Scripture
We are studying the life of Jesus in the Gospel of Luke in a sermon series I am calling, “To Seek and To Save the Lost.”
Luke has described the birth of Jesus, which took place in a stable in Bethlehem (2:1-7). Then he told us about the shepherds visiting Jesus on the night of his birth (2:8-20).
Joseph and Mary continued to stay in Bethlehem after the birth of Jesus. Eight days after his birth, Jesus was circumcised and named “Jesus,” in accordance with the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb (2:21). Forty days after his birth, Mary, along with Joseph and Jesus, went to the temple for her purification and Jesus’ presentation to the Lord, as it is written in the Law of the Lord (2:22-24).
While they were in the temple precincts, Joseph and Mary and Jesus met two very godly people who gave an astounding testimony regarding Jesus. Simeon and Anna each testified about the true identity and mission of Jesus.
Today we will examine Luke’s summary statement about the return of Joseph and Mary and Jesus to Nazareth. However, in this summary statement we learn a great deal of very important information about Jesus’ growth as a child.
Let’s read about the return to Nazareth in Luke 2:39-40:
39 And when they had performed everything according to the Law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. 40 And the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom. And the favor of God was upon him. (Luke 2:39-40)
Introduction
Occasionally I come across photos of celebrities when they were young children. Sometimes one can match the childhood photo with the celebrity, and sometimes not. It is interesting to see what the celebrities looked like when they were children.
Luke gave us a similar snapshot in his Gospel. After describing Jesus’ birth and the events immediately following his birth, and before Jesus began his public ministry, Luke gave us a glimpse of Jesus’ childhood. It is an important picture of Jesus as a child.
So, today, I want to analyze Jesus’ growth as a child in Luke 2:39-40.
Lesson
An analysis of Jesus’ growth as a child in Luke 2:39-40 will teach us about the humanity of Jesus.
In Luke 2:39-40 we learn that:
1. Jesus Was Led By His Parents (2:39a)
2. Jesus Was Raised in Nazareth (2:39b)
3. Jesus Grew As a Child (2:40a)
4. Jesus Received God’s Favor (2:40b)
I. Jesus Was Led By His Parents (2:39a)
The first thing we learn about Jesus’ growth as a child is that Jesus was led by his parents.
Luke said that they, that is, Joseph and Mary, performed everything according to the Law of the Lord (2:39a). Jesus was led by Joseph and Mary, who were godly and faithful parents.
As I mentioned earlier, Joseph and Mary had Jesus circumcised on the eighth day. They named in “Jesus,” in accordance with the name given by the angel before he was conceived in Mary’s womb. Forty days after Jesus’ birth, Mary, along with Joseph and Jesus, went to the temple for her purification and Jesus’ presentation to the Lord. And all of these things were done according to the Law of the Lord.
Keep in mind that Joseph and Mary did all of these things even though it meant a great inconvenience and cost.
God-assigned duties are not always easy to do. They will often require effort and even sacrifice on the part of parents. But if they are duties that God has required of us, we must do them if we are to obey God.
Parents, let me remind you of vows that you took at the baptism of your children.
First, you were asked: Do you acknowledge your child’s need of the cleansing blood of Jesus Christ, and the renewing grace of the Holy Spirit? Only Jesus was born without sin. All other children, including yours, were born with sin. Of course, as your children have grown up you have seen evidences of that sinful nature, haven’t you? And surely, you recognize ever increasingly that your children need the renewing grace of the Holy Spirit.
Second, you were asked: Do you claim God’s covenant promises in (his or her) behalf, and do you look in faith to the Lord Jesus Christ for (his or her) salvation, as you do for your own? Unlike some denominations, we do not believe that baptism saves children. Every child must put his or her faith in the Lord Jesus Christ in order to receive the gift of eternal life. So, Dad and Mom, are you teaching your children the gospel? If I were to ask your children to explain the gospel to me, would your children be able to do it?
And third, you were asked: Do you now unreservedly dedicate your child to God, and promise, in humble reliance upon divine grace, that you will endeavor to set before (him or her) a godly example, that you will pray with and for (him or her), that you will teach (him or her) the doctrines of our holy religion, and that you will strive, by all the means of God’s appointment, to bring (him or her) up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord? There is a lot in this vow, isn’t there?
You affirmed that you would set before your children a godly example. When your children think of godly Christians, do they think of you? Or do they think of someone else?
You affirmed that you would pray with and for your children. Do you have family worship? Do your children know that you are not only praying with them but that you are also praying for them?
