The Feast of the Name of Jesus, 01/01/2011

Sermon on Luke 2:21, by Carl A. Voges

The Passage

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. [English Standard Version]

Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him that name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. [Philippians 2.9-11]

In the Name of Christ + Jesus our Lord

Coming from regions where attempts are made to understand what our economists and entertainers, political leaders and sports figures are or are not doing, the Lord's baptized people are making their way into a special Liturgy today. This Liturgy does not usually draw an overwhelming number of worshipers, but that does not obscure the explosive, rescuing reality of what is being observed on this day.

Today marks Jesus' circumcising and naming. Such an observation can be bewildering and it's not just because of the regions in which we live. The bewilderment is also surfacing because of the Twelve Days in ChristMass.

Think of the liturgies which have already occurred in our parish communities: the celebration of Jesus' Incarnation on ChristMass Eve and ChristMass Day; the observance of Saint Stephen's Day (the first deacon and martyr in the early Church) on the First Sunday after ChristMass; the observance of Saint John's Day (the fourth evangelist) on the Monday after the Incarnation; and the observance of Holy Innocents Day (young Bethlehem boys killed in Herod's attempt to murder Jesus) on the Tuesday after the Incarnation.

The bewilderment continues to press in on us with three more liturgies still to occur in these Twelve Days. They include today's observance of Jesus' circumcising and naming, they continue with tomorrow's celebration as the Second Sunday after ChristMass and they conclude with the celebration of Our Lord's Epiphany on 06 January when the Twelve Days of ChristMass are completed.

As the Life of the Holy Trinity bores in on the Lord's people and the world through the Scriptures as well as the Sacraments of Baptism, Supper and Forgiveness, these seven liturgies range broadly over all aspects of life. They show the Lord's incarnate Life crossing the lives of people (baptized and non-baptized) in different circumstances. But the crossings are also bewildering because they don't appear to be running coherently from one circumstance to another.

Piling onto this bewilderment are the attitudes and actions of the cultures in which the Lord's baptized people live. While the following characterization may be a bit unfair, the world's version of ChristMass' Twelve Days is to show up for liturgies designed to meet their needs! It is preferable that such services be scheduled prior to the dates of the Incarnation, freeing the participants for long travels and many gifts, for delicious foods and exquisite drinks! It is also preferable that these days prepare us for a new year, one that finally sees us fulfilling our long-promised changes in attitudes and actions! However, the world's version of the Twelve Days usually closes out with a thud because there has been more gorging of tasty foods and hefty drinks, leaving the participants with massive headaches and upset stomachs, unable to do much except to lay out in front of a dizzying array of football games!

In the middle of all this bewilderment, however, there are, thankfully, small groups of baptized people gathering in their parish communities on this holy day to observe Jesus' circumcising and naming. In doing so we run across the shortest Gospel reading of the year! Biblical scholars have noted that the verse ties in well both with the section immediately preceding it (the story of Jesus' birth) as well as with the section immediately following it (the story of Jesus' presentation in the temple). Today we are concentrating on the circumcising and the naming of Jesus.

While Jesus' birth reveals the Lord God to be slipping his Life into this world, the circumcising reveals that this entrance is also occurring in the life of the Lord's Hebrew people. Over the centuries the Lord had been promising the gift of the Messiah, now that promise is being carried out. This circumcising also reminds us that when the Lord God created his people by rescuing them from the world's life, he also intended that they would reflect his rescue to the people around them, drawing more and more in so that the non-Hebrew people could be marked by the Lord as his own.

The naming of Jesus carries great meaning. While there are a number of biblical references to Jesus' Name, we recall the most immediate one that occurred on 19 December, the Fourth Sunday in Advent. The Gospel that day described the way in which Jesus' birth occurred. The angel made it clear to Joseph that the child was to be named Jesus, a name which meant that he would save his people from their sins.

This saving is highly significant, it is the dominating center of the Life we have in the Holy Trinity. Remember from Genesis 3 that the biblical definition of sin is the desire to be like the Lord God. This desire is natural and instinctive, it attaches to every person born into the world. This desire creates all the bewilderment mentioned earlier and it works aggressively to maintain it.

There are some realities to note about this desire. First, it is always attractive. As we think of doing something that revolves solely around ourselves, the down side of such doing never suggests itself. It is only when we have made the commitment to have all of life revolving around our own that sin's ugliness surfaces. Second, this desire to be self-absorbed is always telling us that we can manage it. If it gets to be too much, we can always cut it back. If it threatens to get out of control, we can always recapture it.

My friends, that desire is lying to us! The honest reality is that we cannot rescue ourselves from it. This does not prevent us from trying, but those attempts end up being only temporary fixes. This desire to be like the Lord God intends to separate us from the Lord, turning us more and more into self-destructive attitudes and actions, and leaving us to die miserably and pathetically on our own.

The extremely good news today is that the naming of Jesus makes it possible for us and the world's people to be rescued from this natural and instinctive desire to be like the Lord God. Recall that the Name was first spoken over us at our Baptisms. Recall that it has continued to sound from our mouths and the mouths of others. Recall that the Name continues to trace the Son's Cross over our bodies. Such tracing reminds us that our rescue is made possible by the dying and rising of Jesus a generation after his birth.

This reality is both explosive and rescuing. It frees us from attempting to make names for ourselves. Instead, it gifts us with a Name that is absolutely unique. This Name comes from eternity, plunges into this world's life and carries those marked by it into eternity!

It is striking to observe that one of the Psalms appointed for use this morning (Psalm 5) notes that the Lord will shelter his people so that those who love his Name may exult in him. It is equally striking to observe that one of the Psalms appointed for us this afternoon and evening (Psalm 7) notes that we will bear witness to the people around us that the Lord is righteous and that we will praise the Name of the Lord Most High. This occurs after the Lord has crushed the wicked (those who were born to live for themselves and who persist in such living). It is just as striking to observe that another Psalm appointed for use this afternoon and evening (Psalm 8) notes how exalted the Lord's Name is in all the world. This comes after all the Lord's powerful acts in creating this universe are reviewed.

The circumcising and naming of Jesus is an explosive, rescuing reality. It slices into the bewilderment of our lives and frees us from it. It pulls us from the self-centeredness which has driven us and the world's people from birth. Through the seven liturgies of ChristMass' Twelve Days, we are pierced, clarified and cohered by the strong Life of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit! May today's observance of Jesus' circumcision and name reach deeply into all the lives of his baptized people!

Now may the peace of the Lord God, which is beyond all understanding, keep our hearts

and minds through Christ + Jesus our Lord.

Pr. Carl A. Voges
Columbia, SC
E-Mail: cavoges@bellsouth.net

(top)