Lost and Found

Luke 2:41-52


Today’s passage is a story that has been told many times, and in many ways. The Christ-family fulfill their annual obligation as people of the Jewish faith by journeying to the temple in Jerusalem for their Passover Festival. Most scholars believe that by this time in Jesus’ life he has at least a few siblings, maybe 2 or 3, maybe more. But Jesus is the oldest child of the family, and is at the age where his Bar Mitzvah would be coming up, so to him more responsibility, as well as more freedoms, are given.

Jesus would also be at the age where a Jewish young boy’s family would have to make a decision. As it would have been with all boys of his age, Jesus would have been taught the histories, laws, writings, and words of the Prophets in the Tanak; the Hebrew Bible. However, if the family wanted his education to continue, to grow deeper in knowledge of the Jewish faith’s doctrine of his time, 2 things would have had to happen. First, they would need enough money to pay for a Rabbi to teach Jesus. Then a Rabbi would actually have to choose Jesus to follow him and learn that Rabbi’s doctrinal interpretations and traditions, which would have been passed down to him by his Rabbi, and so on.

The one other path which Joseph and Mary could choose for Jesus is that Jesus would learn his father’s trade in order to best provide for his future, or the future of his family if anything happened to his father. This is the setting in which we find ourselves in today’s passage. It’s also a setting in which Luke gives us an insight into what kind of an upbringing Jesus would have in his young adult years; the ages between 13 and 30.

That upbringing, which was most likely chosen by Joseph and Mary, would be one where Jesus would learn to become a wood-worker, as his father, and by doing so would live a safe, sheltered life. The role of Jesus’ parents in this passage honestly tells us what family life was like for him and what Mary and Joseph saw as their role in the care-taking of the Christ-child.

I read a commentary by Bishop Craig Satterlee which asked the question, “Why did it take them three days to figure out that Jesus must be in his Father’s house and about his Father’s business?” He precedes this question with what his reaction to his lost child would be after finding him; he would have exploded at the child. But Mary only says “Child, why have you treated us like this? Listen! Your father and I have been worried. We’ve been looking for you!”

This, after searching for him in the city for 3 days. They didn’t pull him by his arm, they didn’t threaten to punish him, they didn’t blame him for any of the anxieties they just went through. They only said that he worried them.

This statement made Bishop Satterlee wonder about 2 things. Why were they not angrier, and why did it take them 3 days to look in the temple for the son of God? After all, they of all people knew where Jesus came from, and to whom Jesus truly belonged, didn’t they?

The answer to the Bishop’s questions are simple, and ring true as to why sometimes the world can’t find the Christ-child even as Christmastide goes on.

A lot of time has passed between the glorious birth of Jesus with angels making appearances and shepherds adoring the child, and Magi giving expensive gifts. So much time that family life for Mary, Joseph, Jesus and anyone else in the family would have become ordinary and routine. Isn’t that the way we sometimes feel right after Christmas Day. The lights seem to fade away, the shiny ribbons get tossed out, and the pretty wrappers are torn and thrown away. The Christmas shows on TV have all finished and the songs we sang along with on the radio have all stopped.

It’s as though Christmas ended on December 25th, instead of it just beginning.

Also, while Mary and Joseph knew what Jesus was destined for, they thought that time was still far off, certainly not while Jesus was still a child. But, Jesus wasn’t a child anymore. He was about to enter into adulthood, and Mary and Joseph had failed to notice that their child, their Jesus, had grown up. Jesus was showing more independence, showing more of an interest to things other than life with his family, as do most 12-year-olds.

Perhaps, then, Mary and Joseph had been simply going through daily life and hadn’t really noticed that Jesus was grown up. Sometimes that’s one of the things Christians are guilty of as well. There’s a tendency to celebrate Jesus’ birth, then moving on as quickly as we can to his death, forgetting to take a look at the man Jesus has grown up to become – a man filled with a passion for justice, a yearning to unite people of all walks of life as one, and someone who told everyone he met about the love of God that never ends and never fails.

So, when Jesus is finally found, after having been lost, he is no longer the same Jesus which Mary and Joseph thought they knew. Maybe that’s why when he heard his mother’s voice call out to him, he only asked, “Why were you looking for me? Didn’t you know that it was necessary for me to be in my Father’s house?”

Jesus points out what Mary and Joseph had always known, but had somehow forgotten; that Jesus had a purpose.

