The need for Simeons and Annas

22 When the time came for the purification rites required by the Law of Moses, Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord 23 (as it is written in the Law of the Lord, “Every firstborn male is to be consecrated to the Lord”), 24 and to offer a sacrifice in keeping with what is said in the Law of the Lord: “a pair of doves or two young pigeons.” 25 Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was on him. 26 It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. 27 Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required, 28 Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying: 29 “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you may now dismiss your servant in peace. 30 For my eyes have seen your salvation, 31 which you have prepared in the sight of all nations: 32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of your people Israel.” 33 The child’s father and mother marveled at what was said about him. 34 Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother: “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, 35 so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too.” 36 There was also a prophet, Anna, the daughter of Penuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was very old; she had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, 37 and then was a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying. 38 Coming up to them at that very moment, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem. 39 When Joseph and Mary had done everything required by the Law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee to their own town of Nazareth. 40 And the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was on him.

luke 2:22-

It may surprise you to learn that I am not the most patient of people.

Some of the things that I am involved in at work are long running change projects across multiple business units, with tens of senior managers all of whom know much more about their individual areas than I ever will and 100s of people of people who work for them. I am working with them on what will probably be a two-three year journey. I know it is going to take time to achieve and yet I am still impatient and want to get things moving.

The people around me are keen to see things happen to and are often asking how things are going, when will this happen, how long will something take depending on the mood I’m in and who it is I’m talking to, my answer varies from "In a little while", to "Sometime soon", to "Sometime before I retire" or on occasion just a outpouring of my frustration and a revealing of what some may see my impatient attitude. Of course I like to think of it as being committed and driven to see improvement. I fear though that the impatient tag may be truer.

d depending on the mood I’m in and who it is I’m talking to, my answer varies from "In a little while", to "Sometime soon", to "Sometime before I retire". You might gather from the last answer that there are times when I don’t want to think about it because it feels like it’s going to take so long. In this age of instant gratification we don’t like having to wait, do we? We get very impatient with the sort of planning process you have to go through for any large project. We get annoyed when decision makers take longer than we want to make their decisions.

We live in a time of instant gratification we don’t like having to wait, do we? We get very impatient with the sort of planning process you have to go through for any large project. We get annoyed when decision makers take longer than we want to make their decisions. We get frustrated that the kettle takes so long to boil, the post doesn’t arrive until after lunch time, the internet page takes more then 1/2 a second to load and God hasn’t answered the prayers I said in under 30 seconds this morning.

It is increasingly troublesome to our minds the God just doesn’t seem to keep pace with our desires and demands (by which of course I mean prayers.

I want to look at a passage today from Luke. that I think can teach us much about how God delivers despite our impatience.

It points to the answer to what I believe is a common question asked by christians today.

Can we trust the Word of God even when he does not seem to meet my timescales? Can we trust in Him when all the odds seem stacked against it?

I believe we can and should, God and His Word are the only unchanging truth in all that changes around us. I believe that God is a faithful and powerful to day as ever, but we have started to measure God by the standards of today, the timespans, the attention spans rather than recognising that God is God of time and eternity. He controls time and not time dictates to God.

We read in

We have to. His Word is the only unchanging truth in all that changes around us.

Galatians 4:4–5 ESV

4 But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.

ESV “But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, 5to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.”

God acted in the FULLNESS of time, the words used in the Greek convey the meaning of an exact place in time. – the right time, the perfect time, at precisely the moment God wants it to be. Nothing was delayed noting happened too soon.

Historians tell us this TIME was good because:

I think we can learn a great deal about how we are to rely of Gods promises from the passage in and how we are to be as we wait for Gods perfect timing.

The Roman Empire brought about peace to the entire region and established a road system that facilitated travel throughout the land.

The passage is from the take end of the story of Jesus birth.

The Gospel message would be able to reach the farthest lands.

The Greek civilisation provided a trading language which was adopted as the common language of the empire, so making it possible to communicate the Gospel to all the different people groups in one common language.

In this FULLNESS of time, two believers of God met Christ in the Temple.

ON SCREEN

Luke 2:22–40 NIV

• God fulfils His promises in His own way and at His own time.

• ESV “But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, 5to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.”

