Luke 2:52 records, “And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.”
Growing in Wisdom
Students, everything your textbooks say is not true. Everything your friends believe may not be true. Everything you google is definitely not true. We have to be wise and discerning as we are learning about life. We need to make sure the authority of God’s Word is our Source for truth. Some will tell you that truth is relative, that it depends on your situation. That truth can be different for different people. You must not believe that. Truth is fixed. It doesn’t change. What was true, is true and will be true. 2 + 2 will always be 4. Now that new-fangled math math may give you some different ideas about how to compute it, but 2 + 2 will always be 4.
Here are some facts about truth:
Truth is discovered not invented (God has established what is true. We learn the truth as we learn of Him.)
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Truth is transcultural: it can be conveyed across different cultures. Something isn’t only true in America. If it is true, it is true in Mexico, or France or Malaysia.
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Truth is unchanging: it can be conveyed across time. What was true thousands of years ago is still true today. Truth isn’t impacted by cultural conversations, by the discovery of information or the innovation of new ideas.
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Beliefs cannot change a truth statement no matter how sincere one may be (So you believing something doesn’t make it true. You can believe a lie. You have that capacity.)
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Truth is unaffected by the attitude of the one professing it. (I may not like the truth, but that doesn’t change that it is true.)
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All Truths are absolute
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Truth is knowable
In order for truth to be absolute and holding these qualities, it must be grounded in a source that is personal, unchanging, and sovereign over all creation.(https://evidenceandanswers.org/article/truth-absolute-or-relative/)
Therefore, truth is known only in and through a right relationship with God.
Jesus grew in wisdom because He was in a growing relationship with God. That is where real wisdom is attained. Wisdom isn’t gained through a textbook. Knowledge and information may come that way, but wisdom comes from God (Proverbs 2:6).
Grow in Stature When we give our lives to Christ, our bodies become a temple for the Holy Spirit. God’s Spirit lives in us. We need to honor God by taking care of our bodies to the best of our ability. That gym class that you are required to take is a good thing. Gaining physical strength is a way to help us prevent and minimize injury. Exercise is a stress reliever. Avoiding putting things into our bodies that will harm our bodies is key to long life and living well. A strong body will enable us to serve others as we serve the Lord. Stature doesn’t just refer to a person’s height. It refers to their growth and development overall. Jesus didn’t just grow taller. He grew well. He grew strong. It needs to be a goal that every Christ-follower has.
Then lastly, our text tells us that Jesus grew in favor with God and men. Let’s talk first about Favor with Men.
God made us to be social. Favor with people comes when we love all people and treat all people the way Jesus would. If we say one thing to someone’s face and another thing when they walk away, we are destroying potential favor with people. If we dismiss someone as unworthy of our time or concern, if we bully or label people to marginalize them, if we think less of someone because of the color of their skin, we have sabotaged our favor with people. If we fly off the handle and yell and scream at people, we have destroyed our favor with people. If we spread gossip about people and talk badly about them because of what they wear or who they hang out with, we have damaged the amount of favor we can have with people. If we post things to cast people in a poor or disparaging light, we have shut down favor with those people.
Jesus didn’t just associate with all people to demonstrate His love, but He also did so in order to influence them to set an example for them so that they could choose better, live better, and see the way to a relationship with God. If you blow your favor with people, you blow the opportunity to show them who God is. As a representative of Christ, it is important that you care how other people view you.
Lastly, Jesus grew in Favor with God.
Favor with God comes from seeking Him and from obeying Him. It is a by-product of being a true disciple of Jesus. It’s the good stuff that just happens because God allows it or does it for you because you are in a relationship with Him. Esther went from being an orphaned Jewish refugee to the Queen of Persia just because God did it.
Favor will protect you from being destroyed by Satan. He will try to cause things to happen to discourage and disappoint and defeat you, but God will turn them around and cause them to be something for your good. That is Divine favor. Joseph went from being sold as a slave by his brothers, to serving in Potiphar’s house, to put in prison for something he didn’t do to being elevated as the Prime Minister of Egypt. That is Divine favor.
Divine favor can’t be stopped or shut out of your life. Your trials will just take you to new heights! The Favor of God will give you victory over your enemies and will position you in places where you can receive what you need like He did for Ruth when she and her mother-in-law needed provision. Ruth was from another country. She didn’t even have a network of people to turn to in times of trouble, but God gave her favor with a wealthy businessman whose named was Boaz. He saw that she had what she needed, but he also married her and from their lineage King David and Jesus descended. That happened to Ruth just because of the Favor of God. God’s favor gives you a platform and a place of influence. Seek His favor by walking in the ways He has ordained for you.
Let’s learn from the ways Jesus learned. Let’s grow in wisdom, in stature, and in favor with God and men.