Holy Boldness

The bottom line is that Jesus acted independently of their know ing where He was and they were shocked. And so they had a confron tation in the most conspicuous place imaginable… in Jerusalem, in the Temple no less, among religious leaders and with a crowd of bystanders watching. Jesus was still very much in the process! He was clearly intent on being about His Father’s business and yet that loyal and righteous commitment led Him into direct conflict with a legitimate claim from His parents. It is not dishonoring to Jesus to say that this episode suggests that Jesus was still very much in process. Such a thing is not unusual. A typical characteristic of precocious young people is that they tend to be highly focused upon whatever has their attention without regard for social norms. In other words, Jesus had to grow up like everyone else and there was time when He was not ready to step into His calling. This is the clear implication of the story. I like to think of this story as Jesus’ development in the fear of the Lord in its training stage. Whenever a person begins to grow in the fear of the Lord, the early development will tend to lead a person towards absolutes or tunnel vision others might interpret as being insensitive. What did Jesus lack at this time? Allow me to suggest that what Jesus lacked at this stage in His life was a time of faithfulness in obscurity. The real tests of preparation come when no one knows who we are. When popularity sets in then there are challenges that obscurity will never uncover. However, there are so many lessons that must be learned in secret that God plans seasons of hiddenness for His people that devel op character before they are launched into the full platform. Jesus had what he needed to move out into His ministry except “favor with God and man” which only comes through faithfulness in the mundane tasks that no one sees. That is why being known by man will never carry you to where you want to be. Only favor with God will get that work accomplished. You must come to the platform of fruitful ministry through the right channels. You must pass through the right gates to access your calling. This story implied that Jesus was not ready. The Fear of the Lord in the early stages of development

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