Sermon: My Eyes Have See Your Salvation

Luke 2:22-40

Sermon preached by Dr. Mark Smutny

Sunday, January 1, 2012

Pasadena Presbyterian Church

Pasadena, California

Luke 2:22 When the time came for their purification according to the law of Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord 23 (as it is written in the law of the Lord, "Every firstborn male shall be designated as holy to the Lord”), 24 and they offered a sacrifice according to what is stated in the law of the Lord, "a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.” 25 Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; this man was righteous and devout, looking forward to the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit rested on him. 26 It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Messiah. 27 Guided by the Spirit, Simeon came into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him what was customary under the law, 28 Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying, 29 "Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace, according to your word; 30 for my eyes have seen your salvation, 31 which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, 32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel”" 33 And the child's father and mother were amazed at what was being said about him. 34 Then Simeon blessed them and said to his mother Mary, "This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed 35 so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed--and a sword will pierce your own soul too.” 36 There was also a prophet, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, having lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, 37 then as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped there with fasting and prayer night and day. 38 At that moment she came, and began to praise God and to speak about the child to all who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem. 39 When they had finished everything required by the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. 40 The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was upon him.

For those of us who have lived more than a few years, we may look at this troubled world, see its failings and, though we may not want, despite ourselves, we give up hope. We may have poured our energies into making our corner of the globe a better place. Maybe in our earlier years, during a more idealistic time, we worked hard to provide jobs, to house people, to feed them, to educate another generation, to clothe them, to make a more just, compassionate world. Then we may have watched our accomplishments for good erased, abandoned or ignored. We may have looked at the world and seen its greed, its degradation, its immorality and the hope we had slipped away. Our idealism, if we still have it, lies buried, hidden from the light of day.

If you’ve ever felt anything like this, the story of Anna and Simeon is for you. It’s a story that proclaims there’s never a time to give up hope.

Our story begins with Mary, Joseph and the young Jesus entering the temple. Mary and Joseph are there to dedicate Jesus to a lifetime of service to God. There in that holy place we encounter two older adults whose faith should astound us. Two wise people have praying for a lifetime that the hopes and dreams of their people would one day be fulfilled. But would they?

He was an old man, Simeon, with paper thin skin and bad eyes. Then in a moment, after a lifetime of waiting, he holds in his arms, a baby, an old man who had never given up hope--baby skin next to a lifetime of weathered hope. A baby will do that to you and this was no ordinary baby. This was the Messiah.

And the old woman, Anna: she’d spent her entire life in the temple praying for the salvation of Israel: waiting, fasting, mourning, weeping, aching for the pain of her people. When you are in a temple day after day night after night you notice things. You see the procession of people who come into the temple to pray. You notice them not so much when worship services are going on, but during other times. People come in off the streets to find a holy place, a place to pray, a quiet time set apart. You see the unwed mother terrified she will be found out, praying through her tears, praying for God to help her. You see the soldier on his knees praying for forgiveness for what he had done. You see the farmer silently weeping, fearing that his children might starve this winter, even after he worked so hard. Still he couldn’t provide. He begged God for a miracle. If you were in the temple like Anna, back in the shadows of the temple, you’d see and hear all these and more. You would know your peoples’ longing for a Savior, their prayers of hope. You’d would store up a lifetime of listening and praying in the temple so when Anna saw Joseph and Mary and then Jesus, her heart, well her heart just melted and her prayers rushed forward—all the prayers she ever offered, they rushed forward and she knew. Hope was not dead. Hope was alive! God had never forgotten her people. God had remembered. She knew this all along. Her prayers even in the driest times always contained a kernel of hope and now her joy burst forth into song. Song can be the fullest and most complete expression of prayer!

The story of Simeon and Anna is a story of hope. It’s a story of two older adults who have come to the end of their lives, who have lived for eight decades plus and who have seen horrible things: war, injustice, famine and brutality. They have seen heartache, loss and disease. They have known grief. They have felt their peoples’ pain. They could have given up. Yet they persisted in hope. They persisted in prayer in the midst of a land in deep darkness. They waited until the light dawned.

