Sermon 12/26/2021

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Luke 2:41-52 (CEB)

41 Each year his parents went to Jerusalem for the Passover Festival. 42 When he was 12 years old, they went up to Jerusalem according to their custom. 43 After the festival was over, they were returning home, but the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents didn’t know it. 44 Supposing that he was among their band of travelers, they journeyed on for a full day while looking for him among their family and friends. 45 When they didn’t find Jesus, they returned to Jerusalem to look for him. 46 After three days they found him in the temple. He was sitting among the teachers, listening to them and putting questions to them. 47 Everyone who heard him was amazed by his understanding and his answers. 48 When his parents saw him, they were shocked.

His mother said, “Child, why have you treated us like this? Listen! Your father and I have been worried. We’ve been looking for you!”

49 Jesus replied, “Why were you looking for me? Didn’t you know that it was necessary for me to be in my Father’s house?” 50 But they didn’t understand what he said to them.

51 Jesus went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. His mother cherished every word in her heart. 52 Jesus matured in wisdom and years, and in favor with God and with people.

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The Wisdom of Children

I’ll never forget one of my more formative learning moments in ministry. I was sitting on the carpeted green steps of the chancel at the front of our church in Pensacola with our children’s pastor and a handful of kids during a children’s moment. I don’t remember what our pastor asked or what any of the kids answered, but I do remember one specific interaction. My friend’s child, Jack, leaned over to me after his answer to the pastor’s question was met with laughter from the congregation. He dejectedly whispered to me, “why are they laughing at me?” My heart broke at that moment. I told him, “it’s because what you said was so clever and they didn’t expect such an honest answer.” And it was true. Because we adults often don’t expect the candid and apt answers that can come from children.

Those of you who have spent time in the presence of young children are probably familiar with their favorite question: why? Why does it get cold in the winter? Why can’t I stay up as late as you do? Why can’t I have that toy? Why do I have to wear my underwear under my pants instead of over them? Those are all real questions that I’ve heard from real kids. You know that phrase, ‘kids say the darndest things’... Well, they sure do. Kids are always saying surprising, unexpected, funny, and clever things.

They also ask some of the very best questions. Questions like: Why are there so many different translations of the bible? Why can’t I see or hear or feel God? Why do bad things happen to good people? Where is God when I’m scared?

What has always stood out to me when I read this passage is the relationship between the child, Jesus, and the adults around him. The text reads like this: “[Jesus] was sitting among the teachers, listening to them and putting questions to them. Everyone who heard him was amazed by his understanding and his answers.”

I think this could be read, and has been read by many, to mean different things. It has particular historical and contextual significance when you consider the audience of the writer of the Gospel of Luke. The comparison of the child Jesus to other stories about other important figures from when they were children. The story could call one to recollect similar stories of figures from the Old Testament or Greco-Roman rulers. And all of that is important, for it helps explain why this story is even included in the gospel. That is not, however, what I want us to focus on this morning. Instead, I want us to focus on the child himself, Jesus.

I wonder what sort of questions Jesus asked the teachers in the temple.

Upon finding Jesus in the temple, Jesus’ parents were shocked. And I wonder, were they shocked at his proficiency? Were they shocked at the way he was engaging with the adults in the temple? Perhaps the reason they didn’t understand why Jesus needed to be at the temple, learning and participating in conversation, is that they, like many of us, underestimated a child’s ability to engage in such deep and important topics.

Maybe I’m projecting. I don’t know enough about the lives of Mary and Joseph as parents and temple-goers. I know they observed the holidays, such as Passover. I know they are described as faithful. But I think you can be a regular observer of religious practices and rights without leaving room for wonder. For curiosity. I think you can even be faithful without taking the time to ask questions. But I don’t think that a life of faith is living up to its full potential without asking questions of our sacred text and of our traditions. I don’t think wonder is something that we should leave out of our faith.

And I think wonder is one thing that this text can teach us. I think that wonder is something children can teach us if we take the time to learn from them.

It took days for Mary and Joseph to find their son, Jesus. Days. I remind you of that not to make a statement about their parenting, but so that we take notice that Jesus spent days in the temple among the teachers and scribes. He spent days asking questions, listening intently, and sharing his thoughts. He spent days steeped in wonder and curiosity and communal learning.

