Who Is Jesus? Luke 2:21-40
Who Is Jesus? • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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· 5 viewsEpiphany is about discovery. It is a sudden breakthrough of realization about something. During the season of Epiphany, our subject of discover is the identity of Jesus. This baby whose birth we celebrate at Christmas, was no ordinary child. He was human, but He was also God. This season we will look behind Jesus childhood and the beginning of His ministry looking for the gems that reveal that He was more than an ordinary person. He was in fact, God incarnate.
Notes
Transcript
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5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;
6 in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.
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February 8, 11 a.m. Eileen Larkin memorial service, potluck following
Introduction to opening scripture:
I am not bringing you an opening Psalm today. Instead, I am reading a short passage from our previous sermon series. It fits well with today’s message and shows the uniformity of scripture. You see, the Bible is one continuing event. It describes are beginnings, our dilemma, our deliverance, and it maps out how to get to our eternal destination.
It is also unique in that as we read the historical events, we also see images of our lives today and it reveals our future as well as the future of all humankind.
Please stand with me as I read and as we continue to worship in song.
Opening Scripture:
1 “I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come,” says the Lord Almighty. 2 But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner’s fire or a launderer’s soap. 3 He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the Lord will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness, 4 and the offerings of Judah and Jerusalem will be acceptable to the Lord, as in days gone by, as in former years.
Prayer
Worship Set
Prayer
Worship Through the Word:
Who Is Jesus?
Who Is Jesus?
10,000 Sermon Illustrations Law, purpose of
Law, purpose of
The Pupose of the Law
Evangelist Fred Brown used three images to describe the purpose of the law. First he likened it to a dentist’s little mirror, which he sticks into the patient’s mouth. With the mirror he can detect any cavities. But he doesn’t drill with it or use it to pull teeth. It can show him the decayed area or other abnormality, but it can’t provide the solution
Brown then drew another analogy. He said that the law is also like a flashlight. If suddenly at night the lights go out, you use it to guide you down the darkened basement stairs to the electrical box. When you point it toward the fuses, it helps you see the one that is burned out. But after you’ve removed the bad fuse, you don’t try to insert the flashlight in its place. You put in a new fuse to restore the electricity.
In his third image, Brown likened the law to a plumbline. When a builder wants to check his work, he uses a weighted string to see if it’s true to the vertical. But if he finds that he has made a mistake, he doesn’t use the plumbline to correct it. He gets out his hammer and saw. The law points out the problem of sin; it doesn’t provide a solution.
Source unknown
The solution is provided by Jesus Christ. God provided the law to illuminate for us our problem. However, God also knew that due to the nature of sin within us, we could never completely fix the problem on our own. For this reason, death has claim on us. That claim can only be broken by one able to live the law perfectly. Jesus was the only one who could fit that bill. This is the subject of today’s sermon.
We are currently in the season of Epiphany and last week I shared a story of a moment in time when I experienced a miracle from God. It was a simple miracle over a simple matter. It was not life or death, just an inconvenient moment when I realized I was facing circumstances beyond my control. God is good at revealing Himself in such moments. We often expect huge miracles but fail to see the smaller ones He performs in our life everyday. You see, God is constantly reaching out to us. He desires a relationship with us, so He is always working to reveal Himself to us.
The season of epiphany is a time of “bringing to light” something that we did not before understand. This sermon series is looking at some of the early events in Jesus’ life that reveal who He is. However, it also needs to bring to light why His identity is so significant for us. As we come to understand who He is and what He is seeking to accomplish, how does this affect our life? Does it change it? It should, if we truly grasp the reality of it all.
Last week, we looked at the Wise men and what it was that brought them so far to bring gifts to a baby who lived in poverty. They even defied a King in doing so. We know Jesus was about 1 or so when they arrived. I did sermon in keeping with the beginning of Epiphany but today we will move backwards, back to just days after His birth. I am reading from Luke 2:21-40, once again for continuity of the account.
