...  After three days they found Jesus in the temple,
sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions.
And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers.

~ Luke 2:46-47

Old and New

The New Testament has many stories describing Jesus’ years of ministry. We have little information about his life as a young person, save for this story in Luke’s gospel where young Jesus is found in the temple.

The story begins as his parents go to Jerusalem for the Passover festival. Jesus was 12 years old. After the festival, Mary and Joseph left with a large group of travelers to return to Nazareth, assuming all the while that Jesus was among the group. Perhaps they assumed Jesus was not with them because he was walking with his peers (developmentally appropriate for age 12, right?). When Mary and Joseph realized Jesus was not in their group, they rushed back to Jerusalem to look for him. Three days they searched, with no sign of their son. Finally, they found Jesus in the temple (whew!). There he was, among the Jewish leaders, inspiring everyone present. I am sure Mary had a moment where her past met the present, the Magnificat ringing in her ears as she saw a new beginning of Jesus’ signs and wonders — his divine and amazing connection with God’s Law.

Jesus grew up in a Jewish community. He would have worshipped in the temple and held the customs of 1st century Jews. Later in the gospel of Luke, Jesus reads from the prophet Isaiah and again amazes those who are in the temple with him.

To understand our Christian heritage, it is helpful to understand Jesus’ Jewish heritage. Themes of liberation, atonement, invitation, and covenant flow from the Hebrew scriptures (our Old Testament) through to our New Testament and our faith today. The Hebrew Scriptures formed Jesus’ culture and his faith.

The Hebrew Scriptures also stand on their own as sacred text. When we read the Old Testament only from a Christian lens, this supersessionism does a disservice to the Jewish faith. The Hebrew Scriptures are both Jewish holy scripture and a part of the Christian Biblical witness. When we read the Old Testament and consider how it formed Jesus’ community and the early church, we come to understand how it also informs our New Testament.

In our next worship series, Old And New, our Youth Assistant Ally, Jack Kozack, and I will share messages from the New Testament book of Hebrews, a book that helps us understand how the early church understood the Old Testament witness, and how they understood Jesus as both prophet and priest.

If you are looking to learn about the life of Jesus and his community, you’ll find him here. I look forward to worshiping with you this August.