Word for the day by Christian Education Forum
Circumcision of
our Lord
Luke 2:15-21
Michele Mathew
Epiphany MTC, New York
15 When the angels had left them and gone into
heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go now to Bethlehem and see
this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.”
The Angel of the Lord had come to Mary and told her that she would have a son and would name Him Jesus. There is power that lies in that name, it is a Latinized version of Joshua or Yehoshua which in Hebrew holds a few meanings; “Yahweh is Salvation, Rescuer or Deliverer”. God had ordained that this child would be known as God’s salvation, God’s rescuer or God’s deliverer. However there is something even more powerful about giving this name to this specific baby boy, the one and only Son of God. Jesus was not just the firstborn child of Joseph, the carpenter and Mary of Nazareth. He was sent to us as the incarnation of God Himself, the Creator of the universe, who came to us in human form to later die for us sinners. We would miss the significance of the name of Jesus if we took that name as only a label, a way to distinguish one person from the next. The name of Jesus points us to who He is; He is Abba Father, the Savior of the world, the one who delivers, rescues us and leads us in all ways. God sent a baby named Jesus to take us out from fear and become fearless children of the Living God. Jesus came into the world to redeem us from a life of slavery and sin to show us the face of a loving, and merciful God. In Him we have confidence to approach our Heavenly Father. On account of Him we have the confidence that our sin has been forgiven, and from Him we receive the word of forgiveness that enables us to live each new day, each new week, and each New Year. Jesus brought us closer to God in a way that we have never experienced before. He is not simply an illustration of what God is like, but He is God with us. He fulfilled every aspect of God's law so that His perfect life could be selflessly given to each and every one of us. Jesus takes our sin on Himself and takes His perfect and sinless life and gives it to us. Where sin had left a crimson stain He washed it white as snow. We are now clothed in His righteousness, made new and whole in His perfect love.
The Angel of the Lord had come to Mary and told her that she would have a son and would name Him Jesus. There is power that lies in that name, it is a Latinized version of Joshua or Yehoshua which in Hebrew holds a few meanings; “Yahweh is Salvation, Rescuer or Deliverer”. God had ordained that this child would be known as God’s salvation, God’s rescuer or God’s deliverer. However there is something even more powerful about giving this name to this specific baby boy, the one and only Son of God. Jesus was not just the firstborn child of Joseph, the carpenter and Mary of Nazareth. He was sent to us as the incarnation of God Himself, the Creator of the universe, who came to us in human form to later die for us sinners. We would miss the significance of the name of Jesus if we took that name as only a label, a way to distinguish one person from the next. The name of Jesus points us to who He is; He is Abba Father, the Savior of the world, the one who delivers, rescues us and leads us in all ways. God sent a baby named Jesus to take us out from fear and become fearless children of the Living God. Jesus came into the world to redeem us from a life of slavery and sin to show us the face of a loving, and merciful God. In Him we have confidence to approach our Heavenly Father. On account of Him we have the confidence that our sin has been forgiven, and from Him we receive the word of forgiveness that enables us to live each new day, each new week, and each New Year. Jesus brought us closer to God in a way that we have never experienced before. He is not simply an illustration of what God is like, but He is God with us. He fulfilled every aspect of God's law so that His perfect life could be selflessly given to each and every one of us. Jesus takes our sin on Himself and takes His perfect and sinless life and gives it to us. Where sin had left a crimson stain He washed it white as snow. We are now clothed in His righteousness, made new and whole in His perfect love.
PRAYER
We thank You Lord for the gift of
Your Son Jesus, and through Him we have the power to become the adopted
children of God, and call Him Abba, Father. Amen.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
How do you portray the name of Jesus in your life?