Simeon's Song: Nunc Dimittis Luke 2:22-35 Sermon 5 January 8th, 2012     In 2007 the movie, The Bucket List, was released starring Morgan Freeman and Jack Nicholson. If you saw the movie, you’ll recall that Jack Nicholson is a rich corporate executive and Morgan Freeman is a simple mechanic. They meet in the hospital where they share a room. Both have been diagnosed with a terminal illness. Nicholson’s character is grumpy and angry about his condition while Freeman’s character is hopeful and positive. They begin to interact and ultimately decide to leave the hospital and embark on a journey to fulfill their “Bucket List.” (The Bucket list is the things they want to do before “kicking the bucket.”) They end up going skydiving, climbing the pyramids and riding motorcycles on the Great Wall of China .   Since the movie, people have compiled their various bucket lists—things they want to do before they die. I suppose we all have a bucket list: Some would like to climb Mt. Everest. Some would like to find true love and get married. Some would like to go skydiving. Some would like to meet a famous person.   Our last Christmas Oldie is about an elderly saint named Simeon with his own bucket list. Now I don’t know what the Hebrew term for bucket is, but I do know that Simeon had one. This elderly saint lived with one primary desire to have fulfilled before he died. His bucket list had just one line item on it. He was asking for something, actually, he was waiting for someone. When this person arrived, he’d be happy to die, yet until his bucket list was finished, he waited in hope.   Someone wisely wrote that, “Hope is the trusting expectation that God is going to keep His word.” I don’t know many hopeful people, do you? Hope is an endangered species in today’s culture. It’s very rarer to meet an elderly person who’s filled with hope. If we do, we need to sit up and take notice, because here’s someone who could be pessimistic, cynical, filled with fear and anxiety, and yet instead is brimming over with firm hope. When you meet someone like that, pay attention…you’re going to learn some things.   And that was Simeon. When he held baby Jesus in his arms in the temple courtyard, we see more than just an old man taking hope in a newborn. Rather, we see an old man who has put his hope in the promises of God. Simeon knew that this was no ordinary newborn! He was the fulfillment of God’s promises to His people. As we observe this elderly saint with this child in his arms, we learn some valuable lessons about the hope we all so desperately need. My friend, mark it down! Those who hope in God’s promises in Christ will always be rewarded.   Let’s look first at the hope that Simeon had and how it was rewarded. Then we’ll look at the object of his hope. If you’re taking notes… 1. To hope in Christ means to live righteously and expectantly in the power of the Holy Spirit. In 1945, in the Nazi concentration camp, Auschwtiz, these words were found scratched on a wall by the liberating Allied troops: “I believe in the sun, even though I don't see it shine. I believe in love, even though I don't see it expressed. I believe in God, even though I can't hear Him speak.” What kind of person could endure such horror could write words filled with so much promise and hope? Only someone who deliberately chose to see the unseen, and that was Simeon.   a. To hope in Christ means to live righteously. Simeon is described as both “righteous and devout” (vs. 25). “Righteous” means that his behavior in the sight of God and towards others was in accordance with God’s standards. He wasn’t a phony, practicing his good deeds to be seen by others. He quietly and consistently obeyed God, even when no one was looking. “Devout” has the connotation of reverent. It sometimes means careful. It means that Simeon wasn’t careless about his spiritual life. It’s easy to just skim over these two words in a flash and miss that they reflect a lifetime of cultivation. No one accidentally becomes righteous and devout. Simeon dilegenlty cultivated his walk with God.   The key to Simeon’s righteous life can be seen in his view of himself in relation to God. The word “Lord” in vs. 29 is an unusual one. It’s used only five times in reference to God. We get our English word “despot” from it. It means “absolute ownership and uncontrolled power.” Simeon saw God as the Sovereign Lord who had prepared His salvation and had graciously allowed Simeon to see it. Simeon also saw himself as the slave of this Sovereign Lord. Slaves have no rights. They belong to their owner and their only obligation is to obey, so Simeon had a high view of God and a humble view of himself.   Keep in mind the times in which Simeon lived. The Jewish religious leaders were largely political and shallow spiritually. There had been no prophet in Israel for 400 years. Israel had been oppressed by one invading army after another during those long centuries. Even now they were ruled by a corrupt king, King Herod, under the iron heel of Rome . It would have been easy for Simeon to have been caught up in the politics and nationalistic fervor of the times and to wonder skeptically, “Where are these great promises of God for His people?” Instead, he volitionally chose to be righteous and devout.   