You have your Bible and you would like to turn there. We're gonna be in the book of Luke today, Luke chapter two and verses 21 through, we have 38 there. I'm gonna throw a loop on Billy back there and we're gonna go to actually a verse 40 today. So it's gonna be verses 21 through 40. I ask Pearl and Billy for my forgiveness that we are gonna add those two extra verses in. We're celebrating today the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. And for those of you who have been a part of our congregation, you know that we're going through the life of Christ through a harmony of the gospels. And in the last couple of weeks, we've seen the birth of Jesus. Today, we're gonna see his first visit to the temple. In our hymns that we were singing this morning, you might've noticed that we sung about the wise men bringing silver and gold. And if you've also noticed, we haven't talked about the wise men yet. And if you look over there on that manger scene, you will see that there are shepherds and there are wise men there. And that's beautiful figurines, but the reality is it's gonna be about two years before the wise men ever come to visit the baby Jesus. And so in our life of Christ through a harmony of the gospels, we're going chronologically through the timeline of Jesus's life. And the reality is, is that he was born in a manger Bethlehem in the city of David. And now he and his mother and his father who live in Galilee in Nazareth are coming down to Jerusalem. It is about a 60 mile hike to come from their hometown down to the temple in Jerusalem. If you have noticed one of the major themes that we are hearing over and over and over again in these sermons is that The people who hear his word and receive his word and believe his word are faithful to his word. Over and over again, we've heard of Elizabeth and Zachariah, and we've heard of Joseph and Mary. And today we're gonna meet Simeon and Anna. And you'll find that all of these believers are faithful, but the Bible calls them righteous. Righteous meaning that when God the Father looks down from heaven upon them, he sees them clothed in the righteousness of his son, Jesus Christ, because by faith, we live lives that are pleasing to God. And over and over and over again in this passage is we're seeing where God is sending his messenger to give his word to his people and his people receive and believe that word. And when his people receive and believe that word, they walk in that word. That is a message that echoes and screams out through all of scripture from Genesis to Revelation. God speaks to his people, his people receive and believe and walk in his truth. And that is a message that you and I are commanded to carry out today. We are to hear his word, we are to receive his word and believe his word, and we are commanded to walk in his truth. Today's text is set in the temple. A temple in the Bible is the meeting place between God and man. The temple is always a meeting place between God and his people. If you remember in the book of Genesis, Adam and Eve walked daily with God in sinless communion. They were in fellowship with God on a daily basis. But because of sin, they lost that communion. And God has used the meeting place as a theme or a message throughout all the scriptures as a reminder that God's people need fellowship with him. from the tabernacle in the wilderness where God's glory, it was hung over that place. God desired to meet with his people. And once that tabernacle was turned to dust, Solomon built a temple for God's people and God indwelt that temple with his holiness, with his presence and his people would come and meet with him. It is a place that we come and we fellowship with God. And so the temple was destroyed in 70 AD and now churches all over the world meet with Him in spirit and in truth. We need to understand that we are reminded in the Revelation, the book of Revelation, that in the new heavens and the new earth, Jesus is our temple. It says there is no temple in the new heavens and the new earth for Jesus is our temple. You see, for the child of God, our meeting place with our heavenly father, is now his son Jesus Christ. That is where we meet the father and we fellowship and we commune with him. And so there is an irony in the lesson today that Mary and Joseph are gonna bring the baby Jesus to the temple and therefore you see the title of our lesson, The Temple at the Temple. for our worshipers in training, for our children. Our theme words for today, our key words for today are the words spirit and light and salvation. And I hope you young ladies can listen, you young men can listen for those words as we go through the message together today. Let's read our text and then we'll break it down. When Jesus was eight days old and had passed before and path before his circumcision, his name was then called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb. And when the days for their purification according to the law of Moses were completed, they brought him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord. As it is written in the law of the Lord, every firstborn male that opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord. and to offer a sacrifice according to what was said in the law of the Lord, a pair of turtle doves or two young pigeons. And there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon and this man was righteous and he was devout, looking for the consolation of Israel and the Holy Spirit was upon him. