Year A

Luke 2:22-40

The Very Rev. Denise Vaughn

Waiting and Seeing

You’ve heard of the old saying, “Good things come to those who wait”? If so, the story of Simeon, Anna and the baby Jesus with Mary and Joseph in the temple is a good example. The coming of Christ involved all manner of waiting on God. A young maiden, a dying man and an old widow all model for us hearts and lives turned over to God. This entire story is a tale of grace and bears the mark of the Holy Spirit. According to Luke, 40 days have passed since the birth of Jesus, and today marks 40 days after our celebration of Christ’s birth at Christmas. Those of us in the “Bible for Dummies” study have learned that the number 40 occurs over and over in the scriptures to designate important time periods. For example; Jesus fasted “forty days and forty nights” before his temptation in the Judean desert. Forty days was the period from the resurrection of Jesus to the ascension of Jesus.

And now, the 40 days had passed since Jesus was born and it was time for him to be dedicated in the temple, as required in the Torah, the “Law of Moses.” We read in the book of Exodus, that the firstborn male is to be dedicated to the Lord. Just as the “first fruits” of the harvest were set aside to the Lord as a tithe. The Church for generations has dedicated male and female babies in the Sacrament of Baptism. Baptism is the presenting, the giving over of a child to God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit and in just a few minutes, little Allison will be dedicated to God and marked as Christ’s own forever.

In today’s church, we usually wait longer than the 40 day period before we baptize a child, unless the child is sick. I was born into the Roman Catholic tradition and was baptized when I was seven weeks old or around 49 days. My daughter was baptized when she was 4 months old. She was raised in the Episcopal tradition but her husband was raised as a Baptist and all my grandchildren have been baptized in the Baptist tradition, where children are usually baptized around the age or younger than when we confirm them in confirmation. My youngest granddaughter, who is now 7, was baptized several months ago in the Atlantic Ocean. They did allow me to dedicate all my grandchildren soon after they were born using the service in the BCP titled “A Thanksgiving for the Birth or Adoption of a Child, of this I was thankful.

Today in our story, Mary and Joseph return to the Temple to dedicate their firstborn son. There was nothing outwardly to distinguish them, no marks or signs that indicated they were anything other than another poor young couple coming with their newborn son. The law required that a woman bring a lamb for a burnt offering and a pigeon or a turtledove for a sin offering. The poor could take two turtledoves or two young pigeons instead. Jesus was born of humble origins. His parents could not afford to buy a lamb for the sacrifice. But the Lamb would later be sacrificed as Jesus, the Lamb of God, who would take away the sin of the world.

At the same time Mary and Joseph presented Jesus in the Temple, an old man, righteous and devout, Simeon by name, was guided by the Spirit to the Temple. Upon seeing the baby Jesus, Simeon was moved to prophesy that this child was destined to change the world. Simeon saw the baby Jesus as the fulfillment of all the hopes and dreams of the Jewish people. He would bring the redemption of Israel. He would also be a light for the Gentiles and His presence would expose the secret thoughts of many hearts for he would be a prophet unlike any other prophet. Also, at the Temple was an old woman. Her name was Anna which means “grace,” and she was a prophetess. She had spent the eight decades of her widowhood at the Temple fasting and praying.

The story of Simeon and Anna is a story of grace as they were graced by God. God blessed Anna’s faithfulness by allowing her to see the Savior of the world as a tiny, newborn baby. God fulfilled the promise he made to Simeon that he would not die before he saw the Messiah. When God fulfilled that promise, Simeon uttered the words that are known as the Nunc Dimittis-often read in the Daily office of Morning or Evening Prayer found in the BCP. “Lord, you now have set your servant free to go in peace as you have promised; for these eyes of mine have seen the Savior, whom you have prepared for all the world to see: a light to enlighten the nations, and the glory of your people Israel.”

And we read Mary and Joseph were amazed and Simeon blessed them and then said to Mary, “This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel” and it all happened exactly as Simeon predicted. Many would fall and rise at his coming. The rich and the powerful would turn away from the Savior. The mighty would be cast down from their thrones and the haughty in their conceit not recognize their Lord. Ultimately, Jesus’ love for all people leads him into a struggle against oppression that results in his crucifixion. The joy of Christmas leads on to the agony of Good Friday. When Mary watched her son die, a sword pierced her soul. The Scriptures do not separate the cradle from the cross as this little baby was born to die. Yet, this little baby was also born to save the world.

Jesus rose from the dead to show us that God cares and loves us. God’s salvation doesn’t mean that we will never suffer troubles, illness, rejection or death. It happened to Jesus and Mary and it will happen to us but if we live with faithful obedience as seen in the lives of Simeon and Anna we are promised we will be able to recognize where God is working in our lives. Like Simeon and Anna, and all who have been dedicated to the Lord, we are heirs of a promise, prompted by the same Spirit and called to make a difference. It takes faith to know a blessing from God. It is the joy of celebrating God’s goodness in the midst of our chaotic, suffering world. As life passes us by, a question to ponder, is how do we grow old in such a way to end well and finish waiting faithfully for the coming Christ?

So on this Holy Day, as we get ready to dedicate another child to God, just as our Lord was dedicated that day in the temple, let us rededicate our lives to practice faith, hope, attentiveness, obedience, love and patience for our eyes have seen God’s salvation. When we receive the bread and wine during Holy Communion, the Lord’s very presence is with us. The body that was nailed to the cross for our forgiveness we have seen it with our own eyes and felt it with our own hands and on our tongues. Having been saved, we glorify God and depart in peace to share Christ’s salvation, to share Jesus, the hope and light of the world. “For good things come to those who wait and with eyes to see.”