Anna, The Prophetess: Luke 2:36-38 Series

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The Birth of Christ Motivates Us

Luke 2:36-38

Introduction:

When Herod was king of Judea, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth in Galilee to announce to a virgin named Mary, who was betrothed to a man named Joseph, that a child would be born to her. The angel Gabriel announced that she was to name him Jesus, for he would be the son of God and rule over Israel forever. When the time of the birth drew near, Caesar Augustus commanded a census of Roman domains, and Joseph took Mary to Bethlehem, the ancient city of David, as he was of the House of David. Jesus was born in Bethlehem; since there was nowhere for them to stay in the town, the infant was laid in a manger while angels announced his birth to a group of shepherds who worshiped him as Messiah and Lord.

In accordance with the Jewish law, his parents presented the infant Jesus at the Temple in Jerusalem, where two people in the temple, Simeon and Anna the Prophetess, gave thanks to God who had sent his salvation. Joseph and Mary then returned to Nazareth.

Anna Was a _Prophetess_ (Luke 2:36).

There are _several_ prophetesses in Scripture. They are found in both the Old and New Testaments (Ex. 15:20; Judg. 4:4; 2 Kings 22:14; Neh. 6:14; Is. 8:3; Acts 2:17; 21:9 1 Cor. 11:5). They were women with whom the Lord spoke to in especially direct manners.

As a prophetess, Anna would have been _chosen_ by God to proclaim his message.

Not much is known about Anna, and comparatively little is known about any of the prophetesses. We have the most information about Deborah.

Unlike Simeon earlier in Luke 2, we do not have any words or prophecies from Anna. We do have her actions that serve as examples for us to follow.

2. Anna was _Alone_ (Luke 2:36-37).

Anna lived many years as a _widow_.

In the U.S. today, there are 3.7 million widowed men and 11.48 million widowed women.

Loneliness can be devastating. Gen Z (38%) and millennials (37%) feel the most lonely compared to Gen X (31%) and boomers (19%). Further, the unemployed are twice as likely to be lonely than those not seeking work.

Loneliness for Anna would have been hard, but she did not give up. Instead, she served all the more. It became an opportunity for her to serve the Lord even more. Many of the most difficult things in our lives also bring opportunities. Pray God helps you see those opportunities.

3. Anna was _Devout_ (Luke 2:37).

She _worshiped_ in two specific ways: fasting and prayer. Even at the age of 84, she was fasting. Fasting is mentioned more than we may realize in the Bible. It plays central roles at critical moments–critical times of repentance, spiritual warfare, or times of special devotion.

Fasting is not always lengthy periods of time, and fasting is not always from food (1 Cor. 7).

Prayer is something that can be motivating, exciting, mournful, or worshipful. Here, Anna is mentioned as excelling in worshipful prayer. Not all prayer is wroshipful and that is OK, but to have a balanced prayer life (and personality), we should seek to grow in worshipful prayer.

4. Anna was _Motivated_ (Luke 2:38).

Earlier, we Saw Anna worshipped the Lord primarily through _fasting_ and _prayer_. The term “prayer warrior” occurs nowhere in the Bible.

Luke notes that Anna at this point felt a surge of motivation when Jesus Christ was presented at the Temple, and this energized and motivated her to _speak openly_ about God to anyone who would listen.

Never in the Bible is anyone rebuked or corrected for being “too bold” or “too open” with their faith. There are stories of folks being too bold to exercise miraculous power in the name of Jesus (7 sons of Sceva), and there are times when preachers are taken aside and taught more accurately (apollo), but bold proclamation of the Gospel is always encouraged.

Application:

Loneliness to some extent is a choice. Being alone may not be a choice at all, but loneliness does not have to control you. Sometimes you can serve the Lord all the more. Sometimes you can build deeper friendships with others. Sometimes you can take risks for God or go on adventures for Jesus that you could not do if you had others depending on you. Anna could not have spent all that time at the Temple if she had a family to care for.

There is no substitute for a powerful prayer life. I have worked prayer into my morning routine, and it has been immensely rewarding. Sometimes a prayer life is one of God’s blessings for difficult times. The harder the years are, the greater our prayer life becomes.