Growing in Wisdom and Stature
Notes
Transcript
41 Every year his parents went to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Passover. 42 When he was twelve years old, they went up to the Feast, according to the custom. 43 After the Feast was over, while his parents were returning home, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but they were unaware of it. 44 Thinking he was in their company, they traveled on for a day. Then they began looking for him among their relatives and friends. 45 When they did not find him, they went back to Jerusalem to look for him. 46 After three days they found him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. 47 Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers. 48 When his parents saw him, they were astonished. 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. “Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?” 50 But they did not understand what he was saying to them.
51 Then he went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. But his mother treasured all these things in her heart. 52 And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.
Introduction
Introduction
This text is the only one in the Gospels that gives us glimpse into the childhood life of Jesus.
Recall - Luke had carefully investigated all these things concerning Jesus - including speaking to Mary and others about their own encounters.
Now he recounts and outlines for us a very significant event in the life of Jesus.
Before we delve into this text, just look back with me at verses 39-40.
In the previous account as recorded in Luke, Jesus had been taken to the temple as a baby. He was to be consecrated, and Mary and Joseph needed to make the offerings required according to their law.
Simeon had been there - advanced in years, waiting for the redemption of Israel. He had blessed this child, and He had said that he was now ready to depart, since his eyes had seen the salvation of Israel.
Anna was there - serving in the temple night and day for many years. She saw Jesus and spoke about him...
At the end of that passage, we read...
39 When Joseph and Mary had done everything required by the Law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee to their own town of Nazareth. 40 And the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon him.
That is the last thing that Luke recorded concerning Jesus. His growth in wisdom. The grace of God being upon Him.
If you go to the end of this passage, in verse 52, you find these words...
52 And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.
It is clear that Luke is portraying for his readers the growth of Jesus in wisdom and stature. The fact that Jesus was maturing and becoming exceedingly wise, even as a young boy.
He then includes this account of Jesus being taken to the temple. In this account, there is a significant demonstration of the wisdom of Jesus as a young boy, even as he engages with the very well-versed teachers of that day.
But even as Luke records this event, we find some important truths concerning Jesus and His clear understanding of the relationship that He had with God the Father, and some of the implications of that for His own life.
1. The Annual Journey (vv.41-42)
1. The Annual Journey (vv.41-42)
We begin by reading in verse 41...
41 Every year his parents went to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Passover.
Here, again, we find an important description of the actions of Jesus’ parents which leads us to see them as extremely devout in terms of their faith.
Luke has portrayed this constantly through His Gospel writing. He has shown us that both Mary and Joseph took their faith seriously.
But here again we see this.
Luke records that it was a common thing for them - an annual trip - where they went up to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Passover.
There were three occasions in a year that it was common for Jews to make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. Three feasts were held each year that were observed by the Jewish people.
14 “Three times a year you are to celebrate a festival to me.
15 “Celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread; for seven days eat bread made without yeast, as I commanded you. Do this at the appointed time in the month of Abib, for in that month you came out of Egypt.
“No one is to appear before me empty-handed.
16 “Celebrate the Feast of Harvest with the firstfruits of the crops you sow in your field.
“Celebrate the Feast of Ingathering at the end of the year, when you gather in your crops from the field.
The Passover celebration was combined with the Feast of Unleavened Bread, as stipulated by God in Exodus 23:15. This was a seven-day Feast that was celebrated in remembrance of God’s delivering of Israel out of Egypt.
It was a significant reminder to the Israelites of God’s mercy and His grace to them as a nation.
What is interesting to note in Scripture is that Israel did not remember this feast as regularly as they ought to have. At least, they were not always as devout as they should have been in the remembrance of these feasts.
Notice with me the comment in 2 Kings 23:22...
22 Not since the days of the judges who led Israel, nor throughout the days of the kings of Israel and the kings of Judah, had any such Passover been observed.
17 The whole company that had returned from exile built booths and lived in them. From the days of Joshua son of Nun until that day, the Israelites had not celebrated it like this. And their joy was very great.
The Israelites had for much time either not observed the festivals as God had instructed them to do, or they didn’t do them with much joy and anticipation as should be expected.
