I invite you to turn with me once again this morning to the Gospel of Luke, continuing our studies in this Gospel, Luke Chapter 2. I'm going to read a section at the end of the chapter, which I'm sure you will readily recognize to be unique, unique to Luke, and just unique in the picture that it gives us of Christ. Christ is a 12-year-old boy. Try to wrap your mind around that, and we'll endeavor to do that this morning. The Luke chapter 2 will begin in verse 40. And with God's word open before us, let's seek the Lord in prayer and ask the Lord now to speak to our hearts through his word. Let's pray. Dear Lord, as we open now thy word, we thank you for it. We thank you that it shows us Christ. We thank you that we see ourselves in the mirror of thy word. And oh Lord, we do invite thee this morning to take a dealing with us. We invite Thee, Lord, to challenge us, to convict us, because we know there is forgiveness with Thee that Thou mayest be feared, and our desire is to be more conformed to the image of Christ. We ask, therefore, Lord, that Thou wilt send forth Thy word with power, and grant us the needed grace to open our hearts to it, that we may hear and heed what Thou wilt say to us now. May it please thee, Lord, to take me up and make me a vessel fit for thy use. I plead the blood of Christ over my life. I am unworthy, O Lord, of the task before me. I am unable to accomplish any spiritual good. But, Lord, I look to thee, and I plead the blood of Christ, and I ask, O Lord, based on the merits of that blood, that thou wilt grant to me strength of heart and mind, clarity of thought and speech, and especially unction from on high, we pray in Jesus' name, amen. Luke chapter two, we begin in verse 40, this is the word of God, let us hear it. And the child grew and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon him. And I should perhaps pause there, because it's easy to look at a statement like that. When we think of grace, we usually think of it in terms of unmerited favor that comes our way from God, favor that He bestows on those who don't deserve His favor. Well, it certainly doesn't mean that in the case of Christ, okay? When you read of the grace of God being upon Him, it means simply that God's favor was upon Him. Verse 41. Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the Passover. And when he was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast. And when they had fulfilled the days as they returned, the child Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem, and Joseph and his mother knew not of it. But they, supposing him to have been in the company, went a day's journey, and they sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance. And when they found him not, they turned back again to Jerusalem, seeking him. And it came to pass that after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them and asking them questions. And all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers. And when they saw him, they were amazed. And his mother said unto him, son, why hast thou thus dealt with us? Behold, thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing. And he said unto them, how is it that ye sought me? Wist ye not that I must be about my father's business? And they understood not the saying which he spake unto them. And he went down with them and came to Nazareth and was subject unto them. But his mother kept all these sayings in her heart and Jesus increased in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and man. Amen, we'll end our reading at the end of the chapter. We know the Lord will add his blessing to the reading of his word for his name's sake. Call your attention in particular to verse 42, where we read these words, and when he was 12 years old, they went up to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast. When he was 12 years old, they went up to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast. This section of Luke's gospel shows us something about Christ that defies all comprehension. And it's not just the fact that he was a 12-year-old boy. That surely is as challenging to wrap our minds around as the accounts we have of Christ being a newborn babe. But notice again what we're told in verse 40, And the child grew and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon him. And just to be sure we don't miss this very important point, Luke will mention it again with similar words at the end of the chapter, verse 52, and Jesus increased in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and man. This is perhaps why Luke's gospel is known as that gospel that places special emphasis on the humanity of Christ. The gospels each have a special kind of focus, you know. Matthew's gospel emphasizes how Christ is king. Mark's gospel places emphasis on Christ the servant. Luke's gospel places emphasis on Christ's humanity, Christ as a man. And of course, John's gospel places emphasis on Christ as God. It is in connection with Christ's humanity then that Luke tells us the child grew and waxed strong in spirit and that he increased in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and