Luke 2:21-24
"And when eight days were accomplished for the circumcising of the child, his name was called JESUS, which was so named of the angel before he was conceived in the womb. And when the days of her purification according to the law of Moses were accomplished, they brought him to Jerusalem, to present him to the Lord. (As it is written in the law of the Lord, Every male that openeth the womb shall be called holy to the Lord;) And to offer a sacrifice according to that which is said in the law of the Lord, A pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons," Luke 2:21-24.
In Joseph and Mary's life, a lot has happened in the past nine months. Life altering events have taken place. The plans that Joseph and Mary previously had were changed forever. "A man's heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps," Proverbs 16:9. Often we will see young couples planning a wedding. They have dreams of a perfect wedding, a perfect marriage, and having perfect kids. Then reality sets in. It rains on their wedding, they find out their spouse is not perfect, and they produce kids that are not perfect. From the start they did not have right expectations. Life usually does not go our way. So, what do we do, how do we respond when our plans for life are altered? For those of us whom the Lord has saved, we continue following and serving our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Joseph and Mary loved the Lord before the angel Gabriel showed up, and they continued loving the Lord. We know this by their actions. They were a couple set on serving the Lord. "Not unto us, O LORD, not unto us, but unto thy name give glory, for thy mercy, and for thy truth's sake," Psalm 115:1.
Genuine faith produces good works. We are known by the fruit we produce. God does not need to see our fruit to know if we are truly saved or not, but we and others do need to see the fruit. Turn to James 2:14-26. In James 2 we see good works that stem from faith. Genuine faith produces good works. No one can be saved by good works, and no one can stay saved by good works. Justification is a onetime act that only God can do. Many say the Lord has saved them, but what kind of fruit are you producing? We can argue with ourselves, and with each other, but the Word of God is clear. Don't try to muddy up the water like a bunch of hogs, simply look at the Word of God and see your self according to the Scriptures. Let us get into these verses.
"And when eight days were accomplished for the circumcising of the child, his name was called JESUS, which was so named of the angel before he was conceived in the womb," Luke 2:21. The pattern we have seen in Luke 2 is God using people who are righteous in the eyes of the Lord. Remember what we learned in James 2, that good works are a product of true faith. Our faith is in the Lord, and we trust Him no matter the outcome. This also means that we continue doing what He would have us do according to the Scriptures. When the eight days were accomplished, it was time for Jesus to be circumcised. What is the point of circumcision? First off, for the Jew it was obeying the law of the Lord. Turn to Genesis 17:1-13. Every male was to be circumcised. There were health benefits from circumcision, and it was also the mark of Israel's national identity. Lastly, and most important, it was a sign of the depravity of sin that was passed to each succeeding generation through procreation and the need for cleansing from sin. Circumcision was a physical symbol of the spiritual cleansing of the heart that takes place at salvation. "And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live," Deuteronomy 30:6.
Since Jesus was born of the seed of God, not man, why would He need to be circumcised? Why was Jesus circumcised, since He was sinless? We must understand that Christ came to fulfill the law (Galatians 4:4-5). Christ lived a perfect sinless life. He kept the Law perfectly, and without blemish. He lived the life that God required. Christ lived a righteous life. When God saves us, the righteousness of Christ is put to our account. After the Lord saves us He treats us according to the life that Jesus lived. It is as if we had never sinned. We will stand before God in the righteousness of Jesus Christ, not our own, because we do not have any. The question comes up, what happens with our unrighteousness? Where do all of our sins go? When Christ was on the cross, God placed upon Him all the sins of all who will ever be saved. The Just for the unjust. "For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him," II Corinthians 5:21. Circumcision was a Jewish law, and it pointed to their need for the Saviour. "Although the old law ends with Christ, it is very instructive to notice that He came under the law, and conformed to all its appointments. Jesus, therefore, had to be circumcised. In Him the law was fulfilled in every point, even to the jots and tittles; nothing was omitted. Behold, how perfect is the righteousness which He wrought out for His people!" C.H. Spurgeon.
Joseph and Mary circumcised the child, and called His name JESUS, which means "Jehovah is salvation." This is the name given to Joseph and Mary by the angel Gabriel. Jesus Christ is Emmanuel, God with us. He is truly God, and truly man. He is our Mediator. "Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved," Acts 4:12.
In Luke 2:22-24 we see Joseph and Mary continue in their obedience to the law of the Lord. The first was Mary's ceremony of purification (Leviticus 12:1-8). Next was the ceremony of dedication to the Lord (Leviticus 27:6). "The uncleanness in view here is ceremonial uncleanness, the first part of which lasted for seven days, like that of menstruation. While she was unclean, a woman could not touch anything sacred or holy, nor could she go to the temple. Her ceremonial uncleanness tempered the natural joy of bringing a new life into the world with the sober reality that the child, like its parents, was a sinner. After a male child's circumcision on the eighth day, the mother was ceremonially unclean for another thirty-three days." John MacArthur. Joseph and Mary were obedient to the Scriptures in every way. Though Jesus Christ was born sinless, they still obeyed the law in all of its ceremonial demands. They did this out of their love for God. What is the purpose of all these ceremonial laws? They show us our need for cleansing from sin. Because of our sins, we are not able to come to God like we are. We need the righteousness of Jesus Christ. Christ fulfilled the law, and it is only through Him that we receive forgiveness of our sins and have access to the Father. Trust Christ alone for salvation. Soli Deo Gloria.
