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Luke 2:40-52

⁴⁰ And the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom. And the favor of God was upon him.

⁴¹ Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover. ⁴² And when he was twelve years old, they went up according to custom. ⁴³ And when the feast was ended, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents did not know it, ⁴⁴ but supposing him to be in the group they went a day’s journey, but then they began to search for him among their relatives and acquaintances, ⁴⁵ and when they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem, searching for him. ⁴⁶ After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. ⁴⁷ And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. ⁴⁸ And when 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 searching for you in great distress.” ⁴⁹ And he said to them, “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” ⁵⁰ And they did not understand the saying that he spoke to them. ⁵¹ And he went down with them and came to Nazareth and was submissive to them. And his mother treasured up all these things in her heart. ⁵² And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.

Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

I would guess that a perfectly obedient child is easy to neglect. I don’t know personally, but I guess. They assume He is with them.

This text leaves all sorts of questions about everything Jesus did during those three days unanswered. What did He eat? Where did He sleep? How was He kept safe? What about His parents? Mary and Joseph had no way to get hold of Him. They can’t text Him to see where He is. They cannot put out an Amber Alert for others to look for Him. They have to go back, but even going back has risks. If they start back and He leaves the city, what happens if they miss Him on the road? What if He decides to hole up somewhere along the way?

Joseph and Mary have failed as parents. They are feeling the burning shame of leaving a twelve-year-old alone for three days in the big city. When they finally do find Him, there in the Temple, Mary takes all of those feelings of shame, pain, and grief and speaks harshly to Jesus. It is His fault. Why is Jesus treating them so? He should have stayed with His parents, right?

Repent.

Our anxiety and guilt transform us into something nasty. We choose to feel the way we feel. Our reactions are under our control and no one else’s. Even if we are provoked, that is no excuse. No one makes us angry. Rather, we give in to our anger and let it have the best of us. In our fight or flight instinct, we usually choose to fight, and we blame others for our overreactions.

Yes, there are times when we are victims, but we add to the hurt. We hurt ourselves with bad responses to bad behavior. There is no excuse, nowhere to point the finger of blame, for our anger, gossip, or worry but to our own sinful selves.

Mary did a bad thing – she neglected her Son. But she made it worse by blaming Him. “Son, why have you treated us so? Behold, your father and I have been searching for you in great distress.”

Jesus rebukes her, but He is gentle. “Why were you looking for Me?” In other words, “Why did I get lost? Whose responsibility was it to watch over Me? What went wrong?” But then He continues to correct Mary’s heated accusation. “Did you not know that I must be in My Father’s house?” Joseph was not His father. Jesus had been safely tucked away there in the Temple.

Now, every English Bible fails at Jesus’ words which get translated, “Did you not know that I must be in My Father’s house?” Luke doesn’t use either the word must or the word house. The most literal way to translate Jesus’ words is, “Did you not know that it is necessary for Me to be among My Father’s things?”

Whenever you hear this text, remember this. Jesus doesn’t say, “I must be.” He says, “It is necessary.” Those important words, “It is necessary,” indicate that Jesus is fulfilling prophecy. Jesus will use the same words later to say that it is necessary for Him to be betrayed, beaten, and be crucified. It is necessary for Him to suffer and die. It is necessary for Mary, for you, for me.

The other problem is when our translations speak of the Father’s house. There is nothing in Jesus’ words here that carries the idea of Him being in the Father’s house. It is not necessary for Jesus to be in the location of a particular building that was His Father’s. Instead, Jesus says that it is necessary to be among His Father’s things. The things like the lampstand, the altar of incense, the altar of burnt offerings, and all of that stuff of sacrifice. Jesus is in the midst of the stuff that makes God’s people clean through blood. Jesus is among the stuff that reconciles the people to God. The whole purpose of the Temple was to give God’s people safe access to Him. God didn’t need the Temple, we do.

Jesus is among the things of His Father because Jesus is the Thing of His Father. He is the Thing that makes mankind clean and reconciles all sinners back to God. On the cross, Jesus is there at the altar making the one-time blood payment for your sin. He is there as both the Priest and the Victim.

Luke gives an important clue to foreshadow all of this: Joseph and Mary find Jesus on the third day. This does foreshadow the Resurrection, but it also tells you where to find Jesus. You live in the third day. You live in the time of the Resurrection.

So where is Jesus today? He is still there among His Father’s things. We sinners tore down the Temple – which is Jesus’ own body. And Jesus rebuilt that Temple again on the third day. You see Jesus is where God has promised to dwell and abide with you. Jesus is where you have access to the Father.

So, here He is. Present in His Body and Blood. Here He is in His holy Word. Here He is among you, His purchased, chosen, elect people. He is in the preaching of His Gospel and in the Absolution. Here is where Jesus is and remains for you.

Jesus welcomes Joseph and Mary back into His fold, and He welcomes you.

Your sins do not and can not stop His love. Jesus is faithful to the end. His mercy endures forever. Treasure these things up in your heart. And be fed, be forgiven, be here. Amen.[1]

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

[1] I am thankful to a sermon by Rev. David H. Petersen as inspiration for this sermon.