About My Father's Business - Luke 2:41-52 - May 29, 2022

 

Luke 2:41-52 About My Father’s Business

Good morning! Welcome back! Turn with me in your Bibles to Luke chapter two. We are going to look at verses 41-52, and that’s on page 858 in the pew Bibles.

This little passage is the only record in Scripture of Jesus’ childhood, and though it seems a bit obscure, there is a lot for us to learn from this account. Ideas that are theological, practical, and symbolical… 

Sounds a bit like a three point sermon…

41 Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover. 42 And when he was twelve years old, they went up according to custom. 43 And when the feast was ended, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents did not know it, 44 but supposing him to be in the group they went a day’s journey, but then they began to search for him among their relatives and acquaintances, 45 and when they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem, searching for him. 46 After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. 47 And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. 48 And when his parents saw him, they were astonished. And his mother said to him, “Son, why have you treated us so? Behold, your father and I have been searching for you in great distress.” 49 And he said to them, “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” 50 And they did not understand the saying that he spoke to them. 51 And he went down with them and came to Nazareth and was submissive to them. And his mother treasured up all these things in her heart. 

52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.

Let’s pray.

Now you’ll remember that Luke put together this orderly account after following all these things closely in order that the recipients of his Gospel account would have certainty about the things that they had been taught. In Luke’s investigation of the life and ministry of Jesus he would have interviewed eye witnesses to Jesus’ life, one of whom was most likely Mary herself.

It’s interesting to me that this is the only account of Jesus’ childhood that the Holy Spirit prompted Luke to include in his Gospel even though there are lots of false Gospels published even today that tell fairy tales about Jesus as a kid. One even includes Jesus’ solution to a board that was cut too short in Joseph’s woodshop. Joseph says, “This board is too short.” And Jesus says, “No problem,” and stretches the board to the right length. As a woodworker, I can say, that would be really handy. Either way, it’s fantasy, Luke’s record is the truth. Even though the glimpse is brief, it’s powerful.

The first layer of this account is theological. Did you know that you are all theologians? Theology is simply the study of God: Theo=God, ology=the study of. You don’t even need to have your doctorate for it, we can all be theologians!

The theological layer of this account deals with the humanity of Jesus. I don’t think most Christians struggle with the divinity of Jesus, the fact that he is fully God, I think a lot of us do struggle with His humanity, the fact that he is a man in every way except for sin.

Jesus was not always fully man, He took on flesh and dwelt among us, as it says in John chapter one. He had to be fully man to take our sins upon Himself on the cross in order to pay the penalty for our sin, but because He is fully God He could not stay dead, God raised Him up.

But here in our text we see the boy Jesus, fully God and fully man.

The next layer of this account is practical.

41 Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover. 42 And when he was twelve years old, they went up according to custom.

It was only required of the men to go to Jerusalem for Passover, the women and children, the blind and the lame were not required to go. Women and children were allowed to go but they were not required.

This very well could have been Mary’s recollection of these events told to Luke.

When Jesus was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem according to custom. 

Stop there. Who’s custom?

The Law required Joseph and Jesus to go to Jerusalem for the feast, it doesn’t say that they went up to Jerusalem according to the Law, but according to custom. Who’s custom?

It was their family’s custom. Joseph and Mary made it their family custom for all of them to go up to Jerusalem for the Feast of Passover. Joseph and Mary were teaching their child the way He should go in hopes that when He was old He would not depart from it.

I think the Holy Spirit prompted Luke to include this account to remind us of the strength of the family when it comes to our faith, to the strength of family customs and traditions in supporting our faith. To me that’s intensely practical.

But there’s also this bad parenting moment included in this account, after all, you can’t win them all.

43 And when the feast was ended, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents did not know it, 44 but supposing him to be in the group they went a day’s journey, but then they began to search for him among their relatives and acquaintances, 45 and when they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem, searching for him. 46 After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions.

Now before we get too down on Mary and Joseph for leaving their baby behind in a car seat we have to remember a few things. First, what Luke calls, “the group,” in verse 44 is most likely most of their village. This would have been their family, friends, and neighbors all walking together. It was also traditional for the women and children to go first in the group and for the men and older boys to follow. Jesus, being twelve, could have fit in either group. Joseph most likely thought He was with Mary, and vice versa. “He’s got to be here somewhere!”

But at the end of the first day’s journey they tried to find him and realized that He wasn’t with them or with anybody they knew and decided to go back to Jerusalem to search for Him. They traveled back to Jerusalem the next day and found Him in the Temple on the third day sitting amongst the teachers.