You affirmed that you would teach them the doctrines of our holy religion. Are you regularly attending a Bible study with other Christians so that you are learning doctrine? If you are not learning doctrine, how do expect to teach your children?
And finally, you affirmed that you bring up your children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. If non-Christian children of family or friends spent a few days in your home, would they say, “Your home is just like our home”?
These are tough questions. Frankly, all parents struggle to do a good job. The remedy, however, is to repent of our failures, and to trust God to help us by his indwelling Holy Spirit to greater faithfulness.
It is not easy being a godly and faithful parent. But Joseph and Mary were godly and faithful parents to Jesus. And because of their godliness and faithfulness they were able to give their son—even though he was the sinless Son of God—the very best start in life.
So, Jesus was led by his parents, who were godly and faithful.
II. Jesus Was Raised in Nazareth (2:39b)
The second thing we learn about Jesus’ growth as a child is that Jesus was raised in Nazareth.
Luke said that when Joseph and Mary had performed everything according to the Law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth (2:39b).
Luke did not mention what Matthew wrote about in his Gospel. Luke said that Joseph and Mary and Jesus went to the temple forty days after Jesus had been born (2:2-24). They went there for Mary’s purification and Jesus’ presentation to the Lord. While they were in temple precincts, Joseph and Mary and Jesus met Simeon and Anna, who testified about the true identity and mission of Jesus (2:25-38). Presumably, the family then returned to Bethlehem, where they had been staying for the past six weeks or so.
It was at this time, while the family was staying in Bethlehem, that Matthew recorded the visit of the wise men to Joseph and Mary and Jesus (2:1-12).
When the wise men left them, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and told him to take Mary and Jesus, and flee to Egypt, because Herod wanted to kill Jesus (2:13-15). Joseph immediately took Mary and Jesus to Egypt.
When Herod realized that he had been tricked by the wise men, he became furious and had all the male children who were two years old or under in Bethlehem and the surrounding region killed (2:16-18).
Some time later, when Herod died, the angel appeared to Joseph again, while the family was still living in Egypt, and said that it was safe for them to return to Israel. But when Joseph heard that Herod’s son, Archelaus, was now reigning over Judea, he was afraid to go there, and being warned in a dream he withdrew to the district of Galilee, and lived in the city of Nazareth (2:19-23).
It is at this point that Luke simply said that Joseph and Mary and Jesus returned into Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth (2:39b).
So, why did Luke not mention the visit of the wise men, the trip to Egypt, Herod’s slaughter of the boys in Bethlehem, and the angel’s instruction for the family to return to Israel? Some commentators say that Luke did not know about it. But, Mary surely told Luke about it when he was researching to write his Gospel. The more likely reason Luke did not include it is that he simply assumed that people were familiar with those episodes in Jesus’ life.
Luke, in concurrence with Matthew (2:23), mentioned that Jesus was raised in Nazareth (2:39b). There were two advantages to Jesus being raised in Nazareth.
First, Nazareth was an insignificant town. In fact, Nazareth is never mentioned in the entire Old Testament, the writings of the Jewish historian, Josephus, or in any rabbinic writings. It was a small town with about 2,000 inhabitants. The reason this was an advantage to Jesus being raised there is because it afforded him a close community and neighborliness and time for quiet contemplation.
And second, Nazareth was in touch with world events. Two of the major roads of the ancient world passed within eyesight of the hills surrounding Nazareth. One road went east and west, while the other went north and south. One can imagine Jesus as a youngster and even as a young man meeting travelers who crisscrossed the world stopping in Nazareth for rest and refreshment. He would have learned about different people and cultures from the many travelers on those roads.
So, Nazareth gave Jesus an opportunity to know lots of neighbors and really experience a very close community. He would have been able to enjoy quiet times of solitude, contemplation, and prayer. But, Nazareth also gave Jesus an opportunity to interact with travelers from all over the world so that he learned about different people and different cultures.
III. Jesus Grew As a Child (2:40a)
Third, we learn that Jesus grew as a child.
It is important to note that the entire account about Jesus is not fiction or fairy tale. About 2,000 years ago the Son of God was born of Mary in a stable in Bethlehem. He was placed in a manger and was a real baby with all the physical needs that a baby has. As an infant Jesus woke up hungry in the middle of the night. He needed to be nursed, burped, and changed.
Later on we read that when Jesus was an adult he suffered all the limitations of our physical existence. He grew tired. He became hungry. He got thirsty. He needed to sleep, eat, and drink. His temptation in the wilderness, after forty days of fasting, was to turn bread into stone, and that was a real temptation, faced on the verge of starvation. And most importantly, it was a real body that Jesus offered on the cross for our sins. It was real, human flesh that was torn and bloodied by the thirty-nine lashes and by the nails in his hands and feet.
