Lost but Found
Let’s just pretend that you and your family were vacationing in a small community together with a several other extended family. You all were staying a couple of blocks away from the beach. Your preteen told you he would be walking to the beach with his cousins but when you got to the beach he was not there. Can anyone say panic??
Now let’s make it worse and imagine a TON of people taking a several day (33 hour) journey from Nazareth to Jerusalem for the Feast of Passover. You had a great time and are on your way home. You assume your twelve year old son is in the band of cousins but when you’ve gone a whole days’ journey, you realize your son is nowhere to be found (at this point you might SCREAM, as you feel like the mom in Home Alone at the moment she realizes Kevin is not with them. I’d be screaming!). YOU… CANNOT… FIND… YOUR… SON. It actually takes you THREE FULL DAYS to find your son! More panic! This is the situation that Jesus put His parents Mary and Joseph in. Let’s look at the passage in Luke 2:41-52 New American Standard Version for more insight:
Now His parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover. And when He became twelve, they went up there according to the custom of the Feast; and as they were returning, after spending the full number of days, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. But His parents were unaware of it, but supposed Him to be in the caravan, and went a day’s journey; and they began looking for Him among their relatives and acquaintances.When they did not find Him, they returned to Jerusalem looking for Him.Then, after three days they found Him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the teachers, both listening to them and asking them questions.And all who heard Him were amazed at His understanding and His answers.When they saw Him, they were astonished; and His mother said to Him, “Son, why have You treated us this way? Behold, Your father and I have been anxiously looking for You.” And He said to them, “Why is it that you were looking for Me? Did you not know that I had to be in My Father’s house?” But they did not understand the statement which He had made to them. And He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and He continued in subjection to them; and His mother treasured all these things in her heart. And Jesus kept increasing in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.
So when they finally found their twelve year old son, they were very upset. The parents took it personally and asked why their son had treated them that way and explained that they were worried about him. Now, in my opinion, the answer he gives his parents is a bit sassy! Anyone else think so? In fact, I think if my child answered me this way, I would send them straight to their room and tell them to only come back when they were able to speak to me in a different tone. Kids aren’t supposed to answer their parents’ questions with another question; just sayin’. But this is the Son of God.
As I was praying for my middle school children one day, God led me to this passage. I see a very middle school thing going on here. Children who are raised in Christian homes live on their parents’ faith at first. However, at some point, they need to make their faith their own. In this little picture of Jesus (we don’t have many from His childhood), he appears to be changing His perspective, from looking at His earthly parents to looking upward at His Heavenly Father. It’s a shift. If you see your middle school age child doing this, be encouraged. This is what is supposed to happen in middle school.
As a twelve year old preteen, Jesus wanted to now look directly up to His Heavenly Father, be where His Heavenly Father was, learn more directly from His Heavenly Father. Previously, everything He knew had been taught Him by His parents, although I am sure He had some sense that He was the Son of God.
Scripture even makes this point to the Pharisees that they cannot live on the faith of their relatives. Let’s look at Matthew 3:8-9 NASB:
Therefore bear fruit in keeping with repentance; and do not suppose that you can say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham for our father’; for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children to Abraham.
The Pharisees could not just say, “Hey, Abraham is my father, so I am saved.” Jesus said they had to repent themselves and could not stand on their relatives’ faith. In the same way, at some point children will have to make their own decision for Christ and cannot stand on their parents’ faith either. Just like the Samaritan woman who met Jesus at the well, her community HEARD FOR THEMSELVES and believed in Jesus in John 4:42 NASB (italics mine):
…and they were saying to the woman, “It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves and know that this One is indeed the Savior of the world.”
So our children have to HEAR FOR THEMSELVES and BELIEVE THEMSELVES not just because of our testimony but because they have their own encounter with Jesus and they have their own testimony.
Please don’t get discouraged when you see your preteen or teen questioning, trying to find out for themselves, seeking after Him when you thought they were settled in their faith. They may have just been living on your faith and now they need to find their own faith. This is a good thing! A person cannot relate to God through another person- a person-your child-has to learn to relate to Jesus themselves.
So moms, when you see your child seeking,
PRAISE GOD THAT THEY ARE GROWING INTO THEIR OWN FAITH AND THAT IS GOOD!
In His Love,
Suzanne
Mom Morsels 