(December 29, 2002 sermon transcript)

Luke 2:25-40

        Dear friends in Christ, I am absolutely convinced that every last one of us would like to be at peace. As it becomes reality in our lives, we understand that peace is elusive. It’s hard to find, especially in the crush of all the holiday activities of the Christmas and New Year’s season, in which we now find ourselves.

        About the time we think we have arrived at a period of peace in our lives, life tends to pull the rug out from under us, and quickly and suddenly, we find ourselves no longer at peace, or at least the peace we thought we had.

        I don’t know about you, but that is certainly what life has been like for me, and I think our situation is not all that unusual. What’s more, it’s very important that, as we go through life, we understand that our peace is not dependent on whether or not life is going smoothly. That’s not what true peace is all about. And that is not the peace that this old man, Simeon (who had been waiting good and long years for the arrival of the Christ) was proclaiming when he held the Christ Child in his arms and said, "Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you now dismiss your servant in peace."

        I invite you to listen to the words of this wise old man, this man named Simeon. The peace that is received from God has given voice to our worship. In not too many minutes we shall sing together these very words as a part of our liturgy, following the dismissal for the Lord’s Supper. And we shall sing of the peace which is ours, and which he also understood and heard on that day. So therefore, let us listen, and hear of the peace that this Christ-child, this Prince of Peace, brings to us.

        How can we be God’s people passing through this life in a peaceful way?

        Well, I would say that, first of all, it doesn’t seem very peaceful. That in times of trial and stress we find ourselves experiencing anything but peace. But that is not necessarily the same kind of peace of which this text speaks.

        I would suggest that perhaps we start where Simeon started. And that is, if we wish to be peaceful people passing through this life, for whatever amount of time that we have, that we need to be someone who is steeped strongly in God’s Word.

        In Simeon’s day, it was prior to the NFL football season. There were not as many distractions then. Or at least not of the same variety or kind. And so what we have before us is a society, and indeed an entire culture, that understood the high calling of being connected with God’s Word.

        And so we see in Simeon’s life, children were brought up to learn large portions of the scriptures by heart. Committed to memory. And parents understood their role as being the primary instructors of the faith. Also of course, complemented by the synagogues of the day, as they came each Sabbath to hear God’s Word.

        And so, we find a much different scenario in our day. In our day, we find that the teaching of the faith is given over to the church. Parents are saying to their kids, "Well, you just wait until you get to confirmation age, and then the pastor will teach you." Or worse yet, more secular parents say, "Well, we’ll just not teach them anything about the faith so that when they grow up they can make up their own mind." To which I would respond, "I would like to know where this neutral ground is that you will find between now and then, where people can be somehow engaged in life without any connection to the spiritual." And I would say that that is an impossibility. They will be influenced spiritually, the only question is, "By what forces?" And if they are not impacted by God’s Word, and by godly parents, I guarantee you that they will be impacted in other ways, that are not nearly as positive.

        I would suggest too, that adults in that society kept on learning the scriptures. Indeed, church was the center of the culture. And we think of that as a primitive culture! What a misnomer that is! They were an enlightened culture. They were a spiritually strong culture. So much so that Rome made exceptions to their usual rules about banishing all religions except the Emperor Cult of Rome. And so the people of Israel were permitted to continue their worship life.

        What’s more, something very special had been given to Simeon, in addition to all of this good child-rearing and adult scripture-oriented type of culture. And that is that he had been given a very special revelation directly by God, that he would not die until he beheld with his own two eyes, the very promised Christ of God.

        And so we find ourselves at this text today, with that promise having been kept.

        So let us draw a conclusion. Anyone wishing to know peace, in either this life or in preparation for the life to come, should be thoroughly grounded in God’s Word. Therein do we find the peace that we seek. Therein did Simeon find his peace.

        I would suggest also, that we be people who live lives of hopeful and anxious, if you will, in the right sense of the term, expectation. Simeon, of course, was living in that expectation. He was told that the Christ would come, and that he would see Him. I don’t know if he was told that he would actually hold the child, but sure enough, that’s exactly what transpired.

        We know that Simeon believed because God had given him a promise. And he also knew what this promise entailed. He knew, for instance, that this child who was to come would be the Christ, that is, the Messiah. He knew, very specifically, that this would be the Peace-child, if you will. The one who now creates peace between God and man. And the only way that peace can be established is through the forgiveness of sin. And so this child who he welcomes into his arms is the one who forgives Simeon’s sin as well as the sin of all humankind. He is holding in his arms, the one, the only, the singular hope of all the world, in whom salvation rests. And in whom peace alone can be found.

        There’s something else too. We are at somewhat of an advantage over Simeon. You would think not, given the fact that he was given a direct promise from God. Something to look forward to, and the kind of thing that we sometimes pray for, when we say, "Please God, just show up and take care of my problems and my doubts."

        But I tell you, we have more than Simeon had. Or as Paul Harvey would put it, we know "the rest of the story".   We know exactly how it is that God, through this Son that He now has in Simeon’s arms comes to forgive the sins of the world by leading Him to a cross, and by there being our substitute for sin, and by there granting to us that gracious salvation which is ours alone through the One who lives for us, fulfilling the law which can cannot. And who dies for us, paying a penalty that we cannot pay.

        And so God graciously tells us by His word, how it is to happen. Simeon could not clearly understand that. Once more, we know how that payment for sin was rendered, how this Holy One of God, who beyond all measure is the most perfect human who ever walked the face of the earth, now becomes the sacrifice for sin, for you, and for me. And that when He pays the penalty for our sin, it is our punishment that He receives. And that punishment, having been rendered, will not be demanded of us again.

