- Article: Spiritual GPS
Article: Spiritual GPS
"Why were you searching for me?" He asked. "Didn't you know I had to be in My Father's house?" But they did not understand what He was saying to them. Then He went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. But His mother treasured all these things in her heart. And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.
Luke 2:49-52 NIV.
Global Positioning System or GPS is the revolutionary tracking system that uses satellites to be able to find you wherever you are so long as you have a GPS receiver. This is good news for explorers and others who venture out on expeditions as it makes it more difficult for them to be lost and unreachable, because the GPS satellite system will find them virtually wherever they are. Using the scripture above I want to try and explain how we can receive the 'favour of God' in our lives using a similar principle that I call 'the spiritual GPS'.
Here in this chapter Luke closes with the fact that even at twelve years old Jesus had the double-sided favour (with God and Man) that many believers have declared and are trying various ways of finding in 2005. In many churches across the world there are still those who are asking God for his favour to be poured out in abundance, so that doors of opportunity and all the other manifold blessings will be realised this year. I too am a great believer in all of that, however, I don't believe that it is simply a matter of us just declaring and the favour showing up, but rather it is the words that open up the scripture reference quoted above that hold part of the key to this flow of divine favour.
Those words are the first recorded words of our Lord Jesus Christ since his birth and are in the form of two questions from the Lord Himself: Luke then makes a statement concerning the character of Jesus. Within this passage I believe we can find the key of what I am calling 'the spiritual GPS' that enables, not just us finding favour but rather the favour finding us.
God-centred
Of course many of you already know the story about Joseph and Mary taking the twelve-year-old Jesus with them to the customary Jewish religious feast of 'Passover' in Jerusalem. When the feast was over they began the long Journey back to their hometown of Nazareth. After traveling for a day or so they realised Jesus was nowhere to be found, so like typical parents they began to worry and went back to Jerusalem to look for Him. After three days looking for Him they finally found Him in the temple and of course we can imagine the tone they took with Him as they began to question Him on why He was not with them.
But what I find most interesting here is Jesus' reply; He asks them, "Why were you searching for Me?" Now at first glance it seems to be a strange question to ask considering that He had been missing for more than three days. However I believe what His question really meant was, "You did not need to look for Me, you should have known where I would be". He was actually in the temple putting some amazing questions to the religious doctors who He sat talking with.
What is significant here is what the temple symbolized to the Jewish people, it was the very Centre of their whole 'faith' in God. The temple was the centre of Worship and the centre for the teachings concerning the commandments. So Jesus was simply saying to Joseph and Mary you did not need to go on a big hunt for Me, you should have known that I am God-Centred so I would go to where the central focus on God is. In other words, Joseph and Mary, if you really knew the kind of person I am (and that is God-centred), the first place you should have come is the temple.
I believe this is the first key to what enabled Jesus to get that growth in favour with God and man, and this is also then the first thing we need to check out in our spiritual GPS in order for favour to find us. Ask yourself the question, "Am I God centred?" Or, to break that down even more we should ask ourselves, "Have I placed God at the centre as being first in my life, including my relationships and my attitude toward His house?" "Is He first even in my finances?" Let's be honest and ask ourselves what would probably happen if that kind of favour that was upon Jesus came upon someone who was not God-centred? Doors of opportunity may be opened, but could they be trusted with that level of favour.
Purpose-driven 
In response to His parents worry about the concern He had caused them, the twelve-year-old Jesus made another statement in the form of a question by telling them He must be in His Father's house, of course speaking here of God the Father. Or as the KJV puts it "wist ye not that I must be about My father's business?"
Once again, inside of this second question posed by Jesus we find out the second point about His character development and that is the fact that He was purpose-driven because He said, "I 'must' be about my Father's 'business'". That was His ultimate purpose to take care of the business, the mission that God the Father had sent him to fulfill. Therefore so far we find the twelve-year-old Jesus revealing to us inside of this text, that He was God-centred and Purpose-driven. In light of this second point, we must also check ourselves to see if we are truly driven by our purpose in life, or do we just exist from one day to the next. Also we cannot allow ourselves to just run with the crowds of friends and associates to do stuff just because they are doing it, but rather we are to find out what drives us in God and walk out worthily that which we are called for, Ephesians 4:1.
From this point on through the rest of Jesus' life we see that His only concern was pleasing His Father by fulfilling the purpose He was sent for, even if that meant others would not like it. Our first purpose is a common one and that is to have a life that is in relationship with God and just like Jesus from inside of that 'life' with God, you can find the rest of your purpose and then begin to allow it to drive you bringing ultimate Glory to God.
Self-disciplined
Luke in his account now records for our understanding one more fact concerning the character of the twelve-year-old Jesus, this time it is to be found, not in another question spoken by Jesus, but rather in a statement made here by Luke about Jesus.
Luke tells us in verse 51 that in spite of Jesus' response to the concern expressed by Mary and Joseph, 'He went down to Nazareth with them and was 'Obedient' to them.' The key word here is 'obedient' He was God-centred, He was Purpose-driven, and the fact that He was obedient to His parents tells us that He was also Self-disciplined enough to go with them and be subject to them. Self-discipline is that part of Character that many of us struggle with; the submission of oneself is often the greatest battle.
I love this about the life of Jesus, He knew exactly who he was, the Christ the Son of God. Yet in spite of his identity He was still able to submit himself to His earthly parents' authority. It is important that we discipline ourselves so that when no one else is around we will still be able to walk with integrity, even submitting to those who have authority over us regardless of how strong our gifting is. You may be a great singer, a great preacher, or whoever and whatever else but can you honestly say that you are self-disciplined. Those are the kind of people that favour is looking for; it is those who are not carried away with Gift, but rather have learned to be self-disciplined.
From twelve-years-old all the way to and through His Calvary experience on the Cross, Jesus was true to these three character qualities. He was God-centred to the extent where there were often times He would go to a solitary place to pray, just to maintain that God centred-ness. He was Purpose-driven always concerned with the business, the mission that the Father had sent Him on, ministering to Israel even though they were rejecting Him and saying what He was doing was some kind of devilish act. But all this was able to happen because of His self-discipline as the writer of the book of Hebrews tells us that He was "...tempted in every way as we are yet was without sin."
Hebrews 4:15 NIV
I believe that these three points of being God-centred, Purpose-driven and Self-disciplined will enable our spiritual GPS to be set and once this GPS is set we will no longer have to look for favour but we will find that the favour with God and man will find us and begin to grow on us, in the same way it did for Jesus.