Ben Wilson

Just for the sake of showing both sides, honestly, I'm pointing out that the popular account of Jesus' birth does appear to have some inconsistencies. I think if you're a believer, you know, these accusations are not particularly damning toward the overall veracity of the account. If you're a believer, I wouldn't let it upset you.

I'm just saying that if you're looking at this from a purely historical perspective of what do we know about this person, you're likely to conclude that Jesus is a young man from Nazareth probably born there. So according to the Bible, Jesus' family makes a quick detour to Egypt, which we won't get into, but Nazareth is definitely where Jesus grows up.

I'm just saying that if you're looking at this from a purely historical perspective of what do we know about this person, you're likely to conclude that Jesus is a young man from Nazareth probably born there. So according to the Bible, Jesus' family makes a quick detour to Egypt, which we won't get into, but Nazareth is definitely where Jesus grows up.

Nazareth is a small town in the region of the Sea of Galilee. It's a few days walk from Jerusalem. It had a population of a few hundred. It was a small town. It was not well regarded. In fact, there's a story in the book of John that a man, Philip, finds Jesus and follows him and goes to tell his brother, Nathanael. that we found the Messiah.

Nazareth is a small town in the region of the Sea of Galilee. It's a few days walk from Jerusalem. It had a population of a few hundred. It was a small town. It was not well regarded. In fact, there's a story in the book of John that a man, Philip, finds Jesus and follows him and goes to tell his brother, Nathanael. that we found the Messiah.

And he says, quote, we have found him of whom Moses in the law and the prophets did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph. And the brother responds, can there any good thing come out of Nazareth? Okay, so like Nazareth is such a...

And he says, quote, we have found him of whom Moses in the law and the prophets did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph. And the brother responds, can there any good thing come out of Nazareth? Okay, so like Nazareth is such a...

backwater place that someone who hears about jesus of nazareth is like really he's from nazareth um so a comparison i don't want to offend anyone but if you're from the united states it's like maybe mississippi in the american context okay maybe north dakota apologies to any of my listeners in mississippi or north dakota i'm sure it's actually great just like nazareth okay but if i told you like i found a great prophet a great messiah you say where is he from and i say he's from north dakota

backwater place that someone who hears about jesus of nazareth is like really he's from nazareth um so a comparison i don't want to offend anyone but if you're from the united states it's like maybe mississippi in the american context okay maybe north dakota apologies to any of my listeners in mississippi or north dakota i'm sure it's actually great just like nazareth okay but if i told you like i found a great prophet a great messiah you say where is he from and i say he's from north dakota

you would go, really? North Dakota? That's what Nazareth was like. But I don't want you to think of Jesus entirely as a country bumpkin. He came from a middle-class family. His dad was a carpenter. That meant he was a craftsman and not a peasant. Okay. So not the lowest rung of society. And he did learn to read and write as a child.

you would go, really? North Dakota? That's what Nazareth was like. But I don't want you to think of Jesus entirely as a country bumpkin. He came from a middle-class family. His dad was a carpenter. That meant he was a craftsman and not a peasant. Okay. So not the lowest rung of society. And he did learn to read and write as a child.

The only story we know from Jesus's childhood comes from when he is 12 years old. His family travels to Jerusalem to worship at the temple and And then they go back and on the return journey, his parents look around and discover to their horror that Jesus is not with the group.

The only story we know from Jesus's childhood comes from when he is 12 years old. His family travels to Jerusalem to worship at the temple and And then they go back and on the return journey, his parents look around and discover to their horror that Jesus is not with the group.

So in a frenzy, they turn around and go back to the temple where they find him in the temple, deep in discussion with the elders who are, of course, amazed by the boy's precocious wisdom. And he responds, how is it that you sought me? Wist ye not that I must be about my father's business? Okay. In other words, didn't you know, you know, so he's already referring to God as his father.

So in a frenzy, they turn around and go back to the temple where they find him in the temple, deep in discussion with the elders who are, of course, amazed by the boy's precocious wisdom. And he responds, how is it that you sought me? Wist ye not that I must be about my father's business? Okay. In other words, didn't you know, you know, so he's already referring to God as his father.

And he's essentially saying to his parents, didn't you know I would be in the temple? You know, and this shows the connectedness of the Jewish world and the education that someone from a class like Jesus would be able to speak with elders and read scripture and understand it. Paul Johnson writes, we can be sure he was well instructed.

And he's essentially saying to his parents, didn't you know I would be in the temple? You know, and this shows the connectedness of the Jewish world and the education that someone from a class like Jesus would be able to speak with elders and read scripture and understand it. Paul Johnson writes, we can be sure he was well instructed.

Virtually all clever Jewish children were, if circumstances permitted, and Jesus came from a comfortable home. We know he could read, for his deep and still more skeptical knowledge of the scriptures is evidence of constant study of the texts from an early age. By age 12, he was perfectly capable of taking part in a learned discussion of their meaning. Okay, so he can read and write.

Virtually all clever Jewish children were, if circumstances permitted, and Jesus came from a comfortable home. We know he could read, for his deep and still more skeptical knowledge of the scriptures is evidence of constant study of the texts from an early age. By age 12, he was perfectly capable of taking part in a learned discussion of their meaning. Okay, so he can read and write.

He's clearly a clever young man. Then we basically miss Jesus's entire young adulthood. We know nothing about his life from the time he is 12, and that story happens, until he is 30 years old. We can make some guesses at what he was doing at that time. You know, probably he was employed. I think it likely that he took up his father's trade and was a carpenter.