My Favorite Jesus - Pt. 2 - Teenage Jesus Series

My Favorite Jesus

Pt. 2 - The Teenagers Jesus

I. Introduction

Having favorite things is not bad. We all have favorites. Favorite colors. Favorite cities. Favorite music. Favorite shows on TV. A favorite pair of jeans! And right or wrong, like Ricky Bobby most of us have a favorite Jesus too.

During Christmas our attention is turned towards what for many is their favorite version of Jesus. Through the trappings of lights, gifts, and all the commercialization we still seem to finally get our attention to the sweet, 8 lb. 6 oz, golden diaper, little bundle of baby God. There are lessons to learn from Infant Baby Jesus . . . Salvation is often hard to discern and at times even harder to accept. He teaches us ugly is the new beautiful. He teaches us that detours can be divine. However, Ricky Bobby’s smokin’ hot wife Carley demands that we remember that "He did grow up!" It is imperative for us to remember this because if we don’t we will find ourselves in the same place the religious leaders of Jesus’ day were in when in John 5:37 - "And the Father who sent me has himself testified concerning me. You have never heard his voice nor seen his form,"

So again my question to you is "What is your favorite Jesus?" Are you willing to learn from the Jesus that doesn’t fit your "favorite" box?

II. Text

Luke 2:41-52

41-45Every year Jesus’ parents traveled to Jerusalem for the Feast of Passover. When he was twelve years old, they went up as they always did for the Feast. When it was over and they left for home, the child Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but his parents didn’t know it. Thinking he was somewhere in the company of pilgrims, they journeyed for a whole day and then began looking for him among relatives and neighbors. When they didn’t find him, they went back to Jerusalem looking for him.

46-48The next day they found him in the Temple seated among the teachers, listening to them and asking questions. The teachers were all quite taken with him, impressed with the sharpness of his answers. But his parents were not impressed; they were upset and hurt.

His mother said, "Young man, why have you done this to us? Your father and I have been half out of our minds looking for you."

49-50He said, "Why were you looking for me? Didn’t you know that I had to be here, dealing with the things of my Father?" But they had no idea what he was talking about.

51-52So he went back to Nazareth with them, and lived obediently with them. His mother held these things dearly, deep within herself. And Jesus matured, growing up in both body and spirit, blessed by both God and people.

III. The Teenage Jesus Truths

This may be a harder concept than God becoming a baby. God as a teenager! At least a baby comes across as innocent and cute. But a teenager? Pimples, mouthy, voice changing . . . not exactly where most of us look to find our favorite Jesus!

A. Teenage Jesus teaches us that God will drive you crazy!

The infant baby Jesus couldn’t teach us this the way a teenage Jesus could! Those of you with a teenager or who have lived through having a teenager in your house know that this is the perfect Jesus to remind us that there will be days when Jesus and when God will drive us crazy!

Jesus’ parents should have understood Him. They knew the prophetic promises over Him. They knew the circumstances of His birth and yet they still misunderstood him. Just being around Him doesn’t mean you understand Him. His ways are higher than our ways. His thoughts are higher than our thoughts! How is that supposed to help me? It is a simple lesson from a teenager that there are many days in this relationship with Him that you are just going to have to trust Him, follow Him, and find Him when you are unable to understand what He is up to!

If your relationship with Him is solely contingent on figuring Him out, getting all the details, having all the information then you are going to fail in maintaining a relationship with Him! Faith is a necessary component in this relationship with Him. On the days you can’t jive with His thoughts, His commands, His path is not the one you like, understand, or even perceive as anointed you may just have to look at Jesus as a teenager and realize that you just have to shake your head without shaking your heart and your faith! God will drive you crazy, but He is still worth pursuing! There may be days in this relationship with God where you aren’t that impressed with Him and actually find yourself hurt and angry with Him! Anyone else discovered that His answers are sometimes sharp? Ever felt like when He is talking you have no idea what He means? However, He is still worth finding!