As it is written in the Law of the Lord, Every male that openeth the womb shall be called holy to the Lord. Luke 2:23
Today’s verse is a reminder of the wonderful story of Israel’s release from the land of bondage in Egypt. The deliverance came as a direct result of the final plague upon Egypt, the slaying of the firstborn of beasts and people. The Israelites were spared the death of the firstborn because of the shedding of blood of an acceptable lamb, and the application of that blood on the doors of their dwellings. God told Moses that, because of the deliverance through the death of the firstborn, the firstborn male of beasts were to be sacrificed and the firstborn male of men was to be redeemed. Down through the centuries, the firstborn boy in every family was to be redeemed by a sacrifice. How very wonderful is it to see, in the case of the Lord Jesus, that as the firstborn, He was so much more than the One who opened the womb. He was the Redeemer of whom all the sacrifices that came before Him spoke.
The Law declared that every male who opened the womb was to be holy unto the Lord. Undoubtedly, a relative few were good and honourable men who did what they could to live up to that which was expected of them. But many did not. May were disappointments and shameful. But in the case of the Lord Jesus, He was not and could not be a disappointment, not only to His earthly parents but also to His Father in Heaven. He could never be anything but holy. Our text is speaking of His birth and early days, when He was indeed the Holy Infant. And as we follow His life up through boyhood to manhood, and then into His earthly ministry, we see holiness personified. All of the redemptions in the centuries before His coming were fulfilled in His Holiness, His sacrifice, and in His precious blood.
We humbly confess our sinfulness today, and our weakness that finds it difficult to grasp the absolute holiness of our Redeemer. We give thanks today that God Who provided Himself a Lamb provided not a little innocent animal but a great and holy Lamb Whose value qualified Him to be our Saviour. -Jim MacIntosh