Luke 2:48 – “His parents did not know what to think. ‘Son’, his mother said to him, ‘why have you done this to us? Your father and I have been frantic, searching for you everywhere’.”

Have you ever lost something ? How do you respond when you have searched everywhere and cannot find it? Were you in distress? Do you get frantic and depressed? Do you notice that when you have lost something, sometimes you cannot even think straight and your worse thoughts surface? You are not quite at ease. You become outwardly or quietly frantic when what you have lost is precious to you.

In today’s passage, we are spending sometime with Jesus and his parents. The story starts out with the context of Jesus’ parents annual attendance in Jerusalem for the Passover festival. At the time of our story, Jesus is twelve years old and at the festival with them. Like all festivals, there is celebration and Jesus and his parents celebrated. It is at this point of the story, that we hear some interesting words: “After the celebration was over, they started home to Nazareth, but Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem.” Wow! Can you imagine ? While Jesus’ parents continued their tradition of returning home after the festival, Jesus had other plans. In other words, Jesus deliberately stayed in Jerusalem. Jesus, by design, broke with tradition by staying. Why was this ? Jesus knew that at this juncture of his life , he needed concentrated time to listen and ask questions in order to understand the inner workings of the leaders’ minds. His parents however, had no clue about this. Jesus was focused on his God-given purpose of listening and asking questions of the religious teachers in the Temple. Is there a lesson here for us? Are we willing to break with tradition and fulfill our God-given purpose? Or are we so afraid to disappoint others, that we bend over backwards out of the will of God? Is God calling us to listen and ask questions so that we can be enlightened? If Jesus needed to do that, so should we.

Meanwhile, unlike Jesus who knew exactly where he was, his parents by the evening of the first day’s journey to home could not find Jesus. He did not show up! The absence of Jesus’ presence started the search to find him among relatives and friends. Are we like his parents trying to find Jesus among our relatives and friends? Looking for Jesus in the wrong places? Notice that Joseph and Mary had to return to Jerusalem to search for him. They had to retrace their steps, going all the places they had gone to before. I can see them getting more frantic after each empty place. Wouldn’t you be frantic when all the usual hangouts bring nothing but emptiness instead of your first-born son? They would grow more and more desperate as each day passed with no sign of Jesus. Day 1, no Jesus, Day 2 , no Jesus. Can’t you see (hear) Mary saying to Joseph “where is Jesus, God gave him to us specially and we have lost him? What are we going to do?”.

Three days later, their search uncovered Jesus in the Temple, who was amazing all who heard him with his understanding and answers. While his parents were physically searching for him, he was conducting a search of his own. He was searching out the hearts and minds of the religious leaders by asking and answering questions which reflected a depth of wisdom beyond his 12 years. Interestingly, Jesus’ parents did not know what to think! Mary’s question “why have you done this to us”? echoes all the way down to present day. It is still a question we ask today, when we search for God and cannot find him in our usual spaces and so when we find him we accuse him of making us search everywhere.

Jesus gives a platinum answer: “But why did you need to search?.. Didn’t you know that I must be in my Father’s house”. Here Jesus is making clear that his agenda is being about his Father’s business. This sojourn in his Father’s house was integral to him growing in “wisdom and stature and in favour with God and all the people”. Mary and Joseph, on the other hand, did not understand what Jesus meant. Jesus’ ways are not always easy to understand for those who seek him. His ways and thoughts are higher than ours (Isaiah 55:9) Jesus’ answer to his parents is the same answer to us who are searching for Jesus in all the wrong places. Jesus is saying to us: I am easy to find, you don’t need to search for me all over, come straight to my Father’s house where you will find me. Learn from me by listening and asking questions and I will amaze you with my understanding and answers. My word always produces fruit and will accomplish all I want it to and prosper everywhere I send it (Isaiah 55:11).

Father we have been searching for you in all the wrong places. We are frantic and desperate. We come into your presence to listen to you, to ask questions and to find the answers that we cannot find anywhere else. Forgive of our sins and all unrighteousness, fill us up with your Holy Spirit and let your word produce in us fruit. May we help others who are searching for you. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Listen to Larnelle Harris singing : ‘Didn’t you know’