        And we know something else that Simeon did not clearly know. And that is, how Christ would rise from the dead. Oh yes, in the Old Testament there was an understanding of the resurrection of the dead, but how it was to come about was not all that clear. It was just understood to be so.

        But in Christ, we know. In Christ we see the end. In Christ we see the result of that victory over sin and death on the cross by His victory over that grave, which could not ever contain the One who did not sin, and who is the Savior of the world.

        So who is it who brings us peace, for this world and the next? It is the one and only Prince of Peace! I personally am extremely grateful that that particular title, among many, is given to our Lord Jesus Christ. I personally am terribly, terribly appreciative of the fact that God, in Christ, reconciled the world to God, the Father in Heaven, by virtue of that One who is the Prince of Peace.

        That, of course, is what all the fuss is about at Christmas-time. That is exactly why we hear the angels singing glorious tidings of good news, and peace to men on earth. That is exactly what He brings. And then God gives us pictures of peace to help us understand it. Simple, yet awesome. We come to manger with those shepherds and kneel there, and say, "This is it? This is the child? This little one in such rude estate?"

        This one is the Savior. This One is the Prince. And here is our Peace. You will not find it anywhere else. It is only found before the manger that holds the One who is the Prince.

        And so dear friends, I would suggest that this is not just a cultural event, this thing called Christmas. It is not like the fourth of July, or the celebration of Kwanzaa. It is, in fact, the central event of all human history, this One who comes to live, and to die, and to rise again, so that all humankind finds its hope solely in this One. For no other answer has been provided us. And no other means by which we can do anything with our sins. We are utterly dependent on Him, this little one in Mary’s arms, and now in Simeon’s arms.

        And only here may we find the peace that we seek.

        It is amazing then, that not all will listen to the message. It is somewhat astounding, and yet not so, that this greatest message that the world has ever heard is often turned aside. And what is substituted for it is a search, not for dependence on Christ, but on independence from Him. Rather than seek to find our hope and our peace in this One who was sent to establish hope and peace, people opt for their own ways of finding their own peace.

        They say, "I will please God with my good works. I will please God by becoming very intelligent and knowing a lot. I will please God by simply experience the Divine within myself." And the reasons and the hopes of the worldly view just go on, and on, and on, and all in terms of finding a way to get around the Christ, who alone is the prince of Peace.

        And so you see, all of this becomes extremely personal. Christ is not someone we can speak of as an abstract concept. Because, number one, He was a real person, a real human being. And we cannot take a human being and simply abstract Him into some theory. And what is more, when Christ is before us, either He is our Rock of Ages or He is a stumbling stone. Because if we want to depend on ourselves for our own redemption, and for the finding of our own peace, then Jesus is clearly, and squarely, in the way, and He is a stumbling stone.

        I would say to you, that this proclamation of God’s peace, this Word made flesh, who lives and dwells among us, is the one and the only one, who can possibly grant us what we want, and what we need. And that is real, lasting and eternal peace. And that peace is not just for the future. It is for now. For now, as we continue in this earthly sojourn, we know His peace as we wait.

        Simeon, we are not told, I’m sure however, lived for some time after seeing the Christ-child. We don’t know the number of days, of months, or if he walked outside the temple and fell over dead. We are not told. But for whatever time he had left, I am absolutely convinced that he used that time to convey to people what he saw. To know the peace that passes all human understanding. To tell the people of the coming of the Christ-child, and to share the good news of the gospel that redeems us, and that He brings.

        And then, there’s the prophetess Anna. If you crunch the numbers right, she was about 106 years old. And then, I expect she had yet some days left, following her viewing of the Christ-child, and I’ll bet she used them wisely, and I’ll bet she used them well. Just as Simeon did, to tell the story of this Peace-child who has come.

        And so I would suggest to you that we have some days remaining as well. Indeed, we have an unknown quantity of days, as did Simeon, as did Anna, as does every individual on the face of the earth for the whole history of the earth. How many days do you have left? How many years? No one’s volunteering any answers! Good idea! Because we don’t know.

        And I would suggest that we use them as Simeon used them, and as Anna used them. I would suggest to you that having held the Christ-child in our arms, as we do when we hear His word, that having experienced the very presence of Christ, as we will when we gather at the altar this day to receive His very body and blood in payment for our sin, please understand that we have a sacred gift in our hands. A sacred gift of an unknown quantity of time. A sacred gift in which we are privileged to do as Simeon did, to proclaim to people the one solitary source of peace in this world. To proclaim the name of Jesus Christ, and to say what blessing He has brought us, and to share that precious word with them.

        On September 11, 2001, a date which is now engraved in our minds with probably more clarity than we would desire, literally thousands of people died a violent death at the hand of terrorists. Every single day, thousands of people die. They die from heart attacks, and cancer, loneliness and whatever else people die from. But the circumstances under which they pass do not determine whether or not there is peace. Whether or not people died in the World Trade Center or in car accidents or from disease, means little in comparison with the understanding that their relationship with the One who is the Prince of Peace, is the single most critical thing in all of life, and at the time of death.

        So dear friends, I would suggest to you, that only in Him is there either peaceful living or peaceful dying. And so this Christmas season, once again you are invited. You are invited to come to a mean, meager little manger in Bethlehem, and kneel before it as shepherds have done, and to offer there your praises of thanksgiving. And then we can echo the words of Simeon ourselves. Lord, as you have promised, you now dismiss your servant in peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation which you have prepared in the sight of all people.

        God grant you a peaceful Christmas season, as we await the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.