man. I really like the explanation of these verses that Matthew Poole gives us, a Puritan from days gone by. Listen to what he writes. If any ask how He who was the eternal wisdom of the Father, who is the only one God increased in wisdom, they must know that all things in Scripture which are spoken of Christ are not spoken with respect to His entire person, but with respect to the one or other nature united in that person. And we know, don't we, of Christ, that you have two natures in one person. There's a human nature, there's a divine nature, without mixture, without confusion, in a way that we really can't comprehend. Matthew Poole continues, he increased in wisdom as he did in age or stature with respect to his human, not his divine nature. Of course, in his divine nature, he was all-knowing. In his divine nature, you could not add to him, but in his human nature, he could and did. That's why I say that Luke shows us so clearly that Christ's humanity was very real, including his developmental humanity. He developed as a child. He grew the way any human does grow. And when you recognize what Matthew Poole says about Scripture, speaking of Christ on occasion with respect to one or the other of his two natures in one person, it helps to explain other statements in Scripture that on the surface seem to suggest a kind of subordination and hence inferiority to his Father. These are the passages that Jehovah Witnesses, or Jehovah False Witnesses, they should be called, and others, will latch onto in order to deny the absolute deity of Christ. We find an example of this in Mark chapter 13 in verse 32, where Christ, speaking of his second coming, says, but of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father. So Christ's humanity is very real. He really was a babe in a manger. He really did grow and develop as a boy. And it certainly becomes a point of curiosity as to why Luke, and only Luke, gives us this glimpse, and that's about all we have, we got this glimpse of Christ as a 12-year-old. All the other gospels take us from his birth right up to his baptism. with just about a 30-year gap in between. And Luke includes this account of Christ as a 12-year-old. Being 12 years old would have placed Christ a year before he would be qualified to fully participate in the religious life of the synagogue. Up until that time, his parents, especially his father, would be responsible for teaching him the commandments of the law, and then at the end of the 12th year, the Hebrew children would go through a ceremony by which they would formally take on the yoke of the law and become a bar mitzvah, literally a son of commandment, son of the commandment. And it was during this time of preparation then, leading to his Bar Mitzvah, that Christ chose to stay behind at the temple and was eventually found asking and answering questions with the doctors of the law. What I would like to do this morning is to look at this narrative, and not just on Christ, but also on Joseph and Mary. Christ's parents. Some striking and challenging lessons arise out of the narrative, which I believe the Lord would have us glean and apply to our own lives this morning. So the title of my message, as well as my theme today, will be Lessons from the Narrative of Christ as a Boy. lessons from the narrative of Christ as a boy. Consider with me, first of all, a convicting lesson pertaining to losing Christ. A convicting lesson pertaining to losing Christ. Joseph and Mary lost their child, their 12-year-old. Think about that. They not only lost track of a 12-year-old boy, but they lost track of the Messiah. This wasn't just any 12-year-old boy. I wonder if when we get to heaven, you know, will there be such a thing in heaven as a sense of embarrassment, of all the things to be embarrassed about? Surely Joseph and Mary, leaving the 12-year-old Christ behind in Jerusalem, would have to take the cake. You ever done that? You ever had that happen, parents? I've had it happen. I've left my youngest daughter here at the church. I'm told I've done this more than once. I only remember one time. but I've been told that this happened more than once, and I remember it quite vividly. I had three kids in the back seat. We're 3 4ths of the way home, lived on Cecil Avenue. We're just about there, and all of a sudden, where's Joanna? She wasn't in the car. I practically slammed on the brakes, had to do an immediate U-turn, and my daughter, Jennifer, being very concerned about this, suggested, can you first take us home before you go looking for her? My, how worried she was. And no, we gotta go find her, which we did eventually. an embarrassing moment. I guess I can relate here a little bit to Joseph and Mary on this occasion. I've heard stories from some of you parents along these lines of similar things taking place. Notice what we read, beginning in verse 42, And when he was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast. And when they had fulfilled the days, as they returned, the child Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem, and Joseph and his mother knew not of it, but they, supposing