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Question: A friend of mine says that Jesus Christ was married. He insists there are 12 years of his life called "the forgotten years" and during that time he was married and divorced. Is there any truth to this?

Answer: The "Forgotten Years" to which your friend is referring is actually known as "The Lost Years" of Jesus. These "lost years" are supposedly from the time Jesus was 13 years old until he reached 29 years of age, and actually span 17 years, and not 12 as your friend insists upon. This period of time pertains to the last reference of Christ while with His parents in Jerusalem in observance of the Passover Feast at 12 years of age (Luke 2:41-52), until the time He appears before John the Baptist for baptism at the start of His ministry at age 30 (Matthew 3:13-17; John 1:29-36). Scripture is silent concerning that period of time in Jesus' life.

It should be pointed out as well that no history is recorded from the time of the visit of the wise men, when Jesus would have been approximately 2 years old (Matthew 2:9-12), until the incident during the Passover when Jesus was left behind by His parents as He questioned the teachers in the Temple at 12 years of age (Luke 2:42-46). This would add another 9 mysterious years in the life of Jesus.

Let us clarify the fact that we need to base all beliefs upon the Word of God. The Bible is complete in its 66 Books, and nothing can be added to it or taken away from it to make it more accurate and true. Any ideas or supposed facts that others present must be judged strictly by the claims of the Bible. While we may not be able to historically justify these years where the Bible is silent, we can certainly determine the fallacy in such a claim of Jesus being married and divorced, as well as some of the other false claims of the "Lost Years" theology.

There has been a recent surge of interest in these supposed lost years of Jesus with the publication of a book and the ever increasing determination of Bible-haters to destroy faith in the authority of God's Word. For many hundreds of years people have tried to lay claim to the answer as to where Jesus was and what He was doing during that period of time. To the vast majority of true Bible believing Christians it is not an area of concern. The Bible clearly tells us that when His parents retrieved Him from the Temple at 12 years of age, He returned home with them and remained subject unto them as the respectable and honorable son we would expect Him to be (Luke 2:51,52).

The proponents of the "Lost Years" teaching would like for us to believe that at the young age of 13, Jesus sneaked out of His parents' house and fled into the Orient where He sought wisdom and became a teacher in Buddhism. They claim that ancient scrolls reveal that Jesus spent these 17 years there, and that the story of His pilgrimage from Jerusalem to Benares was recorded by Brahmanistic historians. Today this "Jesus" of Buddhism is still known and loved as St. Issa, and is openly regarded as their 'buddha'. According to their tradition, events in the life of Issa closely resemble that of Jesus Christ. They feel that this 'historical' (?) finding will "shake the foundations of modern Christendom."

Can we really convince ourselves, in light of the truth of God's holy, inerrant Word, that the sinless, spotless Lamb of God would slip out on His parents and flee into the far East, and take up with Buddhist monks for 17 years, to all of a sudden return at the baptism of John, to enter into a ministry that would forever change the entire course of human history... a ministry totally contrary to the teachings of Buddhism?

John the Baptist said that he was not worthy to even stoop to untie the sandals of Jesus, but he cried out against the sin of Herod in taking his brother's wife to be his own. Would not the record be much different had Jesus dared to approach the river of baptism having been married and divorced? Could Jesus still retain the title of a pure and unblemished Lamb of God had He been guilty of divorce? In all of the discourse between Jesus and His enemies, never is the accusation brought forward that Jesus had been married, let alone divorced.

The multitude of false religions in the world today would love to be able to lay claim to Jesus, if they can make Him out to be on their side -- and many make an effort to do so.

St. Issa is reported to have said, "Not only shall you not make human offerings, BUT YOU MUST NOT SLAUGHTER ANIMALS, because all is given for the use of man. Do not steal the goods of others, because that would be usurpation from your near one. Do not cheat, that you may in turn not be cheated..." (Emphasis mine). To those unfamiliar with the truth of God's Word, this seems so "biblical" sounding. However, Jesus (Jewish-born) would never have spoken out against the very sacrifices He implemented in the Old Testament, which involved the slaughter of animals. These animal sacrifices were in total compliance with God's Law until Jesus died upon the cross, thus rendering all other sacrifices for sin unnecessary (John 19:30 with Romans 6:9,10; Hebrews 7:27).

To think that Jesus was involved in a failed marital relationship is simply not true. The Bible says (Luke 2:51), "And he went down with them (Joseph and Mary), and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them...." We believe that He remained with His parents until the time in which He entered His ministry. As He entered the ministry, many discussed among themselves the fact of who they knew Him to be. They refer to Him as the "carpenter" (Mark 6:3), the "son of Mary" (Mark 6:3), the "carpenter's son" (Matthew 13:55), "the brother of James, and Joses, and of Juda, and Simon" (Mark 6:3; Matthew 13:55) and even "Joseph's son" (Luke 4:22; John 6:42). They mention the fact that He had sisters (Mark 6:3; Matthew 13:55) and recognize Him to be in the lineage of King David (Matthew 12:23). Not once do they ever refer to Him as having a wife.

When judging the woman taken in the very act of adultery Jesus said, "He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her" (John 8:7). At the well in Samaria, Jesus sharply pointed out the sin of the woman stating that she had been involved in 5 failed marriages (John 4:18). He would have no right to point out such flaws had he been guilty of the same. In John 8:46, Jesus reveals the fact that none could find any sin in Him.

This period of Jesus' life is neither forgotten nor lost. It is simply irrelevant to the plan of God for mankind. What is important is what God wanted us to know concerning Him: He was born of the virgin Mary (Matthew 1:23; Luke 1:27). He lived a pure and sinless life (Hebrews 9:14; 1 Peter 1:18,19). He died upon the cross for the redemption of mankind from sin (1 Corinthians 15:3). He was buried and rose again on the third day (1 Corinthians 15:4). He ascended into heaven (Acts 1:9; Ephesians 4:10), and will soon come again to receive the Church unto Himself in the rapture (Acts 1:10,11; 1 Thessalonians 4:16,17).

It matters not what we may attain in this life, but it does matter what we think of Christ! (See Matthew 16:13-17). John 20:31 says, "But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name." The Apostle Paul said, "But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed" (Galatians 1:8).

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