Luke Bible Study, Day 5
Today’s passage: Luke 2:39–52
Focus verse:“Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?” (Luke 2:49)
After Jesus’s miraculous conception, birth, and the testimonies from the angels—and later Simeon and Anna—we don’t hear anything more about Jesus until he’s twelve.
We can only guess what his childhood might have been like. In most ways he was probably like other kids, getting into mischief and perplexing his parents.
Yet in other ways, Jesus was unlike other children. He may have matured spiritually much faster than his peers. Also, Jesus didn’t sin, which would make him quite unlike every other kid.
This, of course, is speculation. But here’s what we do know.
Each year Mary and Joseph make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover. When Jesus is twelve, he goes with them. This customary rite of passage shows Jesus moving from childhood into adulthood.
The trip there and the Passover celebration go as expected. It’s on the trip home that things go awry.
Jesus’s parents and the other pilgrims head for home, moving as a group. There’s safety in numbers, and camaraderie is part of the experience.
Unlike today’s helicopter parents who know where their kid is at every moment, Jesus’s parents are much more laid-back.
They assume he’s with friends in another part of the caravan. It’s not until the end of the first day’s journey that they even look for him. But they can’t find him.
In a panic, they retrace their path and rush back to Jerusalem. We don’t know whether they waited until morning light or left right away, but it must have been an anxious time for them, every parent’s nightmare.
However, it’s worse for them. They lost the Son of God!
After three gut-wrenching, agonizing days, they finally find Jesus. He’s in the temple’s meeting area. He sits with the religious teachers, listening to what they say and asking questions. He responds to their questions too.
Jesus’s answers amaze everyone. His level of understanding impresses them. This astonishes Mary and Joseph.
Mary rebukes her son, accusing him of being irresponsible, of not caring about them and how worried they were or of their frantic search for him.
He doesn’t say, “I’m sorry,” or even, “I guess I lost track of time.” Instead he says something shocking. He says, “Didn’t you know I had to hang out in Papa’s house?”
Yes, he said he had to do this. This wasn’t a preference but more so a compulsion.
Mary and Joseph don’t get it. Did they forget what they heard twelve years earlier? It’s more likely they remember those things said about Jesus, but they don’t understand what it all meant.
Regardless, Jesus returns with them to Nazareth and obeys them. He continues to grow spiritually and physically, preparing for ministry.
Questions:
Do we ever feel that we’ve lost Jesus?
What do we do to find him?
How do we react when we do?
[Discover more about lost things in Luke 15, as covered in “Day 27: Lost and Found.”]
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Read more about the book of Luke in Dear Theophilus: A 40-Day Devotional Exploring the Life of Jesus through the Gospel of Luke, now available in ebook, paperback, and hardcover.
Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront a status quo faith and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.
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