2002-01-01
Good Morning Faithful Ones,
Jehovah Shammah, the Lord is there, leads me to write about Jesus today, first as a preadolescent boy and then as an adult. I was blessed to come from a Jewish family that believed strongly that their children should get a good education. That is not unusual in the Jewish culture. The reason for this is the three great principles that are the foundation of observant Jewish life. They are 1) love the Lord God and make Him the center of your life, 2) educate your children about the Lord and other matters well, and 3) share your material blessings with those in need. Since Jesus was raised in a Jewish family, it was logical that Mary and Joseph, who were very observant Jews, spent some time educating their young Man in accordance with the practices of their day. To what extent they realized Jesus was not you average boy isn’t clear. However, they had to have known that He had some special calling from God from Mary’s conversation later in Christ’s life at the wedding at Cana [JN 2: 1-5]. But, let’s look at LK 2: 41-50 now, to see the picture we are given of God’s Son at the age of 12.
“Every year the parents of Jesus went to Jerusalem for the Passover Festival. When Jesus was twelve years old, they went to the festival as usual. When the festival was over, they started back home, but the boy Jesus stayed in Jerusalem. He parents did not know this; they thought that He was with the group so they traveled a whole day and then started looking for Him among their relatives and friends. They did not find Him, so they went back to Jerusalem looking for Him. On the third day, they found Him in the Temple, sitting with the Jewish teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. All who heard Him were amazed at His intelligent answers. His parents were astonished when they saw Him, and His mother said to Him, ‘Son, why have you done this to us? Your father and I have been terribly worried trying to find you.’ He answered them, ‘Why did you have to look for Me? Did you not know that I would be in My Father’s house?’ But they did not understand His answer.” Christ was certainly a different kind of 12 year old than I was or the average one is today. That his parents didn’t understand the statement he makes about “being in His Father’s house,” is not surprising. What happened to Christ as He grew up and even during his public ministry reveals that most of His contemporaries didn’t recognize His deity. LK 4: 16-30 relates His rejection even in His own home town of Nazareth.
Not recognizing the Lord when one is actually in His presence is a serious issue with serious consequences. Anyone, particularly a 12 year old boy, holding His own on Solomon’s Porch (the part of the Temple where teaching went on) would have likely garnered some significant attention. This didn’t seem to happen. When Joseph and Mary showed up to collect their Son, He obediently went home with them to Nazareth. He would grow both in body and in wisdom, gaining favor with God and men, according to JN 2: 52. While He gained favor with God and men, it wasn’t enough to forever change the rabbis and teachers who had been with Him on Solomon’s Porch. For that reason, the Pharisees, who were the leaders and teachers of Christ’s time, were later to ague with Him, particularly toward the end of His public ministry. We know that the Savior grew up to become a rabbi and that He traveled from synagogue to synagogue teaching. But from the mainstream Jewish point of view, Christ’s teachings were on the fringe. We certainly know that He was accused of blasphemy on more than one occasion. One question that arises here is: Have their been times when we were in the presence of the Lord and didn’t recognize Him? Another is: Has there been times when the Lord commanded us to understand or do something and we ignored or tried to alter His command for human reasons? We need to examine our lives to see the nature of our own personal relationship with the Lord. We also need to take His direction if alterations in our lives must be made to make it better.
JN 8: 51-59 lets us know just how uncomfortable some of Christ’s confrontations with the Pharisees became. It’s an interesting window on His earthly life. [Christ speaking] “’I am telling you the truth that whoever obeys My teaching will never die.’ They said to Him, ‘Now we know for sure that you have a demon. Abraham died, and the prophets die, yet You say that whoever obeys Your teaching will never die. Our father Abraham died, You do not claim to be greater than Abraham, do You? And the prophets also died. Who do You think You are?’ Jesus answered, ‘If I were to honor Myself, that honor would be worth nothing. The One Who honors Me is the Father, the very One you say is your God. You have never known Him. If I were to say that I do not know Him, I would be a liar like you. But, I do know Him, and I obey His word. Your father Abraham rejoiced that he was to see the time of My coming; He saw it and was glad.’ They said to Him, ‘You are not even fifty years old-and You have seen Abraham?’ ‘I am telling you the truth,’ Jesus replied, ‘Before Abraham was born, ‘I Am.’ Then, they picked up stones to throw at Him, but Jesus hid Himself and left the Temple.”
Had these Pharisees paid attention to the entirety of what had happened in Christ’s ministry to date, they would have known they were in the presence on no ordinary man at least and of God at best. But, they didn’t. God’s big picture was clouded out of their minds by human agendas, legalistic thinking, and excessive attention to ritual at the expense of God’s teaching. Because of that, they did nothing to reduce the pain and suffering that goes on in this world and probably paid a terrible price for that. Jehovah Shammah asks each of us to examine our lives and relationship with Him in the hope that we will not follow in the path of these Pharisees. He wants us to know that He is real, living, and present with us-a Force for goodness and a Guide to protect those who love Him with His love.
PRAYER: O Lord, You have been trying to tell us all along that we must put aside human agendas, quiet our self-talk, and listen to You. When we do that and when we spend time studying Your word, You gift us with the ability to recognize Your presence and the power for good You give us in our lives. The Pharisees and many other people in history have refused to do that. They have paid a horrendous price in the pain and suffering they have caused as a result. You, alone, know the consequences to their spirits. Dearest Jehovah Shammah, by being present in our lives, giving us salvation though the death of Your Son on the cross, and granting us the gift of the Holy Spirit, You give us a way to live righteously and to bring blessings to the lives of others around us. In other words, You are able to do Your work through us. That is a privilege which we acknowledge with heartfelt thanks and praise to You. Because of Your profound love for us, You allow us to be alert to Your Will, able and willing to obey it, and cognizant of Your loving and consistent presence in our lives. For that and so much more, we humbly offer You our worship, adoration, loyalty, trust, obedience, honor, glory, praise, and thanks. In Christ’s name, we pray; amen.
Christ knew from the very beginning which people would listen and understand and which wouldn’t. Tomorrow, Jehovah Shammah commands me to write about that subject and how it might impact our lives. In the meanwhile, please know that Jehovah Shammah is right there with each of us. He asks us to listen for Him and to obey His commands. And, He also reminds us of His eagerness to encourage us on to victory both in spiritual warfare and in the process of sanctification. Our Lord embraces You with the warmth of His love, guidance, protection, provision, and blessings today and every day. Peter and I send you our love too.
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn