The Lord’s Message:  Waiting for the Messiah

The Lord’s Message:  Waiting for the Messiah
Date:  December 28, 2025
Where:  Tilghman Methodist Church
Scripture Reference:  Luke 2:21, 25-38

            We are continuing our sermon series:  Word of God Speak.  This morning, we are going to find out that even though God did not speak from Malachi to the beginning of the New Testament, a period of 400 years, which theologians call the Silence of God, then God speaks and continues to speaking to us today.  God first spoke to the elderly Priest Zechariah, then Mary, then Joseph and on Christmas Eve to shepherds tending their flocks of sheep outside of Bethlehem.  This morning, we are going to learn God is speaking to two elderly people, Simeon and Anna. 

            Let us pray. 

            Before, we jump into the Bible and begin with the wonderful sighting of Jesus by Simeon and Anna, I want us to start in Luke 2:21.  This can be found in your Pew Bibles on page 1591.  This is a very important sentence that we truly need to understand.  Jesus was born Jewish and He died Jewish.  He is, and will always be, the Son of God.  All through Jesus’ earthly life He obeyed the Jewish laws and worship rites.  One of those worship rites is circumcision.  Circumcision (Brit Milah) was an eternal, physical sign of the covenant between God and the Jewish people.  In Genesis 17:9-12a, God confirms to Abraham that he will be the father of many, and the land of Canaan will be their Promised Land as long as Abraham and his descendants are faithful to God.  The act of circumcision was necessary because of the original sin of Adam.  Adam sinned, so everyone born after Adam sinned also.  This is the documentation of original sin.  The Apostle Paul makes this very clear in Romans 5:12. The principle behind circumcision is the spiritual and physical act to break the inherited line of sin.  Circumcision did this on a temporary basis, just as the physical act of offering unblemished animals for sacrifice was a temporary basis for repentance of sin.  The act of circumcision identified one with God and temporarily broke the inherited line of sin.  This was God’s law.  Jesus never committed any sin.  He identified with us as sinners, even though He was only 8 days old.  Later on in His life, this identity would lead Him to the cross to die for all of us to pay for our sins, in order that all who believed in Jesus as their Lord and Savior would be forgiven of their sins and receive eternal life.  Again, in Romans 5:20-21, the Apostle Paul points out the law was necessary even though sin increased because of the law, God’s grace increased all the more.  So, Mary and Joseph took Jesus to the synagogue in Bethlehem to be circumcised as God had required even though Jesus did not inherit original sin.  Jesus identified with sinners. 

            Now, let us go on to verse 22, Mary and Joseph take Jesus with them to the temple in Jerusalem for Mary’s purification rite.  This occurred 40 days after Jesus was born.  This is found in the Law of Moses in Leviticus 12:1-4, 6-8.  The irony is that only Mary’s baby could make atonement for sin.  Since they had to slaughter an animal ,that could only be done in the Temple in Jerusalem. 

            Let us read verse 25-27.  Simeon is a man of great faith.  He is also good at waiting.  How many times do you think that Simeon has gone to the temple? 10 times, 100 times?  We are never told, but it appears that he has been there every day, since the Lord, through the Holy Spirit, has told him that he is to go to temple to see the Messiah.  I think that he was probably ridiculed for his obedience.  “Look there is old Simeon, still thinking that he is going to see the Messiah in here one day.  Hey, Simeon did you see the Messiah, today?”  Simeon had deep faith.  He was obedient to God.  He trusted what God had told him, that he would not die until he had seen the Messiah.  Would you or I be that obedient? 

            This was Simeon’s day.  He saw Mary and Joseph with 40-day old Jesus.  The Holy Spirit told him that baby is the Messiah.  Can you imagine having your baby snatched out of your hands by this old man, whom you have never met, and he starts praising God?  Is this man a lunatic?  Will he harm my child?  Somehow Mary and Joseph, through God’s Holy Spirit, must have sensed that this was okay.  After Simeon spoke about this child, the Bible tells us in verse 33 that they “marveled at what was about him.” 

