First Name Basis

Luke 2:15-21
New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)
15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.” 16 So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger. 17 When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. 19 But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.
21 After eight days had passed, it was time to circumcise the child; and he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb.


In the Jewish tradition of old, eight days after a child was born, he was circumcised and named. In the case of the One born in the manger, the name had already been given to His parents by angels. They would call Him Jesus. In all of the Old Testament, as it has been passed down to us, Yahweh has never been on a first name basis with the people. The name of G*d is unutterable and even when written, is unpronounceable. Why is that? My guess is that it has to do with relationship. There had to be some way to separate a profane people from a most Holy God. There were rituals and reminders that kept people in their place and kept God in God's place as well. There were laws that drew lines around who was in and who was out...who had access and who did not...when to approach and when to keep your distance. Naming is one way to declare where the lines of our relationships are.

I have written before about my issues with how people use or misuse my name. Everyone is not on a first name basis with me and I will respond or ignore according to whether you have permission to use my first name or not. How nice of me to put those boundaries in place for you, right? Compare that to the God who so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son and did not command the angels to give the child a name that we could not pronounce. The God who came to us was and is accessible to us by His name which we so easily and so often take for granted. There is much to consider and to be grateful for on this, the first day of the new calendar year but I will continue my celebration of Christmas by walking along the path of an ancient story mapped out by the lectionary. Today, I am grateful for having a God who welcomes me into relationship by putting me on a first name basis with Jesus - "the one who saves".

One of the things that Jesus does is breaks boundaries. Jesus provides access to that which once required blood sacrifices and a mediator. (Side note: I can't help but see the virgin birth as a blood sacrifice with Mary as the mediator.) Jesus is born and angels come to earth to worship. Jesus is born and shepherds come to worship. Jesus is born and the God who is not bound by linear time knows that the time is coming when the veil in the temple will be torn and full access will be granted to all of God's people. This same God who knows the number of hairs on our head and knows our names has given us access through the name of Jesus. So, now that we know that we are on a first name basis with the God of all creation and reconciliation, I'll pose the question asked by my Old Testament professor, Dr. Miller, "What will you do with the God you have?"

I think I'll use my first-name-all-access pass just to enjoy the presence of Jesus today. There's nothing like a little quiet time with someone who knows you and loves you anyway. Oh, and I really like the way it sounds when He calls my name...isn't it funny how my name, Carla, can also be pronounced "Forgiven"?