Our Eyes Have Seen Salvation

Luke 2:22-40

February 2, 2014

We are in the middle of Epiphany. 

the time in the church year after Christmas before Lent.

The definition of epiphany is: a striking realization,

It is that moment when something dawns on us

It is the moment that we realize.

All during Epiphany, we read stories about Epiphanies

The story of the Maji,

the story of John baptizing Jesus,

Jesus calling his disciples

Epiphanies are times that people recognize God’s work

as being from God.

Of course, Jesus was the Messiah before

the wise men came to visit him.

And Jesus was God’s beloved before

John saw the Spirit like a dove land on Jesus at his baptism.

And God has been making and keeping promises long before

the disciples dropped their nets and followed.

Ephiphanies are not the first time God is doing something,

but the first time we realize that it’s God.

Presentation at the Temple,
Giovanni Bellini, 1468

The story for today is about Jesus

being presented at the temple.

Every Jewish first born male was brought to the temple

and dedicated to God’s service.

Also, the family offers a sacrifice in

order to cleanse the mother who gave birth.

That’s what the two turtle doves are for.

 

While Mary and Joseph are at the temple

taking care of these things,

They run into a man named Simeon.

Simeon was promised by the Holy Spirit that

he would not die before he saw the Messiah.

As soon as he laid eyes on Jesus, he knew that the promise

he was given was being fulfilled.

He could die in peace.

Of course, all he had seen was a

a typical newborn in his mothers arms.

And whatever further promises and hopes that this baby

represented to Simeon would not be realized instantly.

Herod and Cesar still reigned, injustice was still rampant.

And Simeon gives a haunting prophecy to Mary

“This child is destined for the falling and rising of many

and will be a sign that will be opposed.

And a sword will pierce your own soul in the process.”

And we know how the story goes.

There would still be more injustice more pain,

more killing by religion and government in the name of good order.

None of that would be fully repaired in Jesus time.

And it still isn’t finished thousands of years later.

But Simeon knows,

he has seen the salvation in that little baby’s face

He held the child in his hands.

The sight of Jesus was all he needed.

He tells God to take him, now he could die in peace.

 

Some reasonable atheists and agnostics

ask people of faith like us,

“How can you believe in God when there

is so much suffering in the world?”

No doubt that is a reasonable question

no doubt we ask ourselves the same thing sometimes.

And no doubt there is suffering.

No doubt some of that suffering is because of religion.

No doubt thousands of years later,

we are still waiting for God’s justice to take hold.

But no doubt there is joy,

no doubt there are moments when people

have overcome great tragedies to live again.

No doubt there are people who make

enormous sacrifices for strangers.

There is no doubt that humans show other humans

great kindness for no particular reason.

There is no doubt that we have seen small, slow

steady signs of God’s promises, God’s justice,

the righting of wrongs.

There is no doubt to those of us who look for it,

that God has been very busy.

Even if we don’t always realize it.

The words of Simeon’s song are familiar to many of us

as the canticle we sometimes sing after communion,

“Lord now you let your servant go in peace,

your words have been fulfilled,

my own eyes have seen the salvation

that you have prepared in the sight of every people.

a light to reveal you to the nations

and the glory of your people Israel.”

We sing this after we have had communion.

After we have taken that little piece of bread, Jesus body

and held it in our hands like Simeon held Jesus in his hands.

After we receive the small taste of God’s promise.

The small sign that God is with us

and God would give his own life to be part of us.

Then we can go in peace.

We would love more, of course.

We would love the whole loaf -

some undeniable proof that God’s will will be done

that all God’s people will be saved.

But for now, we just get manna.

Enough food for today.

Just a small Epiphany of what God has been doing all along.

And we give thanks for that –

that we have, for a second,

seen God’s salvation with our own eyes.