SERIES: “GIFTS UNDER THE TREE”
TEXT: LUKE 2:21-38
TITLE: “SALVATION – THE ETERNAL GIFT”
INTRODUCTION: A. Johnny Hart is the writer and illustrator for the B.C. comic strip. He’s also a
committed Christian who perceptively works spiritual truths into his cartoons.
Several years ago he had a comic strip at Christmas time that began with two ants,
a father and a son,
talking to one another. The son asked, “Dad, who is Jesus?” The father ant replied,
“He’s the reason for the season.” The son then says, “But, Dad, I thought Santa Claus
was the reason.” The father ant replied, “He is, if you prefer Nintendo to everlasting
life.”
1. Several weeks ago, we began a series called, “Gifts Under the Tree”
2. I want to conclude the series this morning with “Salvation – The Eternal Gift”
B. Lk. 2:21-35 – “On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise him, he was named
Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he had been conceived. 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 (as it is written in the Law of
the Lord, ‘Every firstborn male is to be consecrated to the Lord,’ 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.’ 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. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die
before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. 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, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying: ‘Sovereign
Lord, as you have promised, you now dismiss your servant in peace. For my eyes
have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all people, a light
for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.’ The child’s father
and mother marveled at what was said about him. 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, so that the thoughts of many hearts
will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too.’”
1. There’s a jump in time between v. 21 and v. 22.
a. vs. 21 takes place eight days after Jesus’ birth
b. vs. 22 takes place at least forty days after Jesus’ birth
2. These two verses report three different ceremonies that were required under the
Old Testament law:
a. vs. 21 records the infant boy’s circumcision and the official declaration of His
name as Jesus
--a name not given by Mary and Joseph but by direct decree from God – “God
is salvation”
b. vs. 22 records the other two ceremonies
1). Redemption of the first-born male
a). According to the law, the first-born male belonged to God and had to be
redeemed by the sacrifice of a lamb
b). A provision was made for poor parents who couldn’t afford a lamb.
--They could bring two doves or two young pigeons to offer as the
sacrifice of redemption
c). As we read this account 2,000 years in the future, the irony should
strike us that Mary and Joseph brought their sacrifice of two birds yet
they carried in their arms the Lamb of God who would take away the
sins of the world
d). The ceremony for the redemption of the first male child could not be
performed until at least 31 days after the birth
3). The third ceremony was the purification of the mother 40 days after the
birth of a male child
a). According to the Old Testament law, the mother of a newborn male
child could not even come to the temple until the 40th day after
childbirth. If it was a newborn female, she had to wait 80 days
--She was considered unclean
b). There was a bathing of purification that was required
--Couples with newborns usually combined the timing of these two
ceremonies in vs. 22 for the sake of convenience
C. While Joseph and Mary were at the temple for these particular ceremonies, they met a
very interesting man named Simeon
1. He was a priest who served at the temple and was a faithful follower of God
2. We’re not told how old Simeon was at this time, but the text seems to indicate that
he had seen quite a few years go by
--Red Skelton was introduced to a woman who told him that it was her birthday that
day. He asked, “How old are you?” She indignantly replied, “Mr. Skelton, that is
entirely my business.” He remarked, “Well, it appears that you’ve been in
business for quite some time.”
3. The name Simeon means “the one who hears or the one who obeys”
--the word is the same for both meanings in Hebrew
a. Quite an appropriate name because he certainly listened to the Holy Spirit and
was obedient to what God wanted him to do
b. We’re told that he was anxiously awaiting and eagerly anticipating the coming
of the Messiah – “the consolation of Israel”
--the Holy Spirit had told him that he would not die until he saw the Promised
One – “the Lord’s Christ”
c. Can you imagine Simeon watching every male baby brought to the temple while
he served there?
--You can just see the look of hope in his eyes as he pondered: “Is this the one?”
4. After a prompting by the Holy Spirit, Simeon left his duties in the court of the
priests and greeted Mary and Joseph in the temple courtyard
--This encounter at the temple teaches us some important things about the gift of
salvation
I. SALVATION IS A GIFT THAT EVERYONE NEEDS
A. Simeon was a devout and righteous person.
--But no matter how good he was, he still recognized his need for God’s promised Savior
1. Everyone of us should know that we all have a need for the Savior
a. Rom. 3:10 – “There is none righteous, not even one.”
b. James 2:10 – “For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of
breaking all of it.”
c. Rom. 3:23 – “F or all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”
2. No matter how good you think you are, you still need the Savior
a. Not one person is worthy of relationship with God
b. In Isaiah, God says that all of our righteousness heaped in a big pile is only a pile of dirty, tattered
rags when compared to God’s righteousness
c. Eph. 2:8-9 – “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from
yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.”