Sometimes the strongest lessons we can learn are when we learn what not to do. Keep an eye on your kids! Even though this might not have been the best example, establishing family faith customs is a great example. Even what Jesus was doing when they found Him is a great example, sitting with the teachers, listening to them and asking questions.

It was not typical for a twelve year old to be sitting with this group in the Temple courts, but as we all know, Jesus was not a typical twelve year old. But he did give us an example of seeking wisdom from teachers.

By twelve years old Jesus would have been taught the Law and the prophets, He would have had vast amounts of the Old Testament memorized because that was their tradition. But he still sought out this group of teachers of the Law to listen and ask questions of them. 

There is an example there for us to follow. 

We don’t have to go to Jerusalem, we don’t have to go anywhere, with one click, one tap, teachers of the Word of God are available to us. However there is strength in gathering in person, listening to the teaching of God’s Word and asking questions.

Mary and Joseph were less than impressed as you can imagine but this wasn’t an act of rebellion on Jesus’ part, otherwise He would have violated the fifth commandment. Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem intentionally in order to teach us.

46 After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. 47 And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. 48 And when his parents saw him, they were astonished. And his mother said to him, “Son, why have you treated us so? Behold, your father and I have been searching for you in great distress.” 49 And he said to them, “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” 50 And they did not understand the saying that he spoke to them. 51 And he went down with them and came to Nazareth and was submissive to them. And his mother treasured up all these things in her heart. 

52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.

Jesus grew and developed like any other boy only without the hindrance of sin. He grew in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and man. But His answer to Mary… I find myself in the same spot as Mary and Joseph, in verse 50, “they did not understand the saying that He spoke to them.”

Why were you looking for me?! Maybe because you’re twelve and we haven’t known where you were for three days?! I still don’t understand that. 

But Mary gives us a great example of what to do with sayings of Jesus that we don’t understand: She treasured up all these things in her heart. She pondered these events and the things Jesus said, she thought about them and what they might mean, she didn’t brush them off as insignificant, she held onto them like treasure in her heart.

But Jesus went with them back down to Nazareth, He submitted to them as He should, and gave all kids everywhere an example to follow and He grew in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and man.

The last layer of this account is spiritual. We are faced with the theological in Jesus being both fully God and fully man, with the practical of sitting with the teachers to learn, not to mention keeping track of your children, but there is also a spiritual lesson here as well.

So often we seek Jesus the same way His parents did, just assuming that he is just floating along with our expectations and our choices about life, when in truth He is doing exactly what His first recorded words in Luke’s Gospel say, literally, I must be about my Father’s business.

In verse 48, Mary tells Jesus that she and Joseph had been seeking Him in great distress, great sorrow, and in doing so gave us another great example: When we find ourselves in a place where Jesus is not, we have the choice to sorrow and sit, or sorrow and seek. Mary and Joseph decided to seek in their sorrow and found Jesus about His Father’s business.

Jesus will never leave us nor forsake us, He promised us that, but there are plenty of times when we don’t feel like He’s there or can’t see Him at work, or can’t hear His voice.

We’ve all heard Jeremiah 29:11 that says, “for I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord…”

But Jeremiah 29:13 says, “You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.”

Some twenty years later on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, in John 6:35-40, Jesus explained what He meant by being about His Father’s business:

“I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. 36 But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe. 37 All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. 38 For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. 39 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. 40 For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”

Amen.

What's Missing? Luke 2:39-40 - May 15, 2022

 Luke 2:39-40 What’s Missing?

Good morning! Turn with me in your Bibles to Luke 2:39-40, page 858 in the pew Bibles. Over the last few weeks we have been working our way through the very early days of Jesus’ life on earth. We’ve talked about angels and shepherds and mangers and virgin births. All the elements that we associate with Christmas… Right? We’ve hit all the pieces that fit on our Christmas cards, right?

Let’s look at our text for this morning and talk about what’s missing.

39 And when they had performed everything according to the Law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. 40 And the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom. And the favor of God was upon him.

Let’s pray.

So as I read this account of the infancy of Jesus that Luke brings to a close in these two verses, there are two things to me that are glaringly absent: the wise men and the flight to Egypt.

If you’ve been with us for many Christmases here at CrossRoads the absence of the wise men in our talk of Christmas should not surprise you at all because, as the Bible makes clear, the wise men were not at the manger, they did not meet the newborn Jesus as our Christmas cards and carols so often incorrectly depict.

