By Jeffery M. Leonard, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Biblical & Religious Studies, Samford University
THE LIGHT AND GLORY OF GOD
Luke 2:25–35
A common refrain among sports fans is the famous line, “Wait till next year!” It is the sort of line that gets tossed around when, yet another season has ended in disappointment. As a diehard Red Sox fan, I know a bit about “Wait till next year.” While the Sox have won their share of World Series victories over the past two decades, there were many years when it seemed the boys from Boston would never win again. Eighty-six years passed from the Sox’ World Series win in 1918 and their improbable victory in 2004. Eight-six is a lot of “Wait till Next Year.”
Sports is by no means the only area of life where waiting can try the soul. Many of us have felt that same trial as we have waited anxiously for our teenage children to return home safely from an outing. We have felt the tension of waiting for a doctor’s office to call with the results of an uncertain medical test. We have waited on pins and needles through a difficult pregnancy, hoping desperately that a new child or grandchild would arrive healthy and whole. We all know the challenge of experiencing hope deferred.
The Sage in Proverbs put matters this way: “Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life” (Prov. 13:12). There are moments when we have hoped for something for so long that we begin to doubt whether it will ever come to pass. Among the characters in the story of Jesus’ birth, we know one figure had actually lost hope. As Zechariah and his wife had grown old but without children, Zechariah had come to believe parenthood was an impossibility for them. So profound was his loss of hope on this point that he even doubted the words of the angelic messenger who informed him directly that Elizabeth would soon conceive (Luke 1:18). Surely similar doubts must have been felt by another character in the Nativity story: Simeon.
Simeon was promised he would not die before seeing the Messiah. (25–27a)
The truth is that we don’t know a great deal about Simeon. We don’t know what tribe he was from or what his profession was. We can’t be sure whether he was a Pharisee or a Sadducee or something else. It certainly appears he was well on in years, and we know that he had lived those years righteously. Luke describes him as righteous and devout and emphasizes his careful submission to the Holy Spirit. One last thing we know about Simeon was that God had promised him he would not die before he saw the Lord’s Messiah. As the Holy Family approached the temple to present Jesus, that moment for Simeon had finally arrived.
Simeon prophesied Jesus would bring light to unbelievers. (27b–32)
Guided by the Spirit, Simeon made his way to the temple complex. There, he laid eyes on Jesus and the pivotal moment of his entire life took place. Simeon took the infant Jesus in his arms and uttered the prayer known in Church tradition as the Nunc Dimittus, “Now, Lord, you can dismiss your servant in peace.” The arrival of the Messiah wasn’t just a blessing for Simeon, though. Simeon knew that this newborn Messiah was God’s salvation in human form. Jesus, he declares, would be a light for revelation to the Gentiles and glory to God’s people Israel.
Simeon prophesied that Jesus’ life and death would change the world. (33–35)
Simeon’s celebration of the new Christ child was tempered with a warning: This child would “cause the rise and fall of many in Israel.” Clearly, not everyone would embrace this new Messiah. For Mary, Simeon’s warning was of a much more personal nature. She had received words of encouragement about her son from various quarters — the angel who announced His conception, her cousin Elizabeth, the shepherds who conveyed their own angelic message. Now, for the first time, Mary would hear less welcome words: “A sword will pierce your own heart.” Just as Mary now held her helpless baby at the temple, she would one day hold the lifeless body of her son at the cross.
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