October 21 Sermon: Treasured

Think about these questions while we look at Luke 2:41-52:

1. What is the significance of Jesus staying behind in the temple and engaging with the religious teachers at such a young age?

2. How does the incident of Jesus being left behind in the temple reveal both his humanity and his divine wisdom?

3. How does Mary's response to finding Jesus in the temple demonstrate her growing understanding of his unique identity and mission?

Transcript:

There is a great attraction to know what people used to look like. I can remember television shows from years back where they would do features on celebrities and what they looked like and what they did before they became the famous people we knew them as. This phenomenon is obviously not something that has gone away because now you can hardly navigate a website without some sort of “what did so and so look like before they were famous” click bait article staring you in the face. And the proof of the allure of this information is the fact that you have to click through dozens of pages laden with ads to see them. They are banking that after you see a picture of what one celebrity used to look like, you’ll just have to see more.

‌This isn’t just the case with famous people. We want to know what our new friends used to look like and when we get opportunity to see some pictures we jump at it. I used to sit on my grandmothers couch and page through the photo albums just to see what family used to look like and this wasn’t something I did one time and then moved on. I would regularly look at the old photos, now, this might have been because they only had a black and white TV but I don’t think so. I wanted to see to be reminded of what my grandparents, parents, aunts, uncles, and cousins looked like.

‌Well, as interesting as it would be to know what Jesus was like before he was walking around teaching in Nazareth and observing the festivals in Jerusalem, the gospel of Luke doesn’t really give us much background information on what Jesus was like when he was younger. We would like to know if he did any miracles or how he interacted with others on a day to day basis but we don’t get any of that. The truth of the matter is that everyday life is pretty boring, even for God the Son who has taken on flesh to bear the wrath of God for the sins of the world. You would think that would be pretty interesting stuff but lets think for a moment. For the most part even the three year ministry of Jesus probably wasn’t too terribly exciting on a day to day basis. Three years of ministry and Luke tells the story in 24 chapters, Mark only takes 16, John is divided into 21 chapters, and Matthew logs in at 28. And there is a considerable amount of material that is repeated in the gospels, especially between Matthew, Mark, and Luke.

‌And as I mentioned last week, this shows us that Jesus did not show up and have hyper busy life as a dignitary who was born into the right family and was destined to rule with earthly power. Instead, he came in our very own flesh and lived and breathed like you and I did. And this is important because he came to save us from the curse that plagues the bodies we carry around.

‌But, in the midst of all the normalcy we don’t hear about we get a glimpse into the early life of Jesus. It is a great story too. It’s like that friend of yours who shows you their high school yearbook photo and they have mullet. This picture we get of Jesus shows us who he is, and more importantly, who he is going to be.

‌Today we aren’t going to break down into three points, we are going to have two. The last time I did this I threw a gentleman who listens to our sermons in Australia for a loop but, I believe he survived the change from what we normally do and so did you and so we will break from the usual three points once again this morning and consider the two points that show us the progression of this story.

‌The first thing we will see is that Jesus stays behind. The family has gone to Jerusalem for the passover and on the way home they realize that Jesus is not with them and this leads to concern and retracing steps to find the young Jesus.

‌Secondly, they find that he is in Jerusalem and he is among the teachers in the temple. While Jesus is just a young man what we read about him growing in stature and wisdom is proven to be true. While he is just a normal boy, he is not a normal boy. He is the messiah and the favor of God rests upon him.

‌And so we land in this well known story this morning and see further evidence that the family of Jesus is once again a faithful Hebrew family.

‌Last week we saw a story about the two elderly prophets testifying to the identity of Jesus as the promised one. We saw there that the family of Jesus was consistent in keeping the things that were required of them in the law. We also learned that they were not well off because they could not provide the lamb required in the sacrifice and so they used the option for those who were poor and offered the two birds. These details don’t seem like much to us because we’re not first century Hebrew natives but it does tell us something very important beyond the social class that Jesus was born into. They were faithful to keep the commands of God. Jesus, even before he is physically able to do so, is keeping the law on our behalf through his family. And we see this idea continuing to be fleshed out for us hear at the beginning of this story. They make their way to Jerusalem every year just as they were required to do.

