The Gospel of Luke tells us that Mary and Joseph followed the rules. They brought him to the temple, they offered a sacrifice of a pair of doves or two young pigeons . . . they presented Jesus to the Lord. They had sought the blessing that all parents seek for their children . . . except . . . except they also receive two unexpected blessings as they were going through the ritual. Blessings from two unanticipated individuals.
These two unforeseen individual--Simeon and Anna, were regular fixtures in the temple. Both were quite old in age. Simeon was on a mission, and that mission was to see the Lord’s Christ . . . the Savior . . . the Messiah. It had been revealed to him through the Holy Spirit that he could not die until he saw this savior with his own two eyes. Thus he waited in the temple for that day when the Savior would be revealed to him. Anna, was a prophetess . . . a very devout . . . fasting and praying, day and night in the temple. She, too, waited for some divine sign from God . . . some message.
Entering the temple, Mary and Joseph encounter Simeon . . . who gushes over the child. In this child he recognizes that which he has been waiting for . . . the Savior, the Messiah. He declares with great gusto the role of this child as the savior not only to Israel, but to the whole world. He blesses the child. Then he turns to Mary and tells her that though this child will be a blessing, there will also be grave consequences to this blessing. Simeon tells her: “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of may 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.”
Then Anna comes up to them. Like Simeon, she too, gushes over the child. She gave thanks to God and declared the child to be the one “who all were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem.” In her own way, Anna too, delivers a blessing.
Now, I don’t know about the rest of you, but on those days that Dana and I brought our children before the congregation to dedicate and bless, we were filled with great joy and hope in what we were doing. In our actions were handing over to God our children to be blessed with all the love and grace that is God. We were proclaiming our children to be God’s gifts to us. We dreamed of the promise that they would be, and rejoiced in the gifts that they were. Most of all, we hoped for the best . . . for them . . . for ourselves . . . and, for God. And, as I said, it was a joyful time.
I expect that it was not much different for Mary and Joseph; and, yet, it was much different. Sure, there was the joy, but there was also an ominous feeling accompanying the blessings. There was a contrast in the blessings they received.
Of course, the Gospel of Luke does not tell us whether or not Mary and Joseph were perplexed or anxious about the blessings they had received from Simeon and Anna. No, basically it tells us that they did what they were supposed to do, returned home to Nazareth, and that Jesus grew, became strong, was filled with wisdom, and that the grace of God was upon him. Pretty much a typical childhood, wouldn’t you agree?
So, it would seem. But, as a parent, I know that I listen to what others say about my children . . . the good, the bad, the affirmative, the negative--all of it. And, as a parent, I know how the words of others about my children play upon my heart. Thus it is that I can only imagine what the words of Simeon must have done to the heart of Mary. In her moment of great joy, she receives that not only is her child going to be a great blessing to the people of God, but that he will also be a thorn in their side. And, to add a little spice to his words, he tells her: “And a sword will pierce your own soul too.”
Talk about raining on someone’s parade!
I think that Mary and Joseph thought about what they had heard . . . what parent wouldn’t? Such a contrast in blessings. But as time went on, and life seemed pretty normal, I imagine that they both pushed those words to the back of their minds . . . that they chose to focus on the present moment. It would not be until much later that they would come to see how the blessing of Simeon would be played out.
With the birth of Jesus, the season of Advent ended and the season of Christmas began. The season of Christmas is the shortest season of the Christian year . . . a mere twelve days. In those twelve days the faithful celebrate the gift of the Christ Child . . . a gift of love and grace. At the same time, the faithful receive the blessing . . . and, an ominous warning. That warning is that this will not be typical blessing . . . that it will be one that will take a tragic turn before it is fulfilled. The words of Simeon reminds us this.
The blessing of God . . . the life and story of Jesus . . . begins with a bang, but it ends with a shock before it is full received. Though we are celebrating the gift of Jesus during this Christmas season, we cannot let ourselves forget the rest of the story . . . the ministry, the preaching, the healings and miracles, the betrayal, trial, and eventual crucifixion. It is all a part of the blessing . . . the fulfillment of the blessing.
It seems strange to consider the contrast of these blessings because we want to focus on the positive of the blessings . . . to receive the gift . . . to receive the salvation. Nowhere in the Gospel of Luke did the writer ever write, “And they lived happily ever after.” No, the blessing was not that simple . . . through this small child, we follow his life and example, in which he ultimately demonstrates the greatest act of love . . . he gave his life for those he loved. You and me.
Though we are apt to push those contrasts to far reaches of our mind, especially during this Christmas season . . . they will still be there to remind us. Simeon reminds us with his words of blessing, that sometimes the blessing doesn’t come until the very end. And, that between the utterance of the blessing until it fulfillment there is a lot that can happen . . . even the unimaginable. On that first Christmas day, the world was blessed with a promise . . . a promise that was not fulfilled until Jesus laid down his life for the lives of all. At first glance, Simeon’s blessing doesn’t seem much like a blessing; but, in the end, out of what seems a terrible mistake comes the true gift . . . the love and grace of God for all.
This Christmas season, let us celebrate the gift and wait for the blessing. Amen.
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