How To Look Forward To 2015

Luke chapter 2 verse 21 on page 1028.

Luke 2:21

On the eighth day when it was time to circumcise him, he was named Jesus.

The name the angel had given him before he had been conceived.

When the time of their purification according to the law of Moses had been completed,

Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord.

As it is written in the law of the Lord, every firstborn male is to be consecrated to the Lord

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.

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 upon him.

It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord's Christ.

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 took him in his arms and praised God saying,

The child's father and mother marveled at what had been said about him.

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 so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed.

And a sword will pierce your own soul too.

There was also a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel of the tribe of Asher.

She was very old.

She had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage

and then was widowed until she was 84.

She never left the temple but worshipped night and day, fasting and praying.

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.

When Joseph and Mary had done everything required by the law of the Lord,

they returned to Galilee to their own town of Nazareth.

And the child grew and became strong.

He was filled with wisdom and the grace of God was upon him.

So, I'm going to ask Michael, he's going to come and speak this morning.

Well, nice to be back with you again in Cargilline.

Enjoyed a few days over here at Christmas, being well looked after.

And now it's time, payback time as I say, but it's nice to be here.

It's the time of the year, isn't it, when we are looking back and remembering what has happened.

And we're all looking forward now to the future.

Perhaps, like me, you sent out circular letters.

But certainly I'm sure everybody here received presents.

And now you can look forward to January, to cold, to dark nights, to water charges.

And some of you may have already said, I hate January.

Because there doesn't seem to be too much to look forward to in January.

Not like December when we're coming up to Christmas.

But as Christians we face the new year.

And we face that new year which is unknown to us.

And I want us to look at two characters this morning

who face the future with great confidence and with a great sense of peace.

And I hope that we can learn from them.

They're two old people.

It's surprising what you can learn from old people.

And here is something to teach us this morning from these older folk.

Simeon, it seems, when we read his story,

was reaching the end of his life.

For he's now ready to die.

He'd been told that he would not die before he had seen the Lord's Christ.

Verse 26.

So he's coming towards the end.

But he's still following the Lord.

And then in verse 37 we have the story of Anna.

Just a few verses.

She's an 84 year old widow.

And each of them teach us how to live facing the future.

And I trust it will be a help to us this morning

as we look at their two lives of how we are to live in 2015.

Now the first thing I think that we need to remind ourselves

that we should face 2015 by living a holy life.

It seems that that is something that is essential

if we're to enjoy the year that lies ahead.

And certainly it's true of Simeon.

It's true also of Anna.

That Simeon was living a holy life.

We're told in verse 25 that he was righteous and devout.

Now you've all heard the expression, haven't you I'm sure,

which says that some people are too heavenly minded to be any earthly use.

But I would suggest the more heavenly minded we are,

the more earthly use we will be.

And we find that Simeon is showing his usefulness

as he goes into the temple and prophesies

regarding the child, the infant Jesus.

And this man's life speaks to us down through the ages.

And I would want to say about Simeon

that he faced the future by being ready to be different.

He showed that he was different

by living this righteous and holy life.

Let's remember the times that he was living in.

Times were far from good.

There was oppression from the Romans.

The religious scene was very bad.

All through the Gospels we read about the scribes,

the Pharisees and the Sadducees.

People who fastened heavy yokes on the necks of the populace.

Who altered the law to suit themselves.

And it's in a setting like this

that this man lived out his life

as one who was righteous and devout.

One who was different.

Here is a man who walked with God

as God would have him walk.

People could say of Simeon

that he not only knew God

but he showed it by his behaviour

in a world that was rotten.

His righteousness was by faith.

But his righteousness

was also shown by his actions.

His religion wasn't skin deep.

It was deeply embedded.

He was ready to stand out from the crowd.

Ready to be different.

And that's how we're to face 2015.

By being ready to be different.

Different to those around and about us.

Different in the way that we act.

Different in the way that we communicate.

Sometimes even different in the way that we dress.

And I don't mean that everybody should put a tie on.

Different so that we are marked out

as being those who are different.

Different from the crowd.