Luke doesn’t mention them at all, which I find surprising, but just because he doesn’t mention the wise men nor the flight to Egypt doesn’t mean they didn’t happen, it simply means that Luke didn’t feel it necessary to include them in his orderly account of the ministry of Jesus.

The coming of the wise men to Bethlehem and the subsequent flight to Egypt by Joseph and Mary happen during the first comma of verse 39 of Luke 2.

And when they had performed everything according to the Law of the Lord [comma] they returned into Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth.

Well I’d like to focus on the comma this morning to make up for the last ten Christmases of ignoring the wise men.

To find the information hidden behind Luke’s comma we have to look at Matthew chapter 2 which is on page 807 in the pew Bibles, the very first page of the New Testament.

Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, 2 saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” 3 When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him; 4 and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. 5 They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the prophet: 

6 “ ‘And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’ ” 

7 Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared. 8 And he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship him.” 9 After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. 11 And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. 12 And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way. 

13 Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.” 14 And he rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt 15 and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, “Out of Egypt I called my son.” 

16 Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, became furious, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had ascertained from the wise men. 17 Then was fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet Jeremiah: 

18 “A voice was heard in Ramah, weeping and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be comforted, because they are no more.” 

19 But when Herod died, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, 20 saying, “Rise, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the child’s life are dead.” 21 And he rose and took the child and his mother and went to the land of Israel. 22 But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there, and being warned in a dream he withdrew to the district of Galilee. 23 And he went and lived in a city called Nazareth, so that what was spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled, that he would be called a Nazarene.

The church I grew up in had a live nativity every year, they would have all kinds of animals and a manger set up outside in the snow. Mary and Joseph would arrive with Mary on a donkey, all the little boys would be dressed up as shepherds and all the little girls as angels. On top of all that cuteness there were always three men dressed up as kings that would ride horses to the manger and offer their gold, and frankincense, and myrrh to the baby in the manger just like the old song says.

“We three kings of Orient are, bearing gifts we traverse afar, field and fountain, moor and mountain, following yonder star. Ooooh, star of wonder start of night, star with royal beauty bright, westward leading still proceeding, guide us to thy perfect light.”

So what’s wrong with that? As far as the wise men are concerned, most of it, most of it is wrong.

They weren’t kings for one, the Greek word for them was “magos,” or, “magi.” The term is used of men who had an unusual capacity for understanding based on astrology. Such persons were regarded as combining both secular and religious aspects of knowledge and understanding. These men were most likely scientists in an age where theology and science were not at odds. (They still aren’t by the way.)

These scientists, the scholars believe, were from Persia or Babylon, in modern day Iraq. We also don’t really know how many of them there were.  I think the song says three because of the three gifts they brought, gold, frankincense and myrrh. But we have no way of really knowing and the truth is it’s really not important.

The star that they mentioned is also worth considering. 

2“Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”

9 After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy.

It’s not my purpose this morning to delve into the realm of astronomy and talk about how stars move or how earth is moving in relation to the rest of the galaxy, but I can tell you that stars don’t appear at one moment and then disappear, nor do they move in such a way as to come to rest over any particular house. While the north star will always lead you north this particular star lead the wise men west, disappeared, then reappeared, and stayed over a particular house in Bethlehem. 

And they went to a house where the child was, not a manger where the baby lay. Later on in the story Herod would have all the boys in Bethlehem two years old and under killed based on when the wise men first saw the star appear.

The point here is that this star was not a natural occurrence, this was the hand of God moving, and shaping this story. Whether this was an angel or some other kind of thing, only God knows, what’s important is that we recognize that it was Him working to accomplish His will.

And that’s really the point of this account: that God is always, always, always at work to accomplish His will and purposes on the earth according to His Word. It’s not coincidental in the least that the wise men started with a star but ended up with the Scriptures that finally led them to the Son. That’s the way that it works!

God used the wise men to show Herod where the Christ was to be born according to the Scripture. Quoting Micah 5:2, 6 “ ‘And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’ ” 

God warned the wise men not to return to Herod in a dream so they went home another way, God warned Joseph in a dream of Herod’s murderous wrath and told him to take Jesus and Mary to Egypt in order to fulfill the words of the prophet Hosea from Hosea 11:1, “Out of Egypt I called my son.”

In Herod’s jealous rage he had all the boys of Bethlehem two years old and under killed when he learned that the wise men tricked him so that the Scripture would be fulfilled from Jeremiah 31:15, 18 “A voice was heard in Ramah, weeping and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be comforted, because they are no more.” 

