Shouldn't we be continually offering praise, and adoration, and thanksgiving for God's great sacrifice for us? We have been transformed into a newness of life. We have been grafted into the vine. We have become heirs to the promise made to Abraham… we are part of God's Kingdom, and someday the transformation will be complete. Upon our entrance into heaven, we will be changed into the likeness of Jesus himself. And we will no longer see and understand God as though we were peering at his reflection in a dark mirror. We are his brothers and sisters, God's own children… thanks to the price Jesus paid for us at cross.

Do I truly understand this!!?? Have my eyes seen this salvation? This is the true measure of God's love for me. What is my response to this gift from God?

I want to talk to you today about two people who were devoted, dedicated, faithful, followers of Christ… even before Jesus was born. There were many Old Testament saints who were searching for, and waiting for the arrival of the Messiah. But those who were written about in the Old Testament, died before being able to rest their eyes upon their savior. But just as it is with you and me, it was their faith and belief in the coming Messiah that saved them… It is faith that delivered them into the hands of the Lord.

As I've mentioned before in my sermon God's Grace Frees Us, the jews were able to use the decree of rebuilding the Temple which is documented in the book of Nehemiah, coupled with the time-able prophecies of Daniel,… to calculate when the Messiah would appear.

So, when Jesus was born, faithful Jews, familiar with the scriptures were in anticipation of the arrival of the Messiah.

Today, we are going to hear about two such individuals. Our scripture passage comes from the 2nd chapter of the Gospel of Luke. Even though Jesus is the star of this story, this passage is much like a movie we might see today where the focus of the scene seems to highlight one or two very interesting character actors. In this case, I'm talking about Simeon and Anna. In these two individuals we see a devotion to the Lord which resulted in blessings and rewards, and a gift most of us associate only with being baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Not only do we learn from today's passage that Jesus was born a Jew, but we learn that even the Son of God was not above the Mosaic law that the Jews observed. Instead, Jesus and his parents fulfilled every nuance and letter of the law perfectly. But also we read that Simeon was "full of the Holy Spirit". This was a gift that was withheld even from the apostles until the day of Pentecost. Today we know that the gift of the Holy Spirit is given freely to all who are baptized in his name… but here… long before Christ's teaching, and long before the descending of the Holy Spirit onto the heads of the disciples in flaming tongues of fire at the day of Pentecost… Simeon was "filled with the Holy Spirit", the Holy Spirit "spoke" to Simeon…

So as we read today's passage in Luke, listen for signs of fulfilled prophecy, watch for the strict observance by everyone in this story, of the laws given by God to Moses, and also listen for the rewards for such obedience and devotion to God.

(Read Luke 2:21-40)

Okay, now let me see if I can fill out the text here with things that we know from other passages of scripture.

2:21-24 Jewish families went though several ceremonies soon after a baby's birth that were part of the laws given to Moses: The first law we find observed is Circumcision. Every Jewish boy was circumcised and named on the eighth day after birth (Leviticus 12:3). Circumcision symbolized the Jews' separation from Gentiles and their unique relationship with God. To you and me, this may seem like an odd way to identify a man's relationship with God. But the Jews had many practices and rituals which were designed to keep them thinking about separating themselves from other nations and religions, and about keeping their worship ceremonies holy and "ceremonially clean". Those who were devoted to God didn't question these practices. As odd as some of them may sound to you and me, it was part of their culture, and to deviate from the laws of Moses, if you were Jewish was to sin in the eyes of God.

The 2nd law we find observed is the Redemption of the firstborn. A first born son was presented to God 40 days after birth (Exod 13:2, 11-16). The ceremony included buying back or --- "redeeming" --- the child from God through an offering. Through this practice, the parents acknowledged that the child belonged to God, who alone has the power to give life.

The 3rd law fulfilled was the Purification of the mother. For 40 days after the birth of a son and 80 days after the birth of a daughter, the mother was considered "ceremonially unclean" and could not enter the Temple (Lev 12:1-8). What exactly is "ceremonially unclean" and why would a woman be considered in such a way immediately following the miracle of childbirth?

It seems that this was due to the bodily secretions which occur during and after childbirth. These were considered unclean according to Jewish law and this made the woman unprepared to enter the pure surroundings of the Tabernacle. I wish there were another term for this… to help us understand how God and the Jews felt about this issue. The word unclean has a very dirty and sinful sound to it, but that's not how God OR the Jews felt about this time for a woman.