            Let us look in detail what Simeon said about Jesus.  First in verse 29, he praises God that he was able to see Jesus and that now he can die in peace.  He then outlines what Jesus will do.  In verse 30, Jesus is our salvation. John the Baptist said in John 1:29 that Jesus was the “Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”  Simeon goes on the say that this salvation will be seen by all people in verse 31.  Jesus said this about Himself when He was in conversation with one of the great Jewish scholars, Nicodemus in John 3:14-15.  This referred to Numbers 21:4-9.  In verse 32, the Good News is that this salvation will not just be for Israel, but also for the Gentiles, all of us.

            Then Simeon goes on to reveal disturbing prophecy about Jesus in verses 34 & 35.

 Jesus will be the cause of “the falling and the rising of many in Israel.” Many Israelites rejected Jesus as the Messiah.  Many Israelites accepted Jesus as the Messiah.  Even today, we have the same beliefs about Jesus.  Many reject Jesus as the Messiah.  Many accept Jesus as the Messiah.  When it comes to Jesus, you cannot straddle the fence.  Steven Lawson said, “There is no middle ground with Jesus.  No fence straddling… You are either all in with Him or all out.”  Francis Chan said, “Following Christ isn’t something that can be done halfheartedly or on the side.  It is not a label we can display when it is useful, it is how we live our lives every day.  It is either all or nothing when it comes to Christ.”  Today, it is the same, you are either all in for Jesus or all out.  There is no middle ground. 

Because there is no middle ground when it comes to Jesus, Jesus is going to be mocked and ridiculed.  Jesus was mocked and ridiculed by the religious and government leaders, by Roman soldiers and ordinary people.  He was mocked when He first began his ministry, during His trial and crucifixion, and He is still mocked today.  As believers, we must realize that we will be mocked as Jesus was mocked.  The disciples came to realize this, and they took great pride in thinking that they were worthy to be mocked as Jesus was.  In Acts 5:40b-42, the apostles left the Sanhedrin worshipping God, because they had been counted worthy of suffering for Jesus. 

The result of Jesus being the dividing line is that the people are going to get mad and have Jesus crucified.  The people shouted their answer back to Pontus Pilate when Pilate says, I can find no law that this man has broken. Do you recall what the people’s answer?  “Crucify Him, Crucify Him!”  This would lead to Jesus being nailed on the cross.  I wonder if Simeon’s prophecy of verse 35b was recalled by Mary when she saw her Son being pierced in His side by a Roman sword. 

Another person was there in the temple waiting to see the Messiah, Anna.  In verses 36-37, we learned that Anna was a prophetess.  She was a widow.  After seven years of marriage, her husband passed away.  She was now eighty-four years old.  She had never left the temple, but “worshiped night and day, fasting and praying.”  She was in constant worship to God. 

In verse 38, at the very moment that Simeon is holding baby Jesus and speaking God’s prophecies, Anna approaches the assembled group.  She also gives thanks to God and speaks about Jesus.  She tells all the people around her that this Child is the long-awaited Messiah.

We now know that both Simeon’s and Anna’s prophecies about Jesus did come true and are coming true today.  Simeon and Anna both were faithful and devout followers of God.  God spoke to both of them through the Holy Spirit.  God told them that they would both see the Messiah.  They both had to trust in God and looked every day to see the Messiah. 

At Jesus’ ascension the angels said this in Acts 1:10-11.  Even though it has been almost 2000 years ago, do we still have deep faith and listen to the Holy Spirit?  I truly believe that there is nothing that is stopping Jesus from returning to this earth.  I believe that we are closer every day to His return.  Are you prepared for His return?  It might be in a few days as we close out 2025, or might be in 2026, or maybe longer.  Tilghman Methodist Church are you prepared for Jesus to return today?  Yes.  Continue to be faithful.  Continue to be the hands and feet of Christ.  Continue to wait patiently for His return.  Continue to listen to the Holy Spirit.  God is still speaking.

Let us listen to God and do what He says.  Amen.