Refreshing Stories from the Bible - Anna

Luke 2:36–38 (KJV 1900)

36 And there was one Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Aser: she was of a great age, and had lived with an husband seven years from her virginity; 37 And she was a widow of about fourscore and four years, which departed not from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day. 38 And she coming in that instant gave thanks likewise unto the Lord, and spake of him to all them that looked for redemption in Jerusalem.

Introduction

Continuation from last week.

In conjunction with Simeon’s recognition of the Messiah’s coming, another character comes on the scene.

This time it is a woman.

There is a lot of information about this woman packed into a few short statements.

First, we see that she was a prophetess.

400 years of silence might not have been quite so silent.

A prophet/prophetess was not inherently an announcer of future events.

Oftentimes, and this is still seen today, a prophet or prophetess is simply one who has the gift of discerning what God is doing.

They are able to help other people recognize God’s will and way.

Second we see her family history.

Though the man Phanuel doesn’t have any other reference points for us, it may have meant something to the people that Luke was writing to.

Or, his name may have been recoded because of the meaning behind the name.

Phanuel means “face of God.”

The daughter of Phanuel would, in fact, see the face of God in the baby Jesus.

It also may not immediately strike us as important, when Luke records that she was of the tribe of Asher.

Asher is one of the 10 lost tribes of Israel.

The 10 lost tribes constituted the Northern Kingdom of Israel.

These were the 10 tribes that broke off from Judah when Solomon’s son became king.

In 722 BC the Assyrians took these 10 tribes away and resettled them throughout the growing Assyrian empire.

These exiles were intentionally scattered to prevent them from forming little Israelite cells with each other.

They were also stripped of their Israelite names, language, and culture.

This meant that, over time, it became harder and harder for young Israelites to find Israelite spouses.

There was a gradual “watering-down” of their ethnic identity until they assimilated almost seamlessly into the Assyrian culture.

When the Jews began to return to the promised land during the time of Ezra and Nehemiah, most of the 10 lost tribes had so lost their identity they did not return.

Those that did were of mixed blood and could only find community among the Samaritans.

The fact that Anna was able to identify her tribe means that she is the product of generations of faithfulness.

Her family had seen value in putting the investment in to preserve their heritage and pass it down to the next generation.

Unfortunately, all of this work appears to be ending with Anna.

Thirdly, we learn about Anna’s personal history.

Like most Jewish girls, she had married young, maybe 14-15 years old.

For seven years she had lived with her husband until he died.

At the age of 21-22 years old, Anna became a widow.

She never remarried, but lived as a widow for 84 years!

This would make Anna approximately 104-105 years old.

This is not impossible, only improbable.

This may actually be evidence of the Mosaic blessing on her tribe.

Deuteronomy 33:25 “25 Thy shoes shall be iron and brass; And as thy days, so shall thy strength be.”

Anna used her freedom from a man to pour herself into her relationship with God.

Luke says that she departed not from the temple.

This could mean that she had been granted like a little apartment on the temple grounds, but this doesn’t seem likely.

More likely it is a statement meant to express that she was present in the temple every time it was open.

Day and night she was there and not only present, but serving.

Anna did not hide behind her age or her circumstances as an excuse for spiritual inactivity.

Instead she was consistently dedicated to the most important ministry any believer can partake in.

Interceding with God.

What do you think that Anna was praying and fasting about?

Could it be this woman was faithful in asking God to send the Messiah to His people?

Could it be that she had amassed a group of other faithful watchers who were also praying for the Messiah to come?

Would this explain the reaction that we see from her in verse 38?

Just like Simeon, Anna finds herself in the temple at the exact right time.

She arrives on the scene just a Simeon is saying the things we looked at last week.

As a prophetess, we see her gift is immediately employed.

Remember, Simeon, is a devout and just man.

But, we have no indication that he held any office.

He was led of the Spirit to say what he said.

Here comes Anna, who was known and remembered as a prophetess, and she gives thanks over the arrival of the Messiah.

Her gift was to know and discern the will and way of God.

She is actually legitimizing Simeon’s words by agreeing with him.

The affect of seeing Jesus, doesn’t just prompt her to give thanks.

As her father’s name suggests, she had seen the face of God.

Something like that lingers even after she has left his presence.

She continued to speak of Him to all the people in Jerusalem that looked for redemption.

Maybe she started by telling the story to her prayer group.

Then she began telling every pilgrim and worshipper that she met in the temple.

Millions of people passed through the temple every year.

As long as she still had life, Anna was going to tell them about the time she met Jesus.

When Anna became one of the first to see the long-awaited Messiah, she couldn’t help but give thanks and to tell others.

She becomes then an example for us and our desire for Jesus.

We see an example of consistent hunger for God’s presence.

We see an example of what should flow from our consistent exposure to Jesus.

Application

How desperate are you for an interaction with the Messiah?

Is there a daily element to your spiritual life?

Would Anna have met the baby Messiah if she had been more inconsistent with her devotions?

I’m not asking us to consider whether or not we pray, I’m asking us to consider we consistently pray for God to make His presence real in our lives.

When are you most impacted by God’s voice and presence?

My personal devotions have been hitting my right where I absolutely needed them lately.

It’s as real as if Jesus were riding to work with me telling me what He knows I need to hear.

When you are receiving that level of personalized help from your God, how could you ever get enough?

What affect does a meeting with God have on your life?

Does it lead to thanksgiving?

If you are asking God to be present in your life, and then He does show up, do you thank Him for that?

Do you express you appreciation to God for the times when He speaks to you and shows Himself faithful?

Does it lead to telling others?

If God is consistently active in your life, how could we stop from telling people about it?

If God is changing not only our eternity but also our present then we should tell other people.

Or, if we could use the language of the text, If God is redeeming us and has redeemed us, then the people around us need to know about it.