God's Help for Happier Families - Part 1
Luke 2:40-52
Sermon by Rick Crandall
(Prepared July 4, 2023)
BACKGROUND:
*The Bible is the Word of God, and the best thing it can ever do for us is save our souls. That's what God's Word will do, if we hear the good news about the cross of Jesus Christ, and put our trust in the Risen Savior. If we will receive Jesus as our Lord and Savior, then God will forgive all of our sins, give us eternal life, make us a part of His family, and give us a home in Heaven.
*But all of this can only come through the Word of God. That's why 1 Peter 1:23-25 tells Christians that we have:
23. . . been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever,
24. because "All flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of the grass. The grass withers, and its flower falls away,
25. but the word of the Lord endures forever.'' Now this is the word which by the gospel was preached to you.
*Church: If saving our souls was the only thing the Bible ever did for us, that would be more than enough forever! But the Word of God can do so much more. It can guide us in every area of life, and that certainly includes our family life. So, today's message is "God's Help for Happier Families."
*But you need to know that most of God's wisdom in today's Scripture is not just for couples with children. There is something here for everybody, so this message could be called "God's Help for a Happier Life." Please think about that as we read Luke 2:40-52.
MESSAGE:
*King Duncan told the story of another child who got left behind on a family trip. He was a five-year-old boy from Texas, and his name was Tyler Payne. Tyler went to the rest room at a gas station in Nashville, Tennessee. But the door got stuck, and young Tyler couldn't get out. Meanwhile, his family continued their trip home.
*The Payne's were a good family, with good parents. Dad was an engineer for General Dynamics. They normally took a head count of their six boys and one girl, but that time they didn't, and they forgot Tyler.
*A few hours later they stopped at a Wendy's in Jackson, Mississippi. That's when Tyler's family realized that he was missing. Back in Nashville, a woman had heard Tyler screaming and opened the door for him. He wanted his Mommy!
*Tyler was completely safe with the police in Nashville. They gave him teddy bears, coloring books, and candy while they waited. When Tyler saw his mom again, he grabbed her tight and said, "I'm never going to the bathroom again." (1)
*This story reminds us that even good families have problems. And today's Scripture shows us that even if our children were as perfect as Jesus, we would still have some family problems. So when it comes to families and children, we all need more wisdom, and we can find it by looking at the Lord's family. Their story shows us some very wise things to do.
1. FIRST: WE MUST HELP CHILDREN DISCOVER GOD'S BEST FOR THEIR LIVES.
*We should help as many children as possible discover God's best for their lives, and today's Scripture shows us what this means. For example, in vs. 40, the Child Jesus "grew and became strong in spirit, filled with wisdom; and the grace of God was upon Him." We also see God's best for children down in Luke 2:52, where "Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men."
*Roger Thomas explained that "the 4 areas of Jesus' growth show us what every Christian should want for children, and for ourselves. Jesus grew in wisdom, and that means much more than just a good education. Biblical wisdom means having humble reverence for the Lord, and living accordingly.
*Jesus not only grew in wisdom. He also grew in stature. Physical health matters to God, and kids need to know that. They need to know that our bodies are a gift from God, and He wants us to take good care of them." (2)
*Jesus also grew in "favor" or "grace" with God: That's spiritual growth. Not that Jesus ever needed God's grace to be saved like all of the rest of us do. But that as Jesus grew up, He always lived a perfect life in His human body. Jesus was always pleasing to His Heavenly Father. So when the Lord was baptized, Matthew 3:17 says: "Suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, 'This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.'"
*That's how Jesus grew in favor with God. But He also grew in favor with people. That's emotional and relational growth. Jesus learned how to relate to people in a healthy way, and that's important. As Roger Thomas said, "We all want our children to grow up to be kind, compassionate, loving human beings. No right-thinking parent wants to raise selfish, hateful, mean-tempered kids." (2)
*It's no wonder then that Luke 2:52 is the key verse in our Orange Program for Children: "Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men." The 4 areas of Jesus' growth give us a blueprint for what every Christian should want for all children: That all kids would increase in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.
*We should all want God's best for all children, because the better off they are, the better off we all are. And all children are not blessed with godly parents, so God wants us to stand in the gap every way we can.
*Bryant Kirkland was the pastor of the Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church in New York City. One year, Bryant flew to the West Coast to preach in another church, and he later gave this testimony:
"I needed the time on that 3-hour flight to study and prepare. So I buckled down and let everyone near me feel the tension: 'Don't bother me. I'm a busy man with places to go and work to do.' Then a young woman with a young toddler slipped into the seat next to mine. I thought, 'This will be difficult.' So I kept a straight face and looked very Presbyterian. It lasted for about six minutes.
*Pretty soon, this little boy began fussing around. 'Man, man,' he cooed at me. I couldn't resist, so I put my sermon back into the briefcase, picked him up out of the seat, and just loved him all the way across the country. That little boy brought me much joy and peace, when I least expected it."
