-December 29, 2024-
Good morning beloved, happy Lord’s Day,
“Then He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was subject to them, but His mother kept all these things in her heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.”
(Luke 2:52-53).
Jesus as a child and young man was amazing. He did two things that showed His humanity and humility: “He went down with them and was subject to them.” The word them refers to both Mary and Joseph. The question is did Jesus need to learn anything? As God, no, but as man, yes. He learned to obey; He learned a trade as a carpenter; He learned to subject Himself to earthly authority.
Verse 53 gives a good indication of how He learned and grew. It says, “And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men. Jesus had a number of half-brothers and half-sisters (See Mark 6:2-4). He loved them and accepted them. We know that two of His half-brothers, James and Jude believed on Him and each wrote a book of the Bible.
I can imagine that other children were jealous of Jesus growing up. He learned to deal with people. Hebrews 5:8 says, “Although He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things that He suffered.” To me, that is one of the most profound and amazing verses in Scripture.
I hope that these three devotions on the early life of Jesus have been beneficial and encouraging. To summarize: Jesus was in the temple listening to the teachers of the law, and asking them questions; He was about His heavenly Father’s business and doing His will; and He willingly subjected Himself to his parents, and grew spiritually and physically—being in favor with God and men.
May the Lord help us to follow His example in humility and submission to God and the earthly authorities. Have a blessed Lord’s Day. Stay safe and healthy.
There is power in submitting to authority, but weakness in usurping the authority.
Dean
Dean Allen's Daily Devotional 