Simeon was waiting to see Jesus before he died. When Joseph and Mary brought Jesus to the temple Simeon was there to see Him. v. 29 "Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you now dismiss your servant in peace." What a beautiful expression that at the end of your life when you are finished and have left nothing undone on earth, you can be at peace. v. 33 They marveled at what Simeon told them. How many times are we amazed at what God has done for us over and over again? If we are not and it all fades into a distant memory, then we should set memory "stones" like the Jewish people did at certain locations where God showed His love and power.
v. 34-35 Simeon told them that Jesus would cause the falling (unbelievers) and the rising (believers) of many in Israel. Also that Jesus would be spoken against and that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. Jesus was not what the people were expecting and many hated Him for that. Sometimes our prayers are answered in ways that we would never expect. What is hidden in our hearts can never be concealed from God. v.35b "And a sword will pierce your own soul too." No mother wants their child to be picked on or hurt. Just hearing that from Simeon must of sent chills down Mary's spine. What an intense description of such heartache she would be going through. Since His own hometown would reject Him just imagine when Jesus was preaching what the other women would say around Mary not to mention the comments from the religious leaders.
With Jesus there is no neutral ground. People either accept Him or reject Him. Rev. 3:16 "Because you are lukewarm-neither hot nor cold-I am about to spit you out of my mouth" It is easy to follow God when everything is going great. It's when you are going through a trial that you show your true colors. Many fail miserable (I'm thinking of myself here) time and time again. It is when we continue on our journey and do not let defeat keep us down that we are making progress. You are either going into, going through or coming out of a trial. How will you handle it?
No comments:
Post a Comment