It’s been the week for movies. On Thursday, we watched Home Alone 2, and there’s that brilliant scene when the McAllisters realize that Kevin is missing. It is a parent’s nightmare as I’m sure some of you might know from experience.
As these things sometimes happen, yesterday as I was writing this sermon, my wife who was out with the boys and Sophie called me in a panic saying—I have lost them.
They all arrived home safely.
Mary and Joseph found themselves exactly in that position.
They arrived home after their annual family trip only to realize that their 12-year son is not with them.
You can imagine the shock and panic that gripped them at that moment. If she was anything like Mrs. McAllsiter, maybe she let out a scream that sent her to a 1 second faint.
And so the search begins.
v.44, then they began looking for him, or searching for him
v.45, they did not find him so they went back to Jerusalem to look/search for him
v.48 Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you
v.49 Why were you searching for me?
and this searching idea is a big one in Luke. As we start to read in Luke we find a paralysed man looking for Jesus, and Herod is searching for Jesus, and a woman is searching for a lost coin, and a shepherd is searching for a lost sheep .
And Jesus teaches and says, seek/search and you will find.
But it does matter what you are looking for. So Jesus also says, if you search to preserve your life you will lose it.
And the question that confronts us in Luke, and which is introduced here in the introduction of Luke’s gospel is, what are you searching for? Or better, who are you searching for?
And we humans are a searching species. We are searching for meaning, searching for purpose, searching for reputation, a good career, promotion, a legacy, financial safety, a partner. And most times we don’t even know what we are searching for, and might even deny it, but we are searching.
Augustine has this famous line in his Confessions: You have made us for yourself O Lord & our heart is restless until it rests in you.
We are a searching people, but do you know who are searching for?
Mary and Joseph, they know who they are searching for, but do they?
And this passage is here to tell us who we should be looking for.
And what we might find when we look is much better than what we thought we were looking for.
Two points:
1. Search for wisdom from Jesus the prophet
After 3 days, the search is over. And we are told where they find him and what he is doing. He is in the temple, v.46, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions.
Painting by William Holman Hunt ”the finding of the saviour in the temple”
v.47. Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers.
And the question they must be asking, and which we are meant to ask is, who is this boy?
And what Luke does is to connect Jesus to Samuel, the great prophet of the Old Testament.
Notice these parallels:
Both were born through miraculous circumstances—Hannah was barren, and Mary was a virgin.
Both inspired songs of praise—Hannah’s Song and Mary’s Magnificat.
Both, we are told, grew in stature and favor with the Lord and man’ (1 Sam. 2:26; Luke 2:52).
Samuel was pledged to live in the temple as his home, while Jesus declares, ‘Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?
The point Luke is making, is that Jesus is a prophet like Samuel. But even greater.
Btw this passage is the only thing recorded of Jesus life from his infancy to adulthood. We know nothing from age 1 to age 30, except this incident at age 12. It is clearly significant.
And the focus is his words. Jesus is a prophet like Samuel, and his words are amazing. Even at 12, everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding. At his wisdom.
And this is a constant theme in his ministry. People are amazed at his teaching. And throughout the centuries, people have been amazed at Jesus teaching.
I recently listened to a podcast of two atheists, and one of them admitted that he begrudgingly takes his children to church, because there is just no better alternative foundation for life to give his kids.
And some highly respected scholars have recently written books to say something along the lines: we are not Christian, but let’s not forget that Christianity built the West. Most of the values we pride ourselves of here in the West, equality, compassion, freedom, consent etc. These are not scientific ideas. Darwinism does not lead to compassion or equality. These values have come from the Jesus revolution.
Jesus words are amazing.
And later on in Luke, Jesus himself will speak about his words, and say that building your life on the foundation of his words is like building your life on a rock, instead of on sinking sand.
And God himself will tell us as much. At his transfiguration, a thundering voice will come from heaven saying: This is my beloved son, listen to him.
Which makes this a very appropriate passage on a baptism Sunday as these parents seek to build their children’s lives on Jesus word and wisdom.
But it is also appropriate on the last Sunday before a new year begins.
Could 2025 be the year when you will commit to pay a bit more attention to what Jesus has to say. To build your life on the foundation of Jesus’ wisdom.
And this church offers many opportunities to do that. Regularly coming to church would be a good place to start.
But maybe you want to consider to, as Jesus did, sit with others, listening and asking questions.
We are running a course here called Alpha from 13th January which provides just that kind of opportunity, as people sit together in an informal setting, and just talk about these things.
Whether you are a Christian or do not yet call yourself a Christian, many people around the world have found this course really useful.
Luke wants us to listen to Jesus.
To search for wisdom from Jesus the prophet.
2. Search for God’s presence in Jesus the son
In verse 49, Jesus says to His parents, “Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?”
This statement is extraordinary. While Jesus is the son of Mary and Joseph in earthly terms, He reminds them here of His unique identity as the Son of God. To call God “My Father” was revolutionary—no prophet, priest, or king in the Old Testament ever claimed such intimacy with God.
But this raises an important question: if Jesus is so devoted to being with the Father, why did He leave heaven at all? Why come down to earth, taking on human flesh? The answer lies in the phrase “I had to” or “I must.”
Throughout His ministry, Jesus speaks of things He “must” do. He says, “I must preach the good news of the kingdom” (Luke 4:43). Later, He says, “I must suffer many things” (Luke 9:22). And then he sharpens that a bit and declares, “I must go to Jerusalem” (Luke 13:33), where he is going to be crucified.
So when Jesus says, “Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?” He is not simply talking about where He was at that moment. He is revealing His mission—to open the way for us to enter God’s presence by his death. Twenty years after this incident, at another Passover, He would be in Jerusalem again—this time to give His life as a sacrifice for our sins and give us access to God.
Conclusion:
So we know what to look for. Search for wisdom in Jesus’ word. Search for God’s presence in Jesus sacrifice. He is the son who gives access to God’s presence.
And what we will find as we search for Jesus is something much more wonderful, because what we will find is that it is not us doing the searching. Jesus is the one, he says later in Luke, who came to seek/search and save the lost.
Search for Jesus, and what you will find is that he is the one searching for you.
And there is no better illustration for that than baptism. Because in baptizing Abby and Michaela, both of whom are clearly too young to search for God themselves, we are demonstrating that truth. They do nothing, Jesus does everything.
And what is remarkably true of Michaela and Abby, is true for all of us. The wonderful truth of Christmas is that Jesus is not hiding from us, he is not playing hide and seek with us. He has come, he is near, searching for us, ready to welcome us into his presence.