*Bryant's testimony took an unexpected turn when they got off the plane in Los Angeles. The little boy's mother said, "Thank you for doing that. He lost his father not long ago, and he has no man to love on him and play with him like that. Thank you so very, very much." (3)
*You never know how much good you are going to do when you show a little kindness to a kid. And we all must do all we can to help children discover God's best for their lives. It will bless them, it will bless their parents, and it will bless us in surprising ways.
2. WE ALSO MUST MAKE EVERY EFFORT TO WORSHIP TOGETHER.
*Make every effort to worship together as a family. Make every effort to worship together as a church. Make it a lifestyle. Try your best! Put a priority on worshiping together.
*We see the Lord's family doing this vs. 41-42, where:
41. His parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover.
42. And when He was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem according to the custom of the feast.
*This was a family that worshiped together on a regular basis. They went up to Jerusalem for Passover every year, and that was no small effort for them. It was a trip of about 90 miles by foot over rugged, hilly terrain. The road to Jerusalem was filled with thieves, looking for unsuspecting travelers. But Jesus' family went to Jerusalem for Passover every year. And we can be sure they went to the synagogue in Nazareth every Sabbath they could. Luke 4:16 talks about Jesus going to the synagogue "as His custom was," and the Lord did that, in part, because His family was faithful to worship.
*A confused dad once put this question on Yahoo Answers: "How do you raise a Christian without going to church? My wife and I are Christians, and we have a 10-month-old daughter. I want her to have Christian beliefs and thoughts, but I hate organized religion. I pray on my own. I thank God when good things happen. And I pray over difficult things.
*I got my background from church obviously, but I hate going and always have. I have always seen going to church as a waste of my day. I don't need to sing and all that stuff to believe in Jesus. If I go to church the day is shot. I can't work in the yard, or just relax on my only day off. So, my question is: Can I give my child a good Christian background from home?" (4)
*Church: The answer is: NO. You cannot give your child a good Christian background without going to church. And you can't be a good Christian without going to church, so we must make every effort to worship together.
*This Church is a great place to meet with God and with His people. Right here we can find wisdom and help for life. But children will likely miss the value of church, if they don't learn it from us. As Melvin Newland once said, "A child may think that a quarter is worth more than a dollar bill, because the quarter is shiny and pretty. Or that a candy bar is worth more than a handful of dollar bills, because he wants the candy more." Who is going to teach them what really matters, if not us? So we must make every effort to worship together. (5)
3. WE ALSO MUST WATCH OUT FOR FALSE ASSUMPTIONS.
*Verse 43 reminds us how important this is, because "When they had finished the days, as they returned, the Boy Jesus lingered behind in Jerusalem. And Joseph and His mother did not know it."
*Now this doesn't mean they were bad parents. Mary and Joseph were traveling with a large group of people, so at first, they didn't think anything of it when they didn't see Jesus. The men and women usually traveled in separate groups. Joseph could have thought Jesus was with Mom. Mary could have thought Jesus was with Joseph. Or they both could have thought He was with some of His friends.
*They assumed that Jesus was somewhere in the group. And like we see so often in life, that assumption got them into trouble. False assumptions will get us in trouble almost every time. We assume that our child is doing fine in school, but they're not. We think they're doing their homework, but they are just playing games, or texting their friends. We all must watch out for false assumptions in life.
4. WE ALSO MUST WORK TOGETHER TO SOLVE OUR PROBLEMS.
*No matter how hard we try, sometimes our best is not good enough. There will be tension in every family. Every family will have problems to overcome. Every family with a 12-year-old goes through growing pains. The only family who ever had a perfect kid had problems, and so will we.
*But we can work together to solve our problems, like Joseph and Mary did right here. Verses 43-46 say:
43. When they had finished the days, as they returned, the Boy Jesus lingered behind in Jerusalem. And Joseph and His mother did not know it;
44. but supposing Him to have been in the company, they went a day's journey, and sought Him among their relatives and acquaintances.
45. So when they did not find Him, they returned to Jerusalem, seeking Him.
46. Now so it was that after three days they found Him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the teachers, both listening to them and asking them questions.
*Joseph and Mary worked together to solve their problem, and that's what God wants us to do. I especially like what Joseph and Mary did not do in these verses: They didn't blame each other. They didn't fuss and fight. Of course, sometimes we do fuss and fight. As King Duncan once said, "No family is free from conflict. Wherever people are together, there will be some times of disagreement and conflict.
*You may have heard Winston Churchill's famous words when Britain was fighting the Nazis in World War II: 'We shall fight on the beaches. We shall fight on the landing grounds. We shall fight in the fields and in the streets. We shall fight in the hills.' Years later, comedy writer Robert Orben heard that quote, and said it sounded like their family vacation." (6)
*But Joseph and Mary worked together to solve their problems, and so should we. Do you think they prayed along the way as they were looking? I am sure they did. And I know nothing better that we can do to help solve the problems we may face. We must prayerfully work together to solve the problems we will surely face.
