Luke 2:46-51
Were Christianity made up, this story would not be included. God does. Why? Here’s some of my thoughts.
Jesus is fully human. As human, Jesus acts like one. Haven’t you heard a child snap back at her or his parents? Don’t you know of parents who have been frantic over what their child has done? Kids will be kids, even if they are divinely conceived. Otherwise, Jesus is not like us.
Jesus is fully God. Who here knows of anyone who, when running away, ran to church? Few and far between are those children who not only ask the tough religious questions, but also have some answers of their own. Jesus the human child teaches us humans here to run to God, not hike off to where, what, and who we usually do.
Jesus reveals His interconnection with the Father here. You can always spot a false Christian. Such a person is sure that Jesus is somehow not quite God, or somehow not quite human. This passage has us hearing from Jesus’ own adolescent lips that He and His Father are intertwined, and One.
This connection is our salvation. Were Jesus exactly like us, then His obedience to God would be only an example, not a path laid down for us to walk in. His death would be like any other person’s. It would save no one. Unless Jesus were human, the sins of humanity would not rest on Him. Unless Jesus were God, those sins would remain unforgiven.
He was bratty because we are towards our Father. Want to change?
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