"And at the end of eight days, when he was
circumcised, he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was
conceived in the womb."
Luke 2:21-22
Jewish tradition
held that a child was not officially named until he was circumcised on the
eighth day. On that day, the Christ Child was officially named Jesus,
as the angel Gabriel commanded.
Jesus is a Greek
form of the Hebrew name, alternately
spelled with variations Jeshua, Joshua,
or Hosea. All these variations mean the same thing--
"Jehovah is our salvation."
In ancient times
names always meant something. Names were like blessings spoken over a child,
telling them what their lives will be. Fathers picked the names of the children
with great care. Our names are the first gifts our parents ever give us.
In Jesus' case, Joseph and Mary did not name the child--His
Father did. His name was a prophecy of
what He would do. He came to save. He did not come to rule or conquer, but to
rescue and renew. Jesus lived, died and
rose again for the sole purpose of bringing us salvation.
This was not the
mission the Jews envisioned for their messiah. The people wanted a king who
would destroy their enemies. In spite of
the message contained in His name, they
were not prepared to see Him as a savior--only another conquering king.
If Jesus were to
come today, we would probably react in the same way. With all the problems we
have in our modern world--terrorism, climate change, overpopulation, crime,
disease, famine--we want someone who will come to take over and fix it. But Jesus did not come to save us militarily
or politically, but morally and spiritually. Jesus came to save us from our
sins. It is our sinful nature that
causes all the other problems.
We've had strong men
claiming that they can fix the world--Caesar, Charlemagne, Napoleon, Hitler, and many, many others. Where has it
got us? A strong man rises and becomes
corrupt, and we look for another strong man to save us from him. The benevolent dictator becomes the corrupt
despot and the cycle of death and destruction begins again.
Jesus came to save
us from our sins, not someone
else's. We look too much at world
events, and not enough at the condition of our own hearts. It is easy to blame
our troubles on the world without noticing that most of our troubles come from
our own selfish hearts. Sin within us is
the root of most of our problems.
God's plan never was
to change the world though political or military action, but to save the world
through inner spiritual change. If the world were just the way we wanted it, it
would still be more like hell than heaven if our hearts were not also changed.
But If our hearts are changed, then the
condition of the world won't matter so much. We will be able to endure it. It is our own sinful selves that keeps us
most in bondage.
The salvation that
Jesus promises is salvation from ourselves.
"Father, teach us what is really important in
this world. Save us from our own sins before you save us from the sins of
others. In Jesus' Name, Amen."
