Luke 2:30-35
Yesterday we looked at this passage from the perspective of
who Simeon was and what he would do.
Today we turn our attention to the most significant thing that he did
that was recorded in Scripture. He
blessed the Lord Jesus as a baby in the temple and gave all those present a
description of who Jesus was and made a declaration about what Jesus would
do. The fact that Jesus was a special
child sent from God had to have been very evident to all who were in the temple
that day. Apparently very few took
Simeon’s words to heart. They may have
thought that they were just the ramblings of a crazy old man. As we look at the content of what Simeon said
there are two things we must ask ourselves: Do we believe in who Jesus was and
what He did to purchase our salvation?
Are we faithfully telling others about the person and work of Jesus so
that they might be saved?
A DESCRIPTION OF WHO JESUS WAS: Simeon’s description of Jesus
reveals three truths about Him. First,
He is the Savior of all peoples. Jesus
was not just a Savior of the Jews. He
was not just a Savior of the rich, powerful or influential religious leaders. Jesus was and is the Savior of the
world. All nations, all classes of
people, all genders from all the sectors of society are availed to salvation
because of Jesus. Man is helplessly trapped
in sin and desperately in need of rescue.
The Son of God came to this world in order to offer salvation to all
peoples. Second, He is a light to the
Gentiles. For many generations God had
blessed the nation of Israel with the revelation of His Word. The Law that was given through Moses and the
revelations of the prophets were all given to Israel. They had been blessed with the light of God’s
revelation so that they might be a blessing to all the nations of the world by
revealing His light to them.
Unfortunately, that did not happen.
Instead, the large majority of Israel rejected and disobeyed the light
that they were given and those who claimed to be in the light did all that they
could to prevent the other nations from seeing the light. The coming of Jesus marked a new era of
spreading the revelation of God to all nations.
This was the task that Jesus left His disciples and the task to which
each of us must dedicate our lives today.
Unfortunately there are still thousands of nations that are still stumbling
in darkness without any knowledge of Jesus.
Third, He is the glory of Israel.
We must not think that because Jesus came to save that world that He has
somehow forgotten or rejected Israel.
God has chosen this nation to bless in a very special way. History records the intense suffering that
this nation has faced due to their disobedience and idolatry. They have been scattered all over the world. There have been many attempts to exterminate
them. However, against all odds they
continue to have a strong national identity.
God has a special and glorious plan for Israel. He truly is the Messiah. There will be a time when the nation of
Israel will recognize Jesus as Messiah.
King Jesus will rule and reign over all of Israel and over all of the
nations in a glorious kingdom that will extend through all of eternity. We can expect a glorious future for the
nation of Israel when the Lord Jesus returns to this earth at His second coming. Jesus is the Savior of all people, the Light
of all nations and the glory of all Israel.
A DECLARATION OF WHAT JESUS WOULD DO: Who Jesus is allows
Him to accomplish what He came to do.
Simeon makes three clear declarations to Mary and Joseph as well as all
who heard him in the temple as to what Jesus had come to earth to do. First, He came to judge the nation of
Israel. This was a defining moment in
the history of Israel. The rise and fall
of the inhabitants of Israel at the time of Christ would be determined by their
response to Jesus. The proud and arrogant
that considered themselves to be the elite of the nation would reject Jesus as
their Messiah because He did not fulfill their expectations. These powerful and wealth people would fall
under the wrath of God and Jesus would judge them as unbelievers. The humble people who believed that Jesus was
the Son of God and trusted in Jesus as Messiah and Savior would be lifted up by
Jesus. They would be saved from their
sins, be filled with the Holy Spirit and be used of God to proclaim His glory
in all nations. There was a clear choice
to be made about Jesus and every person had to make that choice between pride
and humility, rejection and faith, condemnation and salvation. That same choice extends to all of us
today. Second, He came to make the
sacrifice for sin on the cross. Simeon
made is clear that Jesus would face much opposition and warned Mary that her soul
would be pierced with a sword. The Lord
Jesus Christ had been born to die in order to pay for the sins of the
world. Imagine the horror of Mary as she
stood at the foot of the cross an watched the Son of God to whom she gave birth
suffer utter humiliation and pain as He died for her sins and the sins of all
men. The elite of Israel were expecting
a reigning Messiah who would throw off Roman oppression and usher in a time of
peace and prosperity. That day will
still come but the Jesus Simeon held in his arms would first suffer and die as
God’s sacrifice for sin. His shed blood
is the only means by which man can find forgiveness. Third, He would reveal the hearts of
men. There are many who try to blame
their sin on Satan or the society in which they live. They insist that they are, in essence, good. Nothing could be further from the truth. In order for a man to be saved from sin; he
must first recognize his desperate need of salvation. As long as a man trusts in his own goodness
and blames his failures on Satan, others or even God; he cannot be saved. Jesus came to reveal the sinfulness of our
own hearts. His Word and the Holy Spirit
open up our hearts so that we can clearly see our desperate need of salvation. The religious leaders of Jesus’s day judged
themselves as being righteous. Jesus
came to reveal that their hearts were full of pride and wickedness. In reality, all of our hearts are full of
pride and self-righteousness. Jesus came
to show us our own sinfulness so that we could receive the salvation He came to
offer.
APPLICATION: Rejoice in the wonderful truth that Jesus has
come to save sinners through His sacrifice on the cross. Respond to His offer of salvation in faith
and by faithfully proclaiming His offer of salvation to all the nations of the
world. Hope steadfastly in that glorious
day when He will return and we will live in His presence for all of
eternity. Examine our own hearts in
light of the Word of God and in the power of the Spirit of God so that our sin
might be cleansed and forgiven through faith in Jesus.
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