Luke 2:21

And at the end of eight days, when he was to be circumcised, he was called Jesus,

the name given to him by the angel before he was conceived in the womb.

Today is the eighth day after Christmas.

The days after Christmas are a strange thing.

Most years I find myself wanting to sit and be quiet

and world wants to go right on as is nothing has happened.

This year I have wanted to get right back to my work

and train strikes and rail work

have forced me to sit uncomfortably still.

Sometimes God puts us in uncomfortable situations

so whatever is on the inside becomes visible.

And sometimes you see good things

and sometimes things that need a little healing.

So we come back to the birth of Jesus

and the eighth day.

On the eighth day,

Jesus was circumcised.

This was the commandment

that God gave to Abraham.

Every male in his family would be circumcised

as a sign of the covenant between Abraham

and God.

Because out of this family,

all the families of the earth would be blessed.

And Jesus,

the fulfillment of that promise

is a member of that family.

And again,

Jesus did not come to abolish the law and the prophets,

Jesus came to be the fulfillment and the full expression

of the law and the prophets.

So in his flesh,

he is marked physically as a son of the covenant.

He is a son of Abraham.

And then he is named.

And this name is the name given to him by the Angel Gabriel.

And you shall call his name Jesus

because he will save his people from his sins.

In Hebrew and Aramaic

this phrase is a pun.

The name Jesus--

the Latin transliteration of the Greek

IESOU

which is the tranliteration of the original

Y'shua

means "salvation."

You shall call his name salvation

because he shall save his people from his sins.

Christ John Otto directs Belonging House, an international community of artists and creative people. You can find out more at https://belonging.house Get our Friday email, https://christjohnotto.substack.com If you enjoy these teachings, share them with your friends or buy a coffee to show your support. https://www.buymeacoffee.com/christjohnotto