For the new Bible student, it can be a surprise to find out that Jesus was not actually born on December 25, and even more so that he was born in about 4 B.C. Such is the nature of our corrected calendar. In 8 A.D. Jesus would have been 12 years old. His family made the trip from Galilee to Jerusalem for the Passover every year. On this trip home he was found to be missing. When Mary and Joseph returned to Jerusalem their emotions were in a heightened state. Finding everyone amazed at Jesus’ interaction with the expert teachers in the Law did nothing to quell their disappointment. They expressed it plainly: “Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you” (Lk.2:48).
The Son of God had made himself a vulnerable baby to be brought up by poor parents in a cruel world. They had invested 12 years into the Son of Man. Adjusting to the reality that Jesus was preparing for his manhood mission must have been hard for them. Instead of being where he was ‘supposed’ to be Jesus was listening to the teachers and asking questions. It is impossible for us to get our heads around this. God in the flesh humbly sitting in a circle discussing Words that he spoke into being, with people whose very existence are but a tiny part of a massive creation that he spoke into being, and which he sustains by the power of his word.
No apology was forthcoming. Just confirmation of his purpose: “Why were you searching for me?” he asked. “Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?” (Lk.2:49). It was something they should have worked out by now. An insight that should have been obvious but wasn’t. Luke tells us that ‘they did not understand what he was saying to them’ (Lk.2:50). Such is the nature of the ways of Jesus. Things are simple when you see them (“Seek and ye shall find” Mt.7:7), but impossible to comprehend if you do not seek them with wisdom from above. His father’s house was the centre of God’s business—where else would Jesus be in 8 A.D.? You and I have access to the very throne of God—where else should we be in 2020 A.D.?
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