• In the FULLNESS of time – the right time, the perfect time, at precisely the moment God wants it to be. Nothing was delayed.

God fulfils His promises in His own way and at His own time.

Historians tell us this TIME was good because:

• The Roman Empire brought about peace to the entire region and established a road system that facilitated travel throughout the land.

• The Gospel message would be able to reach the farthest lands.

• The Greek civilization provided a trading language which was adopted as the lingua franca of the empire, so making it possible to communicate the Gospel to all the different people groups in one common language.

In this FULLNESS of time, two devout believers of God met Christ in the Temple.

Historians tell us this TIME was good because:

The Roman Empire brought about peace to the entire region and established a road system that facilitated travel throughout the land.

The Gospel message would be able to reach the farthest lands.

In this FULLNESS of time, two believers of God met Christ in the Temple.

Simeon

Simon was a man that could see beyond today’s situation

Simeon was waiting for the “comfort of Israel” promised in and he was certain it would come.

His confidence in this was from two places:

The promises of God in scripture : Most of Simeon’s prophesying is a weaving of passages; he was clearly a man who – like most devout Jews – had saturated himself in the Word.

Gods promises can come from scripture: Most of Simeon’s prophesying is a weaving of passages; he was clearly a man who – like most devout Jews – had saturated himself in the Word.

God’s Promises through the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit revealed he would not die until he saw the Messiah.

2. The Holy Spirit revealed he would not die until he saw the Messiah.

Those two sources of God’s promises are as reliable to day as 2000 years ago.

The scriptures and the the Holy Spirit still convey amongst other things the promises of God and reveal the plans that God has for us.

Simeon was a man who could see the outcome before the outcome arrived and he was led by the Holy spirit to act according to the outcome and not the situation

THIS IS WHERE YOU GOT TO.

show us things? I believe so – but we should not expect others to put faith in what the Holy Spirit might show us & recognize our fallibility. Some people try to bully others by claiming to be led by God, a vison, etc.

5. He also sense he had completed what God had for him. We can have that, too.

Waiting

The Holy Spirit reveals

Both of them – Simeon and Anna – were clearly led by God. It was quite miraculously.

• 2:25b-27 “…the Holy Spirit was upon him. 26It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. 27Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts.”

• The word SPIRIT came up 3 times in 3 verses. The Spirit of God led him into the Temple at the right time and to recognise the child Jesus.

Luke continues the emphasis on the role of the Holy Spirit in the lives of the devout.

• 1:15 John the Baptist “will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from birth.”

• 1:35 Angel to Mary: “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.”

• 1:41 “When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.”

• 1:67 “His father Zechariah, was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied…”

Simeon and Anna are part of this unfolding work of God’s Spirit in the lives of the devout.

Revelas

He was specifically LED by the Spirit to approach the baby Jesus.

2. The Holy Spirit revealed he would not die until he saw the Messiah.

The reality of the day was that this was a helpless six week old baby born to insignificant parents.

3. Can the Holy Spirit show us things? I believe so – but we should not expect others to put faith in what the Holy Spirit might show us & recognize our fallibility. Some people try to bully others by claiming to be led by God, a vison, etc.

4. Simeon was ready to die in peace – a privilege all believers have.

The future outcome was testified by the the Spirit firstly through leading Simeon to speak of this baby as the Messiah, the spirit would further testify by descending upon Jesus in the form of a dove, in many ways throughout His ministry.

5. He also sense he had completed what God had for him. We can have that, too.

Simone was able to see something that no one else in the Temple Court, accept for Anna noticed that day.

6. Most of his prophesying is a weaving of passages; he was clearly a man who – like most devout Jews – had saturated himself in the Word.

• Both were led by God to recognise Jesus, a six-week-old baby!

They were able to see what no one else in the Temple Court noticed that day.

The rest were too caught up by their own affairs, by the Temple routines, by their own sacrifices, to understand the grandeur of what was taking place. We need to make sure we don’t miss out on seeing the where God is taking us because we are too busy, too impatient and have moved on.

Only those who look with eyes of faith will see Him; those who seek the Lord with all their heart and with all their soul, will find Him

Deuteronomy 4:29 The Message

29 But even there, if you seek God, your God, you’ll be able to find him if you’re serious, looking for him with your whole heart and soul.

