About the Baby

Verse 21 tells us that the Baby is taken to the temple on the eighth day of his life. This was customary for Jewish males - to be circumcised on the eighth day. This circumcision was distinctive - it was a sign or mark of God's covenant promise with Abraham when God began to build the people of the promise, Israel (Genesis 17:1). More than a mark of that covenant, circumcision was symbolic. The cutting of the foreskin represented cutting away any callous around the heart. Circumcision represented (sorry to be so graphic) sensitivity toward God (Deuteronomy 10:16). The practice continues to this day, certainly for Jews and often for Christians, though Paul argues later in the New Testament that the practice should not be necessary for non-Jewish Christians. Enough about that.

Verse 21 also tells us that the baby was named Jesus, which is the Greek pronunciation of the Hebrew name Joshua. In his native tongue, most think that the name of Jesus would have been pronounced J'shua. This was his name for at least two reasons. First, this is in response to the specific instructions of the angel in two separate visitations - one to Joseph (in Matthew) and one to Mary (in Luke). The angel said that his name should be Jesus and so it was. The second reason is in the name. J'shua, or Jesus, or Joshua is literally Yah-shua. Yah (shortened form of Yahweh or Jehovah) means God. Shua means saves. Jesus name means God saves. As a brief sidelight, let me encourage you to get familiar with the name Jesus, and learn to speak it often. It is a powerful word with powerful implications and even power, as one ancient scholar puts it, to heal the afflicted in mind, put to flight the spirits of darkness, and to the sick is an ever present remedy. If I am a Christian, but have not learned to utter and enjoy that great name - Jesus - for every good reason, I'm robbing myself of power and joy. I truly believe this.

About The Ritual

So the child was taken to the temple, circumcised and named Jesus. Then, according to custom, they presented their firstborn son to God to be consecrated for special service (Exodus 13 - first born sons, first born animals). Realize again that this is still practiced by some people. Now and then, over the years, I've been asked if I'm a first born son. Actually, I'm a fifth child and a third born son, but some ask because some sub cultures still practice this - the first son goes into ministry (or at least the parents consecrate him for ministry). That's what Joseph and Mary did. They offered Jesus to God's purposes, and gave the customary offering to go with the custom.

About Simeon

Then enters Simeon. It is the only time we meet Simeon in the Bible. What we know, we know from this story. He was a devout man - righteous. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, which means that Simeon was waiting for messianic promises to come true - a messiah (savior) to bring hope and to console Israel after so many centuries of suffering. Verse 25 also says that the Holy Spirit was upon him. In verse 26, we learn that the Holy Spirit has revealed to Simeon that he wouldn't die before seeing the Messiah (the Lord Christ's anointed one). The Holy Spirit prompted him to go into the temple courts, and there he saw Joseph and Mary with the baby.

Imagine, Simeon took the baby in his arms. We can see this in at least two ways. If Simeon was a credible leader in the temple (some even think he was the son of Rabbi Hillel and father of Rabbi Gamaliel, both famous Jewish rabbis), then it might have been customary for Simeon to perform the rites. It wouldn't have been shocking for Simeon to take the baby. If Simeon was sort of a religious zealot, a familiar eccentric who was outside the ordinary flow of temple functions, imagine the shock when this old man (implied in 26 and 29) took the baby in his arms.

What Simeon says is profound. He praised God and said, "Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you now dismiss your servant in peace." In other words, Lord you can take me now. Why? (Verse 30) "For mine eyes have seen Thy salvation" (realize, the phrase Thy salvation was a way of saying, virtually, my eyes have seen J'shua) "which you have prepared in the sight of all people" (and it's true - never before had the world been so connected as it was now during the spread of the Roman Empire). Who is this person prepared before all people? "A light for revelation to the Gentiles" (non-Jews) "and for glory to your people Israel." A light of revelation - God's unveiling, revealing Himself and His plan onto the world scene.

As Joseph and Mary marveled, Simeon gave a blessing; coupled with four onerous predictions. First, "This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel." Then, the child will "be a sign that will be spoken against." Third, "The thoughts of many hearts will be revealed." Finally, "And a sword will pierce your own soul, too." Ouch. This child was going to be a controversial figure and his own mother would suffer this.

Joseph and Mary must have been somewhat accustomed to strange things since the earlier visits and predictions and fanfare surrounding the birth. Still spooky stuff.

About Anna

They barely catch their breath when Anna comes along. She's old. She was widowed early in her life. For close to seventy years she's been a fixture at the temple, praying and fasting and worshiping night and day. She is a prophetess, which means that she has a special God-given knack for knowing and speaking the mind of God.

Anna approaches. She thanks God. She starts speaking to the crowd about the child, especially to those who, like her, have been waiting for redemption to come (which might have been only a remnant of worshippers…)

About Joseph and Mary

So Joseph and Mary did the customary things, probably tried to process the unexpected and headed back toward Nazareth, their hometown. Luke makes no mention of the detour to Egypt, as Matthew does.

About The Child

Jesus, we are told, grew and became strong (something we miss sometimes). He was filled with wisdom (He WAS wisdom). God's grace was upon Him.

Now I'd like to free-range a bit. What kinds of questions and considerations rise after a story like this? What about Anna and Simeon, about this child Jesus, and about promises.