‌They do this every year but this year we are invited along and it is when Jesus is twelve years old. That may be a significant detail as we will see in a moment. But first we see that this was just like they always did. It is kind of interesting to think about Jesus going to Jerusalem for the Passover as a young child knowing that one day he will make a trip to Jerusalem for Passover and he will be the passover lamb. We don’t know that part of the story yet from Luke but we know it from being Christians. We know that the boy Jesus is going and he is there when the Passover lamb is slain and all the while what that feast and sacrifice is pointing to is standing there taking it all in. Amazing to think about.

‌Anyway, when the feast ends, they head home and Jesus stays behind. We have no idea how this happened. We don’t know what the circumstances were that he was left behind. I mentioned previously that Jesus was 12 years old. Well, the way that families went to the feasts was to travel with their extended family. They would sing songs together and they would stop and eat. Another detail we know about these caravans that would go from their homes to Jerusalem was that they would often travel with the women and children at the front and the men at the back. We don’t know for sure but at the age of 12 both parents could have easily assumed that Jesus was with one group or the other. An honest mistake and you could also assume that he was with his friends or extended family members his age.

‌Regardless of how this went down you can probably pretty easily imagine the reaction when they came to the realization he wasn’t in the caravan. Oh my goodness, I’ve misplaced the Son of God. What kind of parents are we? Regardless of whether the child is the incarnate God the Son you can imagine any parent’s concern. The panic would be real. When did we lose him? Is he OK? What do we need to do to find him?

‌All of this would have raced through their heads at unfathomable speeds. We see the story from the long view. They had gone a days journey. He isn’t down the road a few hundred feet. He is a long way from them and eventually they return to Jerusalem for him and there they find him as we move on to our second point from the passage.

‌As we move on to verse 46 stop and appreciate those first three words here. After three days. I’m guessing at some point you either couldn’t find a child for a few moments and it felt like three days. Or maybe you were the child who inadvertently got away from your parents. Regardless, a few moments feels like a very long time. Imagine not being able to find a child for three days. You are walking and searching, calling out his name, and nothing. For three days. You have to stop to rest but you likely can’t sleep. After these three days of effort you find that he is just in the temple. Imagine the ground covered and the effort that was expended shouting his name and asking people if they had seen him and then to find him in this one obvious, well known location that sits on a relatively small plot of land. Remember they were a single days journey away but it took them three days to find him.

‌Imagine the relief they must have felt at the end of all that but then they get there and what they see is amazing. There sits this 12 year old Jesus sitting with the teachers. My first question would have been how did he gain an audience with them? I’m guessing he didn’t walk up on an ask me anything session in the temple. I’m guessing he likely began by speaking with someone and then they were taken by the questions and answers this young savant had coming from his mouth and he takes him to someone else who is impressed and so on until he ends up with an audience of these teachers. Again, we can’t know how this goes down, we aren’t given that information but you can sort of see how this might happen with this 12 year old boy.

‌And what is most amazing isn’t that he has an audience with them it’s that they are amazed at what he has to say. We read last week that Jesus was growing in wisdom and here we see it on display. We don’t know what is being said but it isn’t that he can recite Bible verses like a kid with all the badges for memorization from a church midweek program. Most Hebrews probably could rattle off scripture like that. The idea here is what we see elsewhere in the gospels. He teaches as one who has understanding and authority. He understood what was at the root of it all. He knew how it all pointed to the coming Messiah. He would have known the meaning of the types and shadows in a way that the religious leaders wouldn’t have. They would have seen the rituals as ultimate and we know from the fulfillment we have seen in Jesus that these things weren’t ultimate in themselves but instead pointed to what Jesus was going to do in his life, death, and resurrection. And we get this going back all the way to when he was 12. He confounded those around him with his understanding. There is something more to the word of God than just a bunch of rules to keep. It was all doing something more. We can’t know what it was that Jesus was amazing them with but it likely is similar to what we see in other parts of the gospels. He teaches with authority in a way that people had never seen before.

‌And as the passage continues we see what his parents have to say to their son that they have been searching for tirelessly for three days.