If we hope in Christ, we must be careful that we live righteously. We will view God as the Sovereign Lord, our Master, and ourselves as His slaves. We’ll search His Word to determine how He wants us to live and will walk with Him every day. To hope in Jesus Christ means to live righteously.   b. To hope in Christ means to live expectantly. He was “waiting for the consolation of Israel ” (vs. 25). That’s referring to the time prophesied by Isaiah (40:1-2) when God would comfort His people and remove their sins by sending His Anointed One, the Messiah.   How long had Simeon been looking? Probably all his life! It would have been easy for him to think, “Generations have come and gone and these promises have never been fulfilled. Why expect that it will happen in my lifetime? Just settle in for the long haul, and give up this notion that Messiah will ever come.”   Do you live expectantly? Do you expect God to answer your prayers? Or, are you surprised when one gets answered? “Must have been a coincidence!” Do you expect the Lord to return soon? Maybe you’re thinking, “Come on, people have been expecting that for over 2,000 years, and it still hasn’t happened.” But those people were the better for living each day expecting Him to come in their lifetimes. In our day the signs of His coming are all around us. Will the Son of Man find faith in us when He comes? (Luke 18:8) People of hope live expectantly, waiting on God to fulfill His promises.   c. To hope in Christ means to live in the power of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is mentioned three times in vss. 25-27: “the Holy Spirit was upon him.” “It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit…” “He came in the Spirit into the temple.” Here’s an Old Testament saint, living before the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, and yet he probably lived more in the fullness of the Spirit than most Christians do today!   Have you ever asked yourself, “If God were to withdraw His Holy Spirit from me, would I even notice the difference?” Would your week have gone any differently than it did if the Spirit had pulled out? What about in the Church? Are most churches even conscious of the working of the Spirit? Are we?   To walk by the Spirit means to depend on Him consciously for everything you do. You depend on Him to resist temptation. You ask Him for insight into His Word. You rely on Him for the right attitude in the midst of trials. You depend on His strength to persevere. You seek Him for wisdom in difficult decisions.   When you live in the power of the Holy Spirit, your life is permeated by hope in God. Paul wrote, “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope” (Rom. 15:13). Joy and peace and hope are the complete opposite of depression and anxiety and despair. That verse doesn’t just apply to certain personality types, or to those who are in relatively trouble-free situations. As you learn to live in the fullness of God’s Spirit, the God of hope will fill you with His joy, peace, and abounding hope! If you lack these things, don’t get more depressed in hearing me say this. Instead pray to God every day and ask Him to fill you with the Holy Spirit. To hope in Christ means to live righteously and expectantly in the power of the Holy Spirit. 2. Those who hope in Christ will be rewarded. God rewarded Simeon’s hope, so that he held in his arms the Lord’s Anointed, as the Holy Spirit had promised. Simeon was a fulfilled man. There’s no hint of regret in his voice, no bitterness, no remorse at having spent his life as he had. He was rewarded in at least three ways. These apply to all who hope in God:   a. Those who hope in Christ are rewarded with an understanding of the things of God. Simeon had an amazing grasp of spiritual truth. Remember, when Jesus was born, King Herod had to call for the chief priests and scribes to discover what the Old Testament said about the place of Jesus’ birth. And while they could give the correct answer, they missed the experience of it. So it was revealed to humble shepherds and now, to this godly old man who’d been waiting on God for this very event.   Simeon understood through the Holy Spirit that this very Child in his arms was the Lord’s promised Anointed One. He knew that not all would welcome Him. He knew that there would be great opposition resulting in much anguish for Mary (vss. 34, 35). From Isaiah the prophet, Simeon knew that this Child would be for Israel “a stone to strike and a rock to stumble over” (Isa. 8:14). Godet shrewdly observes, “Simeon discerned beneath the outward forms of Jewish piety, their love of human glory, their hypocrisy, avarice, and hatred of God; and he perceives that this child will prove the occasion for all this hidden venom being poured forth from the recesses of their hearts…We feel that this old man knows more about the moral condition of the people and their rulers than he has a mind to tell.”   Even the disciples seemed to be caught off guard by the opposition Jesus faced. They certainly didn’t expect the cross. Yet, Simeon seemed to know that Jesus would cause division and opposition. He knew God’s revelation was also for the Gentiles. His understanding of the things of God enabled him to be stable and unaffected by the tidal waves of evil around him.   