But this was the only way he could save us, for as the Bible declares in 1 Peter 2:24, “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.”
But what happened to the human body of Jesus between the manger and the cross? Luke said that Jesus grew and became strong, filled with wisdom (2:40a).
Jesus went through all the ordinary stages of physical development. First, he was a newborn. About six months later he could sit up. Then he learned to use his hands and feet to shuffle himself around. Around the age of one he became a toddler when he learned to walk. Then he turned into a little boy, and almost before his parents knew it, he was on the very of being a teenager.
So Jesus grew from infancy through childhood to adolescence into adulthood. We can almost picture Joseph and Mary keeping a growth chart on the wall of their home in Nazareth.
And, by the way, remember that Jesus was the oldest brother of four brothers and at least two sisters. So, the household in which he grew up had at least seven children.
But Jesus did not only grow physically. He also grew spiritually. That is what Luke referred to when he said that Jesus was filled with wisdom. Jesus did not possess all knowledge when he was born. He had to learn it. No doubt Joseph and Mary fulfilled their covenant obligations by praying with and for Jesus, and by teaching him the doctrines of our holy religion. Since Jesus was without sin, he had the capacity to learn and absorb truth in an amazing way. He grew in such a way that he was filled with wisdom.
Wisdom has been defined as “skill in the art of godly living.” And so Jesus grew in his relationship with the Father, and constantly lived a godly life.
This is what we mean when we talk about the humanity of Jesus. Jesus was fully human, and he took on all the difficulties and possibilities of our human existence.
IV. Jesus Received God’s Favor (2:40b)
And finally, the fourth thing we learn about Jesus’ growth as a child is that Jesus received God’s favor.
Luke said that the favor of God was upon him (2:40b). Many Bible translations (e.g. NIV, NASB, NKJV, and KJV) say that “the grace of God was upon him.” The word favor is also translated as “grace.”
The apostle John in his Gospel described Jesus as “full of grace” (John 1:14). The grace in view in Luke 1:40b is not, of course, the saving, redeeming grace that God grants to undeserving sinners, since Jesus was sinless. Jesus did not need to be saved. Indeed, he came to save us.
Luke was talking about the favor of God that he granted to his “beloved Son; with [whom he is] well pleased” (Luke 3:22). As John MacArthur notes, Jesus “was both the recipient of grace as favor deserved and the giver of grace as favor undeserved.”
Conclusion
Therefore, having analyzed Jesus’ growth as a child in Luke 2:39-40, we should believe that Jesus was fully human.
There are many reasons why it was necessary for Jesus to be fully human. But I shall mention just two.
First, it was necessary for Jesus to be fully human so that he could be our federal representative. Our first federal representative was Adam. After God created Adam he placed him in the garden and said to him, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die” (Genesis 2:16-17). Of course, Adam disobeyed God’s command and thereby sinned. And Adam’s sin has passed on to every single one of his posterity, with the exception of Jesus.
God then sent Jesus into the world to become the second federal representative. Like Adam, he was to obey God’s commands—every single one of them. Jesus lived his entire life, even from his birth, facing temptation to every kind of sin. But, unlike Adam, he was obedient to God his entire life. He never, ever sinned.
The apostle Paul wrote about the parallels between Adam’s disobedience and Jesus’ obedience in Romans 5:18-19, where he said, “Therefore, as one trespass [by Adam] led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness [by Jesus] leads to justification and life for all men. For as by the one man’s disobedience [i.e., Adam] the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience [i.e., Jesus] the many will be made righteous.”
That is why Paul called Adam the “first man” and Jesus the “second man” (1 Corinthians 15:45) and “the last Adam” (1 Corinthians 15:45).
Jesus had to be fully human in order to be our representative and obey in our place.
This means that Jesus is able to save anyone who comes to him in faith and repentance. If you have never done so, will you do so today?
And second, it was necessary for Jesus to be fully human so that he could sympathize with us. The author of Hebrews tells us that because Jesus “himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted” (Hebrews 2:18). Moreover, he said, “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:15-16).
If Jesus had not been fully human, he would not have been able to know by experience what we go through in our temptations and struggles in this life. But because he has lived as a man, he is able to sympathize fully with us in our experiences.
So, no matter what trial or difficulty or struggle you are going through, especially at this time of year, I invite you to go to Jesus. He understands your struggle completely, and he will give you comfort and peace. Amen.