him to have been in the company, went a day's journey, and they sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance, and when they found him not, they turned back again to Jerusalem, seeking him. This negligence on the part of Joseph and Mary stands in stark contrast to the kind of consistent devotion to the law that characterized their lives. Notice what we're told in verse 41. Now, his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover. Do you see how their consistency of devotion stands out in that verse? This is something that they practiced every year, going to Jerusalem for the Passover. But now in Christ's 12th year, they somehow managed to overlook him and travel a whole day before noticing that he's missing. You know, when I think about it, I don't suppose there will be too much embarrassment in heaven, but probably a whole lot of humility. And not just on Joseph and Mary's part, but on all our parts. Listen to what Christ says in Luke chapter 12, verses two and three. For there is nothing covered that shall not be revealed, neither hid that shall not be known. Therefore whatsoever ye have spoken in darkness shall be heard in the light, and that which ye have spoken in the ear in closet shall be proclaimed upon the housetops. Oh, we might argue, yeah, Mary and Joseph, they've been revealed here, haven't they? And yet a day is coming in which we will experience the same thing. We won't have anything on Joseph and Mary. The need will be great on judgment day for great grace to be manifested. On that day especially, I believe we'll learn like we've never learned before, that where sin abounded, grace did much more abound. We will come to know on such occasion just how much we've been forgiven of. So I recognize that, and yet, How is it that these consistently devout parents could forget their 12-year-old boy? Or, perhaps more to the point, how is it that you and I can forget Christ as often as we do? There are at least two reasons, I believe, that arise out of the narrative that show us how it comes to pass that we forget Christ. The first reason is that we assume all is well, or to use the word of the text, we suppose all is well. Isn't that what Joseph and Mary did? Verse 44 again, but they supposing him to have been in the company when today's journey. How often do our assumptions lead us to forget Christ? You neglect the time of prayer, time in the Word, because you're distracted by other things. There's just too much to do, you reason, and no time to do it, so you forget Christ and you assume or suppose that all is still well. He's still with you, albeit off in the distance somewhere, but not too far away. And then a trial of some kind comes, might be a health issue, might be a financial issue, or any number of other trying circumstances, and all of a sudden, like Joseph and Mary, you discover, where's Christ? Christ is missing. When Joseph and Mary eventually find Christ three days later, they ask him a question that could be the basis for a sermon all by itself. Maybe I'll come back to it. Verse 48, Mary asks, son, why hast thou dealt thus with us? How many times do you find yourself asking the same thing? Lord, why have you dealt with me this way? Why have you allowed such adverse circumstances to come upon me, Lord? Why am I having to bear this heavy burden? And how often, when we raise such questions, do we seem to overlook our own neglect of Christ? We've grown careless in our walk with Christ. We've assumed that He was with us when, in fact, we have departed from Him. And I emphasize that, and it's worth noting. They departed from Him. when they left Jerusalem. Oh, let's not be too harsh on Joseph and Mary when we have to admit that just like them, we make assumptions about Christ or we suppose things that enable us to excuse our absence from Him. So that's one of the things that leads to our forgetting Christ. We suppose that He's near when in fact we've drifted away from Him. There's another reason why we at times forget Christ. This reason is revealed to us in verse 49. Joseph and Mary have found Christ now in this text. They've expressed their sorrow to him. Verse 48, Mary speaking, behold, thy father and I have softly sorrowing. I like the way our authorized version translates Christ's answer to Joseph and Mary. It's a perfectly legitimate translation, and even other modern translations recognize it to be a legitimate translation and include it in the margin. Notice what it says, and he, Christ, said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? Wist ye not that I must be about my Father's business? Underscore that phrase, especially my father's business. I must be about my father's business. Other versions render it. I must be about my father's house. I like this translation in our authorized version. I think it gives us a more accurate picture. And there's a sense, you know, in which we could say that Christ this very day, having died and rose and ascended into heaven, being seated at his father's right hand, is still about his father's business. And what is the father's business that Christ is referring to? Well, it's the business of redemption. It's the business of his kingdom. It's the business of advancing His cause. It's the business of salvation. It's the business with eternal consequences for souls. When you and I were saved, we were adopted into the family of God. Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us that we should be called the sons or literally the children of God, 1 John 3 and verse 1. And when we were brought into the family of God, the family business, you could say, became our business. And it is this family business that is assigned to us as our highest priority. This ranks above everything else. It's expressed by Christ very clearly in the Sermon on the Mount, chapter six and verse 33. But seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you. Seek ye first the kingdom of God. There's the family business, there's the Father's business, Christ's business. We are told now this is our business, and it's to rank as first in priority. Seeking first the kingdom of God. That comes above everything else. That comes above every social relationship. That comes above every vocation. Seek first the kingdom of God. I never will forget the very first time I discovered that text as a new Christian. And I was engaged to be married. Cindy and I were coming together, and we were looking for a place to live, and that wasn't easy. We weren't looking for a house to buy. We were looking for a place to rent, and that was difficult to find. Now remember, we'd go one place after another, and we'd always be too late. So we subscribed to a rental service. They're supposed to be the service that gets the inside angle on available places to rent. They know it before the places appear in the paper, or so they say. What a waste of time and money. Did not work at all. And I remember I was growing so anxious. We were young in the Lord, new Christians, both of us. And I remember coming upon this verse for the very first time. Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. And it's like the Lord just enabled us to hit the pause button. Instead of going helter-skelter, hither and yon, just spinning in circles, trying to find a place to rent, why don't we just pause and worship Christ? And we did that. And I think it was the very next day we got wind of a place that was just far enough out in the country to suit us so well. We were secluded, yet still close enough to the city to have a pizza delivered. And I remember driving around the bend and discovering this place. We saw it from a distance, and we instantly knew, that's the place. We rushed back to Sandy's parents, because we knew there were probably a whole bunch of people behind us. But now, all of a sudden, we were the first ones to discover the place. We called the landlord. We said, we'll take it. Didn't even have to see the inside of it. And my dad served us well when we first got married. but it was provided, it was something that was added to us when our priorities were set right. Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you. When the priority of this business slips, it's because we've forgotten Christ and we've assigned higher priorities to other things. And when that happens, when our priorities become distorted that way, we inevitably discover eventually, if not immediately, that life becomes hard and satisfaction with life in general just seems to evaporate. Perhaps no other passage in scripture captures the dissatisfaction that arises out of distorted priorities the way Haggai captures it. Haggai 1, verse 5, Now therefore, thus saith the Lord of hosts, Consider your ways. Ye have sown much, and bring in little. Ye eat, but ye have not enough. Ye drink, but ye are not filled with drink. Ye clothe you, but there is none warm. And he that earneth wages, earneth wages to put it into a bag with holes. Verse nine, you look for much and low, it came to little. And when you brought it home, I did blow upon it. Why, saith the Lord of hosts? Because of mine house that is waste, and ye run every man unto his own house. Distorted priorities, you see it? Oh, let's be open then to the challenge of this convicting lesson that arises out of the narrative of Christ as a boy, and let's be careful to give due diligence to our communion with Christ instead of making wrong assumptions that arise out of taking the blessings of Christ for granted and supposing that all is well. And let's be sure that in all things our priorities are in order, and we give the highest priority to the Father's business, or in other words, we seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. So that's the first lesson arising out of the narrative of Christ as a boy. May we take it to heart. And then let's note, secondly, that there is an encouraging lesson in the narrative about finding Christ, finding him again or anew. In verse 46, we read these words, and it came to pass that after three days they found him. They found him at last. You've ever experienced a missing child, then it won't be hard for you to identify with the sense of relief that Joseph and Mary must have felt, having at last, three days after they discovered