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord Christ, the Lord's Christ. And he came in the spirit into the temple. And when the parents brought in the child Jesus to carry out for him the custom of the law, then he took him into his arms and blessed God and said, Now, Lord, you are releasing your bondservant to depart in peace according to your word. For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light of revelation to the Gentiles and the glory of your people Israel. And his father and his mother were amazed at the things which were being said about him. And Simeon blessed him and said to Mary his mother, behold, this child is appointed for the fall and the rise of many in Israel and for a sign to be opposed. And a sword will pierce even your own soul to the end that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed. And there was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel of the tribe of Asher. And she was advanced in years and had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage. And then as a widow to the age of 84, she never left the temple serving night and day with fasting and prayers. At that very moment, she came up and began giving thanks to God and continued to speak to Him to all those who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem. And then it says, when they had performed everything according to the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee to their own city of Nazareth. The child continued to grow and become strong, increasing in wisdom and in grace, the grace of God that was upon him. So, Today we're going to look at four people. We're going to see Mary and Joseph. We're going to see Simeon. We're going to see Anna. And then we're going to see Jesus. And I want you to notice, first of all, when we talk about Mary and Joseph in verse 21, it says, that as the eighth day had passed before his circumcision, his name was then called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb. Jesus is being identified with his people. The eight days were fulfilled so that they could circumcise him. His name was called Jesus, a name that was given to him before he was conceived in the womb. When the days for their cleansing according to the law of Moses was fulfilled, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord. So again, we're talking about Mary and Joseph here, and they are bringing Jesus to the temple on the eighth day to have him circumcised. The circumcision is Jesus' identifying with his people. The nation of Israel was a nation of circumcised. The circumcision was a seal that they belong to the nation of Israel. And remember, in the entire redemptive narrative, from Genesis to Revelation, we will find that God was working with people long before there was ever a Jew on the planet. Adam and Abel and all those were not circumcised. But at the time of Abraham, God gave the right of circumcision. And then at the time of Moses, he re-emphasized the fact that to be a child of Israel, you must be circumcised. And so the law stated that a mother of a male child, was unclean for seven days and then was to be confined for 33 days before journeying to the temple to offer a sacrifice of a lamb and a turtle dove. So we're seeing several different ceremonies observed here. Let's look at the book of Leviticus and see why it is that Mary is bringing Jesus to the temple 33 days after or 40 days after his birth. It says, speak to the sons of Israel, saying, when a woman gives birth and bears a male child, then she shall be unclean for seven days as in the days of her menstruation, she shall be unclean. On the eighth day, the flesh of his foreskin will be circumcised. Then she shall remain in the blood of her purification for 33 days. She shall not touch any consecrated thing nor enter into the sanctuary until the days of her purification are completed. But if she bears a female child, then she will be unclean for two weeks as in her ministration and she shall remain in the blood of her purification for 66 days. When the days of our purification are completed for a son or for a daughter, she shall bring to the priest at the doorway of the tent of meetings, a one year old lamb for a burnt offering and a young pigeon or turtle dove for a sin offering. Then he shall make an offering before the Lord and make atonement for her, and she shall be cleansed from the flow of her blood. This is the law for her who bears a child, whether male or female. But if she cannot afford a lamb, then she shall take two turtle doves or two pigeons, the one for a burnt offering and the one for a sin offering, and the priest will make atonement for her and she will be clean. So one may ask, why is it that Mary is bringing the baby Jesus to the temple 40 days after he was born? And the reason is, is because Mary and Joseph are righteous, And what do righteous people do? They observe the word of the Lord. And all the way back in the book of Leviticus they are told that they are to bring this sacrifice to the temple. I wanna remind you that Mary in her magnificent, in her hymn of praise to God said, my God and my savior. Remember Mary said that? That means that Mary needs