The Testimony of Simeon

Luke 2:21-28

Last time we met the parents, and now we meet Simeon.  But they hadn’t met each other, until today.  God providentially worked out a meeting.  It would be fascinating to know what happened.  It doesn't say.  But in verse 28 it says that Simeon took him into his arms.  Well at that point Simeon must have known who the child was. And how did that happen?  Well between verses 27 and 28 there must have been a rather long conversation.

Simeon didn't know he was looking for Joseph and Mary.  Simeon didn't come looking for the Messiah.  They weren't looking for Simeon. But God brought them together and somehow at the right moment the Spirit of God prompted a conversation in the melee of thousands of people milling around in the temple court.  And they began to talk and Joseph and Mary began to unfold the amazing story of how Gabriel had come to Mary and how an angel had come to Joseph in a dream and told them what was going on, and that she would conceive and bear the Messiah, the Son of the Most High God, the Son of David who would have a kingdom that would last forever and ever and He would be named Jesus because He would save His people from their sins.  The whole story about how the barren Zacharias and Elizabeth in their 70s or 80s were able to conceive a son who would be the prophecy...the prophet of the Messiah and a whole story unfolded. And the angels in the field telling the shepherds and the shepherds reporting to them and all of this and Simeon heard it, and believed it.

Somebody would say, "Well why did he believe it?"  And the answer would be, because he was being led by the Spirit.  It tells us in verse 25 the Holy Spirit was upon him.  Verse 26, it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit he wouldn't die until he saw the Lord, Messiah.  And verse 27, he came in the Spirit to the temple.  I mean, the imprint of the Holy Spirit is all over this man and certainly the confirmation of the Holy Spirit came when he heard the story, the miraculous conception without a male father, the planting of this Messiah in the womb of this young girl, all of this wondrous story was told to Simeon. And in verse 28 he took Him into his arms, picked up that little baby and blessed God.  And you can only imagine what all was in that blessing. 

Nothing about the child was visibly different.  But he knew who the child was, the Spirit of God confirming the testimony of these parents.  He was allowed by God to have this incredible moment, the great moment when the Savior, the King, the Messiah of the world was in his arms.  

He was an old man.  We don't know how long he had known the Messiah would come in his lifetime and he would see Him.  We don't know how long he had hoped. But certainly this is what drove his life.  This was the passion of his whole life. From the time he got the revelation that he would see the Messiah before he died, he must have gone into every single day wondering: Is this the day? He believed the promises that God had given to Abraham and he believed the promises of blessing that God had given to Moses. And he believed the promises that God had given to David, and that God had reiterated through all the prophets.  He believed all of that.  He believed the promises that are captured in the majesty of the Psalms which he no doubt had recited and sung since a child.  He believed God would keep His word and make good on His promises.

We don't know what he expected.  I mean, maybe he was looking for a king.  Maybe he was looking to the skies some days when he looked at the open courtyard of the temple and saw a sort of a darkened sky and somewhere a crack in the clouds appeared and a sunbeam came through and maybe he thought that might be the sunbeam on which the King would ride.  Maybe he thought one day the clouds would part.  Or maybe he thought one night in the midst of the darkness a great light would shine and down would come the great King.  There were certainly people among his remnant that had that thought.  Or maybe he thought that the Messiah would come as a great soldier, a great conqueror, a great warrior and he wouldn't come out of the sky, he'd come through the Eastern Gate, as the prophet had said, with great conquering power to shatter the Romans and establish the promise of Abraham.

We don't know what he thought, but we do know what he got.  What he got was a little, tiny baby that looked like any other baby.  Simeon took Him into his arms... If I can read Simeon's mind, he was thrilled to embrace the child but maybe more thrilled to know that the child would embrace him.  That was really all he needed.  You told me I'd live until I saw the Messiah. I've seen Him, let me die. I have nothing left to live for.  My hope is fulfilled.  My joy is complete.  My heart is at peace.  I'm ready to go.

3 observations:

1. He believed the Word of God.  [OT]

v. 25        And we have every reason to believe the NT promise of His return!

MacArthur said “I shall return”, and he did, and why is it we don’t live each day thinking about Christ’s imminent return, but rather OUR worries?

He believed the Word of God…

2. He was led by the Spirit of God

26    We should let the Lord lead us…and this will never conflict w/ #1, above!

        Historians say Simeon was 113 when this promise was fulfilled!  [senior saints should never retire on God!]

