Four Words That Could Change Your Christmas: Worship
Luke 2:22-38
NOTE: if you would like to read the manuscript of Pastor Ken’s sermon you can find it here
22 When the time of their purification according to the Law of Moses had been completed, Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord 23 (as it is written in the Law of the Lord, “Every firstborn male is to be consecrated to the Lord”), 24 and to offer a sacrifice in keeping with what is said in the Law of the Lord: “a pair of doves or two young pigeons.”
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 upon him. 26 It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. 27 Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required, 28 Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying: 29 “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you now dismiss your servant in peace. 30 For my eyes have seen your salvation, 31 which you have prepared in the sight of all people, 32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.”
33 The child’s father and mother marveled at what was said about him. 34 Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother: “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, 35 so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too.”
36 There was also a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was very old; she had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, 37 and then was a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying. 38 Coming up to them at that very moment, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem.
In Pastor Ken’s sermon last Sunday he mentioned this story from the life of Jesus. Joseph and Mary went to the temple to offer the sacrifices required. The sacrifice offered (pigeons or doves) suggests that they were poor yet they still sought to honor God with their livelihood. Upon arriving, two more characters are introduced; Simeon and Anna. They bring their “baggage” with them into the story as well and yet by the end of the story we discover that all four characters (Mary, Joseph, Simeon, and Anna) have had a spiritual encounter that was anything but “business as usual.”
Pastor Ken posed some questions that for us to think about this first week of Advent. They center on the theme of the week. We encourage you to leave responses and engage in the conversation.
• How many sacrifices do you suppose were offered at the temple each day?
• If you served at the temple like Anna and Simeon, could it become easy for that service to become mundane and lose its impact?
• Are there principles in the story that might have helped those who served at the temple prevent it from losing its impact?
• What rituals do we have that surround the birth of Jesus?
• Can they (have they) lost some of their impact and significance?
• What has happened to allow them to lose some of their value?
• Are there principles in this story that might help us maintain (or regain) that meaning?