21 On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise the child, he was named Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he was conceived. 22 When the time came for the purification rites required by the Law of Moses, Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord 23 (as it is written in the Law of the Lord, “Every firstborn male is to be consecrated to the Lord”), 24 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.” 25 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 on him. 26 It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. 27 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, 28 Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying: 29 “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you may now dismiss your servant in peace. 30 For my eyes have seen your salvation, 31 which you have prepared in the sight of all nations: 32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of your people Israel.” 33 The child’s father and mother marveled at what was said about him. 34 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, 35 so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too.” 36 There was also a prophet, Anna, the daughter of Penuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was very old; she had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, 37 and then was a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying. 38 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. 39 When Joseph and Mary had done everything required by the Law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee to their own town of Nazareth. 40 And the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was on him.
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I. Jesus Lived Under the Law That We May Be Saved From the Law. Luke 2:21-40
I. Jesus Lived Under the Law That We May Be Saved From the Law. Luke 2:21-40
I want to zero in on two parts of this passage this morning. We will look first at Baby Jesus and the things that take place that are significant to His identity, message, and purpose while here on earth. Then I want us to zoom in on Simeon, as I feel there are some lessons for us in his account.
To begin, we start with Jesus birth account. At Christmas, we left off with the shepherds arriving the night he was born and they worshipped Him. They left there declaring what they had witnessed, to all who would listen.
Aside from the bazaar experience of giving birth in a barn and then having a group of shaggy shepherds showing up, the account reads like any normal Jewish story of the day.
I suspect that Joseph went out the next day and was able to find some housing. It is always easier to do so in the day when many people are bustling around, than at night when people are in their homes and the town is quiet.
Events then fell into a normal routine and Luke makes a point of demonstrating this with three repetitions.
Luke 2:22–24 (NIV)
22 When the time came for the purification rites required by the Law of Moses, Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord 23 (as it is written in the Law of the Lord, “Every firstborn male is to be consecrated to the Lord”), 24 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.”
Luke 2:27 (NIV)
27 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,
Luke was obviously trying to make a point of demonstrating the obedience to “The Law of Moses” in these early days. This is a pattern that Jesus maintains throughout His life as we find that...
A. Jesus Faithfully Lived Under the Law. Luke 2:21-27
A. Jesus Faithfully Lived Under the Law. Luke 2:21-27
There is a good reason why God chose Joseph and Mary and one reason was their devotion to God’s law. Jesus was too young to have a say in this, but God had provided parents who would see that Jesus was brought up correctly, taking care of all the laws that God had given to Israel. Let’s quickly look at these laws that were fulfilled.
1. Circumcision Genesis 17; Leviticus 12:3; Luke 2:21
1. Circumcision Genesis 17; Leviticus 12:3; Luke 2:21
Circumcision came into play in back in Genesis 17 when God made a covenant with Abraham. From then on, all the male descendants of Abraham were to be circumcised, as well as anyone living among them.
12 For the generations to come every male among you who is eight days old must be circumcised, including those born in your household or bought with money from a foreigner—those who are not your offspring.
We are told that at that time, the baby was named Jesus in accordance with what the angel had declared. I suspect this was a matter of record. Joseph and Mary knew his name at birth, but there were probably official records that recorded at his circumcision and they supplied his name for those records at this time. Much like we would record a birth certificate. In our own American history, often baptism records were used similar to birth certificates. Churches used to maintain records of such information through the years. However, government records have replaced the churches role in this so that church records are not deemed as important anymore. At least, this is my understanding.
Next, we see...
2. The Purification Practice Leviticus 12; Luke 2:22-24
2. The Purification Practice Leviticus 12; Luke 2:22-24
2 “Say to the Israelites: ‘A woman who becomes pregnant and gives birth to a son will be ceremonially unclean for seven days, just as she is unclean during her monthly period.
4 Then the woman must wait thirty-three days to be purified from her bleeding. She must not touch anything sacred or go to the sanctuary until the days of her purification are over.
6 “ ‘When the days of her purification for a son or daughter are over, she is to bring to the priest at the entrance to the tent of meeting a year-old lamb for a burnt offering and a young pigeon or a dove for a sin offering. 7 He shall offer them before the Lord to make atonement for her, and then she will be ceremonially clean from her flow of blood. “ ‘These are the regulations for the woman who gives birth to a boy or a girl.
