Sunday, 31 Dec 2000

David Layman

"Remaining In The Temple"

I Samuel 2:18-20, 26

Luke 2:41-52

The story of the boy Jesus in the Temple is the only account we have in

between Jesus' birth and the beginning of his ministry at the age of

30. But it tells us a lot! If we attended Sunday School as a child,

surely we heard this account. Mary and Joseph were devout parents.

EVERY YEAR they journeyed to Jerusalem for the Passover festival, and

stayed the whole 7 days. Mary and Joseph lived in Nazareth, a four or

five day journey north of Jerusalem. Some who lived a great distance

from Jerusalem likely did not attend every Passover celebration. And of

those who did, some just stayed a couple of days. Picture the time

commitment that Mary and Joseph made to attend Passover: A minimum of 9

days travel time, going and coming, plus 7 days for the Passover.

That's 16 days. As a carpenter, Joseph was self employed. He didn't

get paid holidays. Every day he was away from the carpentry shop, he

was making NO money!

We learn from the gospels that Jesus had at least 6 younger brothers and

sisters. At this Passover celebration, Jesus was 12. Let's say the

ages of Jesus' younger siblings were: 10, 8, 6, 4, 2, and perhaps a

newborn. Pam and I know from experience that young children are a

challenge to take somewhere. How would you like the thought of

traveling 75 miles on foot each direction, with that many children? The

odds were that at least 2 at any given moment were holding up their

hands and pleading "Carry me!", and the rest were asking "Are we there

yet?" I think journeying to Jerusalem for the Passover with that many

children would have been a bit more daunting than making a trek to

Disney World! But Mary and Joseph went, faithfully. More than that,

knowing their devotion to God, it was likely the high point of their

year.

How did they manage? From Luke 2, we see that Mary and Joseph journeyed

with a group of pilgrims, likely including other family members and

neighbors from Nazareth. Joseph likely traveled with a number of the

men, and as they journeyed, they talked: "Do you think Annas will be

appointed high priest again? I wonder how much sacrificial lambs are

going for at the Temple this year? Remember the time Josiah's lamb,

which won a blue ribbon at the Beersheba county fair, was rejected as

"blemished", and he had to buy one of the Temple's lambs at an

outlandish price? Say, did you hear the one about "How many Roman

soldiers does it take to refill an oil lamp?" Did you see the latest

model in chariots that just came out? I saw one in Sepphoris. Yeah,

it's a convertible, made of super lightweight wood, with a spoiler and

real nice lines. There's a nifty racing stripe down the side." And

then, knowing Joseph was traveling with men, the talk had to include

sports: "How much did you lose at the camel races, Reuben? Do you think

Caesarea will field a pretty good team this year?"

Meanwhile, Mary traveled with a group of women, and a horde of

children. The older kids sometimes hung out with the men, sometimes

with the women. At the end of the first day's travel, Joseph and Mary

got together at the camp site, set up camp, had something to eat, and

then it was "Where's Jesus? No, he's not with me. I thought he spent

the day with YOU!" And you can imagine the anxiety and consternation,

Mary saying "Joseph, how could you?" And Joseph responding defensively

"Mary, you can't say Jesus takes after me! Don't worry, Mary. Jesus

has never given us any trouble. I'm sure he's O.K."

When Mary and Joseph finally found Jesus, he was in the Temple, "SITTING

AMONG THE TEACHERS, LISTENING TO THEM AND ASKING QUESTIONS." Mary, her nerves on end, said "CHILD, WHY HAVE YOU TREATED US LIKE THIS? LOOK, YOUR FATHER AND I HAVE BEEN SEARCHING FOR YOU IN GREAT ANXIETY." And Jesus responded "WHY WERE YOU SEARCHING FOR ME? DID YOU NOT KNOW THAT I MUST BE IN MY FATHER'S HOUSE?" From Jesus' response at the age of 12, we know that he understood that God was indeed his true father, and that

he had a unique mission and purpose in life.

The uniqueness of Christ leads us to wonder indeed what it must have

been like to be God's son. Some presume Jesus was born as superman,

with supernatural powers and total knowledge from day one. Yet our

scripture passage from Luke 2 indicates otherwise. Jesus "listened" to

the teachers in the temple and asked questions. This seems to indicate

he wasn't pre-programmed from infancy with a tape of the beatitudes, the

parable of the Good Samaritan, and all the other profound messages he

shared when he turned 30. Luke 2:52 says "AND JESUS INCREASED IN WISDOM AND IN YEARS, AND IN DIVINE AND HUMAN FAVOR." This verse seems to refute the idea that Jesus was a kind of spiritual robot that was left in neutral until the age of 30.

While Jesus learned and grew as the years passed, yet he was without

sin, throughout his life. Some presume that if Jesus was indeed

sinless, everyone in Nazareth would have known and appreciated that

fact. But not so! While Jesus' kindness and goodness of heart would

have been attractive, other children quickly learn to resent someone

that looks better than them, IS better than them! And they likely

resented their parents constantly saying "Junior, why can't you be more

like Jesus? And why is it, after all the hours I've spent drilling you

on the Torah, and trying to get you to memorize the psalms, Jesus always

wins the annual competition?"

Verse 51 is interesting. After Mary & Joseph have found Jesus, and

Jesus reminded them of God the Father"s mission for him, "HE WENT DOWN

WITH THEM AND CAME TO NAZARETH, AND WAS OBEDIENT TO THEM." Mary and Joseph were good and devout people, but they weren't without sin. In spite of the visits by the shepherds and the Magi at Christ's birth, Mary and Joseph still didn't fully comprehend the mission and purpose of

Jesus. We can certainly understand this! Jesus, from his childhood on

up, was never obedient to sin. He was never obedient to peer pressure,

unjust authority, or the threat of violence, even death. But he was

obedient to his parents. And, at the age of 12, as well as the age of

32, Jesus was obedient to the authority of God His Heavenly Father! We

know little about Jesus from his infancy, until his active ministry

began around the age of 30. But we do know Jesus was learning...from

the rabbis in his local synagogue, from the teachers of the law and the

priests in the Jerusalem Temple, from Joseph in the carpentry shop, from

mother Mary at home. Jesus was a student of the world about him, and of

God, his heavenly Father!

As one year ends, and a new year will soon begin, are we seeking to be

about our Heavenly Father's business? Are we learning? Are we

growing? As I reflect on my own life, I know I've learned a lot this

last year. Some lessons have challenged me. Some fill me with joy. 52

years into life, there is still so much I don't know, so many things I'm

only beginning to understand. There is much God's Word, and the Holy

Spirit through the fellowship of believers, can teach me. A new

millennium begins in just over 12 hours. The first millennium saw the

death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, yet also the dark ages. The

second millennium saw the proclamation of the Christian faith throughout

the world, yet the last 100 years alone have seen two terrible world

wars, the rise and partial fall of communism, the beginning of the AIDS

epidemic. We have much to learn, and much that needs to be shared. Let

us make the journey to God's holy temple, and desire to remain there,

that we might be obedient to God, increase in wisdom, and in divine and

human favor!

--

Rev. David Layman

First Presbyterian Church