And after Herod died an angel appeared to Joseph in a dream again and told him to take his family back to Israel but in fear he didn’t dare go back to Bethlehem so instead went back to his hometown of Nazareth so that the Scripture from Judges 13:5 would be fulfilled, “He shall be called a Nazarene.”

The wise men, the shepherds, Simeon, Anna, Mary, Joseph, John the Baptist, all the different people that we have looked at throughout this study of Luke’s Gospel so far, just like us, all had different journeys to Jesus. But none of them came to a Messiah of their own making or imagination. Jesus was and is the Messiah that God the Father sent according to His Word.

Persia and Babylon had their own gods, they had their own religion, they had their own explanation of how and why the world worked, yet the wise men followed the star to worship the new King. Why would God prompt them to do that? Because there is no other Name in heaven or on earth by which we may be saved!

John Calvin wrote, “God has more than one way of preserving His people. Sometimes He makes astonishing displays of His power; while at other times He employs dark coverings or shadows, from which feeble rays of His power escape. This wonderful method of preserving the Son of God under the cross teaches us, that they act improperly who prescribe to God a fixed plan of action. Let us permit Him to advance our salvation by a diversity of methods; and let us not refuse to be humbled, that He may more abundantly display His glory.”

God is always, always, always, at work to accomplish His will according to His Word, and though we all have different journeys to Jesus, we all come to faith in Him according to His Word, by His grace.

Amen.

By Grace She Saw the Face of God and Lived - Luke 2:36-38 - May 8, 2022

 Luke 2:36-38 By Grace She Saw the Face of God and Lived

Good morning! Turn with me in your Bibles to Luke chapter 2, verses 36-40, page 858 in the pew Bibles.

It was wonderful having the crew from BICS here last week, next Saturday we will be traveling down for Daniel’s graduation from the program. But today we are going to go back to the Gospel of Luke and the day that Mary and Joseph presented baby Jesus in the Temple at Jerusalem.

You may remember from our last time in Luke that a man named Simeon sang a song of worship to God for allowing him to see the Lord’s Christ, and today we are going to look at one who came alongside and sang the harmony to his song.

36 And there was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived with her husband seven years from when she was a virgin, 37 and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She did not depart from the temple, worshiping with fasting and prayer night and day. 38 And coming up at that very hour she began to give thanks to God and to speak of him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem. 

Let’s pray.

Well, what do we know about Anna? This is pretty much it, this is the only time she is mentioned in Scripture, there are no other references to her at all. She’s pretty obscure but there is still much we can learn from her.

In our world today there is so much vying for our attention, TV and movies are shaping how we live, our phones are listening to us to target us with the right kind of marketing so we’ll see the types of products that fit our conversations and interests. 

We are constantly bombarded with influences outside of the Word of God. And think what you will about that, whether it is good or bad, but we do have to be careful to measure who and what kind of people we allow to influence us.

The people that have the most influence on our lives are the ones of whom we think the most. And if it’s people that we think the most of that have most influence on our lives we have to ask ourselves, what is it about them that garners our respect?

In the world’s system, those that garner the most respect are those with money, and power, and talent. 

Maybe respect isn’t the right word but “attention” certainly is. There is a constant battle for our attention in this day and age, and who we give our attention to affects the way we see the world and how we act while in the world.

I’d like to contend today that the world’s system of who and what should have our attention is the exact opposite of that of the Kingdom of God in Christ. Today’s text is an example of that.

Luke didn’t write an account of some billionaire, socialite, politician, movie star, athlete. He wrote about a little old lady who got to meet Jesus.

Anna is not an example of wealth, and power, and privilege, she is an example of faithfulness, godliness, and chastity. John Calvin said, “These are the qualities that justly give to men [and women] weight and estimation.”

There is much we can learn from the character of Anna, and much we can adopt of her example.

St. Ambrose wrote, “Christ received a witness at his birth, not only from prophets and shepherds, but also from aged and holy men and women. Every age, and both sexes, and the marvels of events, confirm our faith. A virgin brings forth, the barren becomes a mother, the dumb speaks, Elizabeth prophesies, the wise men adore, the babe leaps in the womb, the widow praises God … Simeon prophesied; she who was wedded prophesied; she who was a virgin prophesied; and now a widow prophesies, that all states of life and sexes might be there.” 

Luke wrote that Anna was a prophetess, she was an inspired teacher. The strict definition of a prophetess is a woman who proclaims inspired utterances on behalf of God. Also, her name means, “grace.” It is not at all coincidental that the Lord chose to speak the Gospel of grace through a woman whose name means, “grace.”