“Didn’t you know that it was necessary to be in my God’s house?”, he asked his parents. Didn’t you know that I would be here, where I can learn and grow and wonder?

Now, I’m not saying that this sort of learning has to take place in a temple or a church. Especially in these pandemic times when not everyone is able to attend events and worship in person, in this building. No, while I know that our building is a great asset, I think that it’s less about the place and more about the posture.

There’s a children’s Christian Education curriculum that I love called Godly Play. Some also call it Worship and Wonder. There are many reasons to love this curriculum - the storytelling, the intimacy, the fun, the simplicity. But my favorite thing about it is the way that children are invited to enter into the biblical stories with a posture of wonder. After each story is told by the teacher, there is time left for the children to respond with wondering questions.

I wonder which part of the story you like best?

I wonder which part of the story is the most important?

I wonder which part of the story you like the least?

I wonder if there is a part of the story we could leave out and still have all of the story?

I wonder which part of the story is most about you?

These questions, and more, are asked without a specific answer in mind. They allow an open interaction between the listener and the story at hand. Everyone’s thoughts and contributions are equally valued and valid, and must be treated as such.

As a pastor who works with youth as young as 10 years old, I honestly love it when youth and children listen carefully, asking wondering questions in response to what has been said by others, seeking to understand and share their own thoughts. We do our best to provide intentional time for this questioning and learning for our children and youth in Sunday School. And this church also has some adult Sunday school classes, book groups, and bible studies, as well! These thriving ministries are no longer thriving in many churches of mainline denominations - I was honestly baffled that this church had such wonderful Sunday School attendance (at least pre-pandemic) when Sunday School classes across the country have been dying. It’s true, though, that even our Sunday School numbers are not what they once were. And I don’t think it’s because people don’t want to learn. I don’t think it’s because they no longer enjoy the company of their peers. So why aren’t they coming back? And how might we respond to this cultural shift in a way that honors God and the generations of people who have learned and worshiped here?

Perhaps, like those gathered in the temple with Jesus, we lean into the wisdom of those around us. When our CYF high school group first met this fall to plan our year and pick our theme, I asked the youth to answer various questions. Questions like “what does it mean to be a person of faith” - to which they answered, “to be a worshiper, to be a leader, to be open-minded, to love others, to be kind, and to offer help.” I asked, “what words come to mind when you think about church?” and they said words like “welcome, community, love, praying, and people.” When I asked what people in our community need to know, they said things like “God loves everyone” and “God accepts everyone as they are, even our flaws.” When I asked what gifts they felt they could contribute to our church and our community, they said that they bring a new and different perspective, new ideas about religion and faith, and an open mind willing to accept others. When we looked at their answers to all of these questions, we noticed a few common themes: listening, learning, and loving. And that meant that our focus this year would be two-fold. The youth wanted to listen to others, and they also wanted others to listen to them. They wanted to learn from others, and they wanted the chance to teach. They wanted to extend love, and they wanted to feel loved in return.

To hear and be heard. To learn and to teach. To love and be loved. When many of our youth think about church, they think of it as a place of hope for our community. This is what they are working towards, and they ask us to do likewise. Sometimes I just have to stop and remember the wisdom of our youth and children. I want to make sure I’m paying attention when they speak, for they have insightful things to say and wondrous questions to ask. Every single “but why?” response that makes me sigh for its repetitiveness is actually a gift and a challenge to engage in wonder once more, to look anew at the things we take for granted.

When the followers of Jesus were asking big questions about the greatest in heaven, he called a child and placed them among the people as an example of the greatest. Humble yourselves, he says. Become more like children. And furthermore, welcome children - here in this life - and in doing so you welcome me.

We are truly blessed when we can learn from the wisdom of children. I wonder if approaching scripture like a child might inspire us to truly ponder the meaning of scripture, rather than reading to reinforce our own beliefs. I wonder how our understanding might be stretched and strengthened to overhear the wonderings of others, especially those who are not like us. I wonder how we might encounter God anew by simply allowing ourselves to wonder.

The story for today ends like this: “Jesus matured in wisdom and years, and in favor with God and with people.”

But the story isn’t really over. It lives on in our bibles and in our hearts - if only we allow ourselves, like children, to engage it with wonder.

Amen.