Today's inspiration comes from: Boy Jesus by Joan Taylor |
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Jesus was Jewish. If you're someone who has been growing in faith for a long time, that might read as a little cliche. For many of us, though, our imagination for what it meant for Jesus to be Jewish doesn't go far beyond following Torah and going to synagogue. And even those details can be a little murky! The reality is, the better we understand who Jesus was as a child in His time and His place, the better we will be able to follow Him in our times and in our places. And one of the defining pieces of Jesus' childhood was that He was Jewish. It shaped everything about the family He was born into, how He lived His life, how He experienced the world, and who He grew up to be. Consider This: Jesus' childhood was as formative for Him as your childhood was for you. Think about how your connections with your parents and siblings have shaped the relationships you have today. Think about how your hometown has influenced the foods you prefer and the activities you like to do on the weekend. Think about some of the major world events that happened when you were a kid, maybe when JFK was assassinated, or the Soviet Union was dissolved, or the Twin Towers were attacked. Jesus had similar experiences that shaped Him, too. As God incarnate, Jesus took on the entirety of the human experience. Like us, He had a family, a hometown, and significant life experiences that made Him into the Messiah that we get a chance to meet in the gospels. No one can become who they are without their family of origin. These are the most important people in our most formative years. We know quite a few of Jesus' closest family members from the gospels: Jesus had a mother named Mary, an earthly father named Joseph, brothers named James, Joses, Simon, and Jude, and unnamed sisters. But in terms of His relationship with His family, we have to mostly piece it together from clues. "Who is My mother, and who are My brothers?" Pointing to His disciples, Jesus said, "Here are My mother and My brothers. For whoever does the will of My Father in Heaven is My brother and sister and mother." — Matthew 12:48-50 We often read this verse as Jesus dismissing His mother and brothers when they come to look for Him while he is teaching. But instead of being rude to His family, Jesus is actually honoring His disciples. From other glimpses we get of Jesus' relationship to His family members, He must have loved them a lot. As the oldest sibling, He probably helped care for His brothers and sisters, and we know that one of His brothers, James, later became one of the main leaders of the church. The gospels also show Jesus as close with His mom, since she followed Him all the way to the cross. Even though Joseph probably died before Jesus started His ministry, we know that he went to the ends of the Earth (in this case, Egypt), to protect Jesus from harm. Jesus probably wouldn't have been able to imagine a compassionate, loving, present divine father if He did not have an example in His earthly father. So, Jesus must have really loved His family! As Jesus ministered to His fellow Jews during His life, it was His family that gave Him a template for how to love others and to help them better get to know the God of their ancestors. |
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The better we understand who Jesus was as a child, the better we will be able to follow Him. |
The better we understand who Jesus was as a child, the better we will be able to follow Him. |
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Consider This: If we treated strangers the way we treat our parents, siblings, spouse, or children, how would "the crowds" perceive us? Would they see us as compassionate, gentle, and generous? Or would they see us as distant, critical, and impatient?
But it wasn't just His immediate family that defined Jesus. Jesus can trace His family line way back, and each person in His lineage helps Him better understand who He is and why He's here.
This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham. — Matthew 1:1 One of the most important people in Jesus' lineage is King David. Jesus isn't just a part of the family of Abraham, the Jews. He is a part of the royal family destined to lead the Jewish people into a time of peace and flourishing. There were a lot of expectations for the descendant of David who would take up the leadership of the Jewish people. And so, as a son of David, Jesus would have felt the weight of those expectations heavily. Consider This: Does thinking about your family line bring a sense of pride or shame? Does it come with the weight of hope or dread? It is comforting that Jesus was familiar even with this common human experience of bearing the burdens of our ancestors. Besides having a family and an ancestry that was very important and formative for Him, Jesus also had hometowns that shaped and nurtured Him. When Joseph heard that Archelaus was reigning in Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. Having been warned in a dream, he withdrew to the district of Galilee, and he went and lived in a town called Nazareth. — Matthew 2:22-23 Judea — the land given to Judah, one of the twelve sons of Jacob — and Galilee were packed with history. Every time Jesus heard the scriptures read at the synagogue, He would have been able to picture the landmarks mentioned. But also, during Jesus' time, Judea was history-in-the-making. When Jesus was born, King Herod massacred countless innocent babies to prevent his throne from being threatened. And during Jesus' childhood and His adult ministry, the Roman Empire occupied and controlled the Jewish people with violence. For Jesus, to be Jewish was not just a set of religious practices He observed. He had a royal Jewish lineage, a Jewish family enmeshed in Jewish community, and a homeland that steeped Him in Jewish culture, Jewish theology, Jewish philosophy, Jewish scriptures, and, most importantly, Jewish hopes for the future. It was in this environment the boy Jesus prepared to become the Christ. |
Adapted for Devotionals Daily by Falon Barton, campus minister at Pepperdine University, from Boy Jesus by Joan Taylor. Copyright The Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge. * * * |
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Have you thought about what Jesus' boyhood was like for Him? He had siblings, friends, chores, family meals, and holy day celebrations. He had growing pains, He enjoyed games and songs, He knew His neighborhood inside and out. He was fully human, and yet fully God. Think about that! ~ Devotionals Daily |
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This book that brings the story of Jesus' childhood to life as never before |
Boy Jesus: Growing Up Judean in Turbulent Times |
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+ FREE shipping with code EARLYBIRD |
As a boy, Jesus was a refugee, an outsider, an immigrant in Galilee in which he grew up, and affected by horrific atrocities by the occupying Roman overlords. All this and more is explored in this scholarly but highly accessible investigation into the world of Jesus, ranging from his birth to his coming of age and beyond. Joan Taylor, a world authority on the history and literature of the first century CE, draws both on the latest archaeological findings and on the historical clues to be found within ancient texts of the period. The result is a book that brings the story of Jesus' childhood clearly and vividly to life as never before, while also pointing to the many ways in which Jesus' experiences as a child are likely to have influenced his life, attitudes, and actions as an adult. |
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| My Jesus Story Collection |
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The Promise and Power of Easter Online Bible Study |
The Promise and Power of Easter Online Bible Study |
Easter isn't just a point in history - it's the point of history! Join the FREE The Promise and Power of Easter Online Bible Study with Christine Caine and Lisa Harper and get ready to celebrate Easter with more joy and anticipation than ever before! Plus, get access to 4 study videos and other Bible study resources - all free when you sign up! |
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this devotion with someone who needs it today |
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