--Salvation is gift that cannot be earned. It can only be received by faith
B. Simeon has waited his whole life for a Savior to come.
1. Nancy Dahlberg tells about a trip from Los Angeles to San Francisco to spend Chrismas at her
in-laws. Both Nancy and her husband had to be back to work the day after Christmas, so they made the
400-mile drive back to L.A. on Christmas Day. They stopped to eat in a restaurant where they were the
only family in the place.
Her one-year-old son Erik thought that “Hithere” was one word. He sat in the metal high chair and
pounded his fat baby hands on the tray. He sat there continuously saying, “Hithere.”
She looked around and found the source of his joy – it was what appeared to be a homeless man in
dirty tattered clothes that had about as many teeth in his head as her one-year-old Erik. The old fellow
was talking to Erik from across the restaurant: “Hi there, baby, Hi there, big boy, I see ya Buster.”
The encounter continued even after the food came to their table. The fellow was now shouting
across the room, “Do you know patty cake? Atta boy! Do you know peek-boo? Hey, look! He
knows peek-a-boo!” Erik continued to laugh and answer, “Hithere.” No one else thought it was cute.
The guy appeared to be drunk and was now a disturbance to the other diners.
Nancy and her husband ate as fast as possible and the husband went to pay the check. He had asked
Nancy to grab Erik and meet him in the parking lot. She was hoping that she’d get outside before the
old guy could speak to them again.
As she got closer to where the man sat, she tried to sidestep the him. But as she turned to do so,
Erik took advantage of his opportunity. He leaned over her arm, reached out with both of his arms in
that baby “please pick-me-up” gesture. He was lunging for the old fellow with his arms spread wide.
As she turned her body she came face-to-face with this fellow. Erik literally jumped out of here arms
to the grungy fellow.
The man whose hands were full of grime gently cradled Erik in his arms and stroked his back. Erik
laid his head on the guy’s ragged shoulder. The man’s eyes closed and tears streamed down his
cheeks. The man reluctantly pried Erik from his chest and said to Nancy, “God bless you, Ma’am.
You’ve given me my Christmas gift.”
2. Simeon probably felt the same way as he held the baby Jesus – “Thank you, God. You’ve given me
my Christmas gift.”
--His eyes had seen the salvation of Israel.
****Salvation is a gift that everyone needs
II. SALVATION IS A GIFT THAT ONLY JESUS CAN PROVIDE
A. Why?
--He’s the only one who ever defeated death and is victorious over sin and the grave
1. Acts 4:12 – “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men
by which we must be saved.”
2. Jn. 14:6 – Jesus said, “"I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except
through me.”
B. A lot of people think that’s too exclusive.
1. A lot of people believe it doesn’t matter what you believe – that all roads lead to heaven.
--but the Bible teaches that Jesus is the only way to salvation
2. There are people who just consider Jesus a great moral teacher.
--“Well, you know, I don’t believe everything that Christians teach about Jesus. But he did teach
some great moral things – like the Sermon on the Mount or the Golden Rule.”
3. C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity: “A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said
would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic—on a level with the man who says he
is a poached egg—or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man
was, and is, the Son of God: or else a madman or something worse. You can shut Him up for a fool,
you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God.
But let us not come with any patronising [sic] nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has
not left that open to us. He did not intend to.”
C. Only Jesus lived a perfect life, became the perfect sacrifice, and conquered sin and the grave.
--It’s because of that we can receive the gift of salvation and eternal life
****Salvation is a gift that everyone needs, it’s a gift that only Jesus can provide
III. SALVATION IS A GIFT THAT DESERVES A RESPONSE
--Actually, there are four responses that this gift deserves:
A. The first response should be gratitude for what God did for us
1. When we consider the lengths that God went to for us, giving His one and only Son, our first response
should be thanksgiving.
2. Imagine that you had a friend that won a $100 million Powerball. (I said, “Imagine”). Just go along
with me. What if that friend said, “I’m going to give all my good friends a million dollars.” You
deposit it in the bank and start spending the money. About a year later, another friend comes up to
you and asks, “How’s that generous friend of yours doing?” And you say, “Well, I haven’t talked to
him in awhile. In fact, I haven’t talked to him since he gave me the money.” Your other friend would
probably ask, “Why? He was so generous in his gift to you. You don’t talk to him anymore?” “Well,
hasn’t done anything for me lately….”
a. Our real response would probably be that we would spend the rest of our lives thanking him for
such a generous gift.
b. We’d probably do everything we could to show our gratitude for such a great gift.