a savior. And for those who would push forth this immaculate conception that Mary conceived and she was without sin, that's what the immaculate conception means. Mary was without sin. These verses here prove to us that she was a sinner. Because she brought the sacrifice to the temple as an offering to be cleansed from her impurity. So in addition to coming for cleansing, the parents came to Jerusalem to dedicate Jesus to the Lord. The child now in these circumstances, the child did not have to be brought if they wish only to pay the prescribed ransom for the firstborn. What Jesus' parents did is above and beyond what the law called for. So let's look at the book of Numbers chapter 18 and verse 15 through 17 and look and see why they're bringing Jesus, another reason they're bringing Jesus. Every first issue of the womb, of all flesh, whether a man or an animal which they offer to the Lord shall be yours. Nevertheless, the firstborn of man you will surely redeem and the firstborn of the unclean animals you shall redeem. As to their redemption price, from a month old you will redeem them by your valuation five shekels in silver according to the shekel of the sanctuary, which is 20 geras. But the firstborn of an ox or the firstborn of a sheep or the firstborn of a goat, you shall not redeem, they are holy. You shall sprinkle their blood on the altar and shall offer up their fat and smoke as an offering by fire for a soothing aroma to the Lord. Got one more verse? Okay. They brought the offering to the temple to redeem the firstborn. to redeem the firstborn. And the offering in this case would have been two turtle doves. And what we find out is that Mary and Joseph were not of the means to offer the lamb or the ox. They didn't have that type of money. So they brought the two turtle doves as a redemption price for the firstborn. Now, without getting into too many details about the sacrificial system and the ceremonial laws, I do want to emphasize something that is very important, and that is the fact that Jesus is the firstborn, right? That firstborn, in a physical sense, reminds us that Jesus was born of a virgin. He was the firstborn child. There was no kids before him. We do know that Mary had kids after that. But not only in a physical sense is He the firstborn, but in a spiritual and eternal sense, He is the firstborn as well. In the book of Hebrews, Jesus is described as the firstborn. But we know that Jesus is not created and He is eternal. He was not made with hands. So when the Bible considers Him in the New Testament, the firstborn of God, the Father, What is the significance of that? Well, for those of you who have been a part of our Bible studies, you will know that the firstborn son gets what? The inheritance, right? And so Jesus is the one who inherits everything from the father. And we as believers in him become co-heirs with him. So the firstborn is not the sense that he was born physically, It's the stature or the prominency he has as the heir of all. He is the firstborn. That is a title that means he receives the inheritance, not that he was ever born in eternity. You see how that works? And so we need to make sure we see that. So in verse 23, it says that it is written in the law. And you'll hear that over and over again in this passage as we read through. According to the law, as the custom was, according to the word of God. So what do we see here? We see that Jesus's parents are piously following the law, bringing their child before God. Jesus' dedication to the Lord is tied to the law's instruction about presenting the firstborn. In a dedication, the child is being said to belong to the Lord. So there's three different ceremonies going on here. There's the ceremony of Mary and her rite of purification. There is the dedication of Jesus to the Lord. And then not only that, there's also the dedication of service of the firstborn. If y'all remember the story of Samuel in the Old Testament, you remember how his mom couldn't have a baby? And she said, oh Lord, if you'll give me a baby, I'll give him to you, remember? And after she had a baby, what did she do? She carried Samuel to the temple, and she gave him to the Lord for his service. And so this firstborn child is being dedicated not only to the Lord, but he is being dedicated as the servant of the Lord. And so Mary and Joseph are being very particular about observing these ceremonies, the sacrifice. So in verse 24, it says, to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the law, a pair of turtle doves or two young pigeons. And again, we've already spoken of that. The ceremonies observed were the mother's purification, the presentation of the firstborn to the Lord, and the dedication of Jesus to his father's service. All right, so in this temple ceremony, we're seeing them observe three ceremonies. One, the mother's purification, two, the presentation of the firstborn, and three, the dedicating of Jesus to his father's service. And all three of those things fall in direct accordance with the Old Testament commandments. Now, after we see that, we're gonna look at Simeon. This is verses 25 through 35. It said there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. And here we have that word again. He was righteous and devout. Righteous means that he is looked upon by God as in right standing with