Intro
Thanksgiving is over and December is here, therefore Christmas season is in full swing and officially here! (Though it did seem to be in full swing even before Thanksgiving with all the decor in the stores, but that’s another story.) I’m glad you came back to read part two in my four part series: Christmas Characters. Today’s characters I’m looking at are Simeon and Anna. These two people worshipped in the temple daily for decades. Both were incredibly prophetic and had some amazing (and hard) things to say to Mary, Joseph, and baby Jesus. So let’s jump right into it.
Who Were They?
These two Christmas Characters could actually be considered barely a part of Christmas. After all, they didn’t come to see Jesus and it’s 8 days after His birth before they do see him. But that doesn’t really matter. What matters more is that they recognized Jesus as the Messiah while He was still an infant. This is going to be the common thread for all the Christmas Characters.
Back to the characters, I already hinted that both Simeon and Anna were incredibly gifted in prophecy. And both were also pretty old. Though the Bible only calls out Anna as old. It doesn’t give any indication on just how old Simeon was. But there’s a couple of specific lines in there that I believe suggest he was getting up there in age. I’ll explain more about that later. But for now, ladies first.
Anna
There was also a prophet, Anna, the daughter of Penuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was very old; she had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, and then was a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying.
Luke 2:36-37 (NIV)
We know a bit more about Anna than we do Simeon. For instance, Anna came from the tribe of Asher and her father’s name was Penuel. We also know that she got married and lived with her husband for seven years until he passed away. Plus, Luke records her as a prophetess. And finally, she lived at the temple and prayed day and night until she was 84. The original text could actually be translated as saying she was a widow for 84 years after her husbands death. That would put her over 100 years old by this point! Either way, Anna spent the majority of her live devoted to God, fasting, praying, and worshipping at the temple without ever leaving. That’s powerful.
I find it interesting that she didn’t actually leave. Did the priests give her living quarters because they recognized her as a prophetess? In those days, widows were supposed to be taken care of by family if they never got remarried. So the fact that she lived at the temple could also suggest that there was no family nearby who could help her. Perhaps her family lived too far from Jerusalem and the temple that she so longed to be near. Or perhaps most of her family wasn’t living or were unwilling to help. Who knows. In any event, she lived in the temple day and night and devoted herself to God.
The results of being totally devoted to God were that she was regarded as a prophetess by all and she immediately recognized Jesus as being the Messiah. Verse 38 tells us that when she saw baby Jesus “she gave thanks to God” and then proceeded to talk about Jesus to ” all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem” (Luke 2:38).
Takeaways
As with my last post, I will point out key takeaways from the lives of each Christmas Character. For Anna, I think it’s pretty obvious. Living a life of devotion to God. Now that doesn’t mean you should go and live at your church and do nothing else but worship and pray (and eat and sleep, presumably). For one, I don’t know about your church but ours doesn’t have showers, so if you don’t go somewhere else to take one periodically….
But barring that, each one of us can still live a live of worship that is devoted to God. Walking in step with Holy Spirit and doing all that He calls us to. And when we do, we become more and more sensitive to His leading and His speaking and we will recognize and see things in others that we can call out and encourage them with. That is one of the main reasons the gift of prophecy exists. Did you know that? We are to call out the gifts and abilities that God places inside each one of us and encourage each other to use them. I can only imagine how uplifting this experience was to Mary and Joseph.
The other key takeaway is that Anna told everyone who would listen that the Messiah had arrived. And that’s another thing that we need to do. Tell people about Jesus. Jesus commands it in Matthew 28.
Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Matthew 28:18-20 (NIV)
Simeon
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. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. 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, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying:
“Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you may now dismiss your servant in peace.
For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all nations:
a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of your people Israel.”The child’s father and mother marveled at what was said about him. Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother: “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too.”
Luke 2:25-35 (NIV)
As I hinted earlier, we don’t know a whole lot about Simeon. And yet, he gets more verses than Anna does! But what we do know is powerful. First we know he was a righteous and devout man who was waiting for the consolation of Israel – one among many. Luke also states that Holy Spirit was upon him and moved him to go to the temple that day – the fact that Simeon responded suggests strongly that this was not the first time and probably happened with some regularity. We also know that Holy Spirit told him he would not die until he saw the Messiah. When I take this line with what Simeon says upon taking Jesus in his arms – “you may now dismiss your servant in peace” – I see an elderly man who has lived his life and is ready to go home.
When we read Simeon’s statements, we can also discern that he is a very prophetic man as well. Which makes sense since Holy Spirit is upon him and Simeon is frequently moved by Him. Like Anna, he immediately recognizes Jesus as the promised Messiah and declares Him to be God’s salvation, a light to the Gentiles, and the Glory of Israel. And then his prophetic message takes an interesting turn. He states that Jesus will cause the falling and rising of many (likely indicating that some will see Jesus as the Messiah and others will not), will experience opposition, and will reveal what’s in the hearts of many others. And we can see this throughout Jesus’ earthly ministry. Lastly, he tells Mary that a sword will pierce her soul. Many, including myself, see this as a direct reference to the pain she will bear watching Jesus be crucified.
Takeaways
So what are the takeaways from Simeon’s life? I see a few things. First, even though Luke doesn’t state it, we can surmise that if Simeon is so in tune with Holy Spirit, then he – like Anna – must’ve be devoted to pursuing God. Second, we see that when Holy Spirit moved, Simeon obeyed. We need to move and obey God when He directs us to. Third, we should be willing to be used by God. And lastly, never give up hope for the fulfillment of a promise from God. Simeon had a direct promise from God that he would see the promised Messiah before dying. And he held onto that promise and saw its fulfillment. This one is similar with the story of Zechariah and Elizabeth. Elizabeth held onto hope while Zechariah lost hope. Despite his age, Simeon did not lose hope in God’s promise.
Wrapping Up
Have you noticed some themes cropping up from these first two posts about Christmas characters? A lot of old people!
In all seriousness, there’s a few common themes I see. First, all these people were righteous, devout people who sought God and waited for promises. And there’s a theme of hope woven throughout their stories. Anna and Simeon held hope in the promised Messiah – and both got to see Him before they passed. Elizabeth held hope that she would bear a child. Zechariah had that same hope at one time, but lost it.
The last thing I see are a lot of prophetic voices. Holy Spirit moved on all these people. We see Elizabeth recognize that Mary carried the unborn Messiah and declare her the “mother of her Lord”. Zechariah prophesied that his son, John, would become a prophet, prepare the way of the Lord, and teach people salvation and forgiveness of sins. Simeon prophesied that Jesus’ ministry would be opposed, would teach truth, would reveal the hearts of many, and would suffer – bringing pain to Mary. We don’t see Anna – a prophetess – declare any type of prophetic message over Jesus or His parents, but – like Elizabeth and Simeon – she immediately recognizes Him as the Messiah through Holy Spirit and proceeded to tell everyone who would listen about Him.
As I continue through the next two Christmas posts, I think these same themes are going to continue to come up. And these themes of hope in God’s promises, seeking God as righteous and devout people, and being sensitive to Holy Spirit’s leading and speaking are all things we need to day in our lives. Think on them and pray for them in your own lives.
Outro
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