First, about Anna and Simeon. How do we not respect them? For one thing, they'd never given up on the predictions of a coming savior. So many in Israel were following the lead of the Sadducees into a secularized faith that held to certain belief while admiring the governmental and commercial benefits of life under the Roman umbrella. Others followed the lead of the Pharisees, who were accused of reducing the great faith of Judaism to a heartless code of mere morality. Still others were probably going through the motions, suffering yet another long age of subservience to a foreign occupation and the abuses of the occupying authority. [In all of Israel's history, they've been self-governing for less than 200 years]. Wondering if God's promises were real or fantasy. The passing of generations, of course, so often leads to moderacy, first, and then to nominal marginalized faith. Most people weren't sitting around waiting for someone named "God saves" to come along and save.

Anna and Simeon were. They were waiting. They knew the promises and never stopped believing. Even more, they probably risked look ridiculous as they kept their vigil. Some people probably rolled their eyes when they walked by, or teased these old folks for their old-fashioned faith in a world that was being modernized by Roman influence.

I once knew a man named Sam. If anyone fit Simeon's description, it was Sam - righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of the church. Sam believed that he wouldn't die before seeing the second coming of Christ! (I don't know why…) Sam lived to be 94. Sam was wrong about living long enough to see Christ come again. But Sam wasn't wrong about many things. His devotion and zealous faith and his sense of expectancy permeated his life with a flavor of prayer and readiness. For Sam, readiness meant that if Christ came again, he'd find Sam busy loving people, caring for the sick, and telling friends about Christ. To some people, Sam might have been strange in his fervent beliefs, but there was nothing strange about the legacy he left. People adored Sam and admired Sam for living his faith with charity. And hanging around with Sam made us all pray more and watch the clouds more, and love others more

I fear that most of us are afraid to look weird. We're glad to announce our allegiance to a set of moral guidelines and Christian ethics; as long as no one thinks we're prudish. We admit to a kind of spirituality, since spirituality is a pretty popular notion these days. But the particulars of Christianity and the promises of our faith? Are we holding to them? Do we live with a sense of expectancy, even encouraging other to do the same? Are we all like Anna and Simeon or Sam? Or are we too cool to care that much?

Now about Jesus. Simeon was right. Jesus has been the cause of many risings and fallings since He came to this planet. Since the darkness hates the light, some people run from Him, scattering into the darkness, running into sadnesses and tripping over self-indulgences until their souls are dead. Others see the light of Christ, run the hard uphill road and rise to new experiences of faith and love and community, enjoying Christ's companionship and feeling the strength of His help through the hardships of life. Are you falling right now or rising? One thing has come clear to me - there's really no such thing as holding ground. If we don't keep moving, we start cooling to a sad temperature called lukewarm, which is bad for us and bad for the church and bad for the world that we, the church, have been commissioned to reach. There's no such thing as settling in, or hold on or camping out. Today's plateaus are tomorrow's rockslides. We're either rising or falling.

As for being spoken against, Jesus still is. Some wish he were more liberal. Others wish he were more conservative. Some can't even utter Jesus' name out loud, as if they would choke on it. Others use that name of Jesus in pathetic, disrespectful ways, as if they can push Jesus away by using the name of Jesus as they would use an assortment of crass phrases. He's treated as a throwaway. People try to besmirch Christianity by besmirching the church, often with some accuracy, but any efforts at speaking about or against Jesus sound flat and end up indicting the accuser. Still, people have always and will always speak against Jesus. Even in the church, Jesus is spoken against, every time Christians promote ideologies or images of church that run against the current of Jesus' values and commands. It's always astounded me how often people's views of church are informed by sentiment or by opinion, rather than by the actual teachings of Christ. So it will always be, since Jesus asks of us things that don't sit well with our high commitment to comfort and familiarity. There is a degree to which the teaching and person of Christ will draw a crowd with His commitment to inclusivity and grace and relevance. There is also a point to which Jesus has always thinned the crowd with His commitment to sacrifice and submission.

And yes, Jesus has a way of revealing our thought and hearts. Simeon was right about that. Jesus' kindness and His convictions are like a mirror that sees all and knows all and reflects back to us both our promise and our shortcomings. Jesus is painfully honest when we are willing to gaze upon Him and do the necessary introspections and inventories.

So I've talked about Anne and Simeon, and about Jesus Himself in light of Simeon's words.

What about promises? Jesus made a bunch of them, and the whole Bible makes even more. Sometimes it's hard to keep believing in the face of cynical modernity - people who want to discount an ancient faith based on current trends in science or ethics. Sometimes it's hard to keep believing in long seasons when God seems quiet and our sensitivities seem dulled. Sometimes disappointments breed a kind of cynicism that gradually overtakes our best hopes and reduces this grand faith into merely a moral system or a safe spirituality that asks no great faith of us. Sometimes we simply hedge. It it's all true, I want in. If it isn't, then I haven't, you know, sold the farm or anything crazy. Oh, but listen to these words of promise and hope. His promises are good and hope is the only way to really live. Hold them. Keep them. Live them. Love them. Guard them. Speak them. Watch them unfold before your eyes, or before your children's eyes.

Isaiah 40:31 "Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not be faint."

Acts 2:38-39 "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ, for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off - for all whom the Lord our God will call."

Romans 5:1-5 "Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit whom he has given us."

2 Peter 1:3-8 "His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ."

2 Peter 3:8-12 "But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat."

I John 3:3 "Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not been made known; but we know that when He appears we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is."

Hebrews 6:18-19 "We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure…it is impossible for God to lie."

Hebrews 10:23 "Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful."

Hebrews 11 Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see…by faith we understand that the universe was formed at God's command so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.

1 Corinthians 15:50 "I declare to you, brothers, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed; in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet.

Oh, but let's hear it from the Master - from Jesus Himself! I could read a hundred promises.

But here's John 16:33 "These things I have spoken unto you that in me you might have peace. In the world you will have troubles. But take heart! I have overcome the world.