Theme: The True Spirit, Blessing, and Destiny of Christmas
We
read our text from Luke 2:25-35:
25
And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon, and this man
was just and devout, waiting for the Consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit
was upon him. 26 And it had been
revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had
seen the Lord’s Christ. 27 So he came by
the Spirit into the temple. And when the parents brought in the Child Jesus, to
do for Him according to the custom of the law, 28 he took Him up in his arms and blessed God
and said: 29 "Lord, now You are
letting Your servant depart in peace, According to Your word; 30 For my eyes have seen Your salvation 31 Which You have prepared before the face of
all peoples, 32 A light to bring
revelation to the Gentiles, And the glory of Your people Israel." 33 And Joseph and His mother marveled at those
things which were spoken of Him. 34 Then
Simeon blessed them, and said to Mary His mother, "Behold, this
Child is destined for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a
sign which will be spoken against 35
(yes, a sword will pierce through your own soul also), that the thoughts
of many hearts may be revealed."
One
of the best parts of the Christmas season is tuning into Christmas TV and movie
specials. Everyone has their own favorites. You can hardly make it through the
season without, at the very least, seeing advertisements for these memorable
shows. Hopefully you were able to watch your favorite this year.
We
were able to enjoy a few. The thing is with Christmas movies, the theme is
usually the same. It involves bringing the viewer back to a deeper meaning of
Christmas, as a time of joy and believing, not cynicism. The three main
thoughts of our text today, Spirit, blessing, and destiny are abundant themes
in just about every Christmas movie. This year, we watched Rudolph the Red Nosed
Reindeer, The Polar Express, and Elf. Each of those movies ultimately comes
down to the same thing – keeping the spirit of Christmas alive in your heart
and having optimism in your outlook.
There
is certainly a secular way to view these aspects of Christmas. The “spirit” of
Christmas is often portrayed as believing in Santa Claus or the goodness of the
world. The “blessings” of Christmas are often wrapped up in the things of the
world and whether you’ve been good enough to be found worthy. And the idea of “destiny”
in Christmas is often viewed as having a renewed hope and joy for the year
ahead.
These
are not necessarily bad things to think about around Christmas, but the true
meaning of each involves much more. Here we see what these themes are really
about as it concerns the birth of Jesus. And the reminder is welcome for our
lives this morning because spirit, blessing, and destiny have deeper meanings
through our Savior. We ask God’s blessing on our study today.
It’s
fitting that Simeon would be the one to lead us through these unique Christmas gifts,
for he himself was a unique person. We’re not told much about who he
was, but rather this special purpose for which the Lord used him. First, we see
that the true spirit of Christmas is the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit gave
Simeon a special message that he would not die before seeing the Messiah.
Again, we’re not told why specifically this was given to Simeon because
it doesn’t matter. God had a plan and executed that plan through His servant,
Simeon.
The
spirit of Christmas that many people speak about this time of year is more
about human emotion than God’s will. There could be the literal Christmas
spirits of the Christmas Carol or the metaphorical kind of human desires or
emotions. Either way, Simeon reminds us that Christmas is ultimately about the
Holy Spirit. It was the Holy Spirit who led Simeon. It was the Holy Spirit who
revealed the truth to Simeon. And it was the Holy Spirit who kept Simeon’s
attention and hope on Jesus. That hope is found in the phrase, “Consolation of
Israel,” what we’re told Simeon was waiting for. The word “consolation” is just
a synonym for comfort, a blessing from Jesus that we saw emphasized through
Isaiah last weekend. Simeon, like the rest of the Old Testament believers, was
waiting for this by faith. Their hope and comfort was not in some generic human
spirit or feeling, but in the verifiable promise of a Savior that was given by
the Holy Spirit.
It
was also the Holy Spirit that led Simeon to the second gift of Christmas –
blessing. One of the reasons that God led Simeon to find Jesus, Mary, and
Joseph was for blessing. Verse 34 tells us that Simeon blessed them. In
connection with faith, a blessing indicates happiness. Think of the Beatitudes
as an example. The word that Jesus uses at the beginning of each of the
Beatitudes means “happy.” But it’s not the cheap, vain brand of happiness we
see so often in human behavior. Godly happiness means finding meaning and
fulfillment through what God has done for you. Notice the emphasis of
blessing in this sense is on God’s actions for us.
Simeon’s
blessing was not about his achievement, or about Mary and Joseph’s abilities.