So, in Luke 2:22-24, we see this practice of taking a purification/sin offering to the Temple on Mary’s behalf.
Next is...
3. The Law of Consecration of a Firstborn Son Exodus 13:2; Luke 2:22-23
3. The Law of Consecration of a Firstborn Son Exodus 13:2; Luke 2:22-23
2 “Consecrate to me every firstborn male. The first offspring of every womb among the Israelites belongs to me, whether human or animal.”
Each of these laws were meticulously recorded by Luke. So, we must ask, why are these so important? It is because they speak directly to who Jesus was and what He came to do.
Jesus was God. God is the ultimate law maker. Yet, as God’s Son, Jesus never put himself above the law. He lived perfectly under the law fulfilling all its requirements, large and small.
This is significant in our world. I was watching a little of the confirmation hearings this week and I was thinking over the past few years. How fast certain people are to label President Trump a felon, yet these same people have not held President Biden accountable for anything, and have even pardoned his son who has been convicted and probably should have been for far more. We look at our leaders, those who lead by office as politicians and others who lead, due to their fame, from Hollywood. There are many cases where they inflict the law on others, yet do not submit to it themselves.
Jesus, however, has the power and might to do anything He wants, but He submits to the Father God and He lays down His sovereignty to submit to every aspect of the law, even those that we may deem unimportant or inconsequential, especially considering who Jesus really is.
Look at what Jesus says in Matthew 5:17
Matthew 5:17 (NIV)
17 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.
God knew that we were unable to fulfill the law perfectly due to our sin nature. Yet, His holy nature requires perfect holiness to remain in His presence. So, He sent His Son to fulfill the law for us and then provide a means for His Spirit to live in us helping us to do the same. However, in those moments when we fail, His perfection is credited on our account.
3 For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.
Now, there needed to be a witness to Jesus’ fulfillment. Luke in his account, records these details so that future generations would know that the law is serious and that Jesus fulfilled the law perfectly, and then He provided the means for us to fulfill it also, so we could one day stand before God as His children.
Yet, one law was not completed, at least not in the usual way. It is important to note this law as it speaks well to what Jesus came to do. It is the...
4. Redemption of the Firstborn Son Exodus 13:13-16; Numbers 18:15-16; Leviticus 27
4. Redemption of the Firstborn Son Exodus 13:13-16; Numbers 18:15-16; Leviticus 27
We spoke of this last summer. We find it in Exodus 13:2 but it is in Numbers where we find when this is to be done.
Numbers 18:15–16 (NIV)
15 The first offspring of every womb, both human and animal, that is offered to the Lord is yours. But you must redeem every firstborn son and every firstborn male of unclean animals.
16 When they are a month old, you must redeem them at the redemption price set at five shekels of silver, according to the sanctuary shekel, which weighs twenty gerahs.
This means that when that purification sacrifice is made and the child is consecrated, they are also to be redeemed with an offering of silver. However, in this account with Mary, Joseph, and baby Jesus, we do not hear of any such offering being brought. The only scenario where an offering for redemption was not brought, as far as I understand, is when the child is consecrated to the full time service of God. There were no redemption offerings from the Levites as they were chosen to serve God. When Samuel was little, instead of an offering being brought by his parents, young Samuel was presented to Eli the priest instead. No redemption is needed when ones life is given in service to God.
Jesus was God’s Son, and He came to serve God and to be a messenger to us from God.
No where in this account do we see this directly addressed, however, Jesus vocation is mentioned in this passage. It comes through a man named Simeon. I want us to take time to look a moment at Simeon because I believe Simeon is the...
B. Simeon: Profile of a Righteous Man Luke 2:25-35
B. Simeon: Profile of a Righteous Man Luke 2:25-35
Righteous is a word that many do not understand today. Someone may understand if we say someone acted out of righteous anger. We know this means that their anger is for a right reason. Their anger is justified, we would say. But what does it mean when we call someone righteous in the Bible? Luke calls Simeon, “one who was righteous and devout.” This was no small compliment. In their day, a person had to live faithful to every aspect of the law to be recognized as such. Beyond this description, we do not know many facts about the man. We do not know his age, or his occupation. We have no idea if he had a wife or children. However, we are told that he had one passion and it was to see the “consolation of Israel.”
