Luke 2:41-52 (The boy Jesus in the Temple).

Rachel Workman: 9 “But why did you need to search?” he asked. “Didn’t you know that I must be in my Father’s house?” 50 But they didn’t understand what he meant. Can you imagine how hard it was for Jesus who is God to be in an earthy body separated from heaven? I can't imagine knowing heaven and then being forced back into an earthly body with restrictions and suffering. It's just another demonstration of what a wonderful Savior we have.

51 Then he returned to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. And his mother stored all these things in her heart. I do wonder what else Mary had stored up in her heart. My mind can only imagine the things that were not recorded in the bible.

52 Jesus grew in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and all the people.

And since Jesus was God, how could He grow spiritually?

I don’t know. All I do know is that this is what the Bible teaches. Jesus grew in favor with God. That means spiritual growth. What that probably means is spiritual understanding and spiritual discernment. In Hebrews 5:8 we see that Jesus learned obedience through what He suffered. And learning obedience is definitely an aspect of spiritual growth. We will also see some of his spiritual development today in the passage before us. I don’t know how it all worked, but it’s one of the things I hope to have Jesus explain to me when I get to heaven.

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John Burnett:  ⁴¹ Every year Jesus’ parents went to Jerusalem for the Festival of the Passover. ⁴² When he was twelve years old, they went up to the festival, according to the custom. ⁴³ After the festival was over, while his parents were returning home, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but they were unaware of it. ⁴⁴ Thinking he was in their company, they traveled on for a day. Then they began looking for him among their relatives and friends. ⁴⁵ When they did not find him, they went back to Jerusalem to look for him. ⁴⁶ After three days they found him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. ⁴⁷ Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers. ⁴⁸ When his parents saw him, they were astonished. His mother said to him, “Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you.”  In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  They didn’t understand who He was, what He had done, or what He was going to do, just yet.  Do you think he as asking the Rabbi’s questions to gain understanding?  One of the attributes of God is His omniscience so he already knew the Law.

⁴⁹ “Why were you searching for me?” he asked. “Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?”^{[a] 50} But they did not understand what he was saying to them.

⁵¹ Then he went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them.  This one sentence doesn’t sound like much, but our justification and salvation is determined by its truth.  If Jesus was not obedient to His parents just once, He would not be spotless/sinless and He would not have been a suitable sacrifice for our sins.    But his mother treasured all these things in her heart. ⁵² And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man. 

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Krista Cook:  - this is one of my favorite Bible stories to teach.  This is what Jesus was meant to be doing and would do for the remainder of His time on earth - sitting and teaching others and asking questions to get them to thin

 I have to ask myself, "Do I take enough time to sit and teach others?"  I also love that it says Mary stored all these things in her heart - again.  Her heart had to have been so full!!  But these things are what kept her going - especially when the harder times will hit.  Verse 52 is such a great verse, too!  We can use it as a standard to check how we are also growing.

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Mike Grimm:  ⁴¹ Every year Jesus’ parents went to Jerusalem for the Passover festival. ⁴² When Jesus was twelve years old, they attended the festival as usual. ⁴³ After the celebration was over, they started home to Nazareth, but Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents didn’t miss him at first, ⁴⁴ because they assumed he was among the other travelers. But when he didn’t show up that evening, they started looking for him among their relatives and friends.

⁴⁵ When they couldn’t find him, they went back to Jerusalem to search for him there. ⁴⁶ Three days later they finally discovered him in the Temple, sitting among the religious teachers, listening to them and asking questions. ⁴⁷ All who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. Every parent’s worst fear is to lose a child. So Mary and Joseph were running around the city looking for Jesus for three days and when they found him, he was sitting among the teachers. He had been at school in the temple all along, enjoying the teachings and discussions.

⁴⁸ His parents didn’t 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.” Ah, the ole “why have you done this to us” speech. Mary was driving home the point that Jesus did not consider His parents’ concerns. She is angry at Jesus. Mary is a real mother who was really upset at her son for putting her through four days of panic, one day traveling back to the city and three days looking around for him.

⁴⁹ “But why did you need to search?” he asked. “Didn’t you know that I must be in my Father’s house?” ⁵⁰ But they didn’t understand what he meant. Jesus doesn’t understand why his mother was so panicked. On the one hand, his reply is the typical child response, but it's also an authentic expression of the typical adolescent preoccupation with whatever it is that they are doing that is exciting and not thinking for a minute about how mom and dad may feel.

In the Temple, Mary expects Jesus to behave a certain way and Jesus expects his mother to know why he isn’t. The problem is that Jesus and his parents have two different understandings of who Jesus’ Father is. Mary tells Jesus that she and his father have been searching anxiously. The message is plain to any child who stays out all night and upon returning home is greeted with a parent’s frantic, “Do you know how worried I was?” But Jesus responds that he’s been in his Father’s house, about his Father’s business. Was Jesus surprised or scolding?

Regardless of Jesus’ tone, the tension between Jesus, son of Mary and Joseph, and Jesus, Son of God, is heightened. Jesus returns to Nazareth and is obedient to his parents, but it is clear that his priorities have changed. Jesus’ primary concern is not the will of his parents but the will of God and the mission that God’s will entails.

⁵¹ Then he returned to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. And his mother stored all these things in her heart.

⁵² Jesus grew in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and all the people.

Mary and Joseph find Jesus alive and well after three days in a place they didn’t expect. This sounds like Easter. Yes, Luke’s hint here is of resurrection. Jesus, dead and buried, is raised on the third day, and there is a new temple, Christ’s resurrected body. Our searching will come to an end in new life, meaningful life, the life God intends, but not the life we expect. (Craig A. Satterlee)