Full Sermon Simeon Gives Us a Good Song to Remember based on Luke 2:22-32

Let us pray: Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer. Amen.

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

I. What are some songs that stick in your mind? A common song at sporting events is “Don’t Stop Believing.” Before many sporting events start someone sings “The Star-Spangled Banner.” When we have a special service to remember the Reformation of the Church at the end of October each year, one of the hymns is usually “A Mighty Fortress is our God.” Other hymns are favorites like “What a Friend We Have in Jesus” and “Beautiful Savior”. Some songs and hymns remind us of a special loved one or friend. Other songs and hymns remind us of the teachings of the Bible and the saving work of Jesus. There is something about songs and music that sticks with us in life.

II. Read Luke 2:29-32 and comment. Luke 2:29-32 tells us about a man named Simeon who spoke these words about Jesus as he held the infant in his arms: “Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.” These spoken words of Simeon have been put to music and are part of our order of worship for today. Today I will unpack these words of Simeon.

III. Mary and Joseph took God’s commands seriously. Mary and Joseph took seriously their duties in raising the child Jesus. They had him circumcised on the eighth day after his birth. They brought him to the temple in Jerusalem to do things according to God’s Law. 40 days after the birth of a son the child was to be presented to the Lord and the mother was to be purified. The Old Testament book of Leviticus 12 gives directions about what a woman is required to do to be purified or considered clean by the Lord. The woman was supposed to offer a lamb for her purification, but if she could not afford a lamb she could offer two birds instead. Mary and Joseph were not wealthy, so the offering was a pair of turtledoves or two pigeons. Since Jesus did not need to be purified, the words “their purification” referred to Mary and Joseph. The idea of Jesus being presented at the temple most likely comes from the account of Hannah bringing her son, Samuel, to the priest after he was a young boy to live with the priest in the place of worship in the Old Testament lesson from 1 Samuel 1.

IV. Who was this man named Simeon? We do not know much about him. Luke 2:25-26 tells us, “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. 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.” Simeon lived in Jerusalem. He was righteous and devout. In other words, he was a believer in the Lord. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel. He trusted in the Lord’s promises. He tried to live in a way pleasing to the Lord. He was promised that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. Some people think Simeon was an old man who had been waiting a long time to see Jesus. The Bible does not tell us about his age though.

Simeon was moved by the Holy Spirit to recognize that the infant Jesus was the Lord’s Christ. Jesus was the one who would bring about the consolation of Israel. Jesus was coming to fulfill the promises of God in the Old Testament. Jesus was coming to bring the consoling work of the forgiveness of all sins and wrongs to the people of Israel and the rest of the nations for that matter.

V. Comment about Simeon’s words. In the Divine Service Setting Three in our hymnals today we have the words of Simeon taken from the King James Version of the Bible that we sing, “Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word: For mine eyes have seen thy salvation, Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people; A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel.” Those words are followed by the “Glory be to God the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost as it was in the beginning and ever shall be world without end. Amen.”

In other words, Simeon was saying that he could now go in peace knowing that the word of the Lord was true. Simeon believed that he had seen the child who would bring salvation to the people of the world. He believed that this child Jesus would be a light to the Gentiles or non-Jews. He believed that this child would bring glory to the people of Israel as well.

VI. Conclusion. So what does this mean to us today? We have an advantage over Simeon. We can read about the true narrative of Jesus—from His birth to when He died and was raised to life on the third day and ascended into heaven. We have our eyes and minds enlightened by God’s Holy Spirit, too. As we receive the true Body and Blood of Jesus in, with, and under the bread and wine in Holy Communion, we hold Jesus in our hands. We can depart in peace, too. We sing Simeon’s song right after we receive the Lord’s Supper. Jesus is our salvation. Jesus is the light of the world. Jesus is the One who deserves all the glory for doing everything needed to bring about the forgiveness of all our sins and wrongs and failures.

The purification of Mary and the presentation of our Lord continues the narrative of how Jesus came to fulfill the prophecies of old. Jesus did all that was necessary to fulfill the promises of God. That is Good News for us. We are people that regularly fail to do all that the Commandments of the Lord give us to do. We cannot save ourselves from our many sins and wrongs. We would be lost forever if Jesus had not come into our sinful world. Jesus was born to forgive us and free us from our sinful flesh. Jesus was circumcised on the eighth day according to the Law of the Lord. Jesus was presented at the temple in Jerusalem on the fortieth day after His birth. Jesus was baptized at about 30 years of age. Jesus taught and preached the Good News about the kingdom of God. Jesus performed many miraculous healings. Hebrews 2:14-15 tells us the Good News about Jesus, “Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery.” We do not know how many days or years we have left in this earthly life, but like Simeon we can believe God’s Word that Jesus is the One who gives us consolation, so that we can depart this earthly life in peace. Simeon’s song is a good song to remember today and always. Amen.

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.