Consolation literally means “comfort.” What was the comfort he was looking for? It is described in various scriptures but probably the best known one is Isaiah 40.
1 Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. 2 Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her that her hard service has been completed, that her sin has been paid for, that she has received from the Lord’s hand double for all her sins.
As Isaiah 40 continues we hear descriptions of “A voice of one calling in the wilderness...”, who we now know was John the Baptist. And it continues with descriptions of the coming Messiah.
10 See, the Sovereign Lord comes with power, and he rules with a mighty arm. See, his reward is with him, and his recompense accompanies him.
Simeon had a passion for God. He wanted to see the fulfillment of the coming Messiah.
I believe Simeon demonstrates a life that we are all supposed to live. We may not learn specific details about Simeon, but we learn the things that are most important about the man. First we see that...
1. He was led by the Spirit of God. Luke 2:26-27
1. He was led by the Spirit of God. Luke 2:26-27
26 It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. 27 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 was a man of God because he had learned to wait on the Holy Spirit. When the Holy Spirit led him, he responded to the Spirit. On this particular day, we have no idea what he was doing, but the account indicates that whatever he was doing, he suddenly felt impressed upon by the Holy Spirit to lay it aside and go to the temple. And that is exactly what he did. This is a man who had learned to recognize the Spirit’s prompting. This is not an instant knowledge. It comes with practice. We do not always get things right.
Sometimes it is our own desires that prompt us. However, when we take time to seek God and test these promptings, we begin to learn to recognize what is of God and what is not of God. We know that the Spirit never leads us to do anything against God’s Word, so that is a test we can use in gauging if something is from the Spirit or not. But practice helps us to gain confidence in recognizing the Spirit’s work in our life and obviously Simeon was well practiced, because he instantly responded to the Spirit’s direction. Because of his obedience to the Spirit, he was able to receive the answer to his prayers that day.
I am concerned that in our nation, too many people live a second-hand spiritual experience. What I mean by that is that they rely on someone else to tell them what God would have them to do. I take issue with someone who says, “I have a word of knowledge for you from God,” for this reason. I do not need someone to tell me what God wants me to do because I have a personal relationship with God that provides me the avenue to hear from God myself. Jesus provided me that opportunity when He died on the cross for my sins.
Now, I may not always get the details perfectly straight. God often speaks a sentence and we add an entire paragraph to it that may not be correct. But that is where the practice comes in. We often learn through success and failure, but as we gain experience, we become more confident of when God is speaking to us.
My experience is that very few will declare with any confidence that God spoke to them. Most have questions of how to hear from God. However, there is no real mystery about it. It just comes from taking time to listen. Then it is important to test it against God’s Word. As we become more knowledgeable about God’s Word, and more practiced in listening for God, we become more aware and confident in our experiences hearing from God.
Simeon was obviously experienced in listening for God, because he promptly obeyed the Spirit in that moment.
Another thing we see about Simeon is that...
2. He was taught by the Word of God. Luke 2:25, 29-32, 34-35
2. He was taught by the Word of God. Luke 2:25, 29-32, 34-35
The very fact that he was waiting for the “consolation of Israel” shows that he was a man of the Word. He had spent time studying the scriptures. However, there were many in Israel who studied the scriptures and completely missed the mark of what they meant. However, Simeon’s words about Jesus demonstrate an understanding of scripture that others didn’t have and that understanding would be proved true as Jesus grew and fulfilled His purpose. What gave Simeon the power to see the truth? I believe it was for two reasons. One, we mentioned above. He had learned to listen to the Spirit. He allowed the Spirit to reveal the truth found in God’s Words. He understood that Jesus salvation was not a political/military coup, but was a spiritual event. He also understood that it was for Jew and Gentile alike. He allowed himself to be taught by the word instead of taking his understanding and trying to prove it by the word. For this reason, God was able to use Simeon in this moment to declare His calling to serve God.