But that seems to have changed after the Babylonian exile. And by the time the Gospels are written, we find that there were large crowds that would travel up to Jerusalem in order to celebrate these festivals. They would travel together as a people up to Jerusalem in large caravans / groups of people.
And Mary and Joseph would yearly go with to this Passover festival.
Just one further thing that is noteworthy here is that it was not a requirement for them women to go to Jerusalem for the feast, but it was for men.
17 “Three times a year all the men are to appear before the Sovereign Lord.
It was required by God that every man appear before the Lord for the feasts. But women were not required to be there.
Mary however goes with Joseph, demonstrating once again her own commitment to serving God and worshiping him through the remembrance of these festivals that He had instituted.
As we go on, we must notice further what Luke records for us in verse 42...
42 When he was twelve years old, they went up to the Feast, according to the custom.
Luke specifically records the account of Jesus going up when he was 12 years old.
We must take note that the Jewish age of accountability was 13 years old. This was an age that it is typically required by Jewish boys that they take responsibility upon themselves to keep and obey the commandments. It was the age at which the growing young boys would begin to engage in full participation within the Jewish rituals and festivals.
In a sense, this was the transition from boyhood to manhood. Up until this point, Jesus was being taught the commandments of God by His Father. Going forward, he would be required to keep those commandments himself.
What many Jewish parents would then do, would be to take their child to Jerusalem before they reached this age in order that they may familiarise themselves with what would be required of them as a young man of the covenant, where obedience was required by them before God.
And so here is Jesus, going with his parents at the age of 12 years, and they would seek to ensure that he was familiar with all that would be required of him.
It’s this precise moment that Jesus chose to stay behind at the Temple.
But what we will find is that His understanding of the commandments of God was far greater than was typical of 12 year old boys.
That sets for us the cultural context of what was happening in this account that is recorded for us by Luke.
The second thing that we note from our passage is...
2. The Missing Child (vv.43-45)
2. The Missing Child (vv.43-45)
We read in verse 43...
43 After the Feast was over, while his parents were returning home, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but they were unaware of it.
After this seven-day long feast, the large groups of people are preparing to travel back to their homes. As they departed from Jerusalem and headed home, they would typically travel in caravans of people. Large groups would travel together.
But as Jesus’s parents leave Jerusalem, he remains behind in the city. They were unaware of it.
This is not an indication of parental neglect. It is easy for a child to become lost in a large group of people. Furthermore, it was common for men to travel together, and women and children to travel separately from them on the journey. At this time, Jesus was at the age of transitioning from a boy to a man. And so it would have been easy for each parent to assume that he was with the other group.
We read in verse 44-45
44 Thinking he was in their company, they traveled on for a day. Then they began looking for him among their relatives and friends. 45 When they did not find him, they went back to Jerusalem to look for him.
It was a full days travel before they realised that Jesus was missing from them. They would typically travel 30-40km in a single day. But after this long day of travel, they come to the realisation that Jesus is not with them.
Don’t gloss over this. They were normal parents. They would have had typical parental concerns about their son. Any person who has lost their child in the supermarket knows the gut-wrenching feeling when you look around and your child is nowhere to be found. And you have no way of knowing if you are going to find the child again.
Has he been taken?
Is he still okay?
All of these are questions that would have raced through the minds of Mary and Joseph. No doubt they asked their family and friends around them to pray earnestly that he would be found.
And they decide to make the return journey back to Jerusalem in order to try and find him.
Thirdly we see...
3. Surprise and Rebuke at the Temple (vv.46-48)
3. Surprise and Rebuke at the Temple (vv.46-48)
Having turned back to search for their son Jesus, they arrive back in Jerusalem.
In verse 46 we read,
46 After three days they found him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions.
The three days that is mentioned here does not refer to three days of searching in Jerusalem. Rather, it was a day’s travel away from Jerusalem, another day to travel back to Jerusalem to find Jesus, and then on the third day, they enter into the Temple and find Jesus there.
What is important to note is where Jesus is found, and what he is doing.
Firstly, he is found in the temple courts, and he is sitting among the teachers.
