Waiting With Open Eyes

Luke 2:22–32 ESV

22 And when the time came for their purification according to the Law of Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord 23 (as it is written in the Law of the Lord, “Every male who first opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord”) 24 and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said 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, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. 26 And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. 27 And he came in the Spirit into the temple, and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the Law, 28 he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said, 29 “Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; 30 for my eyes have seen your salvation 31 that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, 32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.”

I served as an Associate Chaplain for a jail ministry in my local community for over ten years. Our church would lead a worship service at the jail each month. Without fail, each month we would sing Amazing Grace. Whether someone was available to play the piano, or we had to sing it acapella, everyone sang with gusto. You could feel the sense of joy in singing, “I once was lost, but now am found; was blind but now I see.”

To sing Amazing Grace is to wonder and marvel at the fact that God has done the impossible. He has given sight to the blind. And he does it by the power of his Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit who opens blind eyes. And when he opens our eyes it is for a singular purpose, so that we can see Jesus clearly. The Holy Spirit makes Advent an eye opening experience.

Our church was privileged to witness what the Spirit had done for those incarcerated men and women. Our text privileges us to see what God for a particular man named Simeon. As we see what Simeon saw, may the Holy Spirit be at work in us removing all doubts and any fog so that we see Jesus with clarity.

A Particular Care

Joseph and Mary are a devout Jewish couple. Three times in Luke 2:22-24 we are told that what they are now doing is in accordance with the law. That is why they bring their son, Jesus, into the temple. Little did they know, as they made their way up to Jerusalem, going to the temple, that there was a man in Jerusalem named Simeon, who was righteous and devout. This man was waiting for the consolation of Israel. That is, he was someone who lived in the hope that God’s promise to bring the Messiah would come to pass.

Where did this hope that Simeon have come from? Not only where did this hope spring from, but how could he live in this hope? Luke tells us that the Holy Spirit was upon him. The Holy Spirit was not only upon him, but the Holy Spirit had revealed to him that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. Then for the third time in three verses Luke talks about the Holy Spirit. He says that Simeon came ‘in the Spirit’ into the temple. It is by the Spirit that Simeon comes into the temple. It seems like Luke can’t talk about the Holy Spirit enough.

It is the Holy Spirit who is telling Simeon to come and see the Christ. Come and see the one who is bringing comfort and encouragement and redemption to the people of God. Come and see Jesus, Simeon! It’s like the Holy Spirit is saying to him, “I’ve been sustaining you all this time as you’ve waited for the fulfillment of God’s promise. Well, wait no more Simeon! Come and see him! Fix your eyes upon Jesus!”

Do not miss the Holy Spirit’s particular care of and for this man Simeon. Simeon’s words and story became Scripture. His coming into the temple by the Spirit lets us know that God is responsible for this meeting. God is always responsible for our meeting Jesus.

None of us are going to write or say anything that ends up becoming Scripture. But the Holy Spirit is still calling people to come and see Jesus. It’s the Holy Spirit who identified Jesus for Simeon. And it’s the Holy Spirit who identifies Jesus for us. And he loves to do it. He is particularly concerned and he particularly cares about opening blind eyes to the truth of who Jesus is.

This particular care of the Holy Spirit to bring people to a particular confirmation that Jesus is the Savior has a particular impact. In the last part of Simeon’s hymn of praise he rejoices that Jesus’ coming was not just to be the Savior for the people of Israel. He is the Lord’s salvation prepared in the presence of all the peoples. He is the light of revelation for the Nations and the light of glory for Israel.

The Holy Spirit doesn’t only open our eyes to see Jesus as the Lord’s salvation. He opens our eyes to see Christ for the nations, salvation to the end of the earth. Apart from the power, presence, and filling of the Holy Spirit, we could care less. We need the Holy Spirit to open our eyes and fill us with his power so that we may live out the message and mission of Christ for the nations. And we need him not just because of our propensity for spiritual lethargy and indifference, but because the sign is still opposed. The gospel is still an offense.

So the Holy Spirit comes and reorients our priorities. He shifts our priorities from our own world and kingdom to the kingdom of God. He says come and see. Turn your eyes upon Jesus, and you’ll never be the same.