3. The gift of Jesus Christ is far greater than a million dollars.
--One of the responses that God wants from our lives when we understand the gift is the same as the
apostle Paul in 2 Cor. 9:15 – “Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!”
B. The second response is that we should live with confidence
1. When we understand the lengths that God went to give us such a gift, it should give us confidence in
living out our daily lives.
2. It’s not based on what we do, but rather what Christ has done for us.
-- Because of what Christ has done, Heb. 4:16 – “Let us then approach the throne of grace with
confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”
3. The problem with a religion based on doing enough things is that we’re always asking, “Have I done
enough?”
a. Christianity is not a religion based on doing – it’s a relationship based on what has already been
done through Jesus Christ.
b. When we realize what has been done for us, it gives us a confidence to live every day in the grace of
Christ
C. The third response is surrender
1. It doesn’t make sense to celebrate Jesus’ birth unless we surrender our lives to Jesus Christ as our
Lord and Savior because of what He’s done for us
--Rom. 12:1 – “Therefore, I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living
and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual act of worship.”
2. Too many times we look at what we have to give up when we accept Jesus Christ into our lives
instead of looking at what God had to give up so that you could have the gift of salvation.
D. The fourth and final response is sharing
1. After hearing the words of Simeon, Mary and Joseph went to leave the temple. They didn’t get a step
or two away until they met another person who was anxiously awaiting God’s salvation through the
promised Messiah.
2. Lk. 2:36-38 – “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, and then was a widow
until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying.
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.”
a. Anna was another person who had been anxiously awaiting and eagerly anticipating God’s
promised Savior
b. Although she was a dedicated worshiper of God, she knew she needed salvation as well
c. Notice that her response was to share her encounter with Jesus with all who were looking for
a Savior
3. As you study the events surrounding the Christmas story, those who encountered Jesus couldn’t wait
to share their experience with others
--Why do we have such a difficult time telling others about the wonderful gift of salvation available
through a relationship with Jesus – the One so-named because He would save people from their sins
CONCLUSION: A. All of our earthly Christmas gifts will eventually wear out, break, be stored away, or just
discarded.
--Salvation is a gift that will last forever
B. Have you ever received a gift that just seemed to good to be true?
--Salvation is that kind of gift
1. Most people feel they have to do something to earn the gift.
2. However, a gift is not something that is earned.
a. You don’t give a gift to someone because they’re worthy.
b. You give the gift because you love them.
3. Jn. 3:16-17 – “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that
whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send
his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”
C. Last week, we looked at “Jesus – The Priceless Gift”.
--1 Pet. 1:18-19 – “For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or
gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from
your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or
defect.”
1. Just because something is free for you doesn’t make it cheap.
2. A preacher friend of mine was given a 2003 Ford Taurus several weeks ago to use
in his ministry to his congregation. It was an anonymous gift but it was also an
expensive gift. It was free to him but it cost some of his church members a
considerable sum of money.
What if those church members who made a sacrificial gift saw my friend use this
car in the wrong way? Maybe he didn’t take care of it – drove it without taking care of
maintenance needs. Maybe he used it for reasons other than why it was given to him –
instead of using it for ministry purposes, he picks up a rural mail route or newspaper
delivery route (which by the way is hard on an automobile) to make extra money.
Don’t you think that the people who gave an expensive gift would be upset with what
he had done with their gift?
One thing I do know, my friend is extremely grateful for such a grand gift and he
uses for the things those who gave it provided it for. He does understand that while it
was free for him, someone paid a pretty good price so that he could receive that gift.
C. Maybe you noticed or maybe you didn’t that the title of this series is “Gifts Under the
Tree”.
--The simple matter is that I haven’t been referring to a Christmas tree but the tree of
Calvary – the cross on which Christ paid the price for my sins and yours. It’s because
of the cross that we have all these wonderful gifts:
1. “Joy – The Enduring Gift”
2. “Peace – The Mysterious Gift”
3. “Purpose – The Indispensable Gift”
4. “Salvation – The Eternal Gift
5. All of these gifts are available for us to receive because of “Jesus – The Priceless Gift”