That’s the kind of understanding we should seek as we hope in Christ. While we must be careful and diligent students of God’s Word, the kind of knowledge we should seek is not just academic. We should pray that we’d have insight into the ways of God so that we would have divine wisdom to discern our times and live in godliness in this evil day.   b. Those who hope in Christ are rewarded with the fulfillment of their godly desires. For Simeon, this one moment in the temple made his entire life worth living. His deepest desire in life had been to see the consolation of Israel , the Lord’s Christ. Maybe he expected to see a powerful king riding in on a white stallion or sitting on a throne. What he actually saw was a common couple with a newborn baby, going through the everyday ritual of sacred cleansing and presentation as prescribed in the Jewish law. But the Holy Spirit revealed to Simeon, “This is the one.” He responded, “I’m ready to die now that I have seen this Child!” His godly desires had been fulfilled.   Prov. 10:24, “The desire of the righteous will be granted.” Ps. 34:10, “They who seek the Lord shall not be in want of any good thing.” Ps. 84:11, “No good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly.” As Ps. 37:4 promises, “Delight yourself in the Lord; and He will give you the desires of your heart.” Where did we ever get the idea that if you follow the Lord, He will make you miserable? As a loving Father, He will satisfy the desires of our hearts if we hope in Him.   Obviously, this doesn’t mean that the Lord will grant all of our selfish wants. Each of those promises contains a condition: He grants the desire of the righteous. Those who seek the Lord will not lack any good thing. He doesn’t hold anything back from those who walk uprightly. He gives the desires of the heart to those who delight in the Lord. When you delight yourself in the Lord, His desires become your desires. The focus of your prayers becomes, “Father, hallow Your name, Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” If you’re hoping for your kingdom to come, your hope will be frustrated. If you’re hoping for His kingdom to come, your hope will be abundantly fulfilled because His kingdom will come in power and glory. And those who hope in Christ will be rewarded with an understanding of the things of God and the fulfillment of their godly desires.   c. Those who hope in Christ will be rewarded with the readiness for death. “Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word” (vs. 29). The picture here is of a sentinel being relieved of his watch. In fact, Simeon’s song is named after the first two words in the Latin translation, Nunc Dimittis, "now dismiss." Simeon has watched for the Messiah all his life. He’s seen Him now and is ready to be relieved of his duty and go Home. He’s ready to die in peace because he’d seen Jesus.   Please mark it down. If you get nothing else, YOU MUST GET THIS! YOU are not ready to die until you’ve seen Jesus. I don’t mean, “see Him” literally or in a vision. What I mean is that you’re not ready to die until you’ve seen Jesus Christ as God’s anointed Savior and you have welcomed Him into your life as your own Lord and Savior. But once you know that the blood of Jesus has covered all your sin so that you can stand before the Holy God in the righteousness of His Son, then whether you live for another 60 years or 60 hours, you can know that the sting of death is removed because Jesus bore it all for you. You’re ready to die in peace.   Our great hope as believers is not economic or material or relational or political or experiential. The great hope for the believer is not here, in this life, but in heaven. Our focus on heaven is to shape our every day in this fleeting life. May I point out, if your hope is in this world, you will never have peace because EVERYTHING in this world can be lost. If your hope is in this world, you’ll live in fear, worry and stress. For the believer whose hope is truly in Christ and not in the things of this passing world, he/she is ready to depart and be with Christ, which is far better (Phil. 1:23).   To hope in Christ means to live righteously and expectantly in the power of the Holy Spirit. Those who hope in Christ will be rewarded. But how can we know that our hope is not just wishful thinking? How can we be sure that our hope will not disappoint us? Because…   3. The Christ we hope in is God’s promised Savior. Everything we hope for is centered in the person of Jesus Christ. If Jesus is not who the Bible proclaims Him to be, we’ve put our hope in an empty wish. Please note how Simeon describes the child in his arms: He’s “the consolation of Israel ” (2:25). He’s “the Lord’s Christ,” the one prophesied of throughout the Old Testament (vs. 26). He’s God’s “salvation” (vs. 30), “a light of revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of Your people Israel ” (vs. 32). He “is appointed for the fall and rise of many in Israel ” (vs. 34). This is no common Child!   Briefly note four facts about Jesus Christ.   