Matthew 1:18-21 “Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly. But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” NRSV
We have heard this scripture many times, but this Christmas season as I read it once again the Holy Spirit highlighted something I had not given much attention to before. The part that says “She will bear a son, and you are to NAME him JESUS.
Of course we know that the name Jesus literally means (to deliver, to save, to rescue), but there is another aspect of our Savior’s name I want to look at.
Jesus is the Greek form of the Hebrew name Joshua. We find in the Old Testament, Joshua, was the man who was the successor to Moses and one of the things we remember about him is that he fought the battle of Jericho.
Do you recall the childhood song you may have sung in Sunday School. “Joshua Fought the Battle of Jericho and the Walls Came Tumbling Down.” Joshua was a wall breaker!
Look at what it says about Jesus in Ephesians 2:14 “For he is our peace, in his flesh he has made both groups into one and has broken down the dividing wall. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God.”
Jesus has broken down the dividing wall between us and God.
When Jesus died on the cross, the veil of the temple was torn apart from top to bottom. The veil separated what the scriptures call the “Holy of Holies.” The Holy of Holies represented the presence of God. It was a remote, fearsome, unapproachable place where only the High Priest had access, and only at specific times.
When Jesus, THE WALLBREAKER, came as a babe in the manager who became the Savior of the world, the dividing wall between us and God’s presence was forever broken.
We now can experience and enter into God’s presence. We now can have a personal, intimate relationship with God through Jesus Christ.
A question we can ask ourselves is this; Do we ever allow walls of separation to be erected in our hearts that make it harder for us to enter into God’s presence and maintain a personal, intimate relationship with God? Remember Jesus is in the business of destroying walls of separation, so if we feel distant from God perhaps we need to take some time to examine our hearts.
During this Christmas Season, make it a spiritual time of drawing close to the Lord. Asking the Holy Spirit to search your heart. Bring to light any walls that may be popping up that cause you to not fully enter into the presence of God, and enjoy fellowship with our Lord, in the Holy of Holies.
AMEN
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