It’s interesting to note that though we know Anna was a widow, her husband’s name wasn’t mentioned but her father’s name was, his name was Phanuel of the tribe of Asher. While this is the only time this particular Phanuel is mentioned in Scripture, his name is not without meaning either. He was named after Jacob’s Phanuel, in Hebrew pronounced Peniel where Jacob wrestled with the angel in Genesis 32:30 which says, So Jacob called the name of the place Peniel, saying, “For I have seen God face to face, and yet my life has been delivered.” Peniel, Phanuel, means, “the face of God.”

Phanuel’s daughter Anna, by God’s grace, also saw the face of God in the child Jesus that day in the Temple in Jerusalem.

While those are interesting facts, it is Anna’s example and her character that we can all learn the most from. She had the qualities that justly give her weight and estimation.

Anna was long a true widow. She wasn’t a widow for eighty-four years as some translations have it, she was eighty-four years old and became a widow after being married only seven years, she was somewhere between 19-23 years old when her husband died.

The Apostle Paul gave us the definition of a true widow and how to care for them in 1 Timothy 5:3-16.

3 Honor widows who are truly widows. 4 But if a widow has children or grandchildren, let them first learn to show godliness to their own household and to make some return to their parents, for this is pleasing in the sight of God. 5 She who is truly a widow, left all alone, has set her hope on God and continues in supplications and prayers night and day, 6 but she who is self-indulgent is dead even while she lives. 7 Command these things as well, so that they may be without reproach. 8 But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. 

9 Let a widow be enrolled if she is not less than sixty years of age, having been the wife of one husband, 10 and having a reputation for good works: if she has brought up children, has shown hospitality, has washed the feet of the saints, has cared for the afflicted, and has devoted herself to every good work. 11 But refuse to enroll younger widows, for when their passions draw them away from Christ, they desire to marry 12 and so incur condemnation for having abandoned their former faith. 13 Besides that, they learn to be idlers, going about from house to house, and not only idlers, but also gossips and busybodies, saying what they should not. 14 So I would have younger widows marry, bear children, manage their households, and give the adversary no occasion for slander. 15 For some have already strayed after Satan. 16 If any believing woman has relatives who are widows, let her care for them. Let the church not be burdened, so that it may care for those who are truly widows.

Getting married again after being widowed was not forbidden clearly, nor was it a sign of weakness of character, but for Anna to remain a widow for so long does speak to the strength of her character.

She put a priority on worship of the Lord over her own desires and affections. She decided to worship the Lord continually in the Temple night and day. Her pattern of self denial is also evidenced in that she added fasting to her prayer.

A quick note on fasting. Fasting is denying yourself food for periods of time for no other purpose than to help oneself focus solely on prayer. Fasting is often mentioned in conjunction with prayer in the New Testament. It is not designed to be a public display but a private and personal act only to aid prayer. It is also not a requirement but rather it is a personal act of devotion and worship. 

Verse 37 says that she didn’t depart from the Temple, worshipping with fasting and prayer night and day. This is a bit of hyperbole, we would say, “she’s there all the time,” or, “she never leaves the Temple,” even if we just meant that she’s just there a lot. 

Either way, she put a priority on communing with God in the Temple, pouring out her heart to Him, praying for the redemption of Jerusalem that the coming of Messiah would bring.

Anna also communed with the saints, verse 38 says, “And coming up at that very hour she began to give thanks to God and to speak of Him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem.”

Her praises joined Simeon’s and she spoke to all those around her that were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem. 

These were the Old Testament saints, just as we are New Testament saints, we are looking back in faith to the first coming of Messiah, but they were looking forward in faith. 

They weren’t hoping for a political or temporal Messiah as the Pharisees were and many Jews today still are, they were hoping for a spiritual Messiah, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world by faith.

And Anna’s faith was rewarded, her faith became sight that day when she got to see Jesus Messiah with her own eyes.

Anna is a saint worth imitating, her consistency, her holiness, her prayerfulness, and her self-denial. 

She was rewarded because she was faithful with so little, we now have the whole canon of Scripture, the testimonies of the saints, the witness of His church, and the indwelling Holy Spirit, may we be as faithful as Anna was as we hope for Messiah’s Second Coming!

Anna’s name meant, “grace.”

The Good news of grace is that Messiah has come, His Name is Jesus, and He has taken away the sins of the world, if we turn from our wicked ways and trust in Him. For it is by grace through faith in Jesus Messiah that we are saved.

May we all, like Anna, by grace through faith, see the face of God in Jesus and live.

Amen.