O Come: See What Your God Has Done

Sermon Introduction

As we have mentioned several times already in this sermon series, the most common verses that prophecy about Jesus’ birth are found in Isaiah 7-12… Specifically:

Isaiah 7:14, the famous “Immanuel” passage

Isaiah 9:6-7, the famous “For unto us”… passage where we’re told Jesus wil lbe the “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

We also talked about how those passages have been misinterpreted to refer to a Military Hero or Political Leader…

That is, a Messiah who will redeem Israel from the empire ruling over them… First the Assyrians, then the Babylonians, the Persians, Greeks and finally, the Romans...

And so, that’s why some don’t believe that the Isaiah passages refer to Jesus… they believe that those passages were either fulfilled by King Hezzekiah, or that those prophecies still haven’t been fulfilled...

Regarding this, what’s important for our passage today is that there is one more crucial misinterpretation of the Isaiah passages… And that is, that the Messiah is only for Israeal...

That the Messiah came to save only the Jews...

So how is it, then, that you and I are here this morning worshipping Jesus, who we claim to be the Jewish Messiah, and who taught his followers in Matthew 28:19 … “19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,”

To understand this, let’s have a look at the events in the Gospel of Luke that followed Jesus’ birth...

Scripture Introduction

But before that, we need to quickly clarify a few of the elements of the Christmas Story, and where we get those elements from...

Because when we talk about Christmas night, this is what we usually think of…

How many of you have one of these? A Nativity… Belen

We of course have Joseph, Mary and Baby Jesus...

Then we have the angel and shepherds

Then finally, the star and the wisemen...

These are all the typical elements of Christmas that we’re familiar with, that we sing about… Silent Night, Away in a Manger, Hark the Herald Angels Sing, We Three Kings...

The thing is, these parts of the Birth Narrative of Jesus are actually a mixture of what we find in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke...

Both of these Gospels cover Jesus’ birth in their first two chapters, but both present different parts of the story...

Of course both have a lot in common… the Angel visiting Mary, and the census decree from Caesar that brought Mary and Joseph to Bethlehem...

But, the angels and shepherds are only in Luke, while the wise men are only in Matthew...

And then of course, both include more to the story… for example, since Matthew’s narrative cover the visit of the wisemen, it also included Joseph and Mary fleeing to Egypt to escape Herod...

While Luke weaves in the story of John the Baptist… and, the part that we are covering today, which I think you will agree with me is quite important for us Gentile believers of the Jewish Messiah...

Ironically though, it starts off by presenting to us several Devout Jews, practicing very particular Jewish rituals...

Devout Jewish Rituals

In Luke 2:21-24, we are told that...

Jesus was circumsized...

He was presented at the temple...

A sacrifice was presented for him...

Jesus being circumcized is of course is to fulfill the requirement the Lord gave in Genesis 17:11 “11 You shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you.”

And then, Jesus is presented at the Temple, which itself is not a requirement of the Law, however, it is, in a sense, part of the third item… which is the sacrifice offered for him...

The requirement is explained in verse 23, which is quotes from Exodus 13… Luke 2:23 “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”)”

Just as a little side note… last week, we talked about how humble Jesus’ birth was… and here we get another glimpse of that...

Notice what was Mary and Joseph offered for Jesus… a pair of Turtle Doves or two young pigeons...

Contrast that with another well known presentation at the Temple… Hannah presenting Samuel at the Temple… In 1 Samuel 1:24, we read: “24 And when she had weaned him, she took him up with her, along with a three-year-old bull, an ephah of flour, and a skin of wine, and she brought him to the house of the Lord at Shiloh. And the child was young.”

Notice the difference? Two turtle doves or young pigeons, vs. a three year old bull, an ephah of flour and a skin of wine...

The reason for the difference is that Elkanah, Hannah’s husband, was rich…

Mary and Joseph? Well, let’s look at Leviticus 12:8, where this passage comes from... “8 And if she cannot afford a lamb, then she shall take two turtledoves or two pigeons, one for a burnt offering and the other for a sin offering. And the priest shall make atonement for her, and she shall be clean.””

In other words, the offerings that Mary and Joseph made were the ones provided for the poor...

So, not only was Jesus not born with the fanfare and dignity that the King of Heaven deserved… he was born to a poor family… Who couldn’t even afford a lamb for an offering, let alone what Hannah was able to offer...

