LOC 011:
Life of Christ: Twelve
Years Old
This is our 11th message in our study of the Life of Christ. Chronologically, we are working through the
Gospel accounts to understand who Jesus was and what he did. We have looked at his pre-existence through
the visit of the Wisemen as recorded in Matthew.
Between the visit of those Wisemen at Joseph’s house in Nazareth
when Jesus was about two and the start of Jesus public ministry, there is only
one event. For ten years in the Life of
Jesus, all we have is silence in the Gospels.
That’s not too bad. Between the event we will look at today and the next
events in the Gospels we have about eighteen years.
There are some large gaps in what we know about the Life of
Jesus. We should not let this trouble
us. Remember the purpose for which these
Gospels were written--they are evangelistic tracts that people might hear of
the saving power, the messianic nature of his work, the glorious righteousness
that was his contrasted with the Pharisees of his day. John wrote that men might believe in the Lord
Jesus Christ. Under inspiration of the
Spirit, these writers used what served their purpose in writing.
It is Luke alone who tells us about the trip to Jerusalem when
Jesus was TWELVE YEARS OLD. It is only Matthew and Luke who told us anything of
his birth and childhood. These few
events give us important glimpses into the life of Christ as a young man. The lessons are important for people of all
ages, however.
Let’s read the text in Luke 2, starting at verse 41.
We find :
1. The Setup
2. The Story introduced
3. The Suspense
4. The Search
5. The Stern Rebuke
6. The Spoken Reply
7. The State of their understanding
8. The submission of Jesus
9. The Ongoing Situation
1. The Setup
41 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
according to the custom of the feast.
2. The Story introduced
43 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;
3. The Suspense
44 but supposing Him to have been in the company, they went a
day's journey, and sought Him among their relatives and acquaintances. 45 So
when they did not find Him, they returned to Jerusalem, seeking Him.
4. The Search
46 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. 47 And all who
heard Him were astonished at His understanding and answers.
5. The Stern Rebuke
48 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."
6. The Spoken Reply
49 And He said to
them, "Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My
Father's business?"
7. The State of their understanding
50 But they did not
understand the statement which He spoke to them.
8. The submission of Jesus
51 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.
9. The Ongoing Situation
52 And Jesus
increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.
There are many parts of this chapter in the life of Jesus that are
often misunderstood. Taken together it is a powerful statement about Jesus, his
development and his mission. It shows us
something of the focus Jesus had, even at the age of twelve.
Let’s go back over these sections to explain what went on.
1. The Setup
41 His parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the
Passover.
Many, if not most Jews went to Jerusalem for the feast of Passover
each and every year. Mary and Joseph went to Jerusalem every year. They probably made the journey even when they
were in exile in Egypt. Joseph and Mary
were devout. God had commanded his
people to celebrate the Passover--the great memorial feast looking back to the
great act of deliverance in the Old Testament.
Faithful Jews went to Jerusalem because of a phrase in the
commandment given about the future celebration of the Passover given through
Moses to God’s Ancient People.
Deut 16:1 "Observe the month of Abib, and keep the Passover
to the LORD your God, for in the month of Abib the LORD your God brought you
out of Egypt by night. 2 "Therefore you shall sacrifice the Passover to
the LORD your God, from the flock and the herd, in the place where the LORD
chooses to put His name.
3 "You shall eat
no leavened bread with it; seven days you shall eat unleavened bread with it,
that is, the bread of affliction (for you came out of the land of Egypt in
haste), that you may remember the day in which you came out of the land of Egypt
all the days of your life.
4 "And no leaven
shall be seen among you in all your territory for seven days, nor shall any of
the meat which you sacrifice the first day at twilight remain overnight until
morning.
5 "You may not
sacrifice the Passover within any of your gates which the LORD your God gives
you; 6 "but at the place where the LORD your God chooses to make His name
abide, there you shall sacrifice the Passover at twilight, at the going down of
the sun, at the time you came out of Egypt.
In verse six, it says, 6 "but at the place where the LORD
your God chooses to make His name abide”.
The temple in Jerusalem in the first century was the only place in
Judaism where God’s name was among the people in a special way. His presence, his name and all it represented
were to be manifest where he had promised.
The Temple, though unknown to the Jews to whom Moses wrote, was the
centerpiece for the worship at God’s ordained festivals.
To that feast, Mary and Joseph brought Jesus yet again. 42 And
when He was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem according to the custom
of the feast.