him. It is because of his faith in Jesus Christ that he is declared righteous. Not in his devotion. He is a devout man and his righteousness is not found in his devotion, but his devotion is an expression of his righteousness. It's always important that we see that, that our works are an expression of our faith. He who has faith has works, right? If I have faith, I'm gonna work. If God is in me, He is going to come out of me. No works, no faith. It's that simple. So this man was righteous and devout, and he was waiting for the comfort of Israel. Waiting for the comfort of Israel. Comfort my people, O Israel. What do we mean by that? Well, we know that the children of Israel had been persecuted. They had been enslaved for centuries. They had been enslaved to the Egyptians. They had been enslaved to the Babylonians and the Assyrians. And now at this time, they are enslaved to the Romans. And so they have been an oppressed people, and not only that, they are also oppressed in their own self-righteousness and self-will and self-sufficiency as well. We often forget that when we talk about the children of Israel. Jesus, the very word of God embodied in human flesh, came and presented himself to them, and they rejected him because they wanted their words, not his words. You see, God gave them his word so that they could be a light to all of the nations. And instead of using that light to shine out God's glory, they use that light as a spotlight on themselves. Look at me. And so these people were in bondage to a works-based salvation. They thought that it was because they were circumcised. They thought it was because they went to the temple. They thought it was because they was following Moses' commandments. That is what made them children of God, when in reality, it's being a child of God that makes you do those things. And they had it backwards, and so they were in bondage to their own righteousness. And that's not just The case for a circumcised people is it? Each and every one of us in this room are very capable of depending upon ourselves and what we think and what we feel as opposed to depending on God and His Word. As opposed to trusting Him in faith, we try to please Him with works. And so we need to be sure that Simeon is looking for the comfort of Israel. All through the Old Testament, the message was is that God was going to send a savior. God was going to send a deliverer. And he was gonna be a son of Abraham and a son of Judah and a son of David. And he was coming to save his people. And we see here that Simeon was waiting for that comfort. Not only that, we see that the Holy Spirit was upon him. So what is revealed about Simeon is neither his vocation or his age. but his spiritual condition. He was a devout believer in God. I get amused at how many times I meet new people. And one of the first questions I always ask somebody is, well, what do you do for a living? Like for men, that's kind of an important thing, right? And so it's like, what do you do? And the reality is, is this passage is not focusing on, Simeon and how old he was or what job he did or anything like that. What is it focusing on? It's focusing on the fact that he was clothed in the Holy Spirit and that he was walking devoutly in that faith. He is a spiritually sensitive God-fearer and a faithful law-abider. When we look into the Lamb's book of life, we wanna know that our names are written there and that God is saying the same thing about us. Verse 26, the Spirit made a promise to Simeon. Verse 26 said, it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord Christ. So the Holy Spirit had made a promise to Saman that he would not die until he sees the Christ, the Messiah, the comforter of Israel. I know many people in our modern churches who are very convinced that they won't die until the rapture happens, right? They're hoping that God's gonna come snatch them up out of here before they have to go through all that suffering, all that pain and that turmoil. And the reality is, is that the Holy Spirit has not told us that. The Holy Spirit says that we are going to have in this life, we will have tribulation. We will have struggles. We will have pain and suffering and sorrow. We're gonna see this in a minute when Simeon prophesied about Jesus. When we think of Jesus, we like to think of the Christmas spirit and the gifts and the giving and the happy, happy, joy, joy, but we forget that Simeon is gonna remind Mary that his life is going to literally cut her heart and that he is, come to bring judgment on people. And that he himself is going to suffer in the life that he lives. And so often we think about all the happy things, we think about all the joyous things, when we forget that Israel needed a comforter. And they need a comforter because they're bound in sin and they're bound in the curse of this world. And this world beats the joy and the happiness out of us. And we need an answer. We need answers that this world can't provide. I love the Christmas time and I love thinking about the kids looking forward to Christmas and I can remember the kid looking forward to getting those gifts on Christmas morning and all the excitement and the days building up to it and can't wait, I can't wait, I can't wait. And the reality was that three days after it was over with, I was already done with those gifts