Lost and...Found in the Temple!

Follow us on the web

Subscribe to the Diocese's Email List

Join to receive messages from His Grace and event reminders or update your information.

home › resources › literature › Lost and...Found in the Temple!

Chapter 7
Lost and...Found in the Temple!

The Lord Jesus was growing up fast! He was now twelve years old and this was old enough for His earthly parents to decide to take Him to the "Feast of the Passover" celebration. We can be sure that as a growing young man, He looked forward to the adventure of a trip and the celebration!

The Feast of the Passover was not in his hometown but rather it was in the great city of Jerusalem. The Lord Jesus Christ family, perhaps His village, actually anyone who could travel the distance would go as was the custom of the day.

This trip to the city of Jerusalem was the first for the growing boy Jesus. He saw the holy city, the Temple of the Lord, and many other sights He would not normally see in His smaller village. The twelve year old boy, Jesus, was so filled with love for God and the worship of God He witnessed for the first time in the Temple, that when it was time to leave Jerusalem with His family, he stayed behind at the Temple.

The group of family and villagers St. Mary and St. Joseph traveled with was very large and so at first they did not notice that their twelve year old Son was not among the crowd. But when night fell and the Lord Jesus could not be found, His mother, St. Mary became very worried.

The next day, St. Mary and St. Joseph, left the travelers returning toward Nazareth, and hurried back to Jerusalem. They inquired among their family and friends in the City of Jerusalem, had anyone seen Jesus? They asked many people...They could not find Him anywhere...

On the third day, still frantically searching for Jesus, His parents went to the Temple and there they found Him! Jesus was sitting among the learned teachers of the Law at the Temple listening to their teachings and asking questions. Do you know that everyone present including His parents were astounded at His knowledge of the Word of God?

His mother could not hold her anxiety and worried feelings in and asked her Son Jesus, "Why have You treated your parents in such a way and we have feared harm had come to You?" The Lord's reply was, "Why did you look for Me, knowing that I must be about My Father's business?"

Gently, the young boy answered His mother, yet firmly convicted that He must think about God's work on earth. What His parents did not realize at the time was that "being about His Father's business" meant that the young man Jesus must begin preparing for His ministry on earth.

A question we must ask ourselves is why did they not go to the Temple until the third day? Why did His parents first not search for Him in the Temple for He was God's Son, too?

St. Mary and St. Joseph could not understand fully all their son's words but we are sure they pondered over them in quiet moments. His parents could not fathom His ministry. Undoubtedly though, St. Mary treasured every single word her Son would ever speak.

The twelve year old boy obediently went with His parents back to Nazareth, His home town where He remained obedient throughout His childhood. He would grow in wisdom and favor with God and man through His obedience.

+Lesson: Obey your parents for this is right. Obeying your parents leads to wisdom and God's love.+

Questions:

The boy Jesus spent His childhood in what city?

How old was the Lord Jesus when He was taken by His parents to the Feast of the Passover?

In what city was the Feast of the Passover held?

What did the adolescent boy Jesus love the most about this city?

How did the growing boy Jesus demonstrate obedience to His parents and was this a one time or occasional act of obedience?