WDJD? II

After Jesus was born a helpless little baby, just like you and me, which, as we said in WDJD I, was essential for our salvation, the next thing He did, according to the Luke 2.21, was receive the sign of the Abrahamic covenant, circumcision. Again, we have a definite sign of the reality of the Incarnation, of God taking on our flesh and blood, as, for the first, but not the last, time, the innocent flesh of Jesus was cut, and the first precious drops of His blood were shed.

Jesus was, as His circumcision served to confirm, a Jew, a child of the covenant God had made with Abraham. In point of fact, had Jesus not been circumcised He could not have been the "seed" ("offspring") of Abraham through whom all the nations of the earth would one day be blessed. (See Genesis 12.3; 15.1-6;; 17.1-14) With His circumcision the Lord also received the name the Angel had told both Mary (Luke 1.31) and Joseph (Matthew 1.21) they were to give the child conceived by the Holy Spirit in Mary's womb, "Jesus" ("God Saves").

It might not seem such a big deal to any of us. Most of us received our names shortly after birth with little attendant fanfare. But, as the song says about Jesus, "there's something about that name," an incredible divine something. Inheriting a name far superior to the angels (Hebrews 1.4), the child was immediately both the King of kings and the Lord of lords (Revelation 19.16), though His majesty was concealed in the form of a baby.

Ultimately, the whole world will acknowledge and praise this name on the day when every knee shall bow, and every tongue confess that Jesus is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. While a rose by any other name may smell as sweet, a savior by any other name than Jesus is no Savior at all, for truly, there is no name given under heaven by which we must be saved (Acts 4.12).