Simeon's Waiting



"Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him" (Luke 2:22–52; focused on 2:22–32)

Waiting is a daily part of life. We wait for our turn at stoplights, in check-out lines, to cross streets, to pick up children or adults, for class or meetings to begin or end, and the response to our text or WhatsApp message—daily we wait. On a larger scale, we wait for "BIG" things to possibly happen in our lives—life to begin with birth, education beginning and ending with graduation, marriage, anniversaries, and even death. Spiritually, we wait for God's answers, our conversion to faith in Christ, His direction in our lives, and our daily walk with Him to see what He will do in His plan. We wait and wait and wait.

Simeon is not mentioned before this passage in Luke. We do not know historically more about him. From this passage, though, we see that he was "righteous and devout" in God's eyes and that he was waiting for the consolation of Israel. Consolation is a Greek term meaning comfort. God had given Simeon the promise that he would see God's comfort and rescue for His people. We do not know how long he had been waiting, but we do know that when the Holy Spirit led him to the temple to see Jesus being dedicated to the Lord, he knew "he could depart now in peace" (v. 29). What a promise fulfilled! God gave Simeon the gift of seeing His plan of salvation through Jesus through the Holy Spirit. His knowledge of Jesus' life and death and resurrection—God's plan to save His people—was vivid.

As we wait—daily, weekly, yearly—for God's answers in our life, we often grow impatient. We long for clear, immediate answers from God, and we cling to our faith in Him and wait expectantly. During this Lenten season, let us wait—with patience and confidence— to celebrate Jesus' life, death, and resurrection. God sent us His Son so that we could have a relationship with Him, spend eternity with Him, and spend our days serving Him.

LET US PRAY - Lord, thank You for loving us and daily walking with us as we wait for Your plans and promises to be fulfilled in our lives and in our world. Please give us patience and a deeper faith to know that You alone are God, and through Your love for us, you sent Your Son, Jesus, to fulfil Your promise. In Jesus' name. Amen.


Location: Exmouth, Reino Unido

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Danger

Image
If you’re reading this right now then be warned. This devotional to spiritual warfare is a bit dangerous, not to you, but to your way of life. If ignorance is bliss, it aims to destroy that bliss forever. Imagine living in a house infested with termites. For years you never noticed them. Just beyond reach, just out of sight, they lived, they ate, they spawned, they festered. For all those years you blindly ate, played, and slept, unaware of the lurking presence right beneath your head at night. If you live in a house full of termites is it better to know or is it simpler to live in ignorance? If you prefer ignorance, then stop reading right now. If you don’t want to know about the spiritual forces that have been eating away at the foundation of your life and family like termites, then there’s no need to go any farther. Ignorance is in fact bliss, at least for the short term. This book’s aim is nothing short of ripping up the base boards, pulling out the sheetrock and exposing the d
Read more

FEARFUL

Image
" Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles " (Acts 2:43) Read: Acts 2:43 The word awe is defined as “fearful” and usually refers to the fear of the LORD in the Bible. Fear of the Lord doesn’t mean sheer terror. It’s having a healthy respect for God’s power, acknowledging his all-encompassing character and that he holds life and death in his hands. Early believers focused upward and gave God credit for the miracles performed through the Apostles and the salvation they offered through Jesus. We have no less reason for awe of God today. His signs and wonders are all around us. He created everything (Genesis 1:1), holds everything together (Colossians 1:17) and raised Christ from the dead by which we are saved and made new (Romans 6:4). He has a home for each of us in his Kingdom (John 14:2), which will be established when Jesus returns (1 Thessalonians 4:16). God is the author of life through which babies are formed, and plants s
Read more

Worship

Image
Text: Psalm 104.24-35 Psalm 104 starts and ends with the words, “Praise the Lord, my soul”. The beginning and the end are a proclamation of praise to the Almighty God. In fact, the whole psalm is a review of the greatness of God in creation and, therefore, a meditation on God’s providence. To consider such things, helps us to draw closer to God and worship Him. If we are sincere with ourselves, our daily situations (children, work, news, stress, etc.) can take our attention away from God. It is not easy to just plug-in and worship the Lord. I find myself missing so much of God’s creation, because my mind wanders off to my daily concerns. My wife calls me to really see the beauty around us, otherwise I would miss it. How easy it is for us to be carried away and not once lift our eyes to the Lord, and worship Him that created the earth. Let us open our spiritual eyes, God has revealed through the authors of the Psalms that all of creation is called to worship. It is not just appreciation
Read more