… all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers…
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)
Imagine losing our Lord Jesus Christ from your life, and then contrast that
loss with Mary losing the Son of her own bosom from her care! The loss was the result of presumption
and carelessness. How often do seasoned Christians lose the very presence of
Christ from their hearts through foolish pursuits that begin with the right
motive and end in a separation from God? Many churches are begun with a very
devoted desire to serve the Lord with all the heart; but as the institution
grows in prestige and wealth, Christ is forgotten and left in the very ruins of
faith. The separation may be so great that once the heart returns to Christ, we
are less able to understand His Word as in Verse 49 above.
The occasion of our Lord's first cognizant visitation to the Temple is a
noteworthy glimpse of an otherwise concealed history of His young life from
circumcision to baptism. It signifies the early dawning of His yearnings to be
about His Father's business. We need not point out that Jesus had no earthly
father as some modern (per)versions of the Bible now suggest. He was the only
Begotten Son of His Father in Heaven.
One point that needs illuminating here is that Jesus kept the Law of God
without exception. He was circumcised on the eighth day according to the Law,
and made annual visits to Jerusalem to observe the Passover. "Now 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 after the custom of the feast."
He is the only Man in history to have kept the Ten Commandments without a
single violation. You may ask, "Why is this important to us?" It is
important to understand that Christ saved us by way of the Law and Grace and,
by His sinlessness, was the only One qualified to pay that price.. He fulfilled
the complete requirements of the Law, and by His Grace, He saved us according
to the demands of the same Law. One Lamb, without blemish, must die to atone
for sin; and that Lamb of God (our Lord Jesus Christ) became our sacrificial
Lamb who saved us under the demands of the Law - once and for all. He attended
every Passover in His earthly ministry and has become, for us, our eternal
PASSOVER. It was not grace that required His sacrifice, but the Law. It
was grace that removed the penalty (by means of the Law). The Law of God is
immutable, and we are to have it written on our hearts with love today.
The feast of the Passover having been observed, the family began the journey
back to Nazareth in the company of many others of their neighbors. One thing
was missing - the Lord Jesus Christ! How many pious members of the Church
attend faithfully week to week and leave, every Sunday, without a thought to
bringing Christ with them? They presume that they are righteous and do not need
to insure that He is with them when they depart His Holy Church. Nothing has
changed under the sun. Mary and Joseph simply presumed that Jesus was with
them, but they did not go to the trouble to make certain of it. Do we not need
to make certain that our lives are so attuned to His will that He will be with
us on every road of life? "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a
workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth."
(2 Tim 2:15)
If the very mother of Jesus can be so negligent in insuring His accompaniment, surely
you and I can be as well. "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." We are often oblivious to the most precious elements
of our faith. It is caused by a careless regard for detail. But remember,
"The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of
earth, purified seven times. Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou shalt
preserve them from this generation for ever." (Psalm
12:6-7) Every Word of the Lord is to be kept and
cherished by the believer; and Jesus was the WORD Incarnate!
How long will you go without giving a thought to Jesus? A day is too long!
"But they, supposing him to have been in the company, went a day's journey;
and they sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance." Do not
ever take Christ for granted. He is a blessing each day beyond every blessing.
You will not find Christ in the person of friends and kin. You may see His
reflection there, but you will find His presence and person only in Him. I know
I refer often to the woman at the Well of Jacob, but I do so because Christ has
made her memory relative to our learning truth.
After Jesus had revealed to her heart who He was, "The woman then left
her waterpot, and went her way into the city, and saith to the men, Come, see a
man, which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ? Then
they went out of the city, and came unto him. . . . . . And many of the
Samaritans of that city believed on him for the saying of the woman, which
testified, He told me all that ever I did. So when the Samaritans were come
unto him, they besought him that he would tarry with them: and he abode there
two days. And many more believed because of his own word; And said unto the
woman, Now we believe, not because of thy saying: for we have heard him
ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world."
(John 4:28-30,39-42) You will learn in this exchange we do not come to know Christ
through an intermediary, though we can be led to Christ by such. We know Christ
by coming to Him individually and face-to-face.
Christ was absent from His disciples another time for three days and nights,
was He not? He was dead to them,
and to a mother's heart, a child missing for three days is as good as dead.
" And when they found him not, they turned back again to Jerusalem,
seeking him. 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." Amazingly, at the tender age of twelve, Jesus was able to
converse effectively with the best theologians and doctors of the Temple. He
was on familiar ground - the Temple, and He was the true Temple of God. Imagine
the relief and wounded pride of the mother in finding Jesus where she did not
expect to find Him. Haven't we all done so? Yes, we expect to find Him in the
blooming roses of the morning, or by the placid shores of the blue sea; but do
we expect to find Him on the stormy seas, or in the Critical Care Unit of a
hospital? He is most often where we least expect to find Him - even walking on
the tumultuous Sea of Galilee. But here, we find a twelve year old Jesus
conversing on a par with the most learned men of the Temple. Such men were
impressed by His learning: "And all that heard him were astonished at
his understanding and answers."
In great relief as much as in rancor, His mother was amazed: "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."
Was Mary completely correct in her rebuke? No, she offered a technical
falsehood. Jesus was not the son of Joseph but of God! No doubt, for the sake
of social acceptance, all who knew Mary may have believed that He was the son
of Joseph, but He was certainly not! Sometimes, we may pass off our wayward
children to friends and neighbors as Christian believers while, in our hearts, we
know it isn't so.
Our frail human memories are too easily forgetful of God's Word and promises to
us. Mary and Joseph had both been told who the child was - the Son of God. But
they seem to have forgotten that one little detail. "And he said unto
them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not
that I must be about my Father's business? And they understood not
the saying which he spake unto them." There are to salient points, at
least, contained in this exchange. First, Jesus was eager to begin the ministry
for which He was sent. We should also be eager to get on with the business to
obeying our calling in God. Second, we all forget the Words that God has spoken
to us - even in profound manner. It seems less likely that we would forget any
Word related by such a mighty angel as Gabriel, the Archangel; but Mary and
Joseph had apparently forgotten the divinity of their charge. This same
impression, perhaps out of mercy, seems to be the case with Mary throughout the
ministry of Christ.
"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. And Jesus increased
in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man." Jesus
satisfied His responsibility both to His Father in Heaven, and His earthly
parents.
Not only did He grow physically (stature) but in His Godly
Wisdom day by day.
Do we?
