25 Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was on him. 26 It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. 27 Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required, 28 Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying:
29 “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised,
you may now dismiss[a] your servant in peace.
30 For my eyes have seen your salvation,
31 which you have prepared in the sight of all nations:
32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles,
and the glory of your people Israel.”
[so sorry for the extremely late post!]
The Holy Spirit reveals to Simeon that he would not die before seeing the Lord. As promised, Simeon is holding Jesus in his very own arms and begins to praise the Lord.
This passage should give us great hope and confidence in our Lord. His promises are true and never failing. I know that I put my confidence and hope in people and things other than the Lord, believing that it will bring me the ultimate joy that I desire. Of course those people have failed and hurt me, and those things have given me temporary joy if even that. May we be able to come to Lord in full confidence that His promises hold true in our lives, as long as we live according to His will. May we not undermine our Lord.
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2 comments:
thanks esther for a moving and honest reflection which was such a good reminder to me that all of God's exceedingly great and very precious promises, no matter how impossible they seem, will come to pass at the appointed time.
Thanks for sharing your reflection Esther. I reread this passage today and a couple things stood out to me.
Simeon was moved by the Holy Spirit to enter into the temple courts.
I wondered if he felt or was aware of the Spirit moving him. I guess the reason I wonder at this is my own desire to do as the Spirit leads but not knowing when the is Spirit leading. Perhaps it's an issue of obedience and the aspect of not knowing is just an excuse?
The Holy Word of God describes Simeon as righteous and devout and I was tempted to think that that is why Simeon was filled with the Holy Spirit to proclaim the salvation God had promised but that I have yet to grow into a devout and righteous person that can be lead by the Holy Spirit. Indeed, I am far from righteous and devout. Yet I can't dismiss the fact that our Lord Jesus promised to send the Holy Spirit to us His disciples who believe in Him, who love Him, who follow His commands. That means the same Spirit that led Simeon is in us as Jesus said in John 14:17 "But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you."
Perhaps it's an issue of Faith after all. Simeon was righteous and devout because he believed in God's promise of salvation and he lived to see it fulfilled. He lived to see God's promise fulfilled!
I am encouraged and challenged to believe in Jesus' promise and live to know Him. Live to know Him, who is with us and in us.
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