Waiting For The Christ Of Christmas

Dec 24, 2021

25 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.

26 And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.

27 And he came in the Spirit into the temple, and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the Law,

28 he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said,

29 “Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word;

30 for my eyes have seen your salvation…”

- Luke 2:25-30

What is that one thing you are waiting for?

As tomorrow is Christmas, imagine with me the day Jesus was born. There were probably animals jumping around, probably dogs barking, cows mooing and goats going to the bathroom. Everything was messy, smelly and crazy noisy.

What an entrance for the long-awaited Messiah, Jesus Christ. God was born in a manger. God was in diapers.

Now, if you waited hundreds of years, and this savior shows up in diapers, what would be your reaction? Would it cause you to worship God and to share about your God in diapers to those around you? Or would you question? Doubt? Get bitter or cynical that this is not what you were waiting for? This is it?! A baby?

For the Jews in Luke 2, they were looking for a conquering savior who would free them from Roman rule, yet before them was a crying slobberer.

Yet Luke, the detailed doctor, takes the time right away to write about a man named Simeon and a woman named Anna to teach us about waiting for Christ. That no matter what circumstances we face in life and how old we get, to still have a live faith and heart as we wait in love, daily for the 2nd coming of Christ.

These verses remind us that, in the midst of waiting, we are to be comforted with God’s promises.

Simeon, in verse 25, says he was waiting. His whole life, he’s been waiting and waiting and waiting. What was he waiting for? The consolation of Israel. Consolation simply means comfort or peace - in other words, for the Messiah to come and to make everything better. To bring spiritual reconciliation and relationship with God.

But what gave him comfort while he waited for God's promises? Verse 26 says:

“And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.”

When Simeon finally got to see the child, Jesus, verse 28 says he took him up in his arms and blessed God. We've all seen Lion King right? When Rafiki holds up baby Simba? I imagine verse 28 to be like that.Then in Luke 2:29, Simeon says:

“Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation.”

The point is, for Simeon, comfort and peace was when everything went according to God's word, and so the application for us is that we are to daily be comforted with His promises as we wait.

In a culture where 5G is not fast enough, where we get annoyed at waiting in lines, at stop lights, and where we honk or are passive aggressive and want to honk at those who are not quick enough - we don't like waiting!

Maybe, this Christmas season, you were waiting all year for your family to just have a nice, decent meal together where there was no bitterness or arguments. Or waiting for your financial situation to get better. Or waiting for someone you care about to come back to God or to be saved.

Yet another Christmas goes by and you are still waiting.

And so the question I believe this text is asking us is, what gives you comfort as you wait?

This week of Advent is about love.

Ultimately, Jesus was able to wait well because He loved God. He loved to wait for God’s perfect timing because He knew it would bring the most glory to God.

Simeon loved God, so he waited. Anna loved God, so she waited.

Therefore, waiting for Christ is loving Christ.

Friends, tomorrow as you open your presents and enjoy time with others, let’s also remember and pray for those that are in a season of waiting. I want to specifically pray for those of you listening today - that is waiting on God’s promises.