and there was a bunch of empty boxes laying out by the trash can and all of that emotion and all of that joy was left behind. And I was looking forward to my birthday then or whatever the next thing was. And the reality is, is this is a world that is full of pain and suffering and sorrow. And it is the comforter of Israel that brings us true joy, that brings us true peace, that brings us true hope. And so Simeon is looking for this comforter and he has been promised by the Holy Spirit that he would see the Lord. So he comes in the spirit to the temple and the parents of Jesus, providentially, what's gonna happen? Spirit promised him he was gonna see the Messiah before he died. And what happens? He bumps into Mary and Joseph at the temple. All right, now we're pretty sure that he probably bumped into him outside of the main temple because he would have had to have bumped into him either in the court of the Gentiles or the court of women because they wouldn't have been able to get in. Only the men were allowed into the temple. There was two courts outside of the temple. And so the Gentiles, the goy, the uncircumcised were only allowed so close to the temple. And then the women were only allowed so much closer to the temple. And so in order for Simeon to bump into Mary and Joseph, it either had to be on the outer core at the court of women, because Mary would have not been allowed any further in. And so they happen upon each other, and it's not just chance, it's God's providence, it's God at work. The Holy Spirit had promised Simeon that he would see the Messiah, and now he sees him, and so what does he do? He takes him in his arms, and he does what all joyous believers do, sing, with zeal and a smile on their face, and an excitement about jumping up when it's time to sing a hymn. Well, that's what we're supposed to do, right? When we were kids, we could sing, I got the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart. And we would all be happy about singing it. And well, nowadays you look out into the congregation and sometimes you don't see the joy on people's faces that should be there. But Simeon, has received a promise from the Holy Spirit, a promise that has been fulfilled, and now he is literally holding in his arms the promise that was given to him. And so what is he gonna do? He's gonna sing a song of praise. Verse 28, he takes him in his arms, he blesses God. What follows is a hymn of prophetic praises to God. for the joy of seeing the Messiah and a fulfillment of God's word. Simeon's reception of Jesus is intended to be a picture of the arrival of the messianic hope for all of Israel. The prophet represents the nation and beyond all humanity. Look what he says in verse 29. Now master, you are releasing your slave in peace. according to Your Word." There's that statement again, according to Your Word, as the law stated, thus saith the Lord. All of God's truths are given to His people to be received, believed, and followed. And so He says, you have released your slave in peace. Jesus promises us a peace that passes all understanding. Simeon is literally holding the prince of peace in his hands. And he said, now I can go in peace. Now, no matter what happens, because it's according to your word and because I believe your word, I can have peace. I'm literally holding your promise in my hands. And Simeon's life can now come to an end with this knowledge at hand. It's amazing the hope that comes to a child of God in their latter days, right? They know that this life is passing by, but they know they have eternity waiting, and they look forward to it. Now, it's not that they don't fear, and it's not that we don't have dread and regret, but the reality is deep inside we have a peace that passes all understanding. This too will pass and eternity comes. So he says in verse 30, and this is the question I asked you this morning, as we celebrate Christmas, as we think about the Christmas season, what did Simeon say? My eyes have seen your salvation. We sing a modern hymn in our churches. Open the eyes of my heart, Lord, open the eyes of my heart. I want to see you, I want to see you. And how do we see him? We see him by faith. We hear his word, we believe his word, we see him by faith. And what have we learned over and over again? Another theme that's emphasized all through the life of Jesus is it's not a seeing that causes believing. but it is believing that results in seeing. Faith is the evidence of things hoped for, the substance of things not seen. So it is by believing that we see. The world around you, the lost world around you says, show me and I will believe you. Jesus says, believe me and I'll show you. And what happens is, is because we have faith in our heart, because we're sealed in his promise, we begin to be aware of that promise being fulfilled around us and in us. We begin to see him at work in our lives. So he says, my eyes have seen your salvation. Jesus is at the center of all salvation. He is the cornerstone and the focal point of all salvation. Verse 31 said, which you have prepared in the presence of who? All peoples. Thus God intends to extend salvation to all that come to Jesus. Though the language looks like salvation preparation is in the sight of all, the following verses make it clear that participation in that salvation will extend to