It was about God’s accomplishment. This is further shown not only in the fact
that Simeon was led by the Holy Spirit to extend this blessing, but also
because Simeon blessed God. Before his blessing to Mary, Joseph, and Jesus,
Simeon took Jesus up in his arms and blessed God (v.28). This was Simeon’s way
of thanking God for keeping His promise, but it also showed the source of
Simeon’s faith – it was squarely on what God had done for him, and there was no
better example that than the very Child that Simeon held in his arms.
Likewise,
the greatest blessing of Christmas for us is in Jesus – who He is and what He
has done. Christmas blessings are not about packages or possessions. But,
they’re also not about human favor and goodwill. If our focus is on the
blessings we extend to others in the name of charity, we greatly minimize the
true impact of Christmas. There is certainly much that we can and should do in
the name of blessing, but our gifts of mind and action fall drastically short
of what God offers. And the beauty of God’s blessings to us in Christ is that
it allows us to serve one another with greater clarity, purpose, and effect. Blessings
derived from faith in Jesus receive their power from Jesus Himself. That
goes above and beyond what we are able to offer apart from Him.
It’s
not difficult to see the profound effect that God’s blessing had on Simeon,
granting him gifts that he could not attain on his own. Simeon’s song says it
best: "Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace,
According to Your word; 30 For my eyes
have seen Your salvation 31 Which You
have prepared before the face of all peoples, 32 A light to bring revelation to the Gentiles,
And the glory of Your people Israel." If God has given us such a gift
through His Son, why wouldn’t we want all the world to hear about it and
believe it? Christ’s blessing by faith is so much more powerful than human
wishes of goodwill.
The
final aspect of Simeon’s Christmas proclamation helps us see why the
blessing of Christ is so powerful. It comes back to destiny. Destiny is a big
theme around Christmas, in part because of its close connection to the New
Year. Christmas offers a time for self-reflection of the past year and a gaze
toward the future. That view puts the theme of destiny directly before us. Our
hymns reflect this reality also. Verse 1 of “O little town of Bethlehem” speaks
of destiny.
1. O little town of
Bethlehem,
How still we see thee
lie!
Above thy deep and
dreamless sleep
The silent stars go by;
Yet in thy darkness
shineth
The everlasting Light;
The hopes and fears of
all the years
Are met in thee tonight.
And
so Simeon also brings destiny to mind, speaking to Mary: "Behold, this
Child is destined for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a
sign which will be spoken against 35
(yes, a sword will pierce through your own soul also), that the thoughts
of many hearts may be revealed."
The
idea of destiny is perhaps the most manipulated concept of Christmas. Destiny,
in human terms, around Christmas focuses on our dreams, aspirations, goals, and
accomplishments. Again, much like Christmas spirit, these are not bad things,
but we set up a dangerous scenario for ourselves when we think only of destiny
as an earthly pursuit. That’s because the idea of destiny is ultimately about
meaning and purpose. The word itself reaches beyond the present time and space
which we occupy. In theory it’s about more than just what we’re doing today and
ultimately what our lives are focused on in this life. It can be dangerous to lasso
the idea of destiny and pull it back down to the world.
God
wants you to have goals and dreams. He wants you to find fulfillment and
accomplishment in these things and to attain that by working hard. But God also
wants you to look heavenward. He wants you to have more than your dreams and
hopes for this life, because there is so much more through Him. Tying up
destiny to our lives is foolish because what we experience and do in this world
is but a mere vapor compared to eternity.
And
so, when Simeon speaks of Christmas destiny – once again we shouldn’t be
surprised that it’s completely focused on what Jesus did. The idea for “destined”
in Simeon’s proclamation is to be appointed or set in a position for a certain
purpose. Christ’s destiny was to suffer and die for the sins of the world. It
was an appointment that caught many people off-guard because they never guessed
that God’s Son would subject Himself to such a fate.
Christ’s
humble and unique destiny was the reason why Simeon warned Mary that a sword
would pierce her heart and why the sign of Jesus would be spoken against in the
world. Mary would witness the rejection of her Son. She would watch Him die on
the cross. She was there when darkness covered the noon-day sky and the earth
heaved and shook when atonement for sins was offered. That would cut to her soul
like a sword. But this unique destiny of Jesus would also reveal the hearts of
all people. Ultimately, all mankind finds themselves on one side of the sharp
division that pierced Mary’s soul. This destiny of Jesus which occurred in time
and space, shapes the eternal destinies of all people.
Simeon
proclaimed the path to comfort amidst such a prospect that no one can escape.
The path of the Old Testament believer is the path of your faith today. We
listen to the Holy Spirit as He imparts truth through His Word. We trust that
God’s blessing as found in the good news of who His Son is and what His Son
did. And we believe that our destiny as believers is not about what we desire
or achieve, but rather about where God calls us to be through Jesus – in
heaven. Amen.
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