Sheep Cartoon

He is right there but we are not seeing Him. It is not that He is absent; we are too distracted to see Him!

Simeon is not only LED he moved. We need to act.

Simeon is not only LED he moved.We need to act.

He went to where the action was, the temple courts, he sought out the parents, he sough out the baby. Carried out the small actions that led to the fulfilment that he has seen

Picture - metal and hammers

Small taps around the outside, soften and shape and allow the large hammer blows in the middle to form the metal.

The taps may seem insignificant, necessary, repetitive but they are key to unlocking the potential of the power strike.

Simeon saw the fulfilment before the fulfilment

Simeon saw the fulfilment before the fulfilment, he looked to the future. His words are recorded, What he says echos what the angels announcing the Birth of Jesus said, except that the range of his words reaches further. The angel brought news of great joy for all the people, that is the people of Israel, Simeon says this salvation is for all peoples. That is for the whole world!

2. The Holy Spirit revealed he would not die until he saw the Messiah.

4. Simeon was ready to die in peace – a privilege all believers have.

5. He also sense he had completed what God had for him. We can have that, too.

6. Most of his prophesying is a weaving of passages; he was clearly a man who – like most devout Jews – had saturated himself in the Word.

Simon told of the fulfilment and the struggle

Simeon’s words are recorded What he says echos what the angels announcing the Birth of Jesus said, except that the range of his words reaches further. The angel brought news of great joy for all the people, that is the people of Israel, Simeon says this salvation is for all peoples. That is for the whole world!

Later, during the exile Isaiah had also predicted it: ( NRSV) "[The Lord] says, ’It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to restore the survivors of Israel; I will give you as a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.’" For two thousand years God’s promise had stood there waiting and now it was being fulfilled in the person of Jesus.

As Simeon was a man looking from today to the future Anna was a woman looking to the past pointing to the present and beyond...

Anna

Tribe of Asher. No “lost tribes.” The godly from northern Israel had migrated south.

, “And he gathered all Judah and Benjamin, and those from Ephraim, Manasseh, and Simeon who were residing with them, for great numbers had deserted to him from Israel when they saw that the Lord his God was with him.”

Now while there’s little we know about Anna, the little we do know tells us something. First, she had been a widow for a good 60 years, probably spending her later years only in the temple courts (many elderly Jews came to Jerusalem to die; the jewish equivalent of moving to Sutton on sea. She’s described as a prophet. Like Simeon she represented a new awakening of the word of God in Israel. She was very devout, never departing from the Temple. Whether that means she actually had a room there or if it’s simply saying she was there all day, every day, isn’t clear. But her devotion to God was single minded and complete. Then we’re told she was from the tribe of Asher. Now Asher was one of the lost tribes of Israel. But she remained faithful and had moved where God was. So there’s something particularly poignant about this representative of the lost tribes being present when Jesus appears to begin the process of bringing all his people back to God.

she’s described as a prophet. Like Simeon she represented a new awakening of the word of God in Israel. She was very devout, never departing from the Temple. Whether that means she actually had a room there or if it’s simply saying she was there all day, every day, isn’t clear. But her devotion to God was single minded and complete. Then we’re told she was from the tribe of Asher. Now Asher was one of the lost tribes of Israel. So there’s something particularly poignant about this representative of the lost tribes being present when Jesus appears to begin the process of bringing all his people back to God.

Fasted and prayed

Despite circumstance

Maintained Faith & hope

It had been 400 years of silence without any prophet speaking the Word of God but we see Anna described as a prophet. Like Simeon she represented a new awakening of the word of God in Israel. Unlike Simeon we do not have the words she spoke recorded. All we know is she spoke about the child to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Israel - she may have spoke from , , , Or , , , , or any one of the scriptures she would have been familiar with the predicted the coming messiah. Or she may have drawn on the her own life story and majored on prophesying about the lost being found, the widow being comforted, the weak being made whole.

Isaiah 52:9 NIV

9 Burst into songs of joy together, you ruins of Jerusalem, for the Lord has comforted his people, he has redeemed Jerusalem.

In place at the right time.

Looked back to the prophesies of the past.

What is important is her action Anna Declares the good news.

