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On this very special Christmas Eve, we examine the story of Simeon and Anna, two witnesses who both had a role to play in preparing for the coming of Jesus. Reverend Daniel shares the word.

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Just began earlier with the question: what is the hope we have as we enter into uh Christmas season, especially especially Christmas Eve? Because the reading the text before us from Luke chapter 2 verse 25 to 38 is all about eager hope and expectation of God to act and do something. As I read the text and reread the text, I can't help but feel a sense of excitement because today, as I preach the word, and today, as you hear, God wants to do something in our hearts and lives today. It's not just a word for the people of old in the Gospel of Luke, but it is for us today. So the story goes, uh, the birth of Jesus, narrating the whole process of his birth, and there were two weaknesses, and the two weaknesses were Simeon and Anna. So Joseph and Mary, the story goes, we are fast uh we are going to fast-track a bit. So Jesus has been born, right? So now Joseph and Mary uh treated Jesus according to the Jewish traditions of the day. Jesus was circumcised, and 40 days later, after the birth, Joseph and Mary took Jesus to the temple and temple in Jerusalem for Mary's ritual purification and the dedication of Jesus to God as the firstborn son. So all that is being recorded that was read for us earlier from the Gospel of Luke, chapter 2, verse 25 to 38, records the proceedings of what happened in the temple. So at the temple, uh Mary and Joseph meet two people, Simeon and Anna. So Luke records for us that Simeon and Anna are portrayed in a way as male and female counterparts who represented the best of expectant Israel. Israel was hoping, Israel was looking, they were waiting for redemption. They were waiting for God's word of prophecy to find fulfillment. And the fact that these people, these two witnesses, Simeon and Anna, were looking and waiting, means that uh the there's a central place in which Jesus occupies in God's story of salvation. And these people were already looking for signs of God's salvation to come to them. There was a sense of expectation and looking forward, awaiting in for God to fulfill his promise plan for sending the Lord's Christ to be born in the city of David, who will be the salvation for all peoples. So Simeon and Anna, uh, I'd like to share with us three characteristics uh that is important for us to just take note or at least have some understanding. First, is that their exemplary piety, they are exemplary piety, their piety meaning that they were in some sense religious to the T. They were looking forward, they were doing everything that was right to prepare for the coming of Jesus. So Simeon is described in the Gospel of Luke, chapter 2, as a righteous and devout man. That's how uh Luke wants us to see. Simeon was devoted to Jesus, to the ministry in the temple, and he was a righteous man. And Anna was a prophetess well advanced in age. And she was being portrayed as the ascetic ideal, one that lost her husband, yet constantly remaining single, did not remarry, but remained single. And after her husband had passed on and was fully devoted to God, that day and night she was at the temple uh praying and fasting night and day, waiting, looking, hoping for the time in which the Christ child is being revealed. So, what struck us as we read uh this couple of verses in the Gospel of Luke, firstly, is their piety. These people were looking forward to the coming of Jesus. Secondly, is their anticipation of redemption. Both Simeon and Anna were looking forward for something that God is going to do in the future. So Simeon was waiting for what it says, the consolation of Israel. So that's a big word. What do we mean by the consolation of Israel? He was specifically told by the Holy Spirit that he will not die without seeing the Lord's Christ. So the consolation of Israel refers to the restoration of Israel under the reign of God, which will be a reign of peace, that Israel will experience a fullness of God's presence with them and a time of great peace in the midst of trouble and problems. But within their hearts they welcome the Messiah Jesus. So the consolation of Israel refers to this hope that has been building up through the ages. It refers to God's final intervention to deliver Israel from her enemies and to usher in a time of peace and just dominion in the appearance in the appearance of Jesus Christ. So, in other words, the consolation of Israel is a time of restoration. God, through Jesus, is at work, restoring lives, changing hearts, forgiving sin, inviting uh everyone to come in, to dine, to the feast, to the celebration, because God is finally acting to restore his people. Anna also recognized in Jesus the fulfillment of God's promise to Israel. Luke 2, verse 38 tells us that at the opportune