2. The Story introduced
43 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;
They go to the feast, they start the return trek home. At twelve years old, a Jewish young man was
expected to make a break with their childhood in order to assume greater
responsibilities in the life of the family and the nation. A shift in the
parental relationship would take place--though as it does today--not always
with great ease. The temptation is to
always treat our children as children full of folly.
Here at twelve, an important point to grasp, Jesus lingered behind
in Jerusalem. Adding to the story, Luke
adds that Joseph and Jesus’ mother didn’t know it.
3. The Suspense
44 but supposing Him to have been in the company, they went a
day's journey, and sought Him among their relatives and acquaintances.
On the trip to and from Jerusalem for a feast the men would walk
with the men and the women with the women. On the ascent, they would sing
Psalms preparing their hearts for worship.
They would sing the Psalms of Ascent to be instructed again of the
mighty acts of God in deliverance. It was a time of mourning and joy, depending
on the sentiments expressed in the words of the Psalms.
On the way down from Jerusalem, their would be much talking with
friends and reminiscing relatives. At
twelve, Jesus was in that no-man’s land of ages and responsibilities. He would
not be expected to be with the children and his mother any longer--as he was
last year at the feast. But, he wasn’t
necessarily expected to be with his father, either. This would have been his
first year to claim the privilege of walking with the men. Perhaps each parent thought he was with the
other. That happens all the time.
As Luke tells us: 45 So when they did not find Him, they returned
to Jerusalem, seeking Him.
Can you imagine the scene: two godly parents, meeting after a day
of travelling with friends and neighbors only to find their son has been missing. What a terrible feeling must have come over
them. I thought he was with you, and I
thought the same. They searched the
caravan of many travellers looking for
Jesus. When he is not found, they return
to Jerusalem for ....
4. The Search
46 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. 47 And all who
heard Him were astonished at His understanding and answers.
Three frantic days of searching with no results. Finally, they locate Jesus in the Temple, the
place of God’s promised presence. He is
doing what a young man with his special vocation before him coming to maturity
ought to do. He is giving himself over
to spiritual matters. He is preparing
himself for his life’s work. He was doing exactly what he was supposed to do
for who he was and the age he had attained.
Jesus was with the teachers in the temple, not just listening to
the teachers, but he was sitting in the midst of the teachers, “listening to
them and asking them questions.” He was in the middle of it all and all who
were there present were amazed at the understanding he had and the answers he
gave.
What a joy it should have been to hear a young Jesus answering the
questions of the teachers. Teaching them about himself and his heavenly
Father. In Luke 4, Jesus walks into the
synagogue in Nazareth, picks up the Scriptures, reads them only to tell the
congregation that that particular Scripture is fulfilled among them. The Scriptures
of the Old and New Testaments speak eloquently of the Lord Jesus Christ. We should never forget that.
Oh, and, sometimes children can have great insights into spiritual
truth.
5. The Stern Rebuke
48 So when they saw
Him, they were amazed;
Those who heard were amazed, his parents were amazed, too. Should they have been amazed? I don’t think so.
Jesus had grown up in their home.
They knew him and his life’s calling better than anyone else. Did they have so little faith in him that they
would think all of a sudden his character would change and he would start to
sin. Did the Passover feast have a
detrimental effect upon the one promised to be the messiah of Israel, God’s own
son?
Mary shows that she too is a woman in need of a savior. She took this all to personally, with words
pregnant with a stern rebuke she says
48B "Son, why have You done this to us?
Look, Your father and I have sought You anxiously."
Who is offended? She says
US. She has been anxious, she had
forgotten his holy character, she did not give him the benefit of the doubt,
she was treating him like the child he was no longer. She can only see how this has affected her as
a parent and the inconvenience it had been to her and Joseph for the last three
days.
6. The Spoken Reply
49 And He said to
them, "Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My
Father's business?"
Jesus gets to heart of the matter.
With what she knew of him, his character, his stated purpose, his manner
of life, his calling from God, his age, she should have known better. She should have thought it through. He was
simply doing what he ought to have done given the situation and the opportunity
with the teachers to develop for his life’s work.
Yet even in this, we see....
7. The State of their understanding
50 But they did not
understand the statement which He spoke to them.
In their amazement, they did not understand. Sometimes we have to learn to think
differently than we have always thought.
Mary and Joseph were too busy thinking like ordinary Jewish parents to
see the implications of what had gone on.
Worldliness in thinking can effect how we deal with our
children. It did in the life of these
two godly parents, it can today. They
did not understand.
