The First Sunday of Christmas --- 31 December 2017

Luke 2: 22-40

22 When the time came for their purification according to the law of Moses, [Joseph and Mary] brought [Jesus] up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord 23 (as it is written in the law of the Lord, "Every firstborn male shall be designated as holy to the Lord"), 24 and they offered a sacrifice according to what is stated in the law of the Lord, "a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons."

25 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. 26 It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Messiah. 27 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, 28 Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying, 29 "Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace, according to your word; 30 for my eyes have seen your salvation, 31 which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, 32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel." 33 And the child's father and mother were amazed at what was being said about him. 34 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 35 so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed—and a sword will pierce your own soul too." 36 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 seven years after her marriage, 37 then as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped there with fasting and prayer night and day. 38 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. 39 When they had finished everything required by the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. 40 The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was upon him.

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.

·       Simeon appears and disappears quickly in Luke’s Gospel and is seen only in Luke’s Gospel. To many, he represents the faithful is Israel who waited for the revelation of the Messiah. It had been revealed to Simeon that he would see the Messiah before he’d see his death.

·       Years ago, a television movie portrayed this Gospel event in a way that has stayed with me to this day. The child Jesus is brought to the Temple by Mary and Joseph. Of course, the baby is crying; that’s normal. An old man, played by a rather famous actor, is sitting in the Temple, listening to another man reading from a scroll of the Scripture. When he hears the baby’s cry, he sits bolt-upright as if he’d been hit by lightning, stops the reader, and gets up and goes to the family. He takes the child in his arms with a look of joy and relief and says the prayer we heard today.

·       It meant the world to Simeon to know that the Messiah was coming while he lived. Then to see his hope fulfilled! This would be beyond his imagination.

·       With that, Simeon disappears from the story. It doesn’t really matter that Simeon is no longer seen in the Gospel narrative; the story isn’t about him. He has played his part and he has seen the promise fulfilled. He was faithful and God was faithful to him and to the promises made to Simeon and to Israel.

·       When we read the Scripture, we can focus on all the negative things and all the things that don’t fulfill our more modern expectations. We can apply our modern sensibilities to the people, ideas, and events found in the Scripture. It might be best if we took a step or two back and realize what the Scripture is really about.

·       It is a history of how God has remained faithful to God’s people despite all that has gone wrong, all that was misunderstood or misinterpreted, and all that might seem either normal or strange to us.

·       From the creation stories with their side story of sin and rebellion through the saga of the kings of Israel and Judah to the words of the prophets and into the joyous revelation of the Word made Flesh, the faithfulness of God is celebrated. God’s constant work to renew and uphold the Covenant made with the people of Israel is the real story of the Scriptures.

·       This story continues in the Gospels, in the letters of the New Testament, and even to the book we call the Apocalypse, a story of God’s mercy and faithfulness to a persecuted community couched in some of the strangest illustrations we might find anywhere.

·       How does the Bible begin? In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth… What is said near the end of the book of Revelation? See, I am making all things new.

·       If we were so moved, we could echo Simeon’s words, for what has happened, has happened according to your word… With the eyes of faith, we too 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.

·       That light, Jesus Christ, the light of the world, has been the revelation to all the nations and peoples of the world and is the glory of God’s people, to whom we have been grafted.

·       God’s faithfulness lets us make Simeon’s Canticle our own.

·       Now, Lord, you let your servant go in peace; your Word has been fulfilled. My own eyes have seen the salvation you have prepared in the sight of all the peoples; a light to reveal you to the nations and the glory of your people, Israel.