Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover. And when he was twelve years old, they went up according to custom. And when the feast was ended, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents did not know it, but supposing him to be in the group they went a day's journey, but then they began to search for him among their relatives and acquaintances, and when they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem, searching for him. After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. And when his parents saw him, they were astonished. And his mother said to him, “Son, why have you treated us so? Behold, your father and I have been searching for you in great distress.”
Luke 2:41-48
Joseph and Mary were devout unto God.*
While law required all Jewish men to travel to Jerusalem to celebrate Passover, we see from Luke 2 that Mary was there as well.* In addition, travelers typically stayed for a portion of the eight-day feast (often two days) while Mary and Joseph stayed for the duration.* Both of these facts speak to their devoutness toward God.
Isn’t it interesting that Mary and Joseph could intimately know Jesus for 12 years, hear prophetic utterances about Him and His Messianic role, receive messages from angels about His destiny, spend time in the Temple, yet misunderstand the purpose of Jesus?
How many times in life do we think that we have spent enough time with Jesus, have read about Jesus in the Bible, have spent time in a church building, or have been told about the miracles and happenings of Jesus, yet completely misunderstand His purposes?
There is a fellowship with Jesus that can only come when we follow Him. Mary and Joseph weren’t following Jesus. They assumed He was nearby.
Immanuel is God with us, but are you following Him?
Today, take a step.
Maybe today the one step God wants you to take is to follow Him. Perhaps today God would have you ask Jesus, “what would you like to do today?” Maybe today God would wants you to rely less on what you know and more on standing close to Him.
Whatever the step, ask God to direct it. Take a moment to take that step. Invite Him to speak. He will.
Life is a long road. Walk it with Jesus.
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*Bock, D. L. (1994). Luke (Lk 2:41–45). InterVarsity Press.
Garland, D. E. (2012). Luke (pp. 143–146). Zondervan.
Edwards, J. R. (2015). The Gospel according to Luke (D. A. Carson, Ed.; pp. 91–97). William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company; Apollos.
Liefeld, W. L., & Pao, D. W. (2007). Luke. In T. Longman III & D. E. Garland (Eds.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Luke–Acts (Revised Edition) (Vol. 10, pp. 85–86). Zondervan.
Bock, D. L. (1996). Luke (pp. 99–101). Zondervan Publishing House.
Bock, D. L. (1994). Luke: 1:1–9:50 (Vol. 1, pp. 263–274). Baker Academic.
Nolland, J. (1989). Luke 1:1–9:20 (Vol. 35A, pp. 128–133). Word, Incorporated.