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Chapter 2—Jesus as a Child and Young Adult
The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the
favor of God was upon him. Now every year his parents went to
Jerusalem for the festival of the Passover. And when he was twelve
years old, they went up as usual for the festival. When the festival
was ended and they started to return, the boy Jesus stayed behind in
Jerusalem, but his parents did not know it. Assuming that he was in
the group of travelers, they went a day’s journey. Then they started
to look for him among their relatives and friends. When they did
not find him, they returned to Jerusalem to search for him. After
three days they found him 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. When his
parents saw him they were astonished; and his mother said to him,
“Child, why have you treated us like this? Look, your father and
I have been searching for you in great anxiety.” He said to them,
“Why were you searching for me? Did you not know that I must be
in my Father’s house?” But they did not understand what he said
to them. Then he went down with them and came to Nazareth, and
was obedient to them. His mother treasured all these things in her
heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom and in years, and in divine
and human favor.
Luke 2:40-52
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From their earliest years, Jewish children were surrounded by
rabbis and their rigid rules for everything down to the smallest detail.
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But Jesus didn’t show any interest in those ways. From childhood He
acted independently from such restrictions. He constantly studied the
Old Testament and gradually became aware of the spiritual condition
of the people in His village. He observed that the standards of society
and the standards of God were in constant conflict. People would
forget God’s words and observe their own traditions that had no
value
In His gentle way Jesus tried to please those around Him. The
scribes misunderstood this gentleness and assumed He would be
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