hour, Anna came up and spoke of him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Israel. So we see their exemplary piety, their devotion to God, and we also see their anticipation of redemption, a looking forward to what God will do. And then we also see, lastly, their responses to God. How did they respond when they encountered baby Jesus? So when Simeon saw Jesus in the temple, he took the baby Jesus, praised God because of him, and looks forward to declare what Jesus will do. In fact, he will be a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to his people, Israel. So Simeon uh praises God in what traditionally has been known as the Nang Dimitis. So we do uh say this uh as part of the liturgy for uh certain uh for morning prayer in various contexts. So what what does this prayer mean? As Simeon mouth those words. So, in fact, in most of our translations we read as the ESV says, Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace. So in the original rendering of the word, the word now, the uh conjunctive uh linking word now is actually in emphatic position, meaning that it is uh placed there for emphasis. So uh Simeon is saying, now, at this moment, as I behold the Christ child, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, master. Right? So the literal rendering of this is now you are letting your servant depart in peace, master. Master again is uh emphatic or Lord or Master. So, in other words, Simeon recognized that now, when she she saw the baby Jesus, it is the time of salvation. You know, it's not just a phrase that says, Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, but now as I behold, as I'm waiting to see the baby Jesus, as I see him, you are letting your servant depart in peace. Lord, you are the Lord of salvation, the Lord of my life. And there it goes on to say, according to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, alike for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people, Israel. Simeon goes on to announce that Jesus will be a mixed blessing for the people of Israel because the word of God, when it's being released, when God promises restoration and hope, there will be people that will oppose and despise the word of the Lord, which happens throughout the ministry of Jesus. We see the scribes, the Pharisees, uh the Sadducees, so they were they were do not take well to the word of Jesus, they questioned his authority. So Jesus today uh is also a mixed blessing to those who come to him, embrace the restoration he wants to bring. He is a blessing, but to those who reject him, uh judgment remains on them. So, in terms of their responses to God, Simeon began to rejoice in the nun Dimitis, in the prayer of dismissal, so to speak. And Anna herself gave thanks to God and began to spoke of him, of the baby Jesus, to all who were waiting for redemption, for the redemption of Jerusalem. So the weakness of Simeon and Anna draws us, all of us here, as we stand on the threshold of Christmas Day, more fully into the hope of Advent as the Christ child is to be born to fulfill the hope, the deep longing and expectation of all who are waiting and looking forward to his coming? Author Paul Tripp comments in a poem he wrote on the mystery of Christmas, the mystery of Christmas, and he writes this Christmas is a mystery, wrapped in a mystery. How would a deeply unholy people be reconciled to a perfectly holy God? How would a deeply unholy people be reconciled to a perfectly holy God? Would his mercy compromise his justice? Would his justice crush his mercy? No, the closer you get to Jesus, the more aware you should become of your unholiness. That is the experience of most of us. As we draw closer in our walk with Jesus over the years, we realize that the Holy Spirit brings to remembrance areas in our lives, our shortcomings. And that is not a bad thing because the closer we walk to Jesus, which is holiness, the more aware we should become of our unholiness. Christmas reminds us, in spite of the joy and celebration which comes with it, is that we do fall short of being holy in many ways. That is why Jesus takes on a new meaning for us each year as we remember Christmas, because Matthew chapter 1, verse 21 tells us Jesus was born to save his people from their sins. That is the real reason for Christmas. It's not about Christmas tree or the festive celebration, but Matthew 1.21 says this is the very reason why the Christ child has to be born, to save his people from their sins. This Christmas we should be more aware of our sins and shortcomings than when we first confess it when we believe in Jesus. In fact, the longer we live in the light of God's holiness, the more we should become aware of the subtle, deceptive sins of the heart, the nagging independence of our lives that exerts our own selves over what God desires for us. And today, as we look forward and we think about God's restoration, we simply cannot stand before the searching light of the glory