every race, tribe, and tongue, and nation. So how does the process work? Jesus came as a Jew and he presented the kingdom to the nation of Israel. Upon their rejection, he now turns to the nations and what happens? The nations begin to believe, right? So for that 1400 years, there was only one group of people that had the offer of that salvation. There was a few Gentiles bled in and out, But the reality was that salvation was offered to that nation. And upon their rejection, what has now happened? That salvation is now offered to you and I. Now, what the prophecies and what the redemptive narrative says is, is that one day the children of Israel are gonna wake up and be provoked to jealousy. They're gonna say, wait a minute, y'all got our messiah, you Gentiles have our messiah. And they're gonna turn back to him and know his salvation as well. So God's salvation is for all of his people. The gospel proclamation is to all. And to all of those who receive him, to all of those that believe on his name, he gives them the right to become children of God. So we see in verse 32, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and a glory for your people Israel. Salvation is described as light for all people. Verse 33, his father and his mother were marveling at these things which were said about him. And I ask you, do you marvel? at the word of God? When you read his scripture, does it cause you to be stunned, to stare in amazement, to ponder on the eternal things? Do you look at God's word like those kids are looking at those Christmas presents under the tree? Can you not wait to get home and open it up and see the gifts inside? We talked about this last week. It amazes me the awe in little kids. I watch them and I work in a grocery store. And so I watch these moms come in and they're pushing these little babies that can barely hold their head up around in the buggies. And it's amazing. They stare at everything. Everything is new to them. Everything is an awe inspiring thing. And the reality is, is that we get narrow-minded as we get older and our eyesight, our sight gets dim. We get tunnel vision and we get looking straight ahead and we lose the wonder and the amazement and the beauty of the world that God has given us. And we as Christians can do the same. Look what he says again. He said, Joseph and Mary were marveling at the things that were being said about him. And Simeon blessed them, Mary and Joseph, Mary and his mother. Behold, the child is appointed for the fall and rise of many in Israel. So now he's making these prophecies. The first image is drawn from a passage in Isaiah where God is portrayed as setting up a stone of stumbling over which some will fall, a precious cornerstone that will not disappoint those who trust in it. Let's look at these passages in Isaiah really quickly. Isaiah 8 verses 14 and 15 says this. Now remember, this is 900 years or so before Jesus was ever born. And the prophet Isaiah says what? Then he shall become a sanctuary. And there's our word sanctuary, a meeting place, right? He will become our sanctuary, but to both the house of Israel, a stone to strike and a rock to stumble over and a snare and a trap for the inhabitants of Jerusalem. Many will stumble over them, then they will fall and be broken. They will even be snared and caught. Let's look at that other passage in Isaiah, Isaiah 28, verse 13 to 16. So the word of the Lord to them will be order on order, order on order, line on line, line on line, a little here, a little there, that they may go and stumble backwards to be broken, snared and taken captive. Therefore, hear the word of the Lord, O you scoffers, who rule this people who are in Jerusalem. Because you have said, we have made a covenant with death and with Sheol we have made a pact, the overwhelming scourge will not reach us when it passes by, for we have made falsehood our refuge and we have concealed ourselves with deception. And so it says, therefore, thus says the Lord, behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a tested stone, a costly cornerstone for the foundation firmly placed. He who believes in it will not be disturbed. All right? So Jesus is called the cornerstone. the foundational piece of the building of God's people. And He said that that stone, you will either be built upon that stone or that stone will crush you. And so when we think of Jesus coming to the people of Israel, He does come to save many. But there are just as many who reject Him when He comes. And Simeon is reminding us of this. He's reminding us that this child is appointed for the rise and the fall of many. There's a consistent New Testament note about Jesus' ministry that people will be divided. Remember what he said? I did not come to bring peace. I come to bring a sword. And that's what truth does. Truth divides. It separates death from life. It separates light from darkness. It separates truth from lies. It separates good from evil. And when God begins to work in our lives, He separates us from those things. When God begins to work in a people, He causes division. And that's what we see here. You think about on the final day, on the final day of judgment, where it says that God will separate the sheep from the goats. He is literally already doing that through the proclamation of the gospel. What happens when God's words