Searching for Jesus
Luke 2:41-52
Rev. Michelle Freeman
December 31 2006
Kids grow up way to fast! Just this past week we gathered here in this holy place together to celebrate Jesus’ birth and not one week later we’re back to hear a story from his pre-teen years! How quickly time passes! What happened in those inbetween years? How did the young Jesus grow to be this precocious boy who would give his parents the slip, only to be found doing one of the most celebrated tasks in his culture: teaching in the temple?
I can only imagine what a terrifying experience it must be to not be able to find your child. Even to not be able to have them in your line of sight in a crowd. Whether they are two or twelve, that initial adrenaline rush and sense of panic is palpable. What were the thoughts Mary and Joseph must have had? Where is he? Is he ok? Is he alright? Why in the world did he not stay with the caravan? Fear, pain and not just a bit of anger had to be some of the emotions they were feeling.
And why didn’t Jesus tell his parents where he was going? What he was doing? Where was the obedient and perfect child we all come to expect from the Son of God? Why did he disregard any instructions his earthly parents had given him and leave? This disobedient pre-teen is certainly not the image we usually have of Jesus, in all his perfection and glory!
But that’s a part of who Jesus is- human. With human instincts and inclinations. Jesus is not just the one who came to teach and to save us, he is also one who we are able to relate to, as well – he IS human. And this story, one of the only ones we have of him before he began his formal ministry, demonstrates that humanness in a frustrating way.
Yet he is also the Son of God, one who was seeking out his identity and purpose. From this story we know that he had a sense he was different: he tells his mother: Did you not know that I had to be here, in my Father’s house? Developmentally, as a twelve-year-old, he would be very interested in knowing who he was, what his purpose may be, where he fits in with other people, and in his world.
Pre-teens and teens face such enormous tasks. Not only are they developing at an alarming rate physically, but they are also coming to know that their world is not merely black and white, but a whole spectrum of color in-between. They are growing into adult bodies, and in Jesus’ time, adult responsibilities, yet they are still children in many ways. They’ re seeking their independence and testing their boundaries, and pushing their parents’ buttons like nobody’s business! And here Mary and Joseph are dealing with a child who is fully human and fully divine – talk about a parenting challenge!
Now I’d like to make a bit of a disclaimer, or perhaps a clarification here: We use the term parent, or parenting as meaning only those who are called mother or father in our culture today. But in Jesus’ time, parenting was a task of the whole community. That’s one of the reasons Mary and Joseph didn’t realize Jesus was gone for awhile – because the whole community, in this case the caravan they were traveling with to and from Jerusalem, would have been watching out for him and keeping him in check. And this concept is not lost on many cultures today, especially in parts of Africa and Latin America. And indeed this beautiful concept of parenting as a community is something we embrace as a Christian community. When we gather at this font to baptize a child, we take a vow, promising to help raise the child in the faith. We promise to guide and nurture children of the faith so that they may be disciples of Christ. We all promise to help parents raise their children.
At the heart of this story were two very scared parents and one content young man– far from home, and separated from one another. How can we find anything spiritually uplifting in this kind of a story? It’s the story many parents have to tell, of being unable to find a child in a mall, at a fair, in an unfamiliar and unfriendly place. How can this be something to grow from spiritually? This isn’t spiritual, it’s practical everyday, responding-to-crisis parenting 101: go back to where you last saw the child, search, search, call out, search some more. Try not to get too scared and try not to be too angry when you find them.
But the truth of the matter is, this is a spiritual experience. Mary keeps all these things deep, deep within her. Didn’t we just hear those very same words last week? As the shepherds come and tell Mary and Joseph all they were told by the angels, Mary ponders. At one of the most holy and spiritual events we celebrate, Mary ponders. In one of the most mundane and scary parenting experiences Mary has ever had thus far – she ponders. She reflects, she remembers, she keeps the knowledge, and spiritually, she grows.
How can one find spirituality in the ordinary, if traumatic, events of our everyday lives? We are told that our ponderings should happen in still and quiet places, in deep meditation, and for many, they do and they can. But for some folks, particularly parents, there are not many opportunities for those still, quiet moments. Instead, as Dr. whosit says, we can learn to understand the very holiness of those everyday acts – that in all that we do we may indeed be praying without ceasing.
We are all searching for Jesus. We all share in Mary and Joseph’s heartache and frustration and fear. We are all trying to understand, like Mary, why Jesus did the things he did and said the things he said. Why he was so disobedient to authority (a trend that will continue throughout his life)? We are trying to wrap our head around the cute little baby we met again last week with the precocious twelve-year-old that greets us today – this child who teaches us so much about our own lives and indeed saves us.
But what does that mean in our everyday living? How do we search for Jesus as live day by day and week by week? How can we, like Mary, take this experience and keep it, ponder it deep, deep within ourselves? It’s not simply a matter of personal faith formation here in this place on Wednesday nights or Sunday mornings (although both educational opportunities can be rewarding), but it’s searching for Jesus in our everyday lives. Our spirituality is not only grounded in those quiet, worshipful moments, but also in our daily actions: driving the kids in the car and having conversation that lets you know them better; going grocery shopping and asking yourself about the ethical or environmental practices of the companies whose products are in your cart; sharing a meal with friends and honoring that fellowship time; asking ourselves why and how when we watch the evening news or read the paper; laughing together; when you are at school and someone is being made fun of simply needs a friend; and yes, in the rare still moments of a drinking a cup of coffee or wine or lingering in the shower that one extra minute – it is in these places that Jesus can be found!
Starting on Wednesday January 10th, there will be a unique opportunity for faith formation here at First Presbyterian Church. FOCUS@first, our Wednesday night time together, will have four course offerings, each of which speaks to different aspects of our life in faith. I invite you to come, to make a commitment for five-weeks, to deepen your own faith – to come and learn new ways to seek Jesus in your own life – to explore, more deeply, what the gospel means for you. Call it a short-term New Year’s resolution that has long-term impact, by beginning your new year with a renewed commitment to your faith.
Every aspect of our lives is implicated by our life in Christ. And we can always be on the search for Jesus – throughout our whole lives. Even in the everyday, sometimes chaotic, sometimes mundane aspects of our lives Jesus is there. Keep searching!
Now to the One
who by the power at work within us
is able to do far more abundantly
than all we can ask or imagine,
to God be glory in the church
and in Christ Jesus
to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.