Scripture for Tuesday, January 7 Luke 2:41-52
Although
we are still celebrating the Christmas Season, it was extremely difficult for
me to not discuss the birth of Christ.
Instead, I am using the last section of this chapter to open this year’s
study of Walking in Wisdom.
Sue
asked us to share a word or phrase that we want to focus on for the New Year,
and I shared that mine is TRUTH. A few
years ago, I was in the middle of a discussion with someone I looked up to and
valued their opinion and something they said really rattled me. I was looking for answers. I was at a crossroads and wanted to
participate in a bible study. So much
was going on in my life – my seriously injured husband, trying to blend six
kids from two marriages, ages 12-19, either in college, high school or middle
school. My friends and family seemed to
all be trying to navigate through life and some weren’t doing so well.
My
friend, who I consider a natural born leader said something that caused me to
question his salvation. He appreciated
my concern, but we were divided. Who was
right? I needed answers. It had been years since I had participated in
a bible study. But my family and friends
could not help me with finding the answers to my questions. The books I was reading, were not
helping. I needed the truth. Somehow, I stumbled onto Women in the Word
and I’ve been learning ever since.
In
today’s passage, Mary asks Jesus why He treated she and Joseph this way and
they were searching anxiously for Him (v. 48), it’s Jesus’ response that sums
up my seeking. “Why were
you searching – didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house.” (v. 50)
The
bible does not change – scripture does not change – it changes us. The more we read and study the bible and pray
over our readings, the more God reveals to us.
It’s absolutely amazing. And there
will often be times that those around you will be less knowledgeable, but you have
to live and/or work under their authority.
Perhaps it’s your boss, or your spouse, or like in Jesus’ example, your
earthly parents. Mary and Joseph did not
understand that Jesus was doing the will of His heavenly Father.
This
is the only biblical recorded incident of the youthful years of Christ, and it’s
most likely that Luke got this story from Mary.
Luke was incredibly good at research and he used eyewitnesses to write
his gospel (v. 1:2).
But
why are they searching for Jesus at all?
To a lot of people, it appears this 12 year old boy has treated his
parents poorly. Jesus sums it up here in
verses 48-50: And when they (his parents) saw him they were astonished; and his
mother said to him, “Son, why have you treated us so? Behold your father and I have been looking
for you anxiously (literally: in pain).”
And he said to them: “Why is it
that you sought me? Did you not know
that I must be in my Father’s house (or about his business).” And they did not understand the saying which
he spoke to them.
This
last statement – that they did not understand Jesus – is Luke’s way of saying
to us “There’s more here than meets the eye.”
Where did they search? In the
playground, at the local swimming hole, in the shops, at the bakery? Jesus answers: You shouldn’t have had to seek at all. For you know, don’t you, that there is laid
on me an inner necessity to be in my Father’s house (or about his business –
depending on your translation)?
It
seems the main point of the whole passage probably lies in the contrast between
“your father” and “my father”. Mary
says, your father and I have been
searching for you.” Jesus answers, “You
should have known I would be at the house of my Father.” In other words,
Jesus has chosen this crucial stage of his life, on the brink of manhood, to
tell his parents in an unforgettable way that he now knows who his real Father
is and what it will mean for his mission.
It will mean, as Simeon said in Luke 2:35, “a sword will pierce through
your own soul also, Mary,” The time will
come when Jesus will be killed at Jerusalem, and after three days rise from the
dead, and that will be a great pain for Mary.
And is not this three-day vigil of Mary and Joseph a foreshadowing of
that experience? She said, “Your father
and I have been seeking you in pain.”
So
it seems to me that the main teaching of the passage is that Jesus now
recognizes his unique sonship to God, and that his mission will require of him
a devotion to God’s purposes so great that it takes precedence over the closest
family ties. He must follow his calling,
even if it brings pain and misunderstanding.
In this way Luke sets the stage for the adult ministry of the Son of
God.
I
am beginning what should be the last year of my present job. This is the beginning of my 30th
year of work at this job. I can
retire! My purpose is changing and I
have had so many people give me ideas of what I should or could do in my
retirement. My children are no longer of
the age that they need me to keep track of them and I now have an opportunity
to switch gears. This is a crucial stage
of my life and so I am seeking the truth.
What is my mission? What is my
purpose? This year will truly be a year
of Walking in Wisdom for me.