Jesus has placed himself in a position for him to be able to learn and grow in wisdom and understanding.
He’s sitting before these teachers of the law, asking them questions. He seeks to grow in understanding and knowledge.
We have here a wonderful picture of Jesus’ humanity. The fact that it was necessary for Him in his humanity to grow and mature in wisdom. When Paul speaks in Philippians 2 about Jesus emptying himself, he means that there were these limitations that were placed upon the full divinity of Jesus, such that He needed to mature, to grow in wisdom.
But as Jesus went about that, He engaged in many of the ordinary means of growing in wisdom. He was taught by others. He asked questions. He investigated. He sought learning and understanding in the ways of His heavenly Father. And He went about this task diligently.
A few words are in order concerning these teachers that Jesus was sitting among.
Although Luke doesn’t use the term precisely here, these were the teachers of the law. Usually when Luke uses that term “Teachers of the Law” in his Gospel, it has a negative connotation. And so here, he simply calls them the teachers.
But these were indeed the “Teachers” of Israel. They were those who taught the people of Israel the laws of God in order that they may live by them. They knew God’s law meticulously. They were well-versed in the Scriptures.
They were those who were known to possess great knowledge and understanding - esteemed ones, if you like.
But as Jesus now stands in the temple, engaging with these teachers, he is not only asking them questions about the Law of God, but He is answering questions.
Notice their response to His questions and his answers in verse 47...
47 Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers.
As time develops, Jesus is going to far exceed all of these teachers that he is now surrounded by. He will ultimately become the Great Teacher that teaches with authority and power from God.
But we must also realise that these teachers were hypocritical. They were self-centered in their actions. They loved the applause and the praises of men.
In time to come, these would be the very teachers that Jesus would come into sharp conflict and disagreement with.
28 When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, 29 because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law.
Before we move on I don’t want us to miss a very important point - and this is particularly significant for our young people, but also relevant to us all.
Jesus was sitting in the temple seeking to learn at the young age of 12 years. It may be argued that this was Jesus - he was different.
But before you argue that, let me encourage you, young people, by saying that you are more than able to learn and grow dramatically in the truths of God even at your young age. In fact, what has probably driven young people away from this kind of learning from a young age is the culture around us, that teaches us that children should have lots of fun and play at that age. That learning about the things of God is boring and senseless. Or perhaps just something to be done later in life.
But in the days of Jesus, young Jewish boys were exceedingly well-versed in the Scriptures. It was required of them to learn the Scriptures and so because it was so common, they did it.
Jesus was obviously well ahead of His peers at this stage, but the point is this - he spent time seeking to learn and grow in His knowledge and understanding.
It reminds me of the words of Paul to young Timothy...
15 Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress.
This should be an encouragement to all of us as Christians - that we may apply ourselves to growing in the grace and knowledge of God!
It should be an encouragement to our young people to not see it as boring and “uncool” to learn about the things of God.
99 I have more insight than all my teachers,
for I meditate on your statutes.
It is these very truths of God that set you up in life for great wisdom, and true Gospel prosperity. Not a worldly wealth prosperity, but the prosperity of being in close communion with God as you are filled with the wisdom from above.
As we look further at our text, notice the response of Mary and Joseph when they find Jesus...
48 When his parents saw him, they were astonished. His mother said to him, “Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you.”
Firstly, they were astonished. Luke does not indicate whether the astonishment was due to his questions and answers, or simply due to the fact that he was happily sitting without any apparent concern. It is far more likely the latter.
What is clear from the words of Mary is the great anguish that Jesus had caused them.
When Mary says that they had been “Anxiously” searching for Jesus, the word there is a strong word that is often used to speak of pain or suffering. It’s the same word used by Luke when he describes the agony that the rich man experienced in hell, while he watched Lazarus in heaven...
24 So he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’
25 “But Abraham replied, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony.
A mild rebuke flows from Mary as a result of the actions of Jesus. In her mind her son has done her a great injustice, and has treated her wrongly.
And if we’re honest, I think many of us can resonate with her position. We can understand the deep concern that she had. We can understand why she may have saw it appropriate to give the rebuke that she did.
