Years ago in Scotland, the Clark family had a dream. Clark and his wife worked and saved, making plans for their nine children and themselves to travel to the United States.
It had taken years, but they finally saved enough money and obtained passports and reservations for the entire family on a new ocean liner to the United States.
The entire family was filled with anticipation and excitement about their new life. However, seven days before their scheduled departure, the youngest son was bitten by a dog. The doctor sewed up the boy but hung a yellow sheet on the Clark’s front door. Because of the possibility of rabies, they were being quarentined for fourteen days.
The family’s dreams were dashed. They would not be able to make the trip to America as they had planned. The father, filled with disappointment and anger, stomped to the dock to watch the ship leave - without the Clark family. The father shed tears of disappointment and cursed both his son and God for their misfortune.
Five days later, the tragic news spread throughout Scotland - the migthy Titanic had sunk. The unsinkable ship had sunk, taking hundreds of lives with it. The Clark family was to have been on that ship, but because the son had been bitten by a dog, they were left behind in Scotland.
Waiting can sometimes turn out to be a blessing.
For the hero in today’s scripture, Simeon, this was the case.
He had been waiting expectantly all of his life to see the Savior. That wish was wonderfully fulfilled when Joseph and Mary brought Jesus to the temple.
Simeon is what we might call a "supporting actor" in the Christmas narrative. He did not have very many lines but they are interesting and instructional.
Consider Simeon’s role in the Christmas story and ask yourself these questions about your personal view of Jesus the Christ.
First question to ask yourself during the Christmas season - "Does the Holy Spirit guide my life?" (Luke 2:25-27)
Verse 25 says of Simeon, "the Holy Spirit was upon him."
Verse 26 says, "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."
Verse 27 adds, "So he came by the Spirit into the temple."
You do not have to be a rocket scientist to catch on to why Simeon is mentioned in the Christmas story.
Simeon allowed the Holy Spirit to guide his life and thus became a mentor to Joseph and Mary with their young child.
Now this was remarkable because it was even before the Holy Spirit indwelled believers as He has since the Day of Pentecost.
Today, those who receive Christ, receive the Holy Spirit. (Acts 2:38; Romans 8:9; 1 Corinthians 12:13) That should be encouraging to anyone considering making a faith commitment to Jesus. When you become a Christian, the Holy Spirit comes in to you to assist you in living the way a Christian should live.
Many people who have yet to receive Jesus claim that they wouldn’t be able to live a Christian life - and they are right. On their own, they’re not able. None of us is able on our own. But the simple truth is, when we turn to Christ by faith we are no longer on our own!
Concering life without the Spirit, God says this in Galatians 5:19-23:
"Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control."
Which list categorizes your life? The answer to that question will inform you as to whether or not the Spirit is leading your life.
When the Holy Spirit guides your life, the fruit of the Spirit will evidence itself.
The Christmas season is not just a time to ask ourselves what gifts will we purchase for those we love, but "am I the spiritual person I need to be?"
Those you love will be more blessed by your being a spiritual person than they will be by any gift you give them!
Second question to ask yourself this Christmas season -
"Have I really seen the light?" (Luke 2:28-32)
In his novel, "A Painted House", John Grisham tells about a Sunday school teacher eulogizing a mean character in the story named Jerry Sisco, who had been killed in a fight with another ruffian.
In the words of the little boy who had seen the fight with his friend Dewayne: "She made Jerry sound like a Christian, and an innocent victim. I glanced at Dewayne, who had one eye on me. There was something odd about this. As Baptists, we’d been taught from the cradle that the only way you made it to heaven was by believing in Jesus and trying to follow his example in living a clean and moral Christian life...And anyone who did not accept Jesus and live a Christian life simply went to hell. That’s where Jerry Sisco was, and we all knew it."
Now none of us is another man’s judge, but that excerpt is a little bit refreshing in it’s candor.
We all know whether or not we belong to Christ. Simeon knew his eyes had seen God’s salvation in the person of Christ.
He proclaimed that Jesus was "a light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel." (v. 32)
Ask yourself, "Do I have a personal relationship with Jesus?"
Don’t ask yourself if you are a good moral person. Don’t ask yourself if you give to charity during the holiday season. Don’t even ask yourself whether or not you believe in God. Even Satan’s demons believe in God. (James 2:19)
No, the central question is, "have I, like Simeon, seen Jesus?"
Those of you who are parents, do you remember when you first saw your children after their birth? Of course you do. You were there. It was a very personal experience.
Salvation is like that. Either you have or you haven’t been "born again". You were there. If you can’t remember a specific incident when you made a faith commitment to Jesus then you should make one today.
Third question to ask yourself during the Christmas season - "Will Christ be my ruler or my rival?" (Luke 2:33-35)
Simeon had some words about Jesus and Joseph and Mary marvelled at his words. The truth was being reinforced by this godly man that their son was indeed the Son of God.
But Simeon also had some words directed to the new parents. These words were prophetic and very discerning.
Simeon said Jesus would be "spoken against" (v. 34),and, "that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed." (v. 35)
These truths are perhaps best illustrated in the life of King Herod in Matthew’s account of the birth of Christ. (Matthew 2) His search for the Christ child was not so he could worship Him as the wisemen sought to do, but rather, in order that he might kill a potential rival.
Every Christmas Eve there is a living nativity pageant on the front lawn of a church in a suburb of New York City. This church is right in the center of the town, and the pageant is a spectacle the whole town comes out to see.
You know how these work: there are real people playing all the parts in the Christmas story; there are live sheep and cows, a real donkey, and, if they get ambitious, a real live camel or two trotting across the church lawn. The characters in the pageant assemble in the fellowship hall of the church and wait for their cues before they head out across the lawn to the manger and "Bethlehem".
One year, the wise men not only wore their silken robes and fancy turbans, but they also borrowed brass censers from the local Orthodox, so that as they headed out across the lawn, they could be shrouded in the mystery of smoke and the aroma of incense. Before they left the fellowship hall, they lit the censers and got the incense going. They then headed out to the manger, unaware that the smoke had set off the automatic fire alarms in the church. An electronic message flashed to the fire station, and the fire department, persuaded that the church was ablaze, responded.
Needless to say, it was a Christmas pageant the town will never forget. There on the front lawn of the church, heading toward Bethlehem, were not only shepherds and angels and wise men, but yellow-slickered firemen unrolling hoses, convinced they had a fire to extinguish. When the firemen finally figured out that this was a false alarm, the crowd on the lawn distinctly heard the fire chief say with irritation, "You wise men are setting off alarms all over town!"
The original wisemen would have well understood.
There is something about the message of Jesus. He is either your ruler or your rival. Christ Himself said, "He who is not with Me is against Me". (Matthew 12:30)
What about it? Are you for Him like Simeon and the wisemen, or are you against Him like King Herod?
There is no nuetral ground. Make the most momentous decision of your life this Christmas season and decide that you are for Him!