of God's holiness without experiencing his transformative power in our lives. Let me repeat again, we simply cannot stand before the searching light of the glory of God's holiness without experiencing his transformative power in our lives. As we open ourselves, our hearts to Jesus this Christmas, we will experience his transformative power in our lives. Because the gospel is power to those who are open to receive that work of transformation. So today I would like to invite us to enter once again into a fuller restoration of what God desires for us. The consolation of Israel, the redemption of Jerusalem, it's not an abstract concept or theory, but it is enflesh also in our lives. The Lord wants to restore us more fully in the midst of pain, darkness, loss, tragedy. God wants to bring us into a fuller restoration. Because precisely Jesus came because he wants to restore broken humanity to him. So Paul Tripp goes on to say, holy and unholy, holy and unholy, the great drama of the Christmas story. In God's redeeming wisdom, the mystery of the reconciliation of unholy ones to the holy one was solved by the mystery of mysteries. God would reconcile unholy people to himself through the grace of the mystery of the God man, Jesus. He was born to Mary, yet he is the Son of God and the Son of Man. He is pre-existent, he existed before the creation of the world with the Father. And he was self-sufficient. He was there in creation. He created the whole world. Yet on Christmas Day, he became an infant and dependent on earthly resources, nutrition, and he had to grow like all of us had to grow. Creator, the creator of the world, became part of his creation. The one who breathed life into Adam in the story in the account in Genesis breathes in earth's air. The one who created life, and we remember this as we move towards Good Friday, willingly lays down his life. The judge of the whole world and at the end of the age comes to bear our judgment. The giver of life will lose his life. Why so? So that unholy people can be reconciled to a holy God. The mystery and wonder of Christmas is that the transformative power of God is at work now, even as I speak, to bring restoration to our lives as we turn to Jesus. That is the hope. That is why, as your friends ask you as you uh talk to your neighbors, you ask them, they ask you, hey, what you're doing, going to church and all. Tell them, Christmas is about restoration. Can I pray for you? Can I share with you the hope, the good news that Jesus came to take away our sins? So that's the good news. That is the good news at the heart of Christmas. Christmas is about Christ, man's answer to sin. Right? Of course, the word Christmas, right? We have heard it before. Christ, M A S, man's answer to sin. The judge came to bear our judgment. The giver of life loses his life so that unholy people like me, like all of us here, can become holy, can be transformed, can be restored more fully into the life God intends, intended for us all along. So the testimony of Simeon and Anna in looking for the consolation of Israel and for the redemption of Jerusalem, both point to Jesus as the climax of their hope. So the question I'd like to leave with us this morning is as we are on the threshold of Christmas, today being Christmas Eve, are we desirous and longing for Jesus? Are we like Simeon and Anna waiting and looking forward to his coming? More importantly, are we seeking the salvation and restoration that Jesus brings? Because when He comes, when Jesus comes, He wants to restore us, He wants to take our brokenness and bring His wholeness and healing. He wants to give us beauty in exchange for ashes, joy instead of the pain of sorrow and loss. So this is the hope of advent, this is the hope of Christmas. Seeking Jesus for a fuller restoration, a fuller salvation experience in our lives. The power to change and be transformed by Jesus is as real today as it was in Luke's day. We read of stories, we hear of testimonies, of life being transformed by the power of the gospel. We also hear of stories of deep brokenness and sadness. But in all contexts and cases, Jesus is stirring our hearts, he's doing, he's bringing us to a greater restoration of our lives in Him. I remember as a young boy while considering a career and future, you know, one thing I kept in my heart, though I do not say to many people, is that I think being a full time minister is good. You know, because I was telling the Lord in my early years, maybe a bit naive, but I was telling the Lord. That I want to see hearts changed and lives touched by the power of God. You know that, yeah, people can be transformed, people can be changed, people can be restored, people can be healed. And because it's not because of me, but because God's power is at work. The Holy Spirit is here. He's restoring lives, he's turning our hearts to Him. Right? So do we come with a sense of longing for change? Do we come today, this morning, for a longing for something