Minister: Rev. Kerry McCormick

Text: Luke 2:22-35 (36-38)
Theme: Through Simeon and Anna we learn contrasting lessons of hope.

Luke 2:22-35

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 firstborn male shall be designated as holy to the Lord’), and they offered a sacrifice according to what is stated in the law of the Lord, ‘a pair of turtle-doves or two young pigeons.’

Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; this man was righteous and devout, looking forward to the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit rested on him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. Guided by the Spirit, Simeon came into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him what was customary under the law, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying, 

‘Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace,
   according to your word; 
for my eyes have seen your salvation, 
   which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, 
a light for revelation to the Gentiles
   and for glory to your people Israel.’

Christmas time is here
Happiness and cheer
Fun for all that children call
Their favorite time of the year

Snowflakes in the air
Carols everywhere
Olden times and ancient rhymes
Of love and dreams to share

Mary and Joseph come to the temple in Jerusalem for:

Purification ritual

Offer first born son to God (like Hannah offered Samuel)

Offer sacrifice of two turtledoves (to redeem or buy him back)

This is all customary and reasonable.  Mary and Joseph are doing what is expected of every new family under the law.  Obedience to the law and the prophets is clearly something our young family wants to do.

Remember when you brought your first child home and you wanted to get everything exactly right?

Dr. Spock, Dr. Mom, Wm and Mary Sears, Heidi Murkoff, books just for dads and doulas.

Simeon (the name means God heard him) comes to the temple in Jerusalem:

He’s told to be there by the Holy Spirit, who rests on him, and also identifies Jesus for him

Because he’s righteous and devout

Looking for Consolation

Simeon holds Jesus and teaches that God has fulfills the promises God has made and now Simeon can die a happy man.  All that was promised to him has occurred, so he can be dismissed in peace.

I wonder if this was an item on Simeon’s Bucket List.  Was it on Israel’s Bucket List?  Would it be on yours? If you could hold the Christ child, would that be “the be all and end of all” your life?

I think it might have sounded a little strange to Joseph and Mary standing in the temple, anyway.

Luke 2:33-35

And the child’s father and mother were amazed at what was being said about him. Then Simeon blessed them and said to his mother Mary, ‘This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed—and a sword will pierce your own soul too.’

And he manages to do so in a way that becomes life-threatening – life offering – life transforming.

The emotional cost to Mary is significant.  Among the treasured memories Mary ponders in her heart, I wonder if this is one of them.  Along the road to Calvary more than three decades later, I wonder if Simeon’s words reverberated in Mary’s heart as her son was crucified and pierced by a Roman spear.

And yet, we know it’s because Jesus fulfilled the destiny for the falling and rising of many in Israel, to be a sign that will be opposed so that the inner thoughts of many [would] be revealed, that there could be potential for hope for the whole world.

(In Jesus’ day, there were only two kinds of people on earth Jews [God’s Chosen People] and everybody else [Gentiles] so the line: “…which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel” really is intended to be all-inclusive.)

Hope doesn’t mean that everything will be easy and the future is completely rosy; that is optimism.  Hope means there is a future.  Hope for a follower of Jesus Christ means that there is a future where God’s will ultimately prevails.  We see evil in the world all around us, but a disciple of Jesus Christ knows God will use our decisions, our active daily discipleship to advance the kingdom of God anyway.

Christmas time is here
We'll be drawing near
Oh, that we could always see
Such spirit through the year
Oh, that we could always see
Such spirit through the year...

Luke 2:36-38

There was also a prophet, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, having lived with her husband for seven years after her marriage, then as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshipped there with fasting and prayer night and day. At that moment she came, and began to praise God and to speak about the child to all who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem.

Simeon and Anna are both people of great spiritual maturity and life experience.  They have their priorities in order: both spend a great deal of time focused on God’s activity in their lives and in the world.  Both actively look forward to God’s redemptive action for Israel – the fulfillment of ancient promises. 

But where Simeon held Jesus and checked off an item at the top of his Bucket List and was ready to meet his Maker, by contrast Anna, held Jesus, and was filled with the desire to draw others to the miracle before her.  She began to speak about the child to all who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem.  Although 84, she is energized for the ministry of carrying the Word into the world.  In Anna (whose name means grace or favor), hope is a little more obvious for us to grasp and a bit more energy intensive. 

Anna assures me that all of us, regardless of our age are witnesses to the Messiah and have the potential to invite others to know of the redemption offered through this child, this Christ.  Like Anna, we are invited to be messengers of hope to the world.

Christmas time is here
Oh, that we could always see
Such spirit through the year
Oh, that we could always see
Such spirit through the year...

Perhaps you identify more with Simeon; maybe you are more closely drawn to Anna.  Both have lived all their lives waiting on the promise of God to bring about the redemption of God’s people. That one hope, that one vision, that one dream, has been the center of their entire lives. They refused to settle for anything less. No matter how close it might have been, no matter how attractive it was, no matter how powerful it was, no matter who told them something, they have focused their lives on the coming of the consolation of Israel. They have been waiting for the in-breaking of the kingdom of God.

And it is strange how as they saw Jesus, they realize for the first time, that as God brings redemption -- the consolation of Israel -- it is the consolation of the gentiles as well; as God moves in history to save the Jews, salvation will have to involve the whole world, all creation. God cannot hide light under a bushel, any more than we can.  The One who comes as light to the Jew will also be light to all who believe, to all who know they live in darkness and who are hungry for a light. The God who comes to redeem will be making redemption possible for all who desire redemption.

Simeon and Anna talked about radical changes in their old expectations and hopes from the moment they saw Jesus.  It’s odd how, the moment they saw the child, it dawned on them that wherever the light comes it will have a divisive effect. The act of God's grace has a way of dividing those who are ready for that grace from those who think they do not need it.  The act of God's love, which comes in this child, is perceived as either welcomed or resented.   

As you hear Simeon and Anna, how do you hear a song of hope for your own faith?  

Christmas time is here
We'll be drawing near
Oh, that we could always see
Such spirit through the year
Oh, that we could always see
Such spirit through the year...