Mary Poppins Practically Perfect
When Jane and Michael Banks, children of a wealthy and uptight English family, are faced with the prospect of a new nanny, they are pleasantly surprised by the arrival of the magical Mary Poppins, but aren’t quite sure what to make of her. Unlike the long line of their previous nannies, Mary Poppins is not to be trifled with, and seems to instantly know Jane and Michael, inside and out. She takes out her character tape measure, rolls it out before the children and sees that Michael measures as “Extremely Stubborn and Suspicious” while Jane is “Rather Inclined to Giggle; Doesn’t Put Things Away.” but Mary Poppins measures as “Practically Perfect in Every Way!”
In today’s reading, we enjoy a look into Jesus’ childhood and see Him growing strong and filled with wisdom, with God’s grace obviously on Him. To those around Him, Jesus was unlike any kid they had ever known. He was so good; occasionally annoyingly so.
Read Luke 2:32-52
Joseph, Mary and Baby Jesus eventually returned to Nazareth and began their life there as a little family of three. What might be important to note here is that Luke’s account does not include Joseph being instructed to flee Bethlehem and take the family to Egypt, in order to avoid the massacre of all baby boys 2-years-old and younger, ordered by the prideful and paranoid Herod. (see Matthew 2:13-23) Therefore, Jesus was more likely a toddler (18-months to 3-years-old) before returning to Nazareth. As He grew, it became more and more obvious, at least to Mary and Joseph, that Jesus was not your average little boy. He was thoughtful and pensive, curious and forgiving, never impulsive or deceitful; an absolute joy to parent.
The Annual Pilgrimmage
Every year, Mary and Joseph traveled to Jerusalem for Passover. I wonder if this was something that Joseph and Mary’s family had always done, or if being Jesus’ parents motivated them to prioritize keeping the annual festivals? In our text today we read that when Jesus was 12-years-old, the family made the annual pilgrimage. Traveling with a large party of fellow devout Jews from Galilee, this trek was planned and looked forward to all year as an annual family reunion. Once in Jerusalem, extended family, and friends who had become family over the years, held large Passover Seders together - they laughed and cried together, getting caught up on all the happenings of the past year. Perhaps Jesus and his cousin, John, grew up attending Passover together?
This year, as the visiting families left Jerusalem, to head back to their homes and lives (until next year!) Mary and Joseph gathered up Jesus’ half-siblings (at least 3-4 by this time)and headed out. They didn’t even think, “Where’s Jesus?” because their oldest son was usually where he was supposed to be. Maybe he and John were up ahead with Zechariah and Elizabeth, engrossed in play or conversation. Regardless, Mary and Joseph weren’t in the least bit concerned. It wasn’t until the end of that first day of travel that Mary and Joseph realized that Jesus wasn’t there.
A pit of fear grew in their guts as they asked, “Where could Jesus be?” They had been given responsibility to nurture and raise this beautiful gift from God and they had lost him! A million possibilities of potentially horrible outcomes raced through their minds as they retraced their steps back to Jerusalem. “After three days, they found him in the temple sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions.” (v 46, emphasis mine) By the time they found him in the temple, Mary and Joseph were frantic, exhausted, and losing hope - what happened to their sweet, smart, responsible Jesus? Mary and Joseph felt simultaneous relief that none of their worst-case scenarios were reality and furious disbelief that Jesus could be so thoughtless of their fears. “We were worried sick, son! How could you do this to us? (paraphrase of v 48)
Jesus responds to his frightened, even angry parents by asking, “Why were you searching for me? And why did it take you three days to find me? I’m surprised this wasn’t the first place you’d look for me. Didn’t you know that it was necessary for me to be in my Father's house?” (from v 49) Jesus was not a shape shifter, where His physical appearance changed, but his mind and intentions were fully formed. The things of God may have come easily, organically for him, but Jesus still had to do the hard work of learning scripture and growing in wisdom. Even at age twelve, Jesus knew that He would benefit from spending time in His Father’s house, learning from the priests and teachers of the law. There was no place He would rather be! Nevertheless, Jesus went back to Nazareth with His parents and was obedient to them, growing “in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and people.” (v 52)
Big Picture Questions for Today:
Can you imagine how thrilling and satisfying it must have been for Jesus to sit in the temple courts, interacting with the teachers of the law and learning from them? Does it thrill and satisfy you to be in the company of students of God’s Word and learn from them? Do you recognize the importance of engaging in Christ-centric conversations with others?
“In my Father’s house” (v 49) Even at age 12, Jesus was clearly aware of being the Son of God. Mary and Joseph had known this since before Jesus was born. Why do you think the last place they looked for Him was the temple?
Pray that God would give you a hunger to and desire to engage in gospel conversations with others, humbly desiring to grow in wisdom and favor with God and man.
