Sunday
Sunday
The Infancy of Jesus
Joseph and Mary took him [Jesus] to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord.
Luke 2:22
Luke records more than the other evangelists about the infancy of Jesus. In particular, he refers to three events, or three things that were done to him, while he was still an infant.
Firstly, Jesus was circumcised when he was eight days old. Circumcision had been given to Abraham some two thousand years previously as a sign of the covenant that God had established with him and his descendants. It made Jesus a true son of Abraham (Gen. 17:12; Lev. 12:3).
Secondly, he was named Jesus, meaning “God is Savior.” Both Matthew and Luke record that an angel instructed Joseph and Mary before he was born to call him Jesus (Matt. 1:21; Luke 1:31). It indicated that he had come on a rescue mission.
Thirdly, Jesus was presented to the Lord in the temple in Jerusalem. Two distinct Old Testament rituals overlapped during this visit, one relating to the mother and the other to the child. On the one hand, once the prescribed forty days of ceremonial segregation were completed, Joseph and Mary offered the requisite sacrifices. Usually these were a lamb for a burnt offering and a pigeon for a sin offering. But Joseph and Mary availed themselves of the concession to poor people and brought two pigeons.
On the other hand, ever since the exodus, all firstborn males belonged to God but could be redeemed (Exod. 13:2). Once redeemed they could also be voluntarily presented to God for his service.
Thus Jesus was successively circumcised, named, and presented, and all three events were related to his mission in the world. His circumcision portrayed him as a son of Abraham, an authentic member of the covenant people of God. His name, Jesus, proclaimed him to be the heaven-sent Savior of sinners. His presentation to God indicated that he was devoted to the service of God and ready to do his Father’s will.
For further reading: Luke 2:21–24