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December 16

Title: The Expectation of the Firstborn

Text: Luke 2:22-24

There has always been an expectation of the firstborn. Especially if the firstborn is a male. Admittedly this has been lost in the Western world—and in the United States the importance of the firstborn male has dwindled since the sexual revolution of the 1960’s. 

In the middle-eastern world, specifically in orthodox Judaism, the birth of the firstborn is a big deal. It certainly was in Jesus’ day. Look at the verses below. 

And when the time came for their purification according to the Law of Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord (as it is written in the Law of the Lord, “Every male who first opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord”) and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the Law of the Lord, “a pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons.” (Luke 2:22-24)

This rite goes all the way back to the Passover incident in Exodus 13. 

The Lord said to Moses, “Consecrate to me all the firstborn. Whatever is the first to open the womb among the people of Israel, both of man and of beast, is mine. You shall set apart to the Lord all that first opens the womb. All the firstborn of your animals that are males shall be the Lord's. (Exodus 13:1-2, 12) 

The context is God rescuing the nation of Israel from centuries of slavery in Egypt. The final judgment upon Pharaoh is the killing of the firstborn, both man and beast. But by placing blood over the doorposts of their homes, the Angel of the Lord “passed over” their house—foreshadowing the blood sacrifice of the Lamb of God who takes “the sins of the entire world” (John 1:29)

So we see here in Luke 2, Mary and Joseph are in obedience to the Mosaic Law. Mary has to be purified for 40 days and the baby Jesus must be consecrated for service before God. Mary and Joseph are good, godly parents. They are taking the role of raising the Messiah seriously right out of the gate. 

Ultimately, I believe this scene reminds us that our children are just on loan to us. We raise them for a certain amount of time and then they go live their lives. Furthermore, God knows and loves them far more than we do. We may have some success nurturing them and protecting them, but in a spiritual and certainly, in an eternal sense, our role is minimal. It is only God that can transform a heart—no matter how good we raise them or how Christ-centered our homes are. Please don’t misunderstand—God-centered home is commanded. There will likely be present and eternal benefits. But it begins by just like Mary and Joseph, consecrating our children before the Lord. If your children are home, start that today. If they are out of your home, pray that they would consecrate their lives to God today. Mary and Joseph were a good example to us. 9 days until Christmas.