are proclaimed? The sheep go one way and the goats go another. God's word divides, and that's what Simeon is reminding us of. So, he is to be assigned to be opposed. People will resist Jesus. Jesus will not be a hope of promise fulfilled, but a figure who is to be proposed, opposed. And then he reminds Mary that he will be a sword that will pierce through your very soul. The figure points to Jesus bringing extreme emotional pain to his mother, that the thoughts from many hearts may be revealed. Think about that. He's telling Mary that this child is gonna break your heart. You're gonna watch what the world does to him. She was at the cross. And she saw what the world thinks of God's goodness and righteousness and love and peace. They nailed him to a tree. When Simeon's prophet views the whole, one sees a prophet at peace because he knows that God's salvation has come. Salvation's light has come in the Messiah. Simeon rejoices, but the picture is not always rosy. For the promised one is perceived by many in Israel and they will reject him. In the path that this child takes, his mother will feel pain, but his ministry will expose those who are hostile to God. The messianic son will be a light to the world, but his shining will bring division. It will bring forth division as he shines. Many will be raised to the light, but tragically others will fall in judgment to it. And that applies to every one of us in this room. What do you do with God's word? Do you receive it, believe it, and walk in it, or do you reject it and turn away from it? So, last thing, and then we're done. Anna is a prophetess. Anna is a vessel for revelation from God. That's what a prophetess does, is someone who speaks for God. We don't have prophetesses today. All right, because we have God's word. We don't need any more prophetic utterances. Anna was the daughter of Phanuel. That's another name for Penuel, which is a place where Jacob wrestled the angel. But she's from the tribe of Asher, which is one of Jacob's kids. She was advanced in years. She lived with her husband seven years from when she was a virgin. So this woman was married for seven years. We assume marriage at the age of 13 to 14, which was normal at that time, she would have probably been about 20 years old when she widowed. But instead of remarrying, she chose to live and serve God the rest of her life, serving Him night and day with fasting and prayers. For you ladies in the room who may be widows, remember that the Bible promises that God's major, one of his major concerns are the orphans and the widows, like their focus. And not only that, she did not just crawl into a hole and die, did she? She used the rest of her time to serve her eternal father. She acted as the bride of the son. And she served him in fasting and prayer. Ladies, widows, even men in here, if you're a widow, God has plenty of things for you to do. And never discount your prayers. Never do that. God hears your prayers and he answers your prayers. And we as his people desperately need your intercession and prayer for us. Amen? All right, so Anna was a woman who chose a lifetime of service to God, an action that was highly regarded. Anna's daily activities reflects her piety. She's righteous and she follows God. And Anna's activities picture a person totally focused on serving God. All right, so when they come up, Anna gives a message, a hint at a remnant concept. She addresses her remarks only to those who are awaiting the consolation of God's plan for those ready to hear the fulfillment. She comes up, she gives thanks to God, she continues to speak of Him to all of those around who are waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem. Simeon and Anna show us that before Messiah came, God's people lived good but unfulfilled lives. Now the last thing we're going to do, and this is going to be like our little cliffhanger for next week's sermon, we see Jesus of Nazareth and it says, when they finished everything according to the law of God, They did everything that was commanded of them. They went back home to Galilee, to their own city, and it said that the child continued to grow and become strong, being filled with wisdom and the grace of God. So Luke is reminding us that Jesus now is growing both physically and spiritually, that God's grace is upon him and he's growing in his knowledge and his wisdom. But what we're gonna find out is he's gonna go home, but it's gonna be less than two years from then that he is going to be caused to run away from home because somebody's looking to kill him. And that is where we see him come back home after two years and we'll also see the wise men, this will be next week, we'll see the wise men come and also Gentiles come and proclaim who he is. So with that said, let's go ahead and Give God a praise and a glory for His truth, His word. I do want to encourage each and every one of you, receive Him, believe Him, walk in His truth. And if you are in this room today and you have never trusted Him as Lord and Savior, repent. to use this day as a day to turn away from sin and self and to turn to what His Son Jesus Christ has done on the cross for people like me and you. He has never said no to anyone who turns to Him and receives Him and believes. Amen? So let's go ahead and close with our final hymn. God rest ye merry gentlemen.