STUFF YOU MAY NOT HAVE LEARNED IN MIDDLE SCHOOL: “THE STAR-SPANGLED BANNER,” THE NATIONAL ANTHEM OF THE UNITED STATES, ACTUALLY HAS FOUR VERSES, BUT EVERYONE KNOWS JUST THE FIRST ONE.
Jesus totally went to school. Isn’t that a riot? It’s hard to think of him sitting in the fourth row, right behind some little know-it-all, just to the left of that kid who’s always picking his nose, and in front of the student who falls asleep in class all the time.
We know Jesus went to school because all Jewish kids (all boys, that is, and some girls) went to school. They studied with a rabbi (see the previous chapter) and learned tons of stuff. Most kids also studied a “trade” (a skill that would be used for a job someday), and they usually learned this from their parents. So Jesus would have gone to school for part of the day, and then studied carpentry with his dad—Joseph—the rest of the day.
Here’s an interesting thing to think about: We don’t really know what Jesus knew about himself and at what age. Like, the Bible makes it clear that Jesus was completely human and completely God. (That’s 200 percent, which can make your brain hurt if you think about it too much.) Yet the Bible also makes it clear Jesus grew up like a normal kid. Check out this verse:
AND JESUS GREW IN WISDOM AND STATURE, AND IN FAVOR WITH GOD AND MEN. (LUKE 2:52)
Sure, the verse doesn’t say, “Jesus went to school, and got pretty good grades.” But what it does tell us is that Jesus grew up. Okay, we know you’re thinking, Duh! And you’re wondering if you can keep reading this book because we, the authors, must be the two stupidest guys ever to write something so obvious as though it were important. But wait—it is important. Jesus didn’t just grow up physically (that’s what the verse means when it says he grew in “stature”). Jesus also grew “in wisdom”—ooh, that’s the key phrase!
When the Bible says Jesus “grew in wisdom,” it means he became wiser and smarter, right? That also means he didn’t know everything since the moment he was born (super-baby!). Now, we don’t know exactly when Jesus understood he was the Son of God, the Messiah sent to save the world. Although he seems to understand it by the time he’s about 12 years old because he says some stuff to his parents after they lost him on a trip to Jerusalem that makes it pretty clear he knows. (You can read about it in Luke 2:41-52. The verse in the middle of the previous page is the last verse of that story.)
All of this to say: YES! Jesus went to school! And he wasn’t just sitting in class feeling bored because he had to listen to stuff he already knew (because he’s God). Jesus actually learned, and he grew in wisdom. Just like you’re doing (we hope!).