Loving God, you reveal yourself to us in Jesus, adopting us as your children and saving us through faith in him.  By the power of your Spirit, draw us ever closer to you, through the same Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

            Today, on the eighth day of Christmas, we hear about the first in a series of milestones that would have been celebrated by observant Jewish families in the first century.  Eight days after his birth, Jesus is circumcised and named, just like every other Jewish boy.  The next event recorded by Luke occurs forty days after the birth of Jesus, as the holy family travels to Jerusalem to present Jesus at the Temple and offer the sacrifices required for purification. Little else is recorded until Jesus is twelve years old – just in time for his bar mitzvah!

         Just as each of these occasions were observed in obedience to the Torah – the Jewish Law – so, naming the child Jesus was also an act of obedience.  It is an angel who announces to both Mary and Joseph what the name of this child will be.  His name will be Jesus, in order to remind people that God saves.

         Now, you might be thinking that it wasn’t that long ago that we were thinking about names and their meanings, and if so, you would be correct.  It was only a couple of weeks ago that the names Jesus and Emmanuel were given in our readings.  However, there is more than just the meaning of the name of Jesus that is going on today.

         While cultural expectations are all over the map these days, you may have noticed that most people in the gospels address Jesus as Teacher or Rabbi rather than using his name.  One of the main exceptions seems to be the demons, who immediately identify him as Jesus of Nazareth.  In many cultures, addressing somebody by their given name is a privilege that is only given when you are on a familiar basis.

         You might also recall that while God’s name was revealed to Moses at the burning bush, thereafter God’s name was considered too holy to actually speak it.  Even today, when the Hebrew Scriptures are read, God’s name is replaced with “Adonai” (the Lord) wherever it appears.  Thus, when Paul writes about our adoption as children and how we are empowered by the Spirit to address God as Abba, or Papa, we are being given an amazing privilege.

         When it comes to the name of Jesus, however, it has become different from all other names.  It is both active and powerful – much like the name of God.  In the book of Acts, not long after the disciples have received the Holy Spirit, Peter and John are at the Temple and meet a man who has been lame from birth.  Peter says to him, “In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, stand up and walk” (Acts 3:6).  By the power of the Holy Spirit and the authority of the name of Jesus, the man is healed.  What other name can bring healing to people?

         Later in the book of Acts, there is a story that teaches us about the power of the name of Jesus in the presence of evil.  In those days there were “some itinerant Jewish exorcists” who came to Ephesus and saw the miracles that the apostle Paul had been performing.  They tried using the same formula as Paul did in order to cast out some evil spirits.  They command the spirits, saying, “I adjure you by the Jesus whom Paul proclaims” (Acts 19:13).  One evil spirit, however, is having none of this.  “Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?”  Then the man with the evil spirit attacks them and overpowers them, leaving them naked and wounded.

         Using the name of Jesus, as we might have guessed, is not a magic formula.  Simply throwing in the name of Jesus in order to try and perform miracles – or even to try and get what we want in prayer – is not going to work.  We need to actually know Jesus and be open to the power of the Holy Spirit.  There is power in the name of Jesus when it comes to prayer – as long as we are praying for the same things that Jesus would pray for.

         Finally, as we are reminded in our reading from Galatians, the name of Jesus also has the power to make us children of God – adopted through our baptism into Christ.  Once again, we hear some stories in Acts about people who initially were baptized, but had not received the Holy Spirit.  In one case, Paul meets some people in Ephesus who had received the baptism of John and had never heard of the Holy Spirit.  Once they are baptized in the name of Jesus, and Paul lays hands on them, then they receive the Holy Spirit (Acts 19:1-6).

         These days, we are not baptized only in the name of Jesus, but in the name of the Triune God – Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  In this way, the name of God is put upon us, adopting us as children, and giving us the Holy Spirit.  In the same way, the name of God is put upon us in the benediction that is part of every service.

         As we enter a new calendar year, what better way is there to do so than under the power of the name of Jesus.  May his name be in our minds and in our hearts in all that we do, leading us into prayer, and empowering us to do all that God has called us to do.  For we, too, have been given the Holy Spirit, who continues to teach us to know Jesus better, glorifying and praising God for all that we have heard and seen.  Thanks be to God!  Amen.

The Name of Jesus                         Luke 2:15-21

January 1, 2023                               Galatians 4:4-7

St. Luke’s Zion Lutheran Church

Pastor Lynne Hutchison

© 2023 Lynne Hutchison  All Rights Reserved