Joke:  old couple out on porch.  He asked her for some ice cream, she was gone 30 minutes!  Came back w/ scrambled eggs???  “You dumb woman…I said over easy!”

3. He obeyed the will of God.

v. 27        he came when prompted…obeyed both the Word and the Spirit!

“Doing the will of God is not like drinking Alka-Seltzer!”  It’s a pleasant thing, even when it doesn’t make sense, or isn’t the easiest way out…it’s always right to do right!  But we struggle against God’s will oftentimes, because we are “self-willed!”

But God wants us to know and do His will…more than we do!

That was all practical, now here’s the doctrinal truths:

Look at the prayer Simeon prayed--“The Song of Simeon”:

v. 28-35           1 of 5 Christmas songs sung by Elizabeth, Mary, Zacharias, the Angels, and here’s Simeon’s…

1. Song of Salvation 

v. 30        Back to v. 29…he was ready to “depart” [die] because he had seen salvation.

Phil. 1:23—Paul had a “desire to depart” this life!

Depart in gk. “apoluo” has 4 descriptive pictures which will be a blessing to us:

1. Release of a prisoner from jail…world, this flesh, etc.  Rev. 21 says there will be no more pain, sorrow, grief, tears!  [glorified body!]
2. Hauling in of the anchor of a ship, and setting sail!  As a ship disappears over the horizon there’s a group left behind saying, “there she goes”…and there’s another group waiting on the other side proclaiming:  “here she comes!”
3. Taking down of a tent.  2 Cor. 5:1 says this tabernacle will be dissolved [house not made w/ hands!]  A tent is a temporary structure subject to the elements and to decay!
4. Divorce.  Making it official to the world and the flesh… “I’m leaving you permanently…for someone else!”

It was a song of salvation…

2. Song of Revelation

v. 30-32           It says to the Gentiles, and then to the Jews?

Obviously he was inspired here, speaking prophecy:  the Jews would reject the gospel, the Gentiles would accept it, and then the 2^nd coming would occur. 

The Jews said, this Messiah is not what I expected/not to my liking…and many Gentiles say the same today…and they still name the Name of Jesus, but only approach Him cafeteria style.  It’s “another Jesus” they serve, one more to their liking!

We should want nothing less than God’s best for us, taking Jesus just as He is, giving ourselves, “Just As I Am!”

v. 34-35   There’s a stone, a sign, and a sword…

• A Stone—“set for the fall”  He who was to be the Chief Cornerstone became a stumbling stone [block]!  The Pharisees said, “We be not born of fornication!”  [didn’t want to believe]

Jesus infuriated the Jewish leaders because He claimed to be the “stone which the builders rejected.” This is a reference to the building of Solomon’s Temple.

It took 30,000 workmen over seven years to complete the temple. According to I Kings 6 all the stones were quarried far away from the building site, so there was no sound of hammering heard there. Jewish tradition says one day the building superintendent saw an unusual stone being delivered. Because it was cut in an odd shape, he thought it was flawed. He had it rolled away into the Kidron Valley where it lay untouched and unnoticed. Years later, the builder sent word to the quarry that he was ready for the main corner stone. The quarry master came and reported, “Why, I had that stone delivered years ago. When they began to search they discovered the discarded stone in the valley was the main cornerstone. It was covered with debris and moss. It took many men working hard to raise the massive stone out of the valley. When they raised it and set it, it fit perfectly! The chief cornerstone was the very rock they rejected.

Jesus was also sent from far away, and was different than expected, and even today doesn’t fit the world’s “ideal”…they stumble at Him that should be their very foundation!

A stone…

• A Sign—“spoken against”

v. 34        a miracle denied:  his birth, his sinless life, his miracles!, his resurrection from the dead…and when he returns, don’t you know the miracle will be denied [“it was an alien abduction!”]  Bible says God will send those left behind “strong delusion”.  Can’t you hear it now?!  Anything worthwhile WILL be spoken against!  Satan always opposes God’s best…all he needs is a voice willing to speak against it [does he ever succeed in using you to speak against God’s best?]

• A Sword—v. 35...Mary watched her son die!

This was all revelation…Simeon’s song was salvation, revelation, and for us, should be:

3.

The baby Jesus is only a few days old, and already he is all about salvation, and already the revelations are being spoken, and now fulfilled.  Simeon recognized Jesus for who He is, and we’d better!