5. BUT THERE IS ANOTHER CRUCIAL PIECE OF WISDOM FOR US TODAY: WAKE UP TO THE WONDER OF JESUS CHRIST.
*Everybody needs to wake up to the wonder of Jesus Christ!
[1] WAKE UP TO THE WONDER OF THE LORD'S WORDS.
*In vs. 46-47, the leading teachers of that day were in wonder over the things Jesus said about God's Word:
46. Now so it was that after three days they found Him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the teachers, both listening to them and asking them questions.
47. And all who heard Him were astonished at His understanding and answers.
*Those Old Testament scholars were amazed. They were astounded. The idea here is that they were repeatedly astonished at the things Jesus said. They were totally shocked by all that Jesus knew about God's Word.
*But why shouldn't Jesus understand the Word of God? By His Holy Spirit, He wrote it! And notice how they came to be amazed: They simply listened to Jesus. They listened to Jesus, and heard someone like they had never heard before, even though the Lord was only 12.
*Are you listening to the Lord today? I am sure that the Holy Spirit is trying to speak to us through the Word of God. God wants to speak to us, and when we listen to Him, we will hear Jesus say challenging things like:
-Revelation 1:8, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,'' says the Lord, "who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.''
-Matthew 4:17, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand".
-Matthew 4:19, "Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men"
-And Luke 9:23-24 "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it."
*When we listen to Jesus, we will hear Him say the challenging things we all need to hear. But we will also hear Jesus say great, comforting things like Isaiah 41:10, "Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand."
*In Jeremiah 29:11 the Lord says, "I know the thoughts that I think toward you. . . thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope."
*In Matthew 11:28-29 Jesus said, "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls."
*In 2 Corinthians 12:9, the Lord told Paul, "My Grace is sufficient for you." Or as the New English Bible says, "My grace is all you need." And in Hebrews 13:5, Jesus "Himself has said, 'I will never leave you nor forsake you.''' God wants to speak to us. And great things happen when we listen.
[2] SO WAKE UP TO THE WONDER OF THE LORD'S WORDS, AND WAKE UP TO THE WONDER OF HIS WORKS.
*In vs. 48-50, when Joseph and Mary saw Jesus:
48. . . they were amazed; and His mother said to Him, "Son, why have You done this to us? Look, Your father and I have sought You anxiously.''
49. And He said to them, "Why is it that you sought Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father's business?''
50. But they did not understand the statement which He spoke to them.
*Joseph and Mary did not understand. They could not understand the Lord's total commitment to His Heavenly Father, God. And now Christians, the Lord's Heavenly Father is also our Heavenly Father, because we were spiritually born again when we received Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. But even at the age of 12, Jesus was fully committed to do the things He came to do. Even at the age of 12, Jesus was committed to give His life on the cross for our sins.
*Sometimes we see pictures of this kind of commitment in the world around us. Many years ago, we went to eat at Captain D's. And as I walked toward the door, a young mother came out with her tiny baby in her arms. When I was about 10 feet away, that mom tripped over the concrete curb in front of her car. She was falling straight forward with that little baby in her arms. It seemed like she was falling in slow motion, but I was too far away to help. And it looked like the worst was about to happen.
*But then, I was astounded to see this ordinary mother whirl around like a cat, or some kind of ninja. She fell hard, flat on her back to protect her baby. The problem was, she had no way to protect herself. She took the full force of the fall when she slammed into that parking lot. Thankfully, that mom wasn't seriously injured by her fall, but she took the full force of it to protect her little baby.
*And Christians: That's what Jesus did for us in an infinitely greater way. The King of the whole universe became a lowly man. Then on the cross, Jesus took all of the guilt for our sins on Himself. Now He is risen in glory to give God's eternal life to everyone who will trust in Him. What a wonderful, wonderful Savior! Wake up to the wonder of our Lord!
CONCLUSION:
*You may think, "What does this have to do with my family?" The answer is everything, because the more we stand in awe of God, the better husbands, wives, parents, grandparents, and children we are going to be.
*So, believe what the Bible says about our sins and His sacrifice. Put your trust in the living Lord who loved you enough to die on the cross for your sins. Receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. Call on the Lord to save you right now, as we go to God in prayer, and begin to live by the wisdom of Almighty God.
(1) Unknown original source for news story - Adapted from Sermons.com sermon "Searching for Jesus" by King Duncan - Luke 2:41-52
(2) Adapted from SermonCentral sermon "Growing Kids God's Way" by Roger Thomas - Luke 2:52 - 2006
(3) Eric Ritz wrote, "Thanks to George B. Wirth of Atlanta, GA for this material - Source: Sermons.com sermon "Three Modern Meanings of the Ancient Christmas Story" by Eric S. Ritz - Luke 2:41-52
(4) Adapted from SermonCentral sermon "Living Beyond Myself" by Pat Damiani - Ephesians 2:19-22 - 06/27/2007
(5) SermonCentral sermon "Goodness - Fruit of the Spirit" by Melvin Newland - Galatians 5:22
(6) Sermons.com sermon "Secrets of Successful Parenting" by King Duncan - Luke 2:41-52
