Luke 2:25-27a
“25 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. 26 It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. 27 Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts.”
Commentary
In these three verses, Simeon lays the ground-work of what truly “waiting for Christ” looks like. Simeon waited his entire life just to see the baby Jesus. His WHOLE life. Imagine this for a moment: the Savior of the world who hasn’t even been born yet is the person you’ve waited your entire life to see. Just see; not share a meal with; not go on a weekend fishing trip. Just see. That’s the epitome of dedication. He was anxiously awaiting the arrival of the baby Jesus.
In verse 27, Simeon felt the Spirit moving so he went to the temple. He didn’t get a message on Twitter or an updated Facebook status to tell him that Jesus was coming; he was listening to the voice of God. What was Simeon doing when he was moved by the Spirit? Chances are it was daytime because Mary, Joseph and Jesus wouldn’t travel at night. Simeon may have been working, spending time with his family, etc… BUT (here’s the crazy part), he dropped everything he was doing just to see Jesus.
As I’ve spent time pondering how Simeon lived his life waiting for Christ, I’ve realized how his behavior sets the bar high for us today. In verses 29 and 30, Simeon says, “Sovereign Lord, as you’ve promised, you may now dismiss your servant in peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation…” At that point, Simeon was ready to go to heaven. He lived his whole life just to see Christ and when he saw the baby, he thanked God and was ready to go to heaven. Simeon spent maybe five minutes with the baby and was ready to leave this earth.
Take some time today and ponder this: How much more should we desire to live our lives the way Simeon did?
We should anxiously be awaiting the arrival of Christ’s coming. We should want to drop all that we have and all that we are doing just to make time for Jesus; and more importantly, we should be excited to do that.
Devotional Author: Nicole Presley