Yahweh Saves

 DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO LUKE

YAHWEH SAVES

Luke 2:21-24

21 On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise him, he was named Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he had been conceived. 22 When the time of their purification according to the Law of Moses had been completed, Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord 23(as it is written in the Law of the Lord, "Every firstborn male is to be consecrated to the Lord"), 24 and to offer a sacrifice in keeping with what is said in the Law of the Lord: "a pair of doves or two young pigeons."  

NIV

Everything that was done in accordance with the Law of Moses. Jesus was born in the form of man under the Old Covenant, although he would establish a new and better covenant. As we saw with the birth of John, it was the Jewish custom, according to the Law, to circumcise a male child on the eighth day of his life, and it was also that time when he was named. We also saw the controversy regarding the naming of John, because again, it was customary to name the firstborn after his father's ancestry, that is after some male in the line, father, grandfather, great-grandfather, or even farther back. Yet, at the time of the naming of Jesus, although most people may have thought that Joseph was the biological father, the Father Almighty was the Father of Jesus, and Mary was told what his name was to be, Jesus. It is interesting the name Jesus stems from the Hebrew word Yehowshuwa, which is made up of two words meaning Jehovah (Yahweh) saves. Is it any wonder the angel told Mary the child’s name would be Jesus, for He brought salvation to the world? There is no other name in this world that is more important than the name of Jesus. Of course, we identify ourselves as Christians because Jesus was the Christ, but we wonder if it would be better if we considered ourselves as Jesus followers or believers in Jesus. In some sense, the word Christian is somewhat generic, as many people in this country call themselves Christians, but have no personal relationship with the Lord, are born again, are not filled with the Spirit, and do not in any way follow Jesus. In fact, many people, if they have some affiliation with a church, identify themselves by their denomination. We even wonder if when people say they are Christian, they identify that Jesus is the Christ, and the significance of the name of Jesus, is that He is the salvation from Yahweh, that God saves. We are so blessed to know that God saves us through Jesus because we have been saved from the grip of the evil one and the clutch of death upon us. We have been saved from the dark domain and the dark forces of evil in this world. Being saved by God through Jesus is something to celebrate, to live full of joy and contentment, being fully satisfied with our lives in Christ, and fearing nothing from God, but being in complete peace with Him because Yahweh saves.