About a week before school ended for the semester, our Academy held mock interviews for our students. We invited professionals from the business community who would ask the 16 and 17 year olds a pre-selected group of questions. The young men and women were expected to dress in business attire suitable for Hawaii and had to prepare their own resumes as well as gather 3 business references. It’s the first of 2 mock interviews we do with them, the second of which will be with actual people in the hospitality business who may be looking to hire a few of them.

The students were nervous, as one might expect. More so the Juniors, as the Seniors had already been through these interviews last year. It’s always a blast to watch these men and women as they try to look their honest best, make sure their resumes and references don’t get wrinkled or dirty, and fidget as they wait for their turn to interview.

During one of the breaks we walked around and spoke to the interviewers who were varied in their professions. There was a psychiatrist, a social worker, a retired naval officer, and an actual human resources person who did interviews for a hospital.

They all had praises for our students, and we all felt a sense of pride for our Academy. They told us of how some of the students came across as extremely nervous, but for the most part they were well prepared and confident. The human resources person then told us a story that just about summed up what would be our hopes for today’s teenager generation.

She had an appointment with a recent college graduate who was applying to be a lab assistant in the oncology department. The position called for someone with unparalleled organizational skills, extremely effective communication skills in both speaking and writing, and a willingness to work under extremely pressured situations and circumstances. In other words the perfect super employee.

The person being interviewed, otherwise known as the candidate, had done everything right in the application process. He had called to ask if the position was still available and to whom the application, resume, and references should be sent. He had emailed the human resources department to thank them for the opportunity to interview and when he got his appointment he sent another email and made another phone call to verify the date and time as well as thank them once again for the opportunity.

The day before the interview, the candidate called to confirm the appointment and on the day of the appointment he called to let them know he was on his way, and if he was late it might be because of unforeseen traffic situations. Which is why when the candidate was more than 30 minutes late the interviewer began to worry.

She called the candidate to make sure he was still on his way, and when he answered his voice was less enthusiastic than she would have imagined. He told her he was lost. She asked him where he was, maybe she could help him find the right street to turn on so he could find his way. He replied to her that he wasn’t lost on the roads, he was lost in the hospital. She didn’t know how to respond except to tell him to stay where he was and they would find him.

Find him they did, and she showed him to the human resources office where they held their interview. During the interview she noticed that the young man had a social awareness disorder, similar to Asperger’s, but in a high functioning way. She didn’t ask him about it, doing so would go against policies, but she was sure he had something similar as it became more obvious during the interview.

The interview was over, and she thanked him for his time. He apologized for getting lost and being late, and for any discomfort she may have felt because of his mannerisms. She told him everything was all right and they would be in touch within the week.

She told us that there was something there she couldn’t quite understand. It was as though this young man was absolutely perfect for the job on paper, but when they met in person she had her doubts. Not enough doubts, however, and she hired him, mostly because of a gut instinct.

He grew into his job, learning quickly what was expected from him and finding ways to go beyond those expectations. About 6 months into his new job he was assisting one of the lab doctors with a patient’s blood sample. The doctor was tired, having been in the lab for almost 12 hours. So, when the young man pointed out that the doctor was about to label the patient’s results wrongly, in affect saying that the patient had cancer when he didn’t, the doctor was very happy to have had him in the lab.

The interviewer told us that she and this young man became close, and that he did indeed have a social awareness disorder, one that at one point in his life made him feel lost and alone. But because he had great parents, great teachers, and a community of support through his life he found a way to overcome any obstacles in his life, where now he was one of that hospitals best employees.

Christ is that same way for us. He is born in our lives with high expectations. We praise him, follow him, do the best we can to understand him, but somewhere along the way he gets lost. Whether it’s because the glitz that is usually associated with the birth of the Christ within us has faded and we’ve allowed our lives to become too routine, or whether it’s because we’ve forgotten that the Christ that was born within us is growing up, has grown up, and we hadn’t noticed, somehow we’ve lost touch with who that Christ is within us and how we’re to share that Christ with the world.

Jesus had a purpose, even at the age of 12. His parents didn’t see it, neither did the rest of the world even as he grew into a man and walked this earth, trying his best to fulfill that purpose. So, instead of arguing with his parents he did what every 12-year-old boy would do, he went home with them and did as he was told. But, he never stopped growing up, he never stopped learning, he never stopped understanding what his purpose in life was: to bring about justice and to unite people under the one love of God.

The question for us in this Christmastime is this: as the Christ-child is once again born in us, how will we grow with him to fully understand what our purpose in this life is?

God is with us all.  Amen.