In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit
The Holy Gospel for the Festival of the Circumcision of Our Lord is the shortest reading of the Church year: one verse. Though this one verse is one sentence long, it speaks volumes. Eight days after Jesus' birth according to the flesh, the Son of God is circumcised according to the Word given Abraham. God told Abraham that all male children will be circumcised eight days after birth as a sign of the covenant God made with Abraham and his descendants. Circumcised children are children of the Promise of the Seed of the woman. Uncircumcised children are not children of the Promise of the Seed of the woman. What could have run through Abraham's mind when God commanded circumcision? Cutting off the foreskin of an eight day old child? Cutting off the foreskin of a 99-year-old man? What God proposes may not be pleasing to the world, let alone to our sensibilities. The words "circumcision" and "foreskin" aren't used in polite conversation, let alone impolite conversation. Few men boast publicly that they are circumcised. Yet there is a festival day in the Church Year that honors the Christ Child's circumcision. It's important that Christians honor this holy day. Today is the day that Jesus first submits to the Law on our behalf. It doesn't make any difference in a man's salvation whether or not a person is circumcised. Jesus keeps that Old Testament Law perfectly. He fulfills that Law in our place. The message of salvation to the uncircumcised was a tough sell in the early days of Christianity. Paul's Epistle to the Galatians is a testimony to the difficulty that the Jews had in believing and confessing that the Good News of Jesus is for both Jew and Gentile; both circumcised and uncircumcised. The message of salvation to the uncircumcised is still a tough sell in the year of our Lord 2009. Paul's Letter to the Galatians is just as relevant today as it was in the Church's infancy. The root problem was a confusion of the distinction between Law and Gospel. Jewish Christians made a mistake when they began to teach Gentiles that there was a condition attached to the Good News. They preached a message of salvation by grace through faith, but only if you are circumcised first. The Jewish Christians dared to say that the Gospel means nothing unless you are circumcised, you abstain from unclean foods, and live as the Jews did before Christ came. When we read Galatians, we can almost see the smoke coming out of Paul's ears and feel the fire roaring off his pen. God's message to us in Galatians is the same message proclaimed by Christian preachers today as it was first proclaimed through the Old Testament prophet Habakkuk: the just shall live by faith. Faith in Whom? Faith in Jesus Christ. If Jesus keeps the Law perfectly on our behalf, yet we must keep the Law as He did in response to Him, then why did Jesus do what He did? That's the bottom line of Paul's letter to the Galatians. We cannot make the Law the Gospel. We cannot make the Gospel the Law. Yet Christians try their hardest every day to confuse Law and Gospel to alarming success. For example, the fad popular ten years ago of bracelets with four letters: W.W.J.D., meaning, "What Would Jesus Do?" The wearer was to look at the bracelet every time trouble arose in their life. Looking at those four letters guided the person to make the right decision. There is moral right and wrong in our Lord's preaching. Yet making the right moral choice is not the chief substance of what Jesus does. Perhaps it's best if we change those letters to W.H.J.D? "What Has Jesus Done?" Eight days ago we answered the question with the answer, "He was born a man for me." Today we answer the question with the answer, "Jesus shed His blood for me." Eight days old and already shedding blood. But that's what His name is all about. Jesus means "God saves". That's exactly what He does for you and me. Jesus shed His blood to cover all our sins, even the sin of confusing Law and Gospel. When God puts His Name on us in our Baptism, He puts us right there by Jesus when He is circumcised. We have an up close and personal view of His foreskin being trimmed for our sake. Jesus submits to the Law on our behalf. By faith we believe that His circumcision is our circumcision. Paul explains it this way: For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise. When the Lord puts His name on us, everything attached to that name belongs to us. The priestly blessing of Numbers chapter six bestows the Lord's blessing on us. The Lord indeed blesses us and keeps us from all sin, from death, and from the power of the devil. The Lord's face shines on us, bringing light from above that shines in the darkness of our lives. The Lord's countenance is lifted upon us, giving us gladness and joy, but especially peace. Where the Lord's Name is, there is His blessing. Jesus' Name is our name through Baptism. Jesus' circumcision is our circumcision through faith in the Promise of the Seed of the woman Who crushes the head of the serpent to redeem mankind from the devil's grasp. All this is ours because of what happened eight days after Christ's birth according to the flesh. His blood shed even as a baby is our righteousness that sets us free from the shackles of the Law and gives us freedom in Christ forever. Believe it for Jesus' sake. In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit -- Rev. David M. Juhl Our Savior Evangelical-Lutheran Church Momence, IL http://oselcmomence.googlepages.com ___________________________________________________________________________ 'CAT 41 Sermons & Devotions' consists of works that are, unless otherwise noted, the copyrighted property of the various authors; posting of such gives members of this list implied consent for redistribution _with_ _attribution_ unless otherwise specified by the author, as well as for quoting or use in a congregational setting _with_or_without_attribution_. Note: This list's default reply is to the *poster*, NOT the list. Do *not* reply to the list with your comments, but to the poster. Subscribe? Send ANY note to: sermons...@cat41.org Unsubscribe? Send ANY note to: sermons-...@cat41.org Archive? <http://www.mail-archive.com/sermons@cat41.org/> For more information on this or other lists offered by Confess And Teach For Unity, you can contact the CAT 41 list administrator at: Rev. Fr. Eric J. Stefanski <m...@cat41.org>
