesus increased in wisdom. sophia - which is wisdom, insight, or a specialized skill, but specifically the ability to apply that wisdom, insight, or skill.

We are going to see this wisdom reveal itself as Jesus interacts with people, especially the religious leaders.

Jesus understood the scriptures and was able to apply them to daily life.

He was able to look at a situation, see it as God saw it, and apply God’s word to that situation.

Jesus increased in stature. helikia -(hell-e-kia), which means lifetime, maturity of age, or bodily height.

Jesus literally grew up.

This is a process that all people go through, but sometimes we only grow up physically.

We neglect the wisdom part of growth, and so we become physically mature but not mentally and spiritually.

Are we getting the picture here?

Jesus grew up and increased in wisdom progressively.

We, too, need to grow progressively.

We don’t know the exact time frame that this one verse covers, but it is approximately 18 years.

Which makes us ask ourselves, how old am I spiritually, and how much have I grown in wisdom?

Am I satisfied with where I am, and more importantly, is God satisfied with where I am?

We must ask this question because look at the third thing that Jesus increased in.

Jesus increased in favor with God and people. charis -(har-es) kindness, grace, gift, goodwill, thanks.

We saw this word used in a previous passage in Luke 1:30 “30 Then the angel told her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.”

We also see it in Acts 2:46-47

Acts 2:46–47 CSB

46 Every day they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple, and broke bread from house to house. They ate their food with joyful and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. Every day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.

The title of this section in Acts is “A Generous and growing church.”

Favor with people is a marker of a faith that is progressively growing.

As we grow, we know God better, and people are drawn to us.

We see it in the life of Jesus, we see it in the early church, and we should see it in our own lives.

The conclusion of the Jonah study is that we are Jonah.

And just like Jonah, we like our comforts, we lack concern for others, we don’t like God’s commission, and we don’t like God’s character.

If we are not growing and if our church is not growing, it is because we are like Jonah.

Prayer prompts:

Repentance - We have made our lives about ourselves.

Salvation - The family and friends that God has placed in our lives.

Continual growth - That God would increase our knowledge and wisdom as we spend time with Him.

Understanding of our calling to make disciples - That God would give us the desire to teach others what we have learned.

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