Luke 2:21-40
Today, we are looking at a very interesting man named Simeon. Scripture tells us that this man was righteous and holy. He knew the salvation of God and his deliverance from sin, but deep within, he yearned for something more. Simeon dedicated his whole life to looking for the appearing of the Lord Jesus Christ. "There is a crown of righteousness which the Lord will give to those who love His appearing." (2 Timothy 4:8) So much of the time, we come to salvation and our hearts are changed and we believe in Jesus, but we don't dedicate ourselves to watching for His appearing. There is a great battle in our lives to just be content with the beginning of our faith. God is calling for us to let Him have a victory in our hearts that brings us out of our baby faith, and into a mature faith that sees and recognizes Jesus, hears and listens to His voice, and obediently surrenders our will to follow Him.
Simeon could have been content with what he knew, and sit back and be satisfied knowing that he had salvation, but he desired a personal revelation of Jesus Christ. While Simeon was in prayer, the Holy Spirit revealed to him that he would see the Lord's Christ. That kept Simeon dwelling near to the temple and in constant prayer. At last, the day came and the Holy Spirit led Simeon to the temple, and he took Jesus in his arms and held Him close and blessed Him. "Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace according to your word: for my eyes have seen your salvation which you have prepared before the face of all peoples, a light to bring revelation to the Gentiles and the glory of your people Israel." (vss 29-32)
As we sit here a few days before Christmas, anticipating our gifts under the tree, will we just look at them and be thankful for them, or will we open them? What are we going to do with Jesus? Are we just going to admire Him and be thankful for Him, or are we going to dedicate our lives to seeking Him and looking for His appearing? There is a great battle raging within us to be content with what we have, or to move on in the Lord. Who is going to win? The battle is the Lord's—let Jesus Christ have the victory. God is the commander and He wants an army to listen to Him and do battle His way. Jesus is the light that brings revelation to His people. Unless we keep our focus on Him and dedicate ourselves in prayer to watching for His appearing, we will miss Him. Come near today, Jesus Christ is not going to appear as a babe that we can hold in our arms. If we are dedicated, He will come and dwell within our hearts and reveal great truths to us, just like Simeon. "May the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding be enlightened that you may know what is the hope of His calling and what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints." (Eph. 1:17-18)
~ Debbie Frantz
