What a hippie party we had yesterday! Cooking out, playing games, listening to 60's music. It was a blast from the past. I had hoped a few of you would wear tie dye, but that crowd of red, blue, and yellow made me feel like we were at a Christian Woodstock. It was 'groovy man.' Thanks to all of you that came, cleaned up, brought food, and planned a great day.
Well, my summer Tie Dye Series has ended. It is always bittersweet ending a sermon series. I am ready to move to a new subject but I wonder if anyone has learned anything. Is there something else I should have covered or maybe I covered too much. It is one of the hard things to know as a pastor. How much is too much? I could second guess myself every day if I allowed it but the series is over and it is time to move on; or is it?
I tried to answer all your questions, but there were some that were short answers and not a full sermon. So I thought I would take the next few blogs and pick up on some of the subjects that just were not quite long enough for a full messages. Let's take a quick look this morning.
One of the questions I received was about Jesus staying at the temple while his parents left. The story is in Luke 2:41-52. If you remember, Jesus' parents went to celebrate the passover in Jerusalem. They were there with a bunch of friends and family. When time came for them to leave, Jesus did not go with them. After a day of travel, they found out that Jesus was not with them; Panic! They returned to Jerusalem and spent three days looking for their 12 year old boy. They finally found Jesus in the temple. The question was this, "If Jeremy was missing three days, how could you not consider that being disobedient. Doesn't that mean that Jesus was disobedient (As is every child). But that would mean that Jesus was not without sin." Great question. Let me begin with this; yes, if Jeremy is gone for three days and did not tell us where he was he would have been disobedient and will probably be grounded until his 33rd birthday. But if Peggy and I left him some place that would be a whole different story.
The story of Jesus goes a little deeper. Families traveled in packs back in the first century for safety. The men traveled in the front group and the women brought up the rear. Boys 13 and up traveled with the father and boys 12 and under traveled with the mother. That was just the custom of the times. It is interesting that Luke points out that Jesus is 12. He is between the age of being with his mother or his father. It was a time of transition. Jesus is becoming an adult in the Jewish world. So the group leaves and Joseph thought Jesus was with Mary and Mary thought Jesus was with Joseph. Now, I am sure that Joseph and Mary felt that Jesus had been disobedient. You know this state parents get in, It is called worried mad; worried about their safety and mad as a hornet. Mary says, "Son, why have you treated us this way? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you." Jesus responds, "Didn't you know that I would be in my father's house?" (Aaron's rendition) They left him behind and he went to the best place of safety; His father's house.
Do you need to run to a place of safety? When you feel lost and alone there is one place that is always your home. It is your father's house. You are always welcome, Dad has invited you to return, there is someone to greet you, and a family that loves you. If you find yourself lost and in need of some direction, come to the Father's house this Sunday. God is waiting for you and your family would love to see you there.
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