Christmas 2

Christmas 2 (Luke 2:41-52)

“Did you not know…?”

Jesus was, and still is, fully human.

While his conception was miraculous, his gestation and birth were completely normal. He is the incarnation of the co-eternal Word of the Eternal Father. He is the Beloved.

Our Heavenly Father created all of us and each of us to be the forever friends of the Beloved. That is the meaning and purpose of life. That is the meaning and purpose we as a species rejected. Each of us individually lives in separation from God. We are lost in separation. We are not just merely or accidentally lost. We are willfully and spitefully lost.

We are lost and we do not want to be found. We are lost and we seek meaning and purpose everywhere except in the original blessing of the original design of God.

The co-eternal Word of the eternal Father, the Beloved, came to Earth to seek the lost who do not want to be found. He unified his divinity with our humanity in Jesus. Jesus is one person with two natures. In order to achieve his goal of finding us, the Beloved surrendered all of his divine prerogatives. He did this so he could live life exactly as we live life.

He is eternal but when he entered the world of time he experienced time as we experience time- second by second, minute by minute, hour by hour, day by day.

He is infinite but when he entered the world of space he experienced limitation, location, and place.

He became fully human so he could experience exactly what it means to be us and then offer us a new way of being human. It is the Way of the Beloved. It is the way of grace.

Throughout his life, Jesus lived a normal human life. He ate and drank. He slept and worked and played. He worshipped in the synagogue every week on the Sabbath. He worshipped in the Temple in Jerusalem on the appointed festivals. He read and studied and memorized scripture.

The biographies of Jesus, the gospels, mainly focus on his three years of public ministry starting from when he turned 30 years old. We hear a little about his birth. We know his parents fled to Egypt as political refugees. They lived there for seven years then returned to Nazareth.

Then we have this incident when he was 12 years old. He was still a child. He was on the cusp of adolescence. As with any 12 year old he was inquisitive and curious. He apparently delighted in the age appropriate “why” questions.

He became so entranced by the Temple rituals that he remained in the Temple for three days after his family had returned home. He probably just lost track of time. He certainly had perfect trust in his heavenly Father to protect him and to take care of him. The Temple priests probably gave him a place to sleep and food to eat. They were impressed with his insightful questions and more than willing to offer their own insights into the God of Israel and their understanding of religion.

His parents, however, were frantic- as well they might be. In the context of the extended family of the time, Mary just assumed Jesus was with an uncle or a cousin or one of his older step brothers. When Mary and Joseph finally realized Jesus was missing they were horrified. Mary especially knew the prophecies concerning the suffering servant Messiah. She lived with a constant fear and a constant prayer for Jesus’ safety.

When they finally discovered Jesus in the Temple after searching every place else for him they are both relieved and angry. Jesus is curiously amazed at their reaction. It is almost as though he asks- don’t you realize who I am? Don’t you trust God to protect me? But, then he sees things from their perspective. He realizes, oh right. Yes. Of course. This is why I came. This is what it means to be a child. This is what it means to be a Mom and a Dad. This is fear.

Jesus had to learn fear from his parents and his extended family. Jesus never separated from God. Jesus never reacted to life with fear. He responded to life and to other people with faith through love. So, he learned a valuable lesson in much the same way every 12 year old learns. He learned from experience. He learned from observation. He understood through the teachings of Moses that as a 12 year old he needed to honor his mother and his step Father. He probably apologized and assured Mary he would be more mindful and more respectful of her. It was a lesson any 12 year needed to learn. It was especially poignant for Mary who knew that Jesus was the Son of God but did not understand how Jesus was the Son of God.

Having lived life as we live life, Jesus wants to help us live a better life. Jesus wants to help us make wise choices to live a better Way of life. It is the way of faith through love. It is the Way of Original Blessing. It is the Way we cooperate with the Holy Spirit to be the best possible version of our unique personal identity. It is the Jesus Way of Grace.