a. He was born without sin, but identified with sinners. Though this passage does not mention Jesus’ virgin birth, it’s important to affirm it here. Liberal critics who seek to undermine the authority of God’s Word, pick up on the reference to Jesus’ father and mother. They say that they are amazed at Simeon’s words, concluding that Luke here used a source that was unaware of the Virgin Birth. But in the previous chapter (vss. 26-38) Luke makes the virgin birth quite plain. So either Luke was stupid to use a source within the space of a chapter that contradicts what he just affirmed or the critics are stupid. Take your pick!   The reference to Jesus’ father and mother is simply the outward perspective. The fact that they marveled shows that they were in the process of collecting the various pieces of the puzzle as to who this Son of theirs really was. The fact that Jesus was conceived in Mary by the Holy Spirit while she was still a virgin preserved Him from sin and means that He alone is qualified to save us from our sins.   Yet, though Jesus was sinless, He still identified Himself with us in our sin. He was circumcised according to the Law (vs. 21), a picture of God cutting away the sinfulness of our hearts so that we are set apart unto Him. He was dedicated to the Lord as the Law prescribed. His mother went through the ritual purification required by the Law. Later, Jesus would submit to baptism under John. He did not go through any of these rituals because of His own sinfulness; He did it so that He would be identified with the people He came to redeem from their sins.   b. He was born to save people from every nation from their sins. God chose the nation Israel as His means of bringing salvation to all the earth. Jesus was the light of God’s revelation to the Gentiles, who were outside the covenant people of God. That God used Israel to bring salvation to the world brings glory to Israel as His chosen people. Yet, when Israel rejected Jesus as their Messiah, God brought a partial hardening to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in; and then all Israel will be saved (Rom. 11:25, 26).   The point is, Jesus Christ is not only the Savior of the Jews; He’s the Savior of every person from every nation who will call upon Him. It’s the glory of the gospel that wherever it goes, no matter how primitive or pagan the culture, no matter how sophisticated or opulent, when people believe in Jesus Christ, their lives are transformed as they are delivered from the penalty and power of their sins. Jesus is God’s salvation for everyone.   c. He was born to bring judgment to those who oppose Him. He “is appointed for the fall and rise of many in Israel , and for a sign to be opposed” (vs. 34). For men to fall, they first must be standing. This verse simply means that those who view themselves as upright before God in their own merit will stumble and fall over Jesus because they refuse to lay aside their pride and to trust in Christ alone for salvation. But those who confess their sin and their need of Him will be raised up to eternal life. Jesus’ coming brought opposition from the proud because He revealed the thoughts of their hearts. Just as the sun rises to give us light, it also casts shadows. Just as Christ came to bring salvation, He also brought judgment to those who refuse to submit to Him.   d. He was born to bring salvation through His death. A sword would pierce Mary’s soul (vs. 35). This is a prophetic reference to the anguish Mary would feel as she witnessed the crucifixion of her Son. Simeon may have had in mind Isaiah 53:5, “He was pierced through for our transgressions,” or Zechariah 12:10, “They will look on Me whom they have pierced.” Through the Holy Spirit, Simeon understood what even the disciples failed to grasp until after the event, that the Christ had “to suffer these things and to enter into glory” (Luke 24:26). Without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness from our sins (Heb. 9:22).   If you’re trusting in your own goodness to get into heaven, you will fall on the judgment day. Yet, if your trust is in the shed blood of Jesus Christ, who is God’s only Savior, you’ll be welcomed into God’s holy presence on that day. Can you say with certainty: “Jesus Christ is my salvation?”   Conclusion: God offers salvation to all by the suffering of His Messiah, Jesus Christ. The Bible's concept of salvation isn't developing a new self-image but being rescued from our sin. And this deliverance is for all. It’s not based on income, race, sex or status, 1 Tim 4:9-10, “This is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance …that we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, and especially of those who believe.”  Jesus is the Savior of all people. This was His mission. It’s why He came, according to Matt 20:28 to "give his life as a ransom for many."  So have you received this gift of salvation? Have you been delivered from your sin? If Christ is your salvation, you can have hope no matter how difficult your circumstances.   