Born Under the Law, Named to Save

Born Under the Law, Named to Save

Detail from The Circumcision of Jesus Christ by Louis Schongauer (c. 1480)

The Circumcision and Name of Jesus – 12/31/25

Luke 2:21

Rev. Dr. Christopher W. Brademeyer

                That portion from God’s holy Word for consideration this evening is our Gospel lesson from the holy Gospel according to St. Luke in the second chapter which reads as follows:

“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.”[1]

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Eight days after His birth, the Child of Bethlehem is brought into the light of the Law. Luke records it simply and without sentiment: “When eight days were completed for His circumcision, He was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before He was conceived in the womb.” With that brief sentence, the Evangelist draws us into the first shedding of Christ’s blood and the public bestowal of the Name by which alone we must be saved.

This feast is easy to overlook. It comes quietly, tucked between Christmas joy and the turning of the calendar year. Yet it presses upon us a profound and necessary truth: the Son of God does not hover above the Law, He places Himself under it. He does not merely visit humanity; He binds Himself to it in flesh, blood, covenant, and Name.

Under the Law for Us

Circumcision was not optional. It was the covenant sign given to Abraham, marking membership among God’s people and binding the one circumcised to the whole Law of Moses. As St. Paul reminds us elsewhere, “Every man who accepts circumcision is obligated to keep the whole law.”[2] Circumcision was a bloody confession: God is holy, and sinners belong to Him only by covenantal mercy.

Jesus has no sin to confess. He has no impurity to put away. And yet He submits Himself to the knife. This is already Gospel. The circumcision of Christ is not about His need, but about ours. Here the eternal Son begins, quite literally, to take our place.

St. Paul puts it plainly in Galatians: “When the fullness of time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law.”[3] Luke shows us that moment in flesh and blood. Before there is a cross, before there are nails, there is this: the Holy One of Israel made subject to Israel’s covenant obligations, shedding His blood in obedience.

This is not incidental, it is substitution. From the eighth day onward, Christ’s life is a life lived for you; He actively fulfilled what you could not, passively bore what you deserve.

The Name Given

At His circumcision, the Child is also named. He is called Jesus, the LORD saves. The Name is not chosen by Mary or Joseph. It is not a family name or a sentimental one. It is given by God Himself through the angel. This Name interprets everything Jesus will do and suffer.

In the Scriptures, the Name of the Lord is not a label; it is the Lord Himself present for His people. That is why Numbers chapter six matters so deeply for this feast. The Aaronic Blessing that we hear at the end of the service in the benediction is not merely a wish or a prayer; it is a divine act. God says, “So shall they put My name upon the people of Israel, and I will bless them.”[4]

To bear God’s Name is to belong to Him, to live under His favor, and to be marked as His own. But Israel bore the Name and still fell under the curse of the Law. Why? Because sinners cannot uphold what the Name demands.

So what does God do? He places His Name upon His Son. The Name that blesses, the Name that saves, the Name that sinners cannot uphold without condemnation, this Name is given to Jesus. And He bears it perfectly, obediently, and finally, all the way to the cross. When Jesus bears the Name, He also bears the responsibility. He bears the Law. He bears the curse. He bears the judgment. The circumcision and naming of Jesus already point forward to Good Friday, where the Name above every name will be lifted up in shame and blood for the salvation of the world.

From Circumcision to Baptism

St. Paul helps us see the connection in Galatians chapter three. The Law, he says, was a guardian, a custodian, until Christ came. It restrained sin, exposed guilt, and pointed forward, but it could not make alive. Now that Christ has come, the guardian has done its work. Paul then makes a stunning move: he shifts from circumcision to baptism. “For in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.”[5] The old covenant sign that bound one to the Law is replaced by a new covenant gift that clothes the sinner with Christ Himself.

This is not a rejection of God’s promises given in ancient time; it is their fulfillment. What circumcision pointed toward, baptism delivers. What the Law demanded, Christ provides. What the Name required, Jesus accomplishes.

In baptism, the Name given to Christ is placed upon you. You are baptized in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. You do not earn that Name. You receive it. You do not uphold it by your obedience. Christ upholds you by His.

That is why Paul can say there is no longer Jew or Greek, slave or free, male or female, not because distinctions vanish, but because none of them grant or deny access to God. Access comes only through Christ, and Christ gives Himself freely to all who are baptized into Him.

Living Under the Blessing

This brings us back to the Aaronic Blessing with which the Church still concludes the Divine Service: “The Lord bless you and keep you…” This is not a hopeful farewell. It is the placing of God’s Name upon His redeemed people.

The blessing is effective because Christ has fulfilled the Law and borne the curse. The Lord’s face can shine upon you because it was once turned away from Him. The Lord can look upon you with favor because Jesus was numbered with transgressors.

To begin a new year with this feast is no accident. The world marks time with resolutions, goals, and anxieties. The Church begins the year by confessing that our life, our identity, and our future rest entirely in the Name of Jesus.

You enter this year not as one striving to earn God’s favor, but as one already named, already claimed, already blessed. You live under the Law no longer as a judge, but under Christ as Savior. When you fail, and you will, you do not flee from God in fear. You return to the Name placed upon you in baptism, the Name that saves.

Conclusion

The circumcision of Christ teaches us that our salvation is costly, bloody, and concrete. The naming of Christ teaches us that our salvation is personal, promised, and sure. Jesus does not save in theory. He saves in flesh and blood, under the Law, for sinners.

Eight days after His birth, the journey to the cross has already begun. And because He was circumcised, because He bore the Name, because He fulfilled the Law and shed His blood, you now live under the blessing of God.

The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make His face shine upon you and be gracious unto you. The Lord lift up His countenance upon you and give you peace.

In the holy Name of Jesus. Amen.

The peace of God that passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

[1] Luke 2:21 English Standard Version. All further quotations from the Holy Scriptures are from the ESV.

[2] Galatians 5:3

[3] Galatians 4:4-5

[4] Numbers 6:27

[5] Galatians 3:26