Luke 2.41-50
The silent years of Jesus’ childhood are broken only by one account in the Gospel of Luke. Mary and Joseph consistently obeyed God’s Word. They went annually to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover, a feast commemorating God’s work of rescuing the Israelites from slavery in Egypt. No doubt Jesus, as a boy, made this yearly journey with His parents. When Jesus was twelve years old He again made this journey to Jerusalem with Mary and Joseph, along with many other who would have travelled together to the feast. When Passover was finished, the band of travellers began their journey back to Galilee. Mary and Joseph assumed that Jesus was among their friends and relatives as they made their way north. But Jesus had remained behind.
Any parent knows the feeling, either real or imaginary, of losing a child in a crowd. When the caravan stopped for the evening, Mary and Joseph were distressed to discover that Jesus was nowhere to be found. Had they misplaced the Son of God. Of course, Mary and Joseph quickly returned to Jerusalem, where they found Jesus in the Temple courts interacting with the scholars and scribes. Jesus was asking questions and posing answers of His own, answers that amazed those who heard Him. Mary, delighted and astonished, asked Jesus why He had stayed behind. Why had He put them through an emotional ringer? Jesus, in His first recorded words, simply and respectfully stated, “Why were you searching for me? Didn’t you know that I had to be involved in the things of my Father?” In His earliest statement, Jesus declared His unique relationship with God the Father and His unique role in performing the Father’s purposes for His life. Jesus knew as a child that He had a task to perform, one that set Him apart from all others. He would be devoted to accomplishing His heavenly Father’s business.
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