The people who make the biggest impact on us are the people in our family, for good or bad. God created us to be in family and intends for family to bless us in our development and to protect us against the brokenness of this world.
We all know families are not perfect. Every family goes through incredible struggles. The challenge is that these struggles become opportunities for us to grow in character and faithfulness. If we want to learn how to have a healthy family life, looking at Jesus is a good start.
In Luke we hear the story of how Jesus is at the temple as a 12 year old boy (Luke 2:40-52). His family went to worship together as was their custom. Did you catch that? Jesus’ family had a custom of going to worship together. Joseph his father took Jesus and his siblings to worship. If we want to be followers of Jesus, we should imitate what his family did.
After the festival worship, the family begins their trek back home, but Jesus stayed behind. 
Now as crazy as this sounds, I want to assure you that it is not. One time Richard got left behind at church. I don’t know where he was doddling around, but his mother and I took separate cars. Drove home. Walked into the house by separate doors and assumed the boy was home and up in his room. I was flabbergasted when a father and his son dropped off Richard at our door asking if the boy belonged to me. Yes, I am a bad father.
So, Jesus got himself left behind because he was excitedly hanging out with the rabbinical teachers. HE was sitting with them and listening to them talk about the great deeds of God in the lives of God’s people. He was asking questions about the scripture passages. And in the form of good teaching, they were asking him questions to elicit the answers to his questions. Luke tells us everyone who heard the 12 year old Jesus were amazed at his understanding of the LORD and His ways.
Typically we blow this off thinking, “Well, he is the Son of God. He came down from heaven with all this scriptural knowledge downloaded on his hard drive.” But that is not the true answer.
We affirm that Jesus was born as a human baby. We know human babies are not born with knowledge. All the knowledge we have we learn. We learn through observation and experience. And much of what we know we learn by being taught. Which begs the question – who taught Jesus?
While Jesus had a thirst to seek God, who taught Jesus about the LORD and His scriptures? Mary and Joseph and the people at his local synagogue or church.
Well, if this is true for Jesus. If Jesus needed to be taught by his family and church friends to know the deep truths about God, isn’t that true for you? Isn’t that true for your children and grand children?
Our church, Concordia, is dedicated to equipping moms and dads, grandmas and grandpas, and the whole family to share and grow in the faith.
“Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are the LORD my savior, and my hope is in You all day long.” Psalm 25:5
Investing in Eternal Futures, Pastor Douglas
Out of the Kiddie Pool 
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