There’s a funny thing about perfection. It requires a lot of mistakes.

Think about the light bulb. The suspension bridge. The iPod battery. In each case, the identification and elimination of design flaws led to better and better versions.

Henry Petroski, a professor of history and civil engineering at Duke University, has written a book called “Success Through Failure.” He makes the case that mistakes are not failures that should be avoided at all costs. Instead, they are fundamental clues to the ideal.

The Tacoma Narrows Bridge in Washington State was the third longest suspension bridge in the world when it was completed in 1940. But it had too narrow and shallow a deck, and it collapsed just months after it was opened to traffic. A relatively unknown engineer had warned against the excessive narrowness of the deck, but his objections were overcome by the pride of the bridge’s successful designer.

Today, everyone knows not to make bridge decks too narrow or too shallow. And this is a lesson that could only be learned through failure.

In the world of engineering, mistakes are the engine that drives successful design. And I would argue that the same is true in our Christian faith. In today’s passage of Scripture, Jesus is accidentally left behind in the temple when he is twelve years old. This looks like a big mistake, and it would be considered a nightmare for most families of young children. But this failure leads to a fundamental clue to his true identity — he is the Son of God, not just the son of Mary and Joseph. So, in the case of Jesus, the discovery of perfection requires that mistakes be made.

Let’s take a closer look at this story from Luke. As the passage begins, you don’t get the impression that Mary and Joseph have spent much time telling Jesus about the miracle of his birth at Christmas — they haven’t filled him with tales of visits from angels, shepherds, and wise men. In fact, it appears that they have raised him as a regular Jewish boy, without any hint that he is the Messiah.

Luke is the only gospel writer to tell us anything about the childhood of Jesus. According to this book, the family of Jesus did everything required by the law of the Lord: their firstborn child Jesus was circumcised at eight days (Luke 2:21); he was dedicated to God at six weeks when his mother was purified (2:22); he underwent bar mitzvah at 12 (2:42); and later his public life began at age 30 (3:23). At every significant point in his life, Jesus was true to the Jewish faith.

Being good Jews is important to the family of Jesus, which is why they went to Jerusalem every year for the festival of the Passover. When the festival was ended and they started to return, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. Uh, oh — big mistake! How could this happen? Luke tells us that Mary and Joseph assumed he was with the group of travelers — with Uncle Obadiah or Aunt Martha or crazy cousin Caleb. But when they started to look for him among their relatives and friends, they couldn’t find him anywhere. Then the panic set in.

One of the classic stories of my childhood revolves around my own disappearance when I heard my mother say something about “ice cream” at a crowded shopping center. I took off, thinking in my little toddler brain that I knew where the ice cream parlor was. Unfortunately, my mother and father were heading in the opposite direction, and they lost me, completely. After what must have seemed like an eternity, my parents found me — and I’m sure they felt a strange mixture of fierce anger … and enormous relief.

The same was true for Joseph and Mary. They returned to Jerusalem to search for Jesus, and after three days they found him. Three days — can you imagine? They probably didn’t sleep a wink. They found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. Luke tells us that “all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers” (2:47).

When his parents saw him, they were astonished, and his mother said to him — here comes the fierce anger and enormous relief — “Child, why have you treated us like this? Look, your father and I have been searching for you in great anxiety” (v. 48). There may have been a few more choice words that didn’t make it into Holy Scripture. Parents, I’m sure you can think of a couple.

Then Jesus responds, in the very first words he speaks in the Gospel of Luke. “Why were you searching for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” (v. 49). Our Bible translates this from the original Greek into the English words “in my Father’s house.” However, because the Greek expression is vague, it can also be translated “involved in my Father’s affairs,” or “among those people belonging to my Father.”

In any case, Jesus is surprised that they didn’t know that he would be in this place — in his Father’s house. For Jesus, it is a no-brainer that he would be in the temple, because he has discovered that he has an intense and personal relationship with his heavenly Father. The sense and importance of that relationship comes through in his response, whether it is translated “in my Father’s house,” “involved in my Father’s affairs,” or “among those people belonging to my Father.”

Mary and Joseph still do not understand what Jesus is saying to them, and it is not the first time that they have wondered about this child. Think back to Christmas, when Mary pondered the message of the shepherds (v. 19). Think of the dedication of Jesus, when Mary and Joseph were amazed at what Simeon said about their baby (v. 33). So much has happened since the birth of Jesus; it is possible that Mary and Joseph are simply overwhelmed. Here is one more piece to add to all the others in the puzzle that they are trying to fit together.

The story begins with what feels like a terrible mistake: A 12-year-old boy is lost on a family trip. It ends with the discovery that Jesus must spend time in his Father’s house, because he is the Messiah, the Son of God. Clearly, mistakes are not failures that should be avoided at all costs. Instead, they are fundamental clues to the ideal.

My feeling about mistakes is that we cannot dwell on them. We have to learn from them, and then move on. Today’s story ends with Jesus returning to Nazareth with his parents and being obedient to them. He doesn’t remain in the temple, and insist on everyone bowing down to him. He has discovered who he is, and so he returns home to continue his growing up. Back in Nazareth, he increases in wisdom and in years, in divine and human favor — and then, roughly 18 years later, he begins his world-changing ministry.

And Mary? She treasures all these things in her heart (v. 51). She moves beyond the mistake, and reflects on her new understanding of who Jesus is.

So what does this mean for our lives today, especially as we move into a brand new year? It means that we should not be too hard on ourselves for the mistakes we make. Jesus came to earth to forgive us and save us, not to curse us and condemn us. God can use our failures to teach us lessons, and to move us closer to him.

It’s kind of interesting that the book “Success Through Failure” was written by a professor at Duke, because it was while I was a student at Duke that I made some of my biggest mistakes. No, I’m not going to go into a long list of youthful indiscretions. But one big mistake was pursuing a major in the sciences, a course of study that was driven more by family expectations than by personal interest. I muddled along in science until I hit organic chemistry, and then, bang — big failure! What I discovered at that point was that I had to follow my passion if I was going to enjoy any success in life. And so I began to focus on religious studies, which I loved, and I embarked on a path that I have enjoyed ever since.

Funny thing is, I might not have found that path if I had not experienced failure. If I had scraped by in science, I might have ended up a mediocre and unhappy scientist. For me, modest success in science would have led to misery in life. I owe my current happiness to an early failure.

A similar dynamic is at work in other areas of life. When a person goes through a divorce, and then moves toward a second marriage, I don’t think it’s valuable to focus on failure. Instead, I always ask the person, “What did you learn from your first marriage that is going to help you with your second marriage? What wisdom did you gain?” People feel a lot of guilt about failed marriages, but I can tell you that I have known many people who have enjoyed very fulfilling second marriages — some that last 40 or 50 years.

In the life of the church, we have got to stop being paralyzed by a fear of failure. Vital and growing churches are not afraid of mistakes, and they venture into new forms of ministry and mission with open minds. If they make a mistake, they learn and move on. We cannot move closer to God if we are afraid to take a risk and try something new … in worship, in education, in youth work, in mission.

So, what is God trying to teach you through a recent failure in school, in work, in church, or in a personal relationship? Think of one mistake you’ve made, and one new door that is now open to you because of that mistake. Don’t be afraid to step through that door, and gain a new perspective from the other side. Remember that if the family of Jesus hadn’t lost him, they might not have seen that he was the Son of God..

Success is a funny thing — it requires a lot of mistakes. Fortunately, we are all good at making mistakes. And God is good at using those mistakes to draw us closer to him. Amen.

Source:
Lucas Conley, “Toolbox,” Fast Company, April 2006, 107.