Isaiah 40:25 NIV

25 “To whom will you compare me? Or who is my equal?” says the Holy One.

Now while there’s little we know about Anna, the little we do know tells us something. First, she’s described as a prophet. Like Simeon she represented a new awakening of the word of God in Israel. She was very devout, never departing from the Temple. Whether that means she actually had a room there or if it’s simply saying she was there all day, every day, isn’t clear. But her devotion to God was single minded and complete. Then we’re told she was from the tribe of Asher. Now Asher was one of the lost tribes of Israel. So there’s something particularly poignant about this representative of the lost tribes being present when Jesus appears to begin the process of bringing all his people back to God.

Anna Declares the good news.

Notice, by the way, how Luke includes both male and female prophets in his account of what happened this day. Prophesy is not gender based.

First Simeon prophesies over Jesus that he’s to bring salvation to all people, then Anna gives thanks to God that at last she’s seeing the redemption of Jerusalem coming in the person of Jesus. What’s more, notice how she then begins to speak about him to anyone who’ll listen, especially to those who were looking for God’s Messiah to come. What is important is her action Anna Declares the good news. She Acts.

ACT IMAGE

She knows this is not just for her. Her life acted out her belief - she was know as a prophet she clearly spoke.

If you want to be known as ___________ Then you need to ___________

When the Spirt and the Saints attest something it tends to happen. God seems to communicate double. All of this is in perfect timing

Coming up to them at that very moment, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem.

They had both waited far longer than they probably wanted or expected but in the end they were fulfilled- neither of them say the finale ofJesus’ ministry but they saw beyond the present to the fulfilment to come

Simeon was ready to die in peace – a privilege all believers have. He he had completed what God had for him. We can have that, too.

5. He also sense he had completed what God had for him. We can have that, too.

There is a need for Simeon and Annas in the church

We also need to be like Anna and Simeon in the sense that we’re looking forward, preparing ourselves for the Messiah’s coming, only, in our case, for the second time. We also need to be ready preparing for his kingdom on earth.

WILLARD IMAGE

The gospel is less about how to get into the Kingdom of heaven after you die, and more about how to live in the Kingdom of Heaven before you die. - Dallas Willard

So we need to be people who are worshipping him regularly, studying his word, and training ourselves to be like Simeon or Anna. Looking back though Gods promises, walking through with the Spirit looking past the scenario of today to the Fulfilment of Gods promises. Declaring this to those who are seeking as we ware looking forward to the return of Jesus, our king.

We should not be embarrassed about being old, unless we have failed to gain wisdom or we act immaturely for our age.

Secret: start young, grow increments.

Growing old should be the spiritual pinnacle of our lives.

The elderly godly have a voice that should be noted.

We should not be discouraged by the smallness of our part or the size of the task ahead

SIMEON was so satisfied that he asked the Sovereign Lord to dismiss him in peace (2:29).

SIMEON never saw the end but was so satisfied that he asked the Sovereign Lord to dismiss him in peace (2:29).

Here lies the secret to a fulfilled life – you are so satisfied with life you want to go - when God’s will is done.

Look at ANNA. She lost her husband only 7 years into the marriage. A widow without support and for a long time. To many, this was a sad life.

But look at her. She wasn’t a woman filled with bitterness or resentment or sorrow. She worshipped the Lord night and day, fasting and praying.

She enjoyed the presence of the Lord every day and saw the Messiah with her own eyes, the fulfilment of God’s promise.

We have 2 very fulfilled people here.

I believe that is a blessing God wants for all of us, whatever our stage in life.

Are you in the midst of a season of waiting, maybe a long one?

Each of us needs to see the fulfilment that God has for us before it is fulfilled - we need a bit of SIMEON

That Journey may not be easy, but we need to look at what God has in store, the blessings we have, the future we have in Christ, and we need to tell about it - we need to be an Anna.

• Don’t let these distract us from God. He is present and our sovereign Lord is still at work even in the silence.

• Keep faith with God. Hold on to what God has said. Submit to His will.

Believes God. Trust the Word of God. Be led by God

If you have detached - Given up it is time to pick up a hammer again don’t be put off by the task.

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5. He also sense he had completed what God had for him. We can have that, too.

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