But as we move on, we see that Jesus provides his reasoning for his own actions. Now recall as we consider this, that Jesus was sinless. What he did was not in any way sinful or inappropriate. In fact, it was appropriate under the circumstances.
And this leads us to consider Christ’s...
4. Perfect Self-Identity (vv.49-50)
4. Perfect Self-Identity (vv.49-50)
We find the response of Jesus to His parents in verse 49.
And let me just say, this is a critical verse in this passage, and really points to a focal point of Jesus’ understanding of who He is. This is a confession by Jesus...
49 “Why were you searching for me?” he asked. “Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?”
It may come across as a strange question. Responsible parents are going to go searching for their missing child!
But his emphasis is on his own perfect understanding that He is the Son of God.
Long before Christ would begin his own formal ministry years, Luke records that He was well aware that He was the Son of God.
This relationship of Jesus being the Son of God would drive His mission and His work.
34 “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.
Some have erroneously suggested taught that Jesus “became” God’s Son at His baptism.
This is clearly contradicted through Luke’s record of this account. Jesus was always the Son of God.
What is very important for us to see through this passage was that Jesus demonstrated a higher allegiance to his divine sonship than to Mary and Joseph.
Look at the contrast that Luke presents here...
At the end of verse 48, Mary’s words are… “Behold, Your father and I have been anxiously looking for you...”
And Jesus response - “Did you not know that I had to be in My Father’s house?
Jesus understands who his true father is.
This is why what He did was not sinful. He was living in obedience to God his Father. He was doing this as a demonstration, even to His parents, that His mission was to obey God His Father.
Just as a practical application at this point, we must recognise that our allegiance is always to be first and foremost to our heavenly Father as we live in Christ.
This is in the context of the world around us, when they seek to lead us to do things or participate in things that are contrary to the ways of God, or that would draw us away from Him.
3 For you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do—living in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable idolatry. 4 They think it strange that you do not plunge with them into the same flood of dissipation, and they heap abuse on you.
When a Christian abstains from that which is unholy, or that which perhaps in and of itself is amoral, but may perhaps lead to unholy conduct, it may be seen by those in the world to be exceedingly strange.
But take that a step further.
When you choose to attend church on a Sunday morning; to be with the people of God, united together in a special way in a demonstration of unity as the body of Christ; when we come together in this way to be in the presence of God in a special sense in the gathered church; - when you do this at a time when the rest of the world is having Sunday Fun-day; when they’re sleeping in because it’s the only day they get to do this; when they see you they may wonder why you bother, or why you do what you do.
And the reason that we would give is that there is no greater joy and delight to the Christian than to be about the business of our Father. This is not a burden for us, to be together in worship.
And let me just encourage you - if you do see it as a burden - make that something that you pray about. That you would take great delight to be in the presence of God with His people. That God would work that in you.
The book of Acts shows us how the working of God by His Spirit can bring that about.
42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.
This was what they devoted themselves to, because it was a joy and a delight!
Taking this further, we need to realise that even those who are closest to us take a secondary priority with respect to God.
37 “Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me;
Let me add another dimension to this. Christ recognised that His greatest work was the work of His Father.
This is true of the Christian.
Our greatest work is to bring glory and honour and praise to God, and critical to that is our diligent effort to grow in the grace and knowledge of Christ. And a significant part of that is the time we spend at church with the people of God, the time we spend interacting around the Scriptures, asking questions, giving answers.
And so let me encourage you all to make this something that you set your heart on. Having God, having our Lord Jesus Christ, our deep hearts desire - that we would be about His business, irrespective of what others around us may think.
So here we have a wonderful declaration by Jesus that he is indeed the very Son of God.
But notice then how his parents failed to understand what he was saying.
Verse 50...
50 But they did not understand what he was saying to them.
It’s interesting that they did not realise His close connection with God - that God was indeed His Father.
As His parents, they were the very ones who should have been aware of who He was. When the Angel Gabriel had appeared to Mary, part of what the angel had said concerning her son was that he would be the Son of God...
