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The Problem, The Boy Next Door


Then Jesus, still teaching in the temple courts, cried out, “Yes, you know me, and you know where I am from. I am not here on my own, but he who sent me is true. You do not know him,  but I know him because I am from him and he sent me.” (John 7:28-29)
         Do you know the nativity story? Of course you do. How many magi were there?[1] When did they arrive?[2] What did Joseph and Mary do after they left?[3] Do you know the story of Jesus's trial? How many times does it say that Peter betrayed Christ?[4] I'm not asking these questions to fault you on your Bible knowledge. I hope you got them all right. If so, how many people you know do you think would get them right. I'm only asking them because quite often, we think we know something when we don't.
       This seems to me to be the point that Jesus is making in this passage. People thought that the Messiah was supposed to just show up one day, free the Jews from Rome and set up His Throne in Jerusalem. That created a problem for them, because they knew where Jesus was from. He wasn't the mystery they thought He should be, which mystified them. The reality was that they didn't really know Him, where He was from or the One who sent Him. Their assumed familiarity bred contempt.
        There are stories based on the Scriptures like "Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by this some have entertained angels without knowing it." (Hebrews 13:2) and "“The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’" (Matthew 25:40) about people being visited by angels or Jesus without realizing it. The goal is to teach us to be hospitable to strangers. That's a good lesson. I think this passage invites us to consider another possibility. It's so easy to think, "Oh, that's my kid" or "that's my neighbor." It's easy to dismiss them because we know them. Those closest to us can be, and are more often used by God in our lives than strangers.
       I once read something about the idea that if a visitor spilled milk on the coffee table and new rug, we'd be likely to shrug it off and say, "that's OK," but if our child did the same, we'd freak. Jesus was the "boy next door" and so the Jews decided He couldn't be who He said He is.


[1] Unknown,
[2] Unknown, but long enough after Jesus' birth that He and His parents were living in a house, and before  He was 2 because Herod had children under 2 killed.
[3] Fled to Egypt.
[4] None. It says he denied Him 3 times.

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