that he was missing, to at last have found him. Thank God our Savior can be found. When his presence is missing, we don't have to continue in the heart-rending condition of his absence. He can be found. Proverbs 8, verse 17 tells us, I love them that love me, and those that seek me early shall find me. And Isaiah 55, in verse 7, seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near, let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts, and let him return unto the Lord, and ye will have mercy upon him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. The narrative in Luke 2 shows us a couple of things with regard to finding or re-finding the Lord. The first thing that's needed when it comes to finding the Lord is the realization that he's absent. Joseph and Mary traveled the whole day out of Jerusalem before coming to such a realization. I'm afraid it can't be denied that we ourselves can go for long periods of time before it dawns on us that we're not as near to our Savior as we thought we were. I'm reminded of a vivid illustration of this found in the book of Judges, where we have the account of Samson losing the presence of the Lord without even realizing it. You know the story. During the time that Samson was with Delilah, you have the account in Judges 16 of Delilah trying to press Samson into telling her the secret of his strength. When at last he discloses to her that he was a Nazarite, and that his Nazarite vow kept him from cutting his hair, Delilah summons the Philistines to apprehend him after she cuts off the locks of his hair. And in Judges 16 and verse 20, we read these tragic words. And she said, the Philistines be upon thee, Samson. And he awoke out of his sleep and said, I will go out as at other times before and shake myself and he wished not that the Lord was departed from him. He knew it not. On previous occasions, he had easily defended himself. And now the Lord has departed and he wasn't aware of it. Careless sporting with sin can cost us the Lord's presence. The first step then for us when it comes to finding the Lord anew is to come to the realization that we need to find Him anew. We need, in other words, to overcome our complacency to His absence. Following such a realization, there follows the need to identify the cause for His absence. In the case of Joseph and Mary, the cause for his absence was their supposing that he was present. But in fact, he wasn't. You could say the cause for his absence was spiritual negligence. Oh, how often do you hear me harp about taking the blessings of the Lord for granted? In the case of Joseph and Mary, they came to take for granted the greatest blessing of the Lord, which was the very presence of Christ. We're supposed to have his presence. Salvation brings us back to the presence of God and of Christ, the presence that was forfeited by the fall of man into sin. Now, in the ultimate sense, okay, we can never lose the presence of Christ. Job thought that God was absent, and in fact, he wasn't. But the nearness of our Savior and the sense of His nearness especially that brings with it a peace that passes understanding and a joy that is unspeakable and full of glory, that nearness can be lost, the sense of His presence can be lost when we grieve or quench the Spirit of God by sporting with sin or becoming complacent toward the Lord. But once we awaken to the reality of his absence and identify the cause, we can, after the example of Joseph and Mary, go back to where we left him and seek him there. And our seeking, like theirs, should be mixed with sorrow, sorrow for our sin, and our seeking should be with repentance and faith, and our seeking should be persistent. It took them three days to find Christ. They didn't gain his presence instantly. Reminded of that scene in Pilgrim's Progress where Christian and hopeful, I think it is, they're locked up in Doubting Castle by the giant despair. And they just sink. Their faith is practically gone until at last Tristan remembers that he has a key in his pocket, which is the key of faith. And Bunyan makes an unusual statement in that regard, that when Christian goes to apply the key of faith into the lock of the door on Doubting Castle, he says, the key opened that gate damnably hard. Oh, when you've been negligent in faith, it doesn't come back in an instant. It can be a daunting challenge, but it does come. Hebrews 11 and verse 6, without faith it is impossible to please him, for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of those that diligently seek him. He is not the rewarder of those that half-heartedly seek him. There must be diligence in the exercise of faith when faith is exercised at last again. What an appropriate exhortation we find in Hosea chapter six, beginning in verse one. Come and let us return unto the Lord, for he hath torn and he will heal us. He hath smitten and he will bind us up. After two days will he revive us. In the third day he will raise us up and we shall live in his sight. Then shall we know if we follow on to know the Lord. His going forth has prepared us the morning, and he shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter in former rain unto the earth. Oh, he will be found, and he will revive. but he has to be sought diligently and he has to be sought persistently. May God grant us then the spiritual sensitivity we need to recognize when the Lord is absent. May he grant us the needed discernment to identify the cause and may he grant us the needed zeal to repent of our sins and to seek him with all our hearts that we may indeed know the blessing of his presence again. when we've lost him. So we've considered a challenging and convicting lesson pertaining to losing Christ, and we've considered an encouraging lesson, I trust, pertaining to finding Christ. So far our attention has been on Joseph and Mary. Let's shift our attention now to Christ himself, And let me say a word finally about an instructive lesson about imitating Christ. An instructive lesson about imitating Christ. Verse 46, an astonishing verse. Look at what it says about Christ. And it came to pass that after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them and asking them questions. What's he doing? He's engaged in the study of God's word. He's engaged in the study of the law. Interacting with the ones that were mature, the seasoned leaders, if you will. Interacting with them. I remember the very first time I attended a PRTS conference, Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary Conference, up in Grand Rapids. This is Joe Beakey's seminary. He was the host of the conference. I remember hearing Dr. Beakey speak, and in typical fashion for him, he was conducting a review of some book about a Puritan. And I remember sitting back and saying to myself, my, this man sure knows the Puritans. He knows them all. He's read them all. And he's able to discuss and disclose to his audience the differences between them, the different nuances, or the way that various Puritans will express themselves on various doctrines. Now, I'm glad that that conference wasn't so large that it was impossible to meet the speakers or speak with the speakers. And I remember talking to Dr. Beeky not long after that presentation, and I said to him, Dr. Beeky, I am just amazed at how much you know about the Puritans. Are you a speed reader? How is it that you can read all of these books and then be able to give us a critique of all of these various works on the Puritans. And he said to me, no, I'm not a speed reader, but I started when I was 14 years old. Mind you, young people, you're old enough to start. You can start at an early age, the study of God's word, and you can advance in it. Christ sets that example for us, doesn't He? Remember, we're focusing on His humanity. You might argue in a sense, well, He's cheating. He is, after all, God. Doesn't He know everything? But Luke has placed an emphasis on His development as a man, as a boy. And this is in keeping with his humanity. As a humanity, he grew in his knowledge, and here he is doing that very thing by interacting with the experts, so to speak, in the Word of God. What an incredible example he sets for young people and adults alike. To get into the Word, read the Word, contemplate the Word, be thinking on the Word, be praying over the Word, memorize the Word. Oh, and especially you young people, while your memories aren't so sharp, memorize God's Word. You have a capacity for it now that you're not going to have forever. I can't deny I struggle to memorize things at my age now. My memory just isn't what it used to be. Used to be pretty good. When I was college age, even, it was pretty good. Not so much the case today. Take advantage of the capacity you have for reading God's word, studying it, memorizing it, Follow the example of Christ. There is Christ-likeness in that, as he is a 12-year-old boy, devoted himself to the study of God's word. And then there's something else, an instructive lesson here in imitating Christ, and that is imitate him in his condescending grace. There is a verse here that absolutely amazes me, it's in verse 51, okay, Joseph and Mary, they found Christ, they returned to Nazareth, notice what it says, and he went down with them and came to Nazareth and was subject unto them. He was subject unto them. What do you suppose that looked like? Now we know, any parent knows, and really most children would know this eventually about their parents, that there's no such thing as a perfect parent, okay? We know that, parents know that. Children may not know that initially about their parents, but eventually they figure it out. No, mom and dad aren't perfect. Joseph and Mary certainly weren't, were they? leaving Christ behind in Jerusalem. Kind of shoots down the notion, doesn't it, of the sinlessness of Mary? What kind of a mother is she? Forgets her son in Jerusalem. And yet Christ subjects himself to their authority. We read earlier from Matthew chapter 17. And I especially wanted to emphasize the last part of that chapter. You find the tax collector showing up at the door. Does your master pay tribute? Well, yes, he does. Peter goes to Christ, and Christ precedes him by bringing the issue up to Peter before Peter can bring it up