32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David,
35 The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.
It was clearly articulated that to Mary would be born the Son of God. But obviously this had not been fully understood at the time. Recall also that around 13 years had passed since those words were spoken to her, and probably for the most part Jesus lived a very ordinary life growing up.
Whatever the situation from the parents side, they were not at all clear on what he was saying.
But this was to be the life of Jesus. Even His very disciples that witnessed the miracles that He did, would very often fail to have a full appreciation of His power and glory, and His relation to God. This would be something that would follow Christ for His life to come.
44 “Listen carefully to what I am about to tell you: The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of men.” 45 But they did not understand what this meant. It was hidden from them, so that they did not grasp it, and they were afraid to ask him about it.
We see here that God would veil the person and work of Christ on many occasions according to His good purposes.
Finally, we see together...
5. A Submissive Response (vv.51-52)
5. A Submissive Response (vv.51-52)
Verse 51 tells us...
51 Then he went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. But his mother treasured all these things in her heart.
Although Christ recognised that His highest priority was to His heavenly Father, He nonetheless demonstrated obedience to His earthly parents.
It’s interesting to consider His patience as He lived in this world, preparing for the days that he would minister. It would be approximately 17 or 18 years later that He would start His formal ministry. In fact, the next record for us in the Gospel of Luke is the ministry of John the Baptist, some 17-odd years later.
But Christ was using his time to prepare for the work for which He had been sent. In the mean time, he was patient, obedient, and lived an exemplary life before all people.
This is seen firstly in His Mother’s response. She treasured all these things in her heart… This is a similar phrase to that which we saw when Jesus was presented in the temple. She was watching her son grow, and treasured up all that she saw, particularly on these unique occassions.
But we see this further in verse 52...
52 And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.
Jesus was growing in wisdom and stature. That’s about all that we hear about his younger years. And I believe that based on this passage particularly, it would seem that Christ lived a very ordinary young life. There is no Biblical evidence for some of the stories of Jesus doing profound miracles in His young years. And based on the responses of Mary and others, it would appear that He simply grew up, and yet with profound wisdom.
He was growing with a sound reputation with all those around Him. As other people witnessed his life, they saw something unique.
Application / Conclusion
Application / Conclusion
As we close, let us rejoice in the Saviour that we have in Christ.
He was the Son of God!! The very Son of God. He was in very nature God!
But we can learn further.
His learning; His growth in wisdom and understanding. Him going through the processes of developing and maturing in wisdom.
What an example we have for us in our Saviour Jesus.
Yes, he was the perfect, sinless Son of God. We can never be that.
But we do have one who taught us how to live, and where our priorities are to lie.
The priority of Jesus was to be engaged in the work of His Father.
The priority of Jesus was to engage Himself fully in the task of preparing Himself for doing that work.
He sat among the teachers, asked questions, interacted. He sought out wisdom and instruction.
And so should we, so that we may be about the wonderful business of bringing glory and praise to our Father.
Let us prepare ourselves for the Work of God. Knowing that He is our heavenly Father by the adoption that is ours through Jesus Christ.
CH: OH – Reformation Hymn – 2vs
Lord’s Supper
Lord’s Supper
Invite those serving (Deacon on duty) to the front.
Welcome – Lord’s table. Joyous celebration.
All who love and know the Lord as their personal Saviour are welcome.
But those who do not know or love Him or his people are warned not to eat.
The Lord said through Paul that such ‘eat and drink to their own judgment.’
23 For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, 24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26 For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.
27 Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. 28 A man ought to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup. 29 For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body of the Lord eats and drinks judgment on himself.
Prayer of confession
Deacon gives thanks bread
And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This
is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.”
Eat, when you are ready, as a sign of your personal but public life in the Lord
Bread – His Robes for mine (OH) – play only
Deacon gives thanks for wine:
Hold onto it – we will drink together when all are served as a sign that we
belong to one body, the church of the Lord Jesus.
As served, we will sing 432 – King of my life (Lest I forget) – 5vs to sing
20 “In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the
new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.”
Drink and rejoice
Prayer of thanks
Benediction
Benediction
9 And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, 10 so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, 11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God.