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by Sandy Shaw
We are in Luke 2:25, we read of an old man named Simeon. He was righteous and devout and godly - he was waiting to see the Messiah - and The Holy Spirit was upon him. Mary and Joseph had taken Jesus to the Temple to present Him to the Lord and to make the required sacrifice, and this man Simeon had been waiting for this very moment.
Simeon had had an inward revelation from GOD that he would not die until he had seen the Lord’s Christ. He was the only JEW who knew that the Messiah was coming soon. This had been revealed to him. One day the Holy Spirit nudged him and prompted him to go to the Temple - not only when, but where. Is it today? Go and See. When the Holy Spirit nudges you to do something, do it. If you don’t, you will miss out on something. You will be the loser. Think of what the shepherds would have missed had they just shrugged off this visitation from GOD.
There are times when the Holy Spirit nudges us, and tells us to go somewhere - or say something - or see someone. O what Simeon would have missed if he had resisted the prompting of the Holy Spirit.
Simeon saw a young couple with a young baby. What did he expect to see? And yet, he was aware that this Baby was Someone extraordinary. When you have the anointing of the Holy Spirit upon you, you see the extraordinary in the ordinary.
Simeon took Jesus in his arms - and praised GOD - and then said - LORD, I’m ready to die now - I’ve seen everything - I’ve seen what YOU said I would see - The Christ - the Messiah - The Saviour. Once you have seen Jesus, and accepted all that He has to give and offer, you are ready to die. You may not die right away. You may have to serve and work for 20,30 40 years, but you will ready to die when the time is right.
Here is Jesus coming into the church of the day, and he is virtually unrecognised. Obviously the message of the angels and the shepherds had had little influence on the priests in Jerusalem. It can be the same today. Jesus can come and only a few recognise HIM. GOD may give visions and send messengers, but only a few pay any heed.
v 33Joseph and Mary marvelled at all those things which Simeon said, and as Simeon looks at Mary, it is as if his face clouds over, and he says, “This child will cause many to fall and many to rise.”
Jesus divides people into two groups - those who are for Him and those who are against Him. And, He will be spoken against - not everyone rejoices when Jesus comes - not everyone rejoices at Jesus Words. Jesus was going to be at the centre of controversy.
v 35 Mary, it is going to be sore for you, as Simeon points forward to the Cross. Do you realise that this is what is going to happen to Him? When Jesus comes, He reveals the thoughts of many hearts - and the bringer of the revelation must be silenced - and crucified.
This is all surrounding the birth of Jesus. See and note how people select the parts they like and overlook other scenes. That is why we need to read the whole of the Word of God.
v.36 - 38. We read of a widow of 84, called Anna. She lost her husband some 7 years after being married, but what a tremendous ministry she had. She had transformed a tragedy into a vibrant and vital ministry. She had not become bitter or sour or disgruntled. She was always around the sanctuary - worshipping God - serving God with prayer and fasting.
“ANNA, I am going to reward you.” Perhaps she had been praying for this for 60 years, but GOD rewards her faithfulness. He always does.
She saw Jesus, and she recognised that this was the Christ, and she gave thanks, and then spoke about what she had seen. She shared her experience and gave her testimony.
Do you see in these verses the beautiful blend of young and old? No matter what our age is, our calling is to do all that God asks of us. It is good to tell Him that we are willing and ready and prepared to serve Jesus Christ, and to go on serving Jesus Christ, as did Mary and Joseph and Simeon and Anna, and it may be most inconvenient for you to do so. It usually is. Nevertheless, tell Him - tell Him that today.
Alexander 'Sandy' Shaw is pastor of Nairn Christian Fellowship in Nairn, Scotland. Nairn is 17 miles east of Inverness - on the Moray Firth Coast - not far from the Loch Ness Monster!
Gifted as a Biblical teacher, Sandy is firmly committed to making sure that his teachings are firmly grounded in the Word.
Sandy has a weekly radio talk which can be heard via the Internet on Saturday at 11:40am, New Orleans time, at wsho.com.
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