What is hope? We do not so much believe our way into hope as we act our way into hope. We do not so much believe our way into hope. We act our way into hope. For Anna, she acted her way into hope by praying every day for her people her whole life long. For Simeon, he acted his way into hope by coming regularly and consistently to the temple, steadily like a metronome, by seeking out the Messiah until that momentous day arrived. Then when he saw him, he scooped the boy Jesus into his arms and he declared, “My eyes have seen the salvation of my people, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to the people Israel. Now, I may go in peace.”

How do we act our way into hope? We act our way into hope by praying for the things that Jesus treasures. We pray for a world where every child is treasured, where every older adult is remembered, where every man and every woman has a decent job. We pray for peace, for justice, for healing, for God’s peaceable realm. We pray without ceasing. We pray as Jesus taught us to pray. We pray our way into hope.

How do we act our way into hope? We act our way into hope when we take simple steps by caring for other human beings who are neglected: by making that phone call seeking reconciliation with a brother or sister where there is strained relationship; by visiting in the nursing home, by serving in the food bank. We act our way into hope by working through depression by getting up and getting out and exercising, by joining a support group or a Bible study. We act our way into hope by bearing witness to Jesus not just with our words but by our deeds by living compassionate and humble lives whether we are young, old or in between.

How do we act our way into hope? We act our way into hope by serving in the ministries of the church. We feed the hungry, serve as deacons, elders and Trustees, we beautify our campus, we welcome newcomers, lead Bible studies, and visit the sick. We take this marvelous church of ours in this New Year and we will release our imaginations. We think and act creatively, discovering new ways to serve Christ in the church and in the world.

How do we act our way into hope? By working for a nation and community built on the principles of freedom, justice and equality for all people—therefore we meddle in politics as people of faith—not as obnoxious religious fanatics—but as people who believe that God is sovereign over all things and therefore it is our duty to vote and to engage in the political process.

How do we act our way into hope? By living our faith in an active, hope-filled way!

Anna’s wizened eyes scan the entrance to the temple waiting to see what she has given her whole life to see. Simeon waits for the fullness of time—time pregnant with God’s new birth—and these two wise people both see him before there before them and they rejoice. A baby is born and creation shakes, dictators crumble, shepherds kneel, and a light shines in the darkness. Their hearts do flip-flops. Their prayers, the hopes and dreams of a lifetime are worth it. They knew. They never gave up and now their eyes confirm their prayers: they had seen their salvation.

All of us in the span of our lifetimes hope to see all kinds of things: the end of wars, the erasure of hunger, dignity for all people, each child treasured, fed, housed, not one abused. I hope that this church in its multicultural ministry will grow deeper in its understanding and practice of our challenging vision and mission. I’ve already lived to see one grandchild. I’m happy. I hope and pray one day to see Muslims, Jews and Christians in the Holy Land eat together at the same table instead of killing each other as they do today. Will this economy get better soon? I hope so. I’d like a new puppy. American troops are home from Iraq but the war, I fear, is not over. I pray that day will one day come. I fear that war in Iran will be next. Will peace ever come to the Middle East and to Afghanistan? I pray that it will. I will not give up hope.

Will all these things happen in my lifetime? Maybe some will. I pray that they will and as I pray I act my way into hope. Now whether you are 2 or 22 or 102, there is no excuse for not having hope for we all have seen our salvation. A child has been born for us, a son given to us. Amid heartache, war and poverty, amid injustice and human failing, God has been born: a cry of a baby declares the past is finished and gone—all things are new. There is nothing we need to do but receive him and then act as he acts with hope by praying, walking humbly and living compassionately. Then our eyes will see. Hope will be right before our very own eyes. Hope will be born. It will blossom and grow and achieve fullness of stature. Hope will be beautiful. It will be beautiful and strong. Thanks be to God. Amen.