All of the initial excitement
has subsided. The baby has been born. The shepherds have come
with their unusual stories and are now back tending their flocks.
Mary and Joseph and Jesus have traveled back from Bethlehem in
the land of Judea to the city of Jerusalem where they have religious
obligations to fulfill as new parents. Mary had to go through
a rite of purification. Two pigeons are to be sacrificed at the
Temple. The sacrifice indicates Joseph was not a man of wealth
as this is the requirement for those living in poverty.
Also, Jesus, as the firstborn son, has to be presented to God
according to the custom that began with the first Passover when
the angel of death spared the Israelite children. Luke makes
no mention of the customary five shekel fee indicating he believed
Jesus already belonged to God and did not require redemption.
Verses 21-24 of Chapter 2 reveal Luke wants us to know Jesus
is being raised in a Jewish family according to Jewish tradition.
This would have even been more important for Luke's first
readers than it may be today.
If Paul Harvey were telling this he would have shared about
the birth and the shepherds and then he would say, "And
now for the rest of the story." As much as we love the
parts of the story with the manger, angels and shepherds we are
not told in these verses the purpose for the story. We need to
read verses 22-40 to discover what it is.
Among the multitudes of people in the Temple while Mary and
Joseph and Jesus were fulfilling their obligations was an old
man by the name of Simeon. We do not know much about him other
than he was a man of faith who knew the Scriptures and was guided
by the Holy Spirit. For some reason he has been promised he would
not die until he had seen God's Messiah. The Spirit of
God had led him to the Temple courtyard on this particular day.
The place was filled with many people. Simeon had no idea whatsoever
as to how the Messiah would look. He may well have expected to
meet a grown man. He may have been listening for someone who
was talking about God or recruiting followers. All Simeon knew
was that the Spirit within him was revealing that the Messiah
would be present in the Temple courtyard.
I cannot say with certainty how these things work. Some believe
all of this is made up by Luke and never really took place. If
you believe in God, in angels and in shepherd visitations then
it isn't hard to accept that Simeon could be directed by
God's Holy Spirit to someone he has never met.
Simeon finds himself standing before an ordinary looking couple.
The woman is holding a fairly young infant. How often does a
total stranger ask to hold your infant child? Mary and Joseph
have had their share of unusual things so perhaps they are prepared
to honor the man's request.
Verses 29-32 are most revealing. Simeon is the first person
to recognize and accept Jesus for who He is—the salvation
of the world. He is also the first to share that Jesus has come
to help both Jews and Gentiles. But Simeon also has some difficult
words to share. Jesus will encounter opposition and Simeon tells
Mary that her own soul will be pierced by a sword as well. Joseph
is omitted from this, creating speculation that he will die before
the public ministry of Jesus begins.
I have shared this rather lengthy introduction in order to bring
you to what I consider to be the most important aspect of this
story for today. What do you see when you look at Jesus? What
do you believe when you hear His story? One week after Christmas,
what meaning does the birth and life of Jesus have for you? What,
if anything, does it reveal to you about God and your relationship
with God?
As I understand the event, God's coming into the world
tells us a lot about who God is, what God does and how God feels
about us. The birth of Jesus and the subsequent events of His
life have a lot to say about whom we should be and how we should
be.
More than any Christmas season I can remember this past one
has elicited comments about political correctness and how we
are to celebrate the season. Our own Cara McMorris wrote a letter
for the editorial page of The Pantagraph. I thought she captured
everything extremely well.
The effect Jesus has on our life has to be deeper than saying "Merry
Christmas!" The effect of Jesus on our life has to be
deep enough that it won't be removed by not having public
prayer in school or manger scenes on the courthouse lawn.
Simeon was able to say he could die in peace because he understood,
accepted and believed in God's love and plan for Creation
and for his own life. About ten days ago, Barbara Walters hosted
a two hour special on whether or not people believe in heaven.
Each of her guests from celebrities to unknown individuals had
their own strong opinions and beliefs and none of them seemed
to change the thinking of others. Topics concerning matters of
faith are like that.
Luke, of course, could have created Simeon and Anna to help
make points about Jesus which Luke believed and wanted his readers
to believe. It is also possible Luke tells the story just the
way it happened.
What matters most right now is what you make of this story about
the birth and life of Jesus. What do you believe and how does
that belief affect how you live? For me the story declares that
God is with us and God is for us. For me that is enough. For
me that suggests how I am to live. It informs me of who I am
and why I am and gives my life purpose and hope.
As we start a new year my prayer is that what you see when you
look at Jesus will be both a blessing and a calling. Amen. |
