To understand this ceremony we need a little background. The early Hebrews believed that the firstborn
male of humans and animals belonged to God (Exodus 13:1). They were "consecrated" or holy" to God.
"Consecrated" (NIV) or "holy" (KJV) in verse 23 is the Greek adjective hagios, "pertaining to being
dedicated or consecrated to the service of God, in the cultic sense 'dedicated to God, holy, sacred,'
i.e., reserved for God and God's service." Firstborn animals were sacrificed. But in the Old Testament,
Yahweh is very clear that the child sacrifice practiced by the surrounding pagan religions is abhorrent
to him (Leviticus 18:21; 20:2-5; 2 Kings 16:3; 2 Kings 23:10; 2 Chronicles 28:3; Jeremiah 7:31; 32:35;
Ezekiel 16:20; 20:26, 31).In the Exodus, the firstborn sons of Egypt are killed due to Pharoah's
stubborn refusal to let the Israelites go, but the firstborn of the people of Israel are "passed over"
because of the Passover sacrifice made by each family."The Lord also said to Moses, 'I have taken the
Levites from among the Israelites in place of the first male offspring of every Israelite woman. The
Levites are mine, for all the firstborn are mine. When I struck down all the firstborn in Egypt, I set
apart for myself every firstborn in Israel, whether man or animal. They are to be mine. I am the Lord.'"
(Numbers 3:11-13) For the firstborn of non-Levites a redemption price was five shekels was paid
(Numbers 3:46-47; 8:16-18; 18:16; See also Exodus 13; 22:28-29; 34:19-20; 18:15-18; Deuteronomy
15:19-20). The redemption price was a way of supporting the priesthood in their priestly service to God.
"The ceremony," says Edersheim, "consisted of the formal presentation of the child to the priest,
accompanied by two short benedictions -- the first one for the law of redemption, the other for the
gift of a firstborn son, after which the redemption money was paid."But the presence of Jesus in the
Temple on this occasion is curious, since the presentation and redemption could be made to any priest
-- and not just in Jerusalem. Nor is the redemption money mentioned in this account. Perhaps, instead of
being redeemed, Jesus is presented in the Temple for God's service, in the same way that Samuel was
presented before the Lord in his mother Hannah's words, "So now I give him to the Lord. For his whole
life he will be given over to the Lord" (1 Samuel 1:28, cf. 1:22).
Simeon Luke 2:25-28 The Three points
1. Let's begin by saying, "Simeon kept showing up." Week after week, month after month, year after year,
just showing up at the temple, just being there. Who said 80% of success is just showing up? The first step
is just being there.We don't know for sure how old Simeon was. How often had he come? How long had he
waited for this day? Did he begin each day pestering God, asking, "Lord, is this the day you promised?"
Did he even question his own confidence in the promise God had given him? Could it be there were times
when he muttered "What a fool I've been! Why go on looking for something that may never come?" But he
kept showing up in the temple. And if he hadn't, he would have missed it. He would have missed the child.
He would have missed the opportunity to touch and see the promise. He would have missed out on this
personal encounter with Jesus.A part of what it means to be a disciple of Jesus is just showing up to be
part of the worshiping family of God; to be present in study, fellowship, service for God in the world; to
laugh with your friends, to cry once in awhile, to learn from others and to be open to God's spirit and
surprise. Special opportunity offered us in Lent. Do you avail yourself of that opportunity? It's called
faithfulness. Keeping faith. I am sure there were times when Simeon would have rather been somewhere else
than in the temple; times when he was bored with the whole affair and questioned why he even bothered,
but to be faithful means being present with God's people. And one day, his faithfulness was rewarded .
There is a good the story about the guy who woke up on Sunday morning and said to his mother,
"Ah, Mom, do I have to go to church today? Nobody's friendly, the choir is awful, the whole thing is
boring...give me three good reasons why I should go to church." And his mother responded, "Well, first,
you're a Christian and it's Sunday. Second, you're 35 years old. And third, you are the priest."
2. Second thing about Simeon ...he kept looking forward. There was a future orientation to his
faith which he could not shake, or more to the point, could not be shaken by events around him. He lived
with a vision of what God could do and would do in his lives and his world. At a time when he could have
spent his time looking back - "Ah, the good old days"...- Happier, healthier days- Days before the Roman
occupation and the suffering of the present...He could have been spending his time reminiscing about how
good it used to be. Instead, Luke says Simeon was "...looking forward to the consolation of Israel,"
looking forward to what God had in store; looking, with feeble, fading eyesight, to catch a glimpse of
the God's new tomorrow.It doesn't seem to matter how young or old we are in years, it's easy to become
discouraged. It's easy, in our day, to give up on the future, and sometimes for good reason. Let's be
honest. We all know, it's a tough world we live in. I'm not going to list all the disasters and oppressions
we face at every turn. It would be easy to give up on hope and to face the future with dread. But the
person who trusts in God, a person who puts his or her faith in God's promises, will discover a ray of
hope in every hopeless situation and will live with confidence.It is easy to get discouraged in this world,
but with Simeon, I believe that God is still at work, and the vision of God's kingdom come on earth, even
as it is in heaven gives us hope for each new day.I've experienced in the essays I've marked from students
of theology who are in their 60s,70s and 80s, old Simeons and Annas in the Eastern Cape, Limpopo and
Kwazulu-Natal, who endured the years of apartheid with all the apartheid education, waiting and hoping for
a new day of freedom. But no matter how young or old, there are those who keep looking forward with a future
oriented faith that anticipates what God can do and they have a vision of God's shalom for this world
Simeon kept showing upHe kept looking forward.
3. And he kept on singing. This song of Simeon is the last song of the many songs of
Advent and Christmas in Luke's Gospel. In our Anglican Church whenever we celebrate "evensong," or
compline the text of Simeon's song is used in the liturgy. It's a song of hope assured, a song of promise
believed, an inclusive song of love for Gentile and Jew alike, a song of peace for all people.He really
hadn't seen much of course - just a baby in his mothers arms, just a glimpse of the future, just a glimmer
of what God might do through this child. He hadn't seen much but it was enough to keep him singing. Think
for a moment of those numerous Simeons (and Annas) in your life and ministry. In the different parishes
you have worshipped in. Ann Mason - 103 before the Lord fetched her home yet so cheerful. Tommy Munnik
not perhaps so old but so faithful in his caring for others. I never met him but his repuitation goes
before him in this parish. All these in their own way, just kept on singing a song of faithfulness
- just showing up singing a song of hope, looking to the future; singing a song of joy.
And you are never too old, or too young, to sing. The invitation is to all. Lent is about to begin so I
invite you to join in the song of Simeon by:
Keep showing up
Keep looking forward
Keep on singing
As we go into a time of silence [for 20 minutes] I'm going to leave a picture of the Purification by Bellini.
Please free to use this picture as a way of understanding the feelings of Simeon, Mary, Anna and Joseph.
See their eyes - what are they saying?
What is their body language in the picture saying?
How can their response be linked to your response to Jesus?
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![[Dorothy's Pic]](../dorothyg.jpg)