‌Now, I don’t know about you but I’m kind of surprised by this statement about them being astonished. We just saw in the earlier parts of Luke just how amazing this whole thing is. Elizabeth who was barren has a child at her advanced age. Mary was a virgin and conceived the child. The angels announced his arrival. Simeon and Anna knew who he was and now you’re amazed because he is wise and able to hang with the religious experts of the day? Isn’t this what we should expect, but regardless of the reactions of Mary and Joseph, they don’t seem to stay astonished for too long. Mary asks him why he has treated them in this way and lets Jesus know what they have been through. And you parents might look at the response of Jesus and wonder how you would have responded. I’m guessing my reaction would not be a good one. Walking around for 3 days looking for your child and then you are told that you should have known where he would be. Yeah, not thinking that would have been easy to take but knowing who Jesus is, we can understand the response. Where else would Jesus be? It is clear from what he has to say that Jesus was not malicious or doing something rebellious. He was just left behind because he was in the temple learning and speaking with the religious leaders.

‌And again we see that his parents are confused. They know that he is the promised one but clearly they don’t understand this completely. That’s what Luke wants us to see. This whole Messiah thing isn’t figured out. Even his parents are getting this. We are going to see this throughout his life and ministry. People like the idea of the Messiah but they just don’t know what to expect. But ultimately it makes sense that Jesus is where he is, right? He is desiring to be where he can hear and grow in wisdom and understanding. He desires to grow and he desires to be in fellowship with the people of God.

‌And as the passage concludes we see that even though Jesus feels this is the place that he should be, he is submissive to the parental authority that has been placed in his life.

‌He goes back with them. He feels that the temple is his Father’s house but he knows the earthly authority that he has been put under is a good thing and an important part of his life and ministry. As I’ve drawn out so many times, his life is normal and ordinary and he is doing so many of the things that you and I are called to do as well and he does them. He obeys.

‌And we see that Mary treasured all these things up in her heart. We don’t know the bibliography of Luke’s gospel but we do know he does a lot of research and my personal opinion is that this smacks of Luke either having access to Mary or access to someone she shared these things with. She cherishes these things and thinks about and considers them all. And when you think about the coming story this is all kind of heartbreaking. As a mother she is going to see so many good things about having a son who is the Messiah but she likely didn’t consider the promises of the Old Testament that said he would suffer. For all these sentimental things she cherishes for her son to be her savior he must suffer and die. For all the things she treasured there is in fact dread in Mary’s future but it will ultimately result in her salvation for her son is going to bear the wrath of God in her place and rise again to guarantee her eternal life.

‌And as we finish up chapter 2 we see once again that Jesus continues to grow in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and man. Luke is reminding us that while Jesus is growing and doing the ordinary things that all people experience Jesus is different. He is set apart. The favor of God is upon him.

‌We will be taking a few week break from Luke for Advent and Christmas day but we will soon see the beginning of the earthly ministry of Jesus and how the words of Luke here about Jesus let us know just how amazing it is going to be.‌

But what do we do with what we have seen at the end of Luke 2 today. It is a story we are likely pretty familiar with and really it’s information on the life of Jesus that is moving us to the heart of what Jesus is going to do. I think there is something very applicable for us as we prepare to step out of here into the world this week.

‌As I’ve mentioned from here before and with a few of you in conversation, I have enjoyed digging into these first two chapters of Luke outside of the Christmas season. Usually we attach these passages with sentimentality that we have towards Christmas memories we have had but it’s been interesting to consider them apart from the trees and lights and such. As we think about what to do with this passage today I think it does us well to look back on what we have seen in Luke so far and treasure the coming of Jesus.

‌In some degree we have all lamented the commercialization of the holiday season. It is unavoidable. As much as we want to cherish the reason for the season shopping, family gatherings, travel, and all the other trappings of the holidays are an unavoidable reality but as we go into the season and prepare for Christmas may we truly treasure what we have seen as we move towards celebrating the arrival of the Christ child on Christmas day. May we marvel at the promise that God keeps to his people as we here again the story of the virgin conception. May we rejoice with the angels that his promise comes to the least of these like the shepherds. May treasure the truth that he took on our flesh not to attain earthly power but to suffer and die that he might bear the wrath of God for our sin.

‌And so, as we head into the Christmas season may we treasure the work of our savior that we might respond in gratitude with holy living that brings honor, glory, and praise to Jesus for who he is and what he has done.