Friends,
Today would have been the last sermon in our #SquadGoals series. I had planned to preach on a little known passage of scripture in Luke about a couple of devout folks who were part of Jesus’ squad named Simeon and Anna. A lot of people don’t recognize their names and have maybe never heard of them at all because they only show up in the lectionary once every three years, and then only if Sundays in the calendar fall just right between Christmas day and Epiphany Sunday. (I know, probably a little confusing, so ask me about the lectionary sometime if you’re interested.) But these two people are some of my favorite in scripture. Even as I wrote today’s sermon, I had several ideas for other sermons around this scripture.
Since we weren’t able to have worship today due to the icy conditions, I condensed the sermon I’d planned and wrote a devotional instead. I hope you find it meaningful as you stay warm and praise God wherever you find yourself this day. May God bless you in the coming week and find you faithful. See you next Sunday!!
Blessings,
Pastor Malinda
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Luke 2:22-40 | Mighty Faith
Here we are, just a couple of Sundays after Christmas. And yet for many of us, Christmas seems like a distant memory. We’ve returned to our normal lives (with the exception of a winter storm), before the rush of December began. The family gatherings are over … the presents are all unwrapped … our family members have all returned home, or we have come home from their houses … many of us have returned back to work and school.
It’s much the same for Mary & Joseph. The shepherds, angels, and heavenly hosts have all gone home. They’ve got a son to raise … religious obligations to keep… and a long trip home to Nazareth. But there’s one more thing for them to do before they begin their trek northward to Nazareth. They have to present their firstborn son to the Lord in the temple. It’s Jewish law, after all (Ex. 13:1-2; Lev. 12:6; Lev. 12:8).
So Mary and Joseph go to the temple. Jesus’ presentation would be less glitzy than others. Mary & Joseph could only offer a poor persons’ offering … the two pigeons that Joseph managed to hit with his slingshot the day before. And Jesus would not be the baby dressed in a silk baptismal gown, nor would he have lots of grandparents, aunts, and uncles gathered ‘round. No … Mary & Joseph … they’d be the humble, poorly dressed parents. They would not arrive in a shiny new Lexus. They’d be the ones to roll up in a rusted-out Ford Pinto. They would disappear from the temple about as quietly as they appeared. People would forget this couple as soon as they left … EXCEPT … this is Jesus. Don’t forget who we’re talking about. Jesus’ presentation will not be like other children’s. Why would it? Did I mention this is Jesus’ presentation? As in the Savior of the world!!
Imagine with me for a moment a baptism in our Avondale UMC sanctuary. The proud parents have their baby all dressed up. They and their family are sitting in the front pews near the font. I invite them forward as we make our way to the font. Then … the moment we’ve been waiting for … I’m holding the baby … you can hear the splash of the water … I ask what name is given this child … my hand is in motion to put the water on his head … and there’s a commotion coming from one of the back pews. The ceremony is interrupted by a couple of senior citizens that the parents don’t recognize, one of whom takes the baby from me and holds him in his arms. That’s enough to make any parent uneasy. And then he begins to praise God and make wild predictions about the child: “Excuse me!! But did you know, this little guy is going to be a world leader some day? Some will love him. Others will hate him. You, Mary and Joseph, are going to worry yourselves sick as parents. Ok I’ve said my piece … you can go back to baptizing the little tike.” And he hands the baby back to me and departs as quickly as arrived.
Wait!! What?!? Imagine what Joseph & Mary must’ve been thinking. Maybe nothing at this point will shock them. They’ve already been through so much. They’ve both seen angels. A couple of elderly folks in the temple might not bother them at all. Or … Simeon’s words may have worried Mary … “a sword will pierce your own soul too.”
I think Simeon’s and Anna’s presence in the temple that day was a sign of the Holy Spirit going ahead of Mary & Joseph. God planted two people there who had been waiting for such a day as this … two people who were well past their prime … two people waiting for that day when they would see the holy one who would save the world. And it was these two people who again provide reassurance and comfort to Mary and Joseph. God is with them through it all. And God is with them in this tiny child.
Today’s gospel is a message of faithfulness. It’s a message of the faithfulness of Mary and Joseph to God through their religious tradition and through their willingness to parent the Christ-child. It’s a message of Simeon’s faithfulness to wait many, many years to see the Christ child so he could die in peace. It’s a message of Anna’s faithfulness to remain loyal to God through praying and fasting despite the loss of her husband and family. And it’s a message of Jesus’ faithfulness to follow the will of God as he grows up to live as an example for all of us, to teach us of amazing love, and to make the ultimate sacrifice so he could conquer death and save us all from our sinfulness. Thanks be to God that no matter what harm we do to others or how we hurt ourselves, He comes to redeem us from our brokenness … God comes to bring us back into loving relationship … God comes so that we might have life and have it to the fullest. Amen.
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