Christmas 2C - 2025
Sermon for Second Sunday after Christmas
St. Paul’s Episcopal Church
The Rev. Andrew McLarty
Department Store Racks
Remember when you were a kid, and you went with a parent to the department store and there were those 8-foot, circular clothing racks? Did you ever used to hide from your parents in them when you got bored with the shopping? I did. A lot. I would see if I could be so quiet that other shoppers didn't see me. And my mother always knew what I was up to. I think she liked that I was contained and she could focus the decisions she needed to make while shopping...
This is kind of what Jesus did, except a lot more divine.
Have You Ever "Lost" Jesus?
I can imagine twelve-year-old Jesus exclaiming with exasperation:
"Yes, I’ll be home for supper by 7.”
And Mary saying,
“now, if we get separated, stay where you are. Don’t leave the designated area.”
I can hear Jesus saying,
“Mom, come on, I’m 12 years old…nothing is going to happen. Don’t be so paranoid.”
Has this ever happened to you? Have you ever lost Jesus? A few days ago we were gathered around the manger, celebrating the birth of this new child. Whether your discipleship comes from childhood or you began the journey an adult, I would venture to guess that we’ve each had our own version of hearing some proclamation about the Almightyness of God or the salvation of Jesus, and said to yourself- “yeah, I'm here for it, I’m game, let’s go!”
And like Mary, as we meet Jesus, either as children or as an adult, we ponder these things in our hearts…not exactly sure what it means but convinced it’s important.
So there we are, in a relationship with Jesus. But then, in the midst of something—perhaps something routine, perhaps something out of the ordinary—we look around and realize we’re not exactly sure where Jesus is. But not to worry, we tell ourselves, he couldn’t have gone far.
This is one of my favorite scenes in the story of Jesus, because it is the first time Jesus challenges people’s expectations. For us this scene may not be surprising because we expect Jesus to be in the temple, and it’s not unusual for 12-yr olds to show surprising ability to carry on a conversation with adults. But in his time, this was a huge shock. Jesus is 12…he’s not a teenager, he hasn’t gone through the official rites to be considered an adult. He hasn’t been confirmed yet. He doesn’t have his driver’s license. He can’t vote. The expectation is that he will be running around in the dirt with his friends. But what is he doing instead? Engaging in conversation with adults about God, the Law, the world, and how all those things fit together.
But as parents, Joseph and Mary must have been freaking out, Mary even says,
“why have you treated us like this?”
Is this true for us? Whenever we get to that point where we turn around and think that Jesus has gone missing, we begin a frantic search for him. And at some point in our search we find Jesus in a place we didn’t expect, doing something we didn’t think Jesus would do. And what’s our response? How could you do this to us!?! How could you treat us like this?!?
After You've "Lost" Jesus
But when Jesus shows up in a place we aren’t expecting, doing something we didn’t expect Jesus to do, we are still shocked and confused. How could Jesus be there? How could Jesus be doing that? And so we attack Jesus or God with our expectations and we say, “how could you treat us like this?”…like Jesus has a responsibility to stick within the box we’ve created for him.
I think there’s a challenge and an invitation in this text for us. I think we have a tendency to want Jesus to stay a child in our relationship with him—we want to tell him what to do, where to go, and how to act. We want him to fit within our perceptions and expectations. And so this story challenges us to let Jesus grow up. Are you willing to let Jesus grow up? Are you willing to trust that there may be things about Jesus that you will never understand? Are you willing to trust that when you can’t exactly see him, he’s still where he’s supposed to be: in his father’s house—in those in whom his father dwells–doing the work of his father?
Today, perhaps it is as surprising when we find Jesus not just with children, but IN children, or not just with those who are poor and oppressed, but IN those who are poor and oppressed. Instead of always looking for Jesus where it makes sense, let Jesus surprise you by showing up in places that don’t make sense. Let Jesus surprise you when he shows up in the midst of suffering and grief. Let Jesus surprise you when he shows up in the wisdom of a 12-yr old, or even a 3-yr old. Let Jesus surprise you when he shows up where you would not expect him to be.
In this season of Christmas, and next week as we move into Epiphany, my prayer is that as we live into the mystery that we celebrated on Christmas Eve—the mystery of the Word made flesh and dwelling among us—that we will be surprised at what that looks like in our lives.
Amen.