And yet, the important thing to take away from this is, that they made the offering anyway… They fulfilled the requirements that devout Jews needed to fulfill...

Devout Prophet

Which brings us to Simeon, who is the prophet that uttered the words in this passage we are considering this morning...

This is how Luke describes Simeon… Luke 2:25–26 “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.”

So, three interesting things about Simeon here...

First, he is described as “Righteous and Devout”...

Which, if you really think about it, mean effectively the same thing...

And so, what’s important to me is how someone comes to be called righteous… before Jesus’ death and resurrection...

And for this, there are two passages that I think are particularly relevant...

First, about Abraham… Genesis 15:5–6 “5 And (The LORD) brought (ABRAHAM) outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” 6 And he believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness.”

So here, Abraham is counted as righteous because he believed in the Lord’s promise… That is, he will become a great nation…

The second is from Psalm 1:5–6 “5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous; 6 for the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.”

What is the way of the righteous?

Well, moving back a couple of verses, Psalm 1:1–2 “1 Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; 2 but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night.”

So two ways to be called Righteous in the before the Cross of Christ...

Believe in the Lord… and meditate on Scriptures.

This leads us to the second interesting thing about Simeon… That is he was “waiting for the consolation of Israel”

Now, this clearly means that Simeon was waiting for the Messiah… but it is so interesting to me how this is expressed...

Because what it seems to indicate to me is that Simeon, unlike those who believed in a Military Hero or Political Messiah… Simeon gets it… He gets that the Jewish Messiah that the LORD promised is will accomplish something even greater Israel’s political independence… But rather someone who can fulfill...

Isaiah 40:1–2 “1 Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. 2 Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that her warfare is ended, that her iniquity is pardoned, that she has received from the Lord’s hand double for all her sins.”

In other words, he is someone who deeply understood scripture… as if someone who meditated on it day and night… and the fact that he was waiting for this, clearly meant that he of course, believed in the Lord....

Finally… Luke 2:26 “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.”

God gave Simeon this special privilege… He was not going to die until he saw the Messiah...

And then… all of a sudden, here comes Mary and Joseph… and Simeon immediately recognizes Jesus for who he is...

See What God Has Done

If you ask me what my favourite Christmas song is, I’d have a hard time answering… because there are so many great ones...

But there is this one song that has always stuck with me, even though I don’t even listen to it regularly...

And honestly, I’m not sure where to even find a proper recording of it, because it’s actually part of a Christmas Cantata put on by the first church that my family in the Philippines attended

It’s called “My Eyes Have Seen Your Salvation”

And as you can imagine, it is based on Simeon’s exclamation upon seeing Jesus...

In Luke 2:29–32 “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.””

And why this song and this passage particularly stands out to me is the expectation it presents that God’s salvation is for everyone...

The Jewish Messiah is meant to save not just Israel, but the whole world...

And if there’s anyone that I would trust to express this, it’s Simeon...

Remember, he is righteous… He knows the scriptures, and he believes in God...

And so, he understands fully and completely what God’s intentions have been from the very beginning of Israel...

It goes all the way back, literally to the very first interaction that God had with Abraham...

Genesis 12:1–3 “1 Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2 And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.””

God’s intention was for Israel to be a blessing to all the families of the earth… And what better blessing is there than a Messiah who will reconcile the whole world back to God.

This promise runs continually throughout the Old Testament...

King David, whose descendant we are told will be the Messiah, wrote in one of my favourite Psalms… Psalm 98:1–3 “1 Oh sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done marvelous things! His right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him. 2 The Lord has made known his salvation; he has revealed his righteousness in the sight of the nations. 3 He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness to the house of Israel. All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.”

Finally, back to Isaiah, we read...

Isaiah 49:6 “6 he says: “It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to bring back the preserved of Israel; I will make you as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.””

Application

In a sense, God’s salvation is being seen to the ends of the earth...

Unfortunately, because of sin and brokeness, many choose to misinterpret what the message of Christmas truly is...

Near my apartment in Japan, there’s a KFC...

Christmas KFC in Japan

And yet at the end of time, as Philippians 2:10–11 “10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

The question is, will they be doing it willingly as believers in God’s salvation, or begrudgingly, in rebellion, headed for judgement?

And so, as another Christmas season draws to a close, let us never forget or let go of the responsibility given to us as believers in Christ...

To proclaim the salvation of God

2 Corinthians 5:20–21 “20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”