to Christ. And he says, who really owes this tax? Is it the children or strangers that have to pay this tax? To which Peter knows, well, it's strangers. And Christ answers, then are the children free? We don't owe this tax. Basically. You know, there's a sermon brewing in my head along those lines that I may bring to the minister's week of prayer one of these days. I would love to contrast that scene to the scene of Christ going into the temple, turning over the tables, chasing everybody out, driving out the animals. You know, there's the Christ. There's the view of Christ that us fundamentalists love. Here's the militant Christ, okay, turning over the tables. Righteously indignant. Why wasn't he righteously indignant when the tax collector shows up to collect a tax that they don't even know? You know, why didn't that lead to chasing that tax collector away? The way that he turned over the tables, you know, in the temple? And the answer is very simply, there was a time for militancy and there's a time for condescending grace. And in this instance, Christ practiced condescending grace. We don't owe this. Nevertheless, lest we offend them, go drop the line, catch the fish, take out the coin, pay the taxes. Condescending grace. Can you think of another example in the life of Christ where condescending grace would have to have been manifested time and again? I think it would be during that whole period of Christ growing up, subjecting himself to imperfect parents. How often do you suppose they would have thought he needed to be disciplined, when in fact he didn't, but their imperfect judgment may have made them think that he did. And he subjected himself to them. Oh God, give us the grace and the wisdom, the discernment to know when it's time to turn over the tables, and when it's time to practice condescending grace. It is possible, you know, to yield to someone whose view may not be the same as yours, and whose view may not even be right, and yet you condescend to that person. In a sense, you know, condescending grace is built into our denomination on the issue of baptism. We accommodate the believer's baptism view. We accommodate the infant baptism view. Both of them aren't right. One of them's wrong. We both condescend to the other. I suppose that's how we think of it, too. I condescendingly accept you even though you're wrong, we say to each other on both sides of that issue. And there's a place for that. And it does work. And I think the Lord has blessed us for that. I think COVID probably brought out the absence of that, maybe more than anything. There were people that were so dogmatically sure, are dogmatically sure, you do not want that vaccination. I had someone suggest to me that anybody who receives that vaccination probably isn't even really a Christian. And boy, no condescending grace in that instance is there. And yet others who believe it's legitimate and beneficial, and they believe that sincerely, and they submit to it, and you can tell that they're sincere, they disagree with you, but you can tell they're sincere, there is a place for condescending grace. And I think Christ as a 12-year-old boy demonstrates that to us, as well as Christ and the tax collector. So we have these instructive lessons about imitating Christ. I'll close just with a word about Christ's obedience. He's rendering this obedience for us. The obedience that we read of him here, subjecting himself to his parents. He did this perfectly, as he did everything perfectly. He rendered perfect obedience to his Father's law. In every word he spoke, in every deed he performed, in every thought that he harbored, and his motives were pure. This is the obedience, you know, that earned for Christ the righteousness that is imputed to you and to me. What a blessing to have a Savior that was and is righteous, whose righteousness has been imputed to us. Fascinating passage, isn't it, in Luke's gospel about Christ as a 12-year-old boy and his parents who lost him, but then found him. Let's close then in prayer. Oh Lord, as we bow in thy presence now, bring this meeting to a close. We thank you for our savior. We thank you for his righteousness. We thank you, Lord, for the way he would have practiced condescending grace toward others, even when they were wrong. Lord, we pray that will help us to imitate our Savior. Oh, may we be very zealous for righteousness, but may we not forget that there are occasions on which we can practice condescending grace. And oh, Lord, how much we can relate to Joseph and Mary. how careless we become at times in drifting away from our Savior, how distorted our priorities can be in the things of this world. We thank Thee, Lord, that when such seasons come upon us, that Christ nevertheless can be found again. O Lord, for any under the sound of my voice that perhaps have carelessly drifted from Him, Lord, we pray especially for such as these that you'll bring them to an awareness of their neglect and draw them back to thyself and help us, O Lord, in being drawn back to thee to imitate our Savior in all that we do. So, Lord, take our thanks and hear our prayers. In Jesus'