Lev 12:1-4 God created us male and female, and he ordered us to be fruitful and multiply. God did not change his mind and say that sex and procreation were now somehow unclean. Instead, he made a distinction between his worship and the popular worship of fertility gods and goddesses. In contrast to these other religions, Israel's religion avoided all sexual connotations. By keeping worship and matters associated with sex entirely separate, God helped the Israelites avoid confusion with pagan rites and rituals. The Israelites accepted the laws of Moses as they were delivered to them. It is important to note that new mothers were not social outcasts during this time of separation… in fact they were looked after and well cared for by those who loved them. I believe that Mary, the mother of baby Jesus, did not feel cast out by God during this time. In fact, I'm sure she felt that by obeying this particular law, at this particular time, that she was honoring God by her obedience.

2:24 The 4th law we see fulfilled was the offering used to buy back from God, the infant child which had been just presented to him. At the end of the mother's separation from the Temple, the parents of the child were to bring a lamb for a burnt offering and a dove or pigeon for a sin offering. These were in fact the very animals that were being sold by the money changers in the outer court of the Temple when Jesus became upset at one point during his ministry. Jesus was not upset about the practice of the offering, or over the animals in the court yard. Jesus objected to the greedy bartering that went into acquiring one of these offerings, without the personal sacrifice or preparation on the part of the one coming to worship.

Now God knew that not everyone owned or could afford to present a sacrificial a lamb as a burnt offering. If a lamb was too expensive, the parents could bring a second dove or pigeon instead. This is what Mary and Joseph did. The priest I'm sure sacrificed these animals for them and then declared Mary to be "ceremonially clean".

In the Book of Revelation, Jesus is referred to as the "Sinless Lamb of God". Jesus was "the One who knew no sin". Jesus took upon himself our past, present, and future sins, …the sins of the whole world, and he paid that sin debt in full. God said "the wages of sin is death". Jesus paid that price, but because he had committed no sin to punish, God allowed his death to be the payment for our disobedience. No one has ever been able to obey all of those laws handed down by Moses. No one except Jesus. And God said that because of his perfection, because of his sinless nature, because no law was broken… according to the Jewish laws and culture in which he lived… God said, "It is enough… this payment is acceptable and sufficient".

So here we see Jesus fulfilling prophecy, and adhering to the laws delivered by Moses.

2:28-32 Now… what about this character Simeon. When Mary and Joseph brought Jesus to the Temple to be dedicated to God, they met an old man who told them what their child would become. Simeon's song is often called the Nunc Dimittis, because these are the first words of its Latin translation:

"Lord, now I can die in peace!
As you promised me,
I have seen the Savior
you have given to all people.
He is a light to reveal God to the nations,
and he is the glory of your people Israel!"

2:33 Joseph and Mary were amazed at Simeon for three reasons: 1st) Simeon said that Jesus was a gift from God; : 2nd) Simeon recognized Jesus as the Messiah; and 3rd) Simeon said Jesus would be a light to the entire world. It was at least the second time that Mary had been greeted with a prophecy about her son; the first time was when Elizabeth welcomed her as the mother of her Lord (Luk 1:42-45). Simeon foresaw both the victory and the pain that Jesus would experience. As Jesus' mother, Mary would be grieved by the widespread rejection he would at one time face. This is the first note of sorrow in Luke's Gospel.

2:36-39 Although Simeon and Anna were very old, they had never lost their hope that they would see the Messiah. Led by the Holy Spirit, they were among the first to bear witness of Jesus. In the Jewish culture, elders were respected, so because of Simeon's and Anna's age, their prophecies carried extra weight. Anna was called a prophetess, indicating that she was unusually close to God. As Latter Day Saints, we know, as the Jews did, that Prophets do not necessarily predict the future. Although Simeon did foresee future events, the main role of a Prophet is to speak for God, proclaiming his truth.

And this they did. Through Simeon and Anna, we are left with the precept and the example, that God rewards righteousness. God blesses us for our obedience. God desires a deep personal relationship with us, and as a result, he rewards us with the desires of our hearts.

The scripture stories confirm God's redemptive plan of salvation for you and for me. There is confirmation in every chapter of every book of the Bible that Jesus is "Emanuel"… (God with Us). Over and over again, so many writers, in so many books, spanning thousands of years… all point to Jesus as God's chosen one… as the Messiah, the Christ, our Savior.

Returning to my opening remarks: If I truly understand salvation… the wiping clean the memory of my sins in the mind of God… the setting apart… the sanctification that comes from accepting what Jesus did for me… If I truly understand that… shouldn't Jesus be at the center of my life?"

We should be continually offering praise, and adoration, and thanksgiving for God's great sacrifice for us. We are his brothers and sisters, God's own children… thanks to the price Jesus paid for us at the cross.

When we truly understand this… truly appreciate this… our submission to his will remains consistent, and blessings and rewards for our faithfulness are found to be in abundance in our daily lives. We proclaim to him… we exclaim to him, "My eyes have seen your salvation!". This is the true measure of God's love for us. Thank you Father… Thank you for sending your son, in the form a babe in a manger on that first Christmas day.