November 24, 2024
Luke 2:22-40
“A Time of Transition”
There’s so much going on in this section that if we were to tease out every last detail, we’d spend a minimum of three weeks on it. In lieu of that, we’re going to look at the pieces essential to our salvation. Remember, Luke tells the story of our salvation history. It is a story about what God has done in Jesus Christ in order to free us from sin and death.
In the big picture moment of what Luke captures, he brings in people and events in order to anchor the child in the flow of historical moments and events. Matthew gives us elements that Luke doesn’t. Matthew gives us wise men and Herod’s order of the slaughter of the innocents and the escape into Egypt. Those are details Luke leaves to Matthew to tell. Likewise, there are details Matthew leaves to Luke to tell. The point is to establish the flow of history. With Mary and Joseph and Zechariah and Elizabeth and Simeon and Anna, Luke establishes historical credibility. Everything happening in these nineteen verses were part of the shared historical experiences of the people involved. It is about the expected and remarkable and verifiable flow of history.
With that in mind, let’s now turn to Luke 2:22-40:
And when the time came for their purification according to the Law of Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord (as it is written in the Law of the Lord, “Every male who first opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord”) and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the Law of the Lord, “a pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons.” Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. 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. And he came in 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, he took him up in his arms
and blessed God and said,
“Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word;for my eyes have seen your salvationthat you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.”
And his father and his mother marveled at what was said about him. And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, “Behold, this child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is opposed (and a sword will pierce through your own soul also), so that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.”
And there was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived with her husband seven years from when she was a virgin, and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She did not depart from the temple, worshiping with fasting and prayer night and day. And coming up at that very hour she began to give thanks to God and to speak of him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem.
And when they had performed everything according to the Law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. And the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom. And the favor of God was upon him.
The first purpose today’s passage serves is to establish the righteousness of Mary and Joseph. They were faithful, decent, and honest people. They did their level best to faithfully follow the Law of Israel. There was nothing wrong with that. In fact, it was quite commendable. Here, they were fulfilling what Scripture required of them. They were obedient to the Law of Moses. Always a good thing back then…always a good thing.
Here's what Luke wants us to see. He wants us to see that an era is coming to a close. With the birth of Jesus, the old has passed away. Behold, the new has come. The old era…the era of the law and the prophets…has ended. And what Luke wants us to understand is that there is no conflict between the law and the prophets and the new age of the Messiah. Faithful people, like Mary and Joseph, and Zechariah and Elizabeth were striving to do that right thing. It’s always good when people strive to do the right thing.
Here's one of Luke’s points. People devoted to the law and the prophets in the old era will be the most receptive to the new era of grace and mercy. People who wanted to contribute to the health and wholeness of their families and communities were as obedient as humanly possible to the law and the prophets. They wanted spiritual maturity. They wanted a trusting, joyful relationship with God. They wanted to praise God in all things they did. That was a beautiful thing.
The birth of Jesus ushered in a new way. Here’s how John 1:17 put it:
For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
Notice there’s no judgment made. First there was the law. It served its purpose. It kept people on the path of righteousness.
The birth of Jesus brought an important time of transition. Instead of us
having to fulfill the commands of the law and the prophets {in order to be saved}, Jesus will fulfill them for us in his death on the cross. As someone once said, “The grace of God upon Jesus will be poured out into the lives of others as he bestows on them the forgiveness, renewal, freedom, power, healing, peace, and hope that the law of Moses could not provide.” {David E. Garland}
And here’s an important piece to this transition. It something celebrated by Paul in Galatians 5:22-23:
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.”
The law and the prophets remind us to be good, decent people. They describe for us how to behave and relate to others as good, decent people. Nothing wrong with that at all. Mary and Joseph, Zechariah and Elizabeth, Simeon and Anna, are all examples of that. Luke gives them as examples of the trajectory of God’s salvation history.
Now Luke is at the place where he will show how the grace of God was
upon Jesus. And Jesus’ sacrifice of giving his life will make it possible for us
to enjoy God’s favor. Here’s how Paul captures it in Romans 5:1-2:
Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
Also, 1 Corinthians 1:4:
“I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus.”
Finally, in 1 Peter 1:10-12:
Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories. It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look.*
Here's something you might want to write down:
WE ARE NOW IN TRANSITION FROM THE LAW TO CHRIST.
In other words, when Jesus made the perfect sacrifice for our sin on the cross, we were no longer compelled to fulfill the law and the prophets in order to be in a right relationship with God. Jesus put us in that position because of his death. As we sing in that beautiful song:
In Christ alone, who took on fleshFullness of God in helpless babeThis gift of love and righteousnessScorned by the ones He came to save'Til on that cross as Jesus diedThe wrath of God was satisfiedFor every sin on Him was laidHere in the death of Christ I live, I live
Here's the connection with Galatians 5. We can call it Biblical Theology in Action. The people we’re reading about in Luke 2 were obedient. They were decent, kind, thoughtful people. How much more ought we be since we know that we don’t have to do anything to earn God’s favor. That has already happened in the death of our Savior upon the cross. Because our names have been written down in the Lamb’s Book of Life, how much more driven and devoted ought we be to becoming decent, kind, thoughtful people. Are you with me on that? If you know you will be spending eternity in the presence of your Risen Lord and Savior, how hard is it to be decent, kind, thoughtful people in this life? When we know the day is coming when we will fall down and lay our crowns at the feet of Jesus, we can’t help being a positive presence in a broken world.
I want to close with two points.
The first is illustrated by these uplifting stories:
Granted, those are extraordinary examples. Most folks never have those kinds of opportunities. But that’s not what matters most. What matters most is the birth of the Messiah has opened the door to us being loving and joyful and peaceful and patient and kind and good and faithful and gentle and self-controlled. We can exude all kinds of positivity in our lives because Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior.
Next week we’ll turn to Simeon and Anna. They, too, are markers on the timeline of our salvation history.
Until then, two observations about Christmas from Charles Spurgeon:
“And when the Lord Jesus has become your peace, remember, there is another thing: good will towards men. Do not try to keep Christmas without good will towards men.”
“May God give you peace with yourselves; may he give you good will towards all your friends, your enemies, and your neighbors; and may he give you grace to give glory to God in the highest.”
And together, the people of God said:
“AMEN”
*In other words, to experience something that great and wise and holy people longed to experience but couldn't should make us feel blessed, thankful. That's the same logic we have in our text this morning, 1 Peter 1:10-12. Peter wants us to feel more gratitude and wonder for our salvation because the prophets of God and even the angels of heaven longed to see what we have now experienced through the gospel of Jesus Christ.
As to this salvation [just referred to in verses 5 and 9], the prophets who prophesied of the grace that would come to you made careful search and inquiry, seeking to know what person or time the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating as He predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories to follow. [In other words, they were searching and longing and desiring to see what the prophets themselves were being moved to predict.] It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves, but you, in these things which now have been announced to you through those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven—things into which angels long to look. [Not just prophets, but angels themselves longed to see this salvation.]
John Piper, Desiring God
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