In our American history, the Bible was used as a school primer. Its scriptures were not only used to teach reading, but it was taught for understanding of the wisdom and knowledge it contained. However, most today do not study the Word for themselves. They depend on the pastor or some Sunday school teacher to do the studying for them and tell them what it means. Once again, it brings us to a second-hand experience. A big part of God’s voice comes through scripture. Many times when I am reading or studying God’s Word, something literally seems to jump off the page. Then I hear God’s Spirit speaking to me in various ways helping me to see something I never understood before, or showing me the answer to something that I am going through. Many never hear God’s Spirit because they never read or study the scriptures for themselves.
There is one more thing we see about Simeon.
3. He was obedient to the will of God. Luke 2:27
3. He was obedient to the will of God. Luke 2:27
Because he studied the Word, he was able to hear God. Because he listened to God, he was able to see God. He became daily more aware of God and His Spirit, and he obeyed the will of God. Because he did all these things, he had the honor of blessing God’s Son. He discovered his divine appointment in life. This would have been the highlight of his life. We have no idea how old he was. Tradition says he was 115, but it is difficult to know if this is true or not. I do suspect he was an older man due to his quick ability to hear and respond to God’s call. This suggests a man who has matured in his faith. Because of his heart for God and his faithfulness, he was written into the salvation account. His words bear witness to Jesus as God’s Son, the promised Messiah. Because of his faithfulness, he was granted the privilege of seeing the salvation of God. He did not need to live another 30 some years to see the crucifixion. He had read scripture and understood all he needed from that with the Spirit’s help. He was just over joyed to know the time had come.
Conclusion:
His experience is not for men alone. His account is followed by that of Anna, a prophetess. She was also one of the faithful remnant that had been faithful to God. She, too had learned to listen to the Spirit, had studied God’s Word, and was obedient enough to witness this day as well. I believe God records His Word with purpose and he wanted both men and women represented in this moment. Both leaders. Both giving evidence of having a personal relationship with God.
Jesus’s parent’s faithfulness to the laws, and the obedience of Simeon and Anna, bear witness to Jesus’ identity, Jesus’ eligibility to stand in our place, and His ultimate purpose to provide salvation for all peoples. Likewise, Simeon and Anna had such a relationship with God, that they did not need anyone to tell them who Jesus was. They just knew! There was nothing in that little infant that would identify Him beyond the Spirit of God within them.
What kind of connection do you have to God? If an infant baby Jesus were placed in your hands, would you instantly know Him for who He is because of the relationship you have with God or would you need to rely on someone else to tell you? I would say if you live a so-so, Christian life, that is to say that you have nothing exciting to share about your Christian life, then you have lived a life that is second-hand. I would say you have not experienced a first-hand experience, because once you do, it changes your life. You have no desire to ever go back to living vicariously through another. God is eagerly waiting for you to seek a first-hand experience, but you must want it enough to make time. Time to read His Word. Time to pray. Time to listen. Like any relationship, the best relationships always come through devoting our time to it. I believe that is why our “world” has become so fast and furious with activities. It is Satan’s way of stealing our time so we never discover what God has for us, because Satan knows that once we experience the real deal, we will never want to give it up. Once you are experiencing the real thing, you will find your divine appointment because God has one or more for all of us!
Pray
As I was finishing this sermon, an old hymn came to mind and I have asked Pam if we could sing it. Here are the words.
Verse 1: All my life long I had panted For a draught from some cool spring, That I hoped would quench the burning Of the thirst I felt within.Refrain: Hallelujah! I have found Him Whom my soul so long has craved! Jesus satisfies my longings; Through His life I now am saved.
Verse 2: Feeding on the husks around me, Till my strength was almost gone, Longed my soul for something better, Only still to hunger on.
Verse 3: Poor I was, and sought for riches, Something that would satisfy, But the dust I gathered round me Only mocked my soul’s sad cry.
Verse 4: Well of water, ever springing, Bread of life, so rich and free, Untold wealth that never faileth, My Redeemer is to me.
Refrain: Hallelujah! I have found Him Whom my soul so long has craved! Jesus satisfies my longings; Through His life I now am saved.
Worship Set
Hallelujah! I Have Found Him!
Benediction