During World War II, some American prisoners in a German concentration camp secretly received word of the Allied victory three days before the Nazis heard of it. During those three days, their circumstances were no different. They still suffered all the privations they’d become used to. But their attitude changed dramatically. They now had hope and a wave of hope spread among the prisoners. Victory and liberation were assured! They could endure those last three days because they had hope.   Today whether you’re suffering from a deadly disease or grieving over the loss of a loved one or facing overwhelming trials, you, too, can have hope if you will trust in Jesus Christ as God’s salvation for you. He has won the victory over sin and death and hell. Those who hope in Him will not be disappointed!   As we end today, let me send you out on this Christmas Oldie with some take home truths, some lessons from the lyrics of Simeon’s Song:   * We need to be in the right place in order to hear from God. Simeon was in the Temple at the right time. Joseph and Mary made it a habit to follow what the Word says and also took Jesus to the Temple when He was 12.   Parents, get in the habit of putting you and your family in the right place by going to God’s place every week. Determine to be in either an ABF or a Bible study this year. Have your children in Sunday School. When you put yourself in the right setting, make sure you’re ready to hear and obey. Please don’t just fill a seat. Let the Spirit fill your heart.   * Don’t ever give up. Wait patiently for God’s promises to be fulfilled in your life. The lesson of Simeon’s life is “Don’t quit!” Don’t give in to the darkness and despair. Hold on to the One who is holding on to you. Keep watching and waiting for God to show up. And in the meantime, don’t stop doing what’s right.   * Cultivate being filled and led by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is repeatedly mentioned in Simeon’s song. There are so many voices crying out to us today, we must choose to listen to the voice of God instead of to all the other ones competing for our attention. When the Holy Spirit prompted Simeon to move, he didn’t sit still. I wonder what would have happened if he hadn’t responded? Please don’t procrastinate when God prompts you to do something, you may miss out on a miracle if you do.   Here’s an action step. As you’re reading your Bible, ask God these kinds of questions: “Who do you want me to talk to? What do you want to teach me? Why have you put me in this place and in this position right now?” So instead of being upset when your plans change, look at that interruption as a divine appointment to speak with someone or to learn a lesson that God is trying to teach you. Go on a God-hunt. Look for Him in the ordinary and unexpected parts of your life.   * Begin to marvel again. Are you a marveler? Does God’s gift of His Son still cause you to marvel? Or, are you too caught up in the busyness, stress and hecticness of life? Have you been running around because of the Holidays? Did you take the time to make Christmas a “holy” day? Has your Christian walk become too predictable, too familiar? Have you heard the gospel so many times that it no longer astonishes you?   Sometimes going to church can be a dangerous thing. It can over-familiarize us with Christ’s sacrifice. We begin to take it for granted and begin to think that God owes us something.   Many of us need to fall in love again. There’s something exciting about meeting Jesus for the first time. Some of us need to come back to that.   * Remember that no one is ready to die until he/she receives the salvation that only Christ can give. When Simeon took the baby Jesus in his arms, he said, “Lord, I’m ready to go home now. I can die in peace.” Are your family members or friends or co-workers or neighbors ready to die? Have you told them about Jesus?   It’s popular in America to sit on the fence regarding the person of Jesus Christ. Simeon is saying no one can do that. Everyone has to make up their mind. Either He is the Son of God from heaven, or He’s not. If He’s not, then He’s the greatest fraud in human history, and worthy of our deepest scorn. But if He is the Son of God, then the only possible response is to bow down and worship Him!   * Jesus is not just the reason for the season…He is the reason for living…and for dying. We can’t authentically sing the carols of Christmas in public until we have come to know Him personally. Simeon took Jesus personally in his arms…and so too, you must personally receive Him. John 1:12 says, “Yet to all who received Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God.”   The whole point of a bucket list is to maximize every moment of our existence so that we live our lives to the fullest. Most people who create these lists put down what it is that they want to do, but Simeon’s list was created by God Himself.   So here’s a critical question. What does God have on your bucket list? The question is not, “What do I want to do before I die?” The question is this: “What does God want me to do?” The only thing on Simeon’s list was to see the Lord. What about you? What are you living for? Does it matter? Will it count forever? For eternity? Do you need to rework your bucket list? Simeon was living in hope, waiting for Jesus to come. Are you living for Jesus? Are you living in hope, waiting for Him to return?