8. The submission of Jesus
51 Then He went down
with them and came to Nazareth, and was subject to them,
The perfect child, the Lord Jesus Christ went home with his
parents. Luke then tells us that he was
subject to them. He placed himself
completely under their authority. At
twelve and he remained throughout his teen years and beyond.
If the perfect Lord Jesus Christ needed to submit to his parents
authority, how much more those who are imperfect need to do the same. Parents have the responsibility before God
for your nurture and spiritual growth.
Jesus was a young man under authority. His mother....
51B but His mother kept all these things in her heart.
She remembered the experiences and the teaching and learned from
them herself. Children are precious to their parents, even if the parents are
too busy to remind the children of that great fact. This is how Luke records the ongoing
development of the Lord Jesus Christ. This
is a summary of the Life of Christ in those intervening years:
9. The Ongoing Situation
52 And Jesus
increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.
In his human nature he increased in wisdom and stature. He learned how to apply the knowledge he
had. Wisdom is the right use in our
lives of what we learn with our heads.
Knowledge without wisdom is unprofitable facts that are likely to puff
up our pride.
When Moses prayed to God about how he could direct all of the
people in the wilderness, this was God’s answer:
Deut 1:12 'How can I alone bear your problems and your burdens and
your complaints? 13 'Choose wise, understanding, and knowledgeable men from
among your tribes, and I will make them heads over you.' 14 "And
you answered me and said, 'The thing which you have told us to do is good.'
Choose those who are wise, understanding, and knowledgeable.
For what did Solomon ask when he was to be made King?
2 Chronicles 1:11 And
God said to Solomon: "Because this was in your heart, and you have not
asked riches or wealth or honor or the life of your enemies, nor have you asked
long life--but have asked wisdom and knowledge for yourself, that
you may judge My people over whom I have made you king--
Not just wisdom, as many probably thought, but wisdom and
knowledge. Wisdom is applied knowledge
to life’s situations.
Jesus increased in wisdom.
How was he able to confound the teachers, the Pharisees, the Scribes and
the elders of Israel throughout his ministry?
Not by knowledge alone, but by knowledge and wisdom. It is one thing to increase in knowledge, it
is better to increase in wisdom.
He also increased in stature.
This word has two meanings. The
first has to do with size. It is used of
ZACCHEUS because he was short. LUK 19:3
And he sought to see who Jesus was, but could not because of the crowd, for he
was of short stature. The second meaning
is maturity. Jesus healed a blind young man in John 9. When his parents were asked how he could now
see, they replied, JOH 9:21 But by
what means he now seeth, we know not; or who hath opened his eyes, we know not:
he is of age; ask him: he shall
speak for himself.
It is usually assumed that one goes with the other. That as a young man or woman grows in age
that they will also grow in maturity.
From experience we know that this is not the case. Children need to be discipled into maturity
and they need to be taught how to think wisely.
Knowledge, true knowledge has purpose--it leads to wisdom. PSA 119:9 How can a young man cleanse his
way? By taking heed according to Your word.
Jesus also grew in favor with both God and man. Again, if the perfect Lord Jesus needed to
develop in this way, we ought not to neglect the spiritual development of our
children. Don’t assume growth in age
brings about a deep level of maturity. Maturity comes from knowledge and its
wise uses.
A few needed applications are in order:
1. Importance of Families in
the Work of God
2. Give Maturing Children
responsibilities and respect. But don’t let your parental love blind you to the
possibilities of the heart’s deceitfulness. They need guidance. They, like us
so many years before them, need to learn the important lessons of life and what
to do about them from God’s perspective.
Fathers, if you don’t know the answer, look for it. Your children ought to be more precious to
you than anything but your God and savior..
3. Importance of listening to
the questions of a child. Don’t get into the habit of dismissing what your
children say. They will find someone
else to listen to their questions and hurts and needs.
4. Children’s actions when parents aren’t
around. What would the typical 12 year
old in our churches do if they were left alone for three days? Would they use the time constructively to
grow in their understanding of God, or would they give into the folly that is
naturally in the hearts? Children need
to learn that even when their parents aren’t around, God sees all they do and
knows all they are thinking. Cultivate
this sort of wisdom in your children and pray that God would accompany it with
Godly fear.
5. This story in the life of
Jesus is not justification for children to rebel--this is Jesus we are talking
about. If you were perfect your entire life, then you might have a claim to a
hands-off policy. But you aren’t.
6. Worldliness in parental
obligations--parent’s responsibility to minister to their children. Se that
they grown in wisdom and maturity before God and man. Don’t leave such an important job to others.
Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment