Unit: Luke
Theme: The Messiah Comes
Lesson Text: Luke 2:41-50; 8:22-25
Supplemental Texts: Luke 4:31-41; 9:37-43; John 7:14-16; Mark 1:21-28; Matthew 15:29-31
Aim: Bow in amazement before the Son.
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By Mark Scott
When describing the Messiah we find ourselves in adjectival overload. Words like powerful, compassionate, brilliant, kind, stern, and maybe even groovy hardly cut it. Jesus is all of these things and even more. The Gospel writers recorded reactions to Jesus with words like trembling, astonished, afraid, alarmed, bewildered, marveled, and amazed. We sing songs like “Amazing Grace” and lyrics like, “No other word for grace than amazing.” David Fleer and Dave Bland even wrote a book entitled Preaching Mark’s “Unsettling” Messiah. Sometimes the adjective describing Jesus is unsettling.
This lesson extrapolates two narratives from the Gospel of Luke that highlight Jesus’ amazing person and work. The first is a childhood narrative and the second is a ministry narrative. The first one underscored Jesus’ knowledge and the second one underscored Jesus’ power.
Amazing Knowledge (2:41-50)
This is the only boyhood story from Jesus’ life that we have in the canonical Gospels. Other stories exist, but only in Apocryphal works. Following Jesus’ presentation in the temple by his parents (2:22-24), the holy family’s encounter with Simeon and Anna (2:25-38), and the settling in Nazareth (2:39-40), Jesus grew up in his boyhood home.
Mary and Joseph were already building habits into their son. The ritual of attending Passover in Jerusalem was yearly. It was not uncommon for pilgrims to stay through to Pentecost before returning home. So on the occasion of Jesus’ Bar-Mitzvah (son of the law), when Jewish boys were to have the book of Leviticus memorized, Jesus went with his parents to the Passover festival in Jerusalem according to the custom. Jesus also went to synagogue services according to custom (Luke 4:16). This time it would seem that the holy family returned to Nazareth following Passover.
It seems so odd to us that Mary and Joseph would have started their journey to Galilee without taking better notice of Jesus (or his absence). Today this would be termed child neglect and maybe even abandonment. But in that day it was not so odd. Families took care of families. Perhaps even blood relatives of Mary and Joseph were on this journey. They might have thought, “He is with his cousins (relatives is the word for “of the same genes”). At day’s end they must have started yelling, “Jesus!”
No doubt panic set in next. Mary and Joseph returned to Jerusalem. It took them some time to find him (three days). So this historical narrative becomes one of the famous “three-day stories” in the Bible. Since the Jews might have called each part of a day as the whole day, this might be an idiom for only a day and a half. But, think—a day and half! Talk about worried. They found Jesus in the temple (which is a major focal point for Luke in his Gospel). Jesus was sitting, listening, and asking questions (of which he asked many in the Gospels). Mary and Joseph were no doubt undone. The scholars were amazed (to stand outside of oneself) and Mary and Joseph were astonished (to be struck out of their senses). Their question was a mild rebuke. They registered their anxiety (pain or sorrow).
Jesus acted surprised at their amazement. He knew the source of his wisdom (John 7:14-16). The Father’s house was the temple. Already at age 12 Jesus was cognizant of being in the presence of God on earth. He was in the temple and was the temple (Matthew 12:6). Mary and Joseph did not understand. They would be left with pondering, but Jesus would be submissive and head home with them. Amazing!
Amazing Power (8:22-25)
The miracles gave evidence of Jesus’ power. He could raise the lame, unstop the ears of the deaf, cleanse lepers, open the eyes of the blind, resurrect the dead, cast out demons, and yes, tame creation (i.e. calm storms). At any given moment there are over 200 storms across the globe. Fallen creation groans.
In his early Galilean ministry days Jesus had spent himself in his teaching (8:4-18). He was bone tired. Jesus and the disciples climbed into the boat and headed across the Sea of Galilee to the eastern side. Jesus fell asleep while the disciples battled the squall (whirlwind, hurricane, or tempest). The severity is underlined by the phrase, “the boat was being swamped, and they were in great danger.”
The disciples awakened Jesus and quickly explained their dilemma. Much like Mark’s account (4:35-41), Jesus rebuked (commanded; the same word used for exorcising demons) the wind and waters. The storm immediately responded to the Creator’s voice. Then Jesus taught a lesson to his disciples about faith. The disciples were utterly amazed. They were amazed because they knew that only God could ride on the waters and calm them.
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