besquared.org Blog

Today’s Text

This is an odd little story. It has no parallel in the other gospels. It is so personal and intimate and it highlights some of the great things about Luke’s gospel. We have already noted but it is worth noting again that Luke is perfectly content to mix up the grand with the intimate. Matthew will us about angels and kings form the east, but it is from Luke that we hear about babies leading in wombs. In this same way, we have just seen how Luke mixes the intimacy of a babies blessing with the profound theological teaching about Christ’s role as the fulfillment of Israel’s hope and God’s purposes.

And then we come to today’s text.

It certainly is a nice story. We get a glimpse into the family life of Jesus. This story carries all the kinds of intimate details that we love to find in Luke’s gospel. But does it carry the same theological weight? I think that the answer is no. And I think that is okay.

There are certainly some important theological gems hidden in here, but I think that this story is especially important because of what we learn about the people.

• We learn that Jesus’ family is particularly devoted to the worship of God. Luke tells us that that they went up to Jerusalem every year for the Passover. This was an unusual lever of devotion. Especially for a family that was not professionally religious – he was a carpenter not a levite – to travel every year for the festivals was rare in that period.
• We learn that Jesus has lousy parents. Just kidding. Really we are reminded that Jesus grew up a in a sociological world of extended families and interconnected communities. As a group they would have traveled to Jerusalem.
• We learn that Jesus was hungry for the things of God.
• We learn that Jesus was obedient.
• We learn that Jesus grew.

I think that perhaps this last one, is the one that we are least likely to believe. We may sing songs about Jesus as a baby, but we sort of assume that he always knew everything that was going on in the back of his head. But Luke could not be clearer. Jesus grew in wisdom.

I have been thinking about discipleship (ie. following Jesus) a lot lately. As I think about that I am comforted that the one I follow grew. So apparently if I follow him, I should expect that I will be growing. That is good news, because I need to grow in wisdom.

In fact, as I look through the list above of the things we can learn from this simple story, I realize that I want all of these truths to be truth of me and my family.

• I want my family to be devoted to patterns of worship that will shape my life and that of my family.
• I want my kids to grow up in web of interconnected relationships. Two parents aren’t enough, they need dozens of adults who are committed to their care and spiritual growth.
• I want to be hungry for the things of God.
• I want to be obedient.
• I want to grow in wisdom.

The value of this story is not in its theological weight but precisely in its intimacy and its apparent normalcy. It is when these traits are no longer special events but part of the fabric of our lives that we are transformed.

By giving us a glimpse into the rhythm of their everyday lives, we learn more than we ever expected.

-Ethan