different, not just another Christmas? Right? You know, we know that everywhere Christmas uh this year feels a bit uh anticlimax. I don't know if you you all been to Orchard Road or you know, go and see the lights, it seems to be a bit, you know, uh not so celebrative, at least in the usual mood of it, right? So um Holland, Holland Village area. I'm not sure whether you have been, the the new mall has been established. I think it's called One Holland Village with a new uh private home and all. So it's a pet-friendly mall. So I was just there with Danny in the evening, running some errands, and we were there, and uh we're just walking around, so there were huskies, there were dogs everywhere, right? So it was almost like uh uh uh human and pets permeable space, you're right, right through the mall. So you see dogs everywhere. So if y'all have pet dogs, maybe y'all y'all should be more informed than me, y'all have been there already. So it's good, it's nice to just take a walk at one Holland village and you know, just soak in the festive mood. But over and above all that, uh, are we seeking, are we desirous for God to act in our lives, to restore us? Because that is the heart of the gospel. That is the heart, at the heart of what Christmas is about. It's about restoration, it's about healing. So, what would our response be to Jesus this morning? I felt led to just uh as I was preparing the word, uh the Lord reminded me of Mark's gospel. Uh, and in Mark's gospel, there was a pivotal part of his ministry in which the mystery of Jesus, in which it was crucial because he had mentioned to his disciples three times of his impending death. And three times he said, the son of man must suffer many things, be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. So three times uh in the gospel of Mark, uh, this was being mentioned in Mark 8, 31, Mark 9 31, and Mark 10, 32 to 34. Three times the disciples did not get it. The first time when Jesus announced this, Peter began to rebuke Jesus. He said, This cannot be that you should uh be suffering and humiliated and die as a criminal. And that was the first time. The second time when Jesus mentioned it, the disciples did not understand what he was talking about and were afraid to ask him. And the third time when Jesus announced his impending death and betrayal, two of his closest disciples, James and John, were jostling for a place of honor beside Jesus. Grant me that we should be at your right and the left when you come into your kingdom. So they were thinking more of a glorious kingdom in which Jesus would come and reign and rule, and they sitting on the thrones to judge the world together with him. So it was a total flip of what Jesus was going to do. He was going to the cross, he was going to bear our judgment on himself. And the disciples were totally oblivious, or they were totally ignorant to what the Lord is doing. And nowadays, in the leadership circles, uh, or rather, there's a lot of talk about mindfulness, mindful, mindfulness to lead with mindfulness. So if we apply that concept, then the disciples were totally not unmindful of things, they were oblivious to what Jesus was doing. So in interestingly, in Mark's gospel, there's a play on characters. So uh the disciples couldn't see, couldn't understand. Yet there was this man called Batimus, so and he was physically blind, right? So the narrative tells us in Mark 10, 46 to 52, that somehow this Batimus, who was a blind beggar, wanted to regain his sight. He was hungry for change, and he was crying out to Jesus when he saw him Jesus, son of David, have mercy on me. Jesus, son of David, have mercy on me. Just reading, uh, and I close with this from Mark chapter 10, verse 46 to 52. The account says that and they came to Jericho as Jesus was leaving Jericho with his disciples, and a great crowd, and a great crowd, Bartimius, a blind beggar, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside. And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, Jesus, son of David, have mercy on me. Many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, Son of David, have mercy on me. And Jesus stopped and said, Call him. And they called the blind man, saying to him, Take heart, get up. He's calling you. Verse 15, and throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. And Jesus said to him, What do you want me to do for you? And the blind man said to him, Rabbi, let me recover my sight. And Jesus said to him, Go your way, your faith has made you well. And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way. So Bartimius, a blind beggar, insignificant blind beggar, received sight, understood, saw Jesus for what Jesus can do and be to him. So he was crying out persistently, Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me. Is this our cry today, this Christmas Eve? Are we desirous for something new that God can do and will do in our lives? He will do as much as we are willing to open ourselves to.