i was supposed to get home last night to be able to preach at a friend's church at 11 am this morning. alas, this was not to be as bad weather somewhere in the country screwed up southwest's flights everywhere in the country. and so, after posting, this sermon will go in a box for another time. here is what i had:
the nines for Christmas, led us past a man on his knees. In the posture of penance, he begged for the spare change of people who were throwing hundreds of dollars at corporate retailers--and he knew it. In my polite white anglo-saxon protestant nature, never wanting to be a rubbernecker, I side stepped him, knowing I had no change in my pocket. His clear voice rang out above the din of the shoppers, the voice of a prophet, maybe even the voice of God with us, "you can shove your bags in my face, but you can't give me change."
Anna and Simeon did not sidestep God. They did not fail to recognize divinity in the most fragile of human forms. They listened to God, were in touch with the Holy Spirit, and so knew the Christ child when the saw him.
We rarely focus on these two characters in the Christmas story. They come after the shepherds, the manger, and all the other accoutrements of the scene that looks so nice represented on a Christmas card or on an ornament on our Christmas tree. I imagine that most of you could tell the story of Jesus being born in a manger and being visited by the angels in your own words, from knowledge deep in your heart, but probably few of you could tell this story. And yet, Anna and Simeon have so much to teach us about our relationship to the Christ.
The story opens with Mary and Joseph, proud and beaming parents, going through the religious rituals proscribed by their culture upon the birth of their first son. These are the exact same rituals that all new parents would go through. Nothing would have distinguished them from the crowd at the temple giving offerings. To the common observer, the would have looked just like any other young, first time parents—probably a little worn around the edges from the sleepless nights, but imbued with a joy that could not be suppressed even by the most sleepless of nights. But, somehow Simeon picked them out of the crowd.
What do we know about Simeon? Very little. He was religious and devout. He was so connected to the Holy Spirit that he believed he would see the Christ before he died. His friends probably thought him crazy. His family probably did too. They may have known about the prophecies of the Christ, but to assume that you have heard from God that you yourself would see the Christ? But he did. He waited, he found the Christ child, he prophesied about him to his parents, and then he was at peace with God.
Mary and Joseph marveled at what was said about him. They were new parents. They were probably still marveling at the way he yawned, he way he showed them he was hungry, the way he cuddled up on their chest and fell asleep. And in the midst of those tiny miracles, this man, how had never seen the child, who was without the benefit of the visit of angels or shepherds, was recognizing divinity in this small child. He recognized a Savior.
And then they encounter Anna. Luke’s description of her is more full than his description of Simeon. Anna is a widow, who has been without a husband much longer than she was ever with a husband. We know from other parts of the Bible that often widows were among the most helpless in Biblical society. They had no way of supporting themselves. If they were able to go back to their father’s home, they may find familial support, but not all widows could make it back. And so without a family to devote herself to, this widow devoted herself to God. She spent all of her time in the temple, worshipping, fasting and praying.
One thing stands out to me about Anna. While Simeon was told—directly by the Holy Spirit—that he would not die until seeing the Christ, his savior, Anna did not have the benefit of such a prophecy. She didn’t know she was looking for God manifest in an infant. She did not expect to see Emmanuel. But, she saw him anyway. She recognized him, out of the blue, wrapped in his loving mother’s arms. And her response was one of gratitude to God for this tiny child. But she did not stop there. She spoke the good news of this child to all who needed it. She preached about her encounter with Emmanuel, her experience of God with us, to all who needed redemption in Jerusalem.
Often when I look back at things that happened in my life—this incident with the man in downtown San Francisco, time of pain and fear over health crises in my family, healed relationships, that sort of thing—I think I can recognize God. In hindsight, I can see how God was working. But, Anna and Simeon did not need hindsight. They recognized Jesus while in his presence. They knew they were in front of the Christ just by looking at him. And so I am left to wonder how I can recognize the Christ and respond, right there on the spot and they did.
(questions I would have asked...) What stands out about Anna and Simeon that may have helped them to recognize this tiny baby as the Christ, the savior of Israel and all God’s people?
What can we do to recognize Jesus in our midst?
What is your response when you do recognize Jesus?
If I had recognized the presence of Jesus in that man that I walked around in San Francisco, what might I have done?
How are our lives changed when we recognize Jesus for what he is as Anna and Simeon did?
The passage from Isaiah that we read this morning guides us in thinking about one way we may respond to encountering the goodness of God. The end of chapter 61 describes that goodness, but in the beginning of chapter 6, the writer responds to what God has done. And it is a fairly simple response: he or she cannot keep quiet.
For Zion's sake I will not keep silent,
for Jerusalem's sake I will not remain quiet,
till her righteousness shines out like the dawn,
her salvation like a blazing torch.
Just like Anna, after an encounter with Emmanuel, we cannot keep quiet. We must proclaim the good news that we have heard, seen and experienced. We must share the love of God that we experienced through Jesus with others, until it shines out like the dawn.
But, lets go back to this incident on the sidewalk. Preaching at this man would probably have not been the right response. Standing next to him and preaching at the crowd would probably have not been effective either. Proclaiming the gospel is not always done directly or with words. I could have found money to put in his cup. I could have stopped, dug through my pockets and given him what I found. Or, I could have simply stopped and recognized him, his plight and his needs. Given him a smile. Wished him merry Christmas. Told him I hoped it would get better and that I would pray for him, despite have nothing to give. Even without money, with the love of God, there is always something to give.
And so this Christmas my Christmas hope: that I can learn from Anna and Simeon, that I can cultivate a life of worship and prayer, so that when I encounter Emmanuel, I can respond right then and there, as God calls me to.
No comments:
Post a Comment