And how was Simeon enabled to live this kind of life?

Well it is because he lived his life

under the superintendence of the Holy Spirit.

We find reference to him

walking in the Spirit

in verses 25, 26,

verses 27.

And in verse 28

he speaks in the power of the Spirit.

Verse 25 says

the Holy Spirit was upon him.

He wouldn't live to see Pentecost.

But like others who lived before him

he knew the work of the Holy Spirit

in his life.

On this particular day

he would speak as an Old Testament prophet.

He didn't know the full story.

And he wouldn't know the full story.

But he spoke as he was moved

by the Spirit.

And I would say to you this morning

that true holiness of life

can only happen

through the working of God's Spirit

within us.

Simeon's holiness

didn't come by making some

New Year resolution

as people do

at the beginning of a new year.

That so often would end in failure.

Simeon, no,

walked by the Spirit.

He lived by the Spirit.

He was moved by the Spirit.

One could say

that he was born again

of the Spirit of God.

And that's where it must begin.

If we haven't been born again

of the Spirit

we will never live a holy life.

But when there's been

that transaction

between God and man

where God comes down

and works in the life

of an individual

he begins to change.

He begins to lead

a sanctified life.

He begins to take notice

of what the Scripture

has to say.

He becomes, if you like,

a new creation.

Sanctification, of course,

isn't passive.

It isn't let go

and let God.

But when God is at work

within us

we work.

We begin to work out

our salvation

with fear and trembling

for it is God

who works within us

both to will

and to do

of his good pleasure.

So as we face

the new year

we do not face it

in our own strength

in our own righteousness

but we face

the future

by the power

of the Holy Spirit

within us

enabling us

to live

as we ought to live

in a world

that is rotten.

So as we face

2015

let us be ready

like Simeon

to be different

to present

our bodies

as living

sacrifices.

The same

could be true

of Anna.

I think

if I would want

to put a word

over her

I would want

to say

that she was

consistent.

Look at verse 37

We have her

worshipping

we have her

fasting

and we have

her praying.

We are told

she never left

the temple

but worshipped

night and day

with fasting

and with prayer.

It was seen

that this widow

had devoted

her life

to the service

of God.

what she did

was for the

glory of God.

She had

right

priorities.

She sought

first

the kingdom

of God

and his

righteousness.

Now as you

look at her

life such as

it's given

to us

you may say

to me

well that's

not living

in the

real world.

I have

my job

I have

my home

I have

my children

I have

parents

to take

care of

but I

would say

to you

live

your life

wherever

you find

yourselves

to the

glory

of God.

Remember

that if

you're a

Christian

this morning

you're

living

with

God.

Your

very

bodies

have

become

the

temple

of the

Holy

Spirit

so you're

to live

your life

to the

glory

of God

as

Anna did

and be

consistent

in living

your life

to his

glory.

None of

us must

become

Sunday

Christians

whether we

find ourselves

in our

places of

work

in our

jobs

in our

homes

with

unbelievers

sometimes

whether

we're

children

at school

whether

we're

at

university

or

college

whether

we have

responsibility

as

parents

we're

to live

to the

glory

of God

consistently

again

it's

the

whole

idea

of

being

living

sacrifices

like

Anna

we're

not

to

miss

out

on

our

private

worship

we're

not

to

miss

out

on

our

worship

with

our

brothers

and

sisters

in

Christ

and

we

are

ready

as

Christians

to give

up

even

that

which

is

legitimate

for the

sake

of

the

Lord

Jesus

Christ

continuous

right

to the

very

end

of

our

days

Anna

was

getting

towards

the

end

of

her

days

but

she

wasn't

slackening

up

there's

some

dear

ladies

that I

knew

in

the

past

and

sometimes

they would

say

I feel

I've

done

my

bit

and

I

would

say

to

them

there's

still

more

for

you

to

do

than

there

is

whether

we're

young

then

or

whether

we're

old

we're

to

be

consistent

and

live

for

the

Lord

to

the

end

of

our

days

continually

don't

slacken

off

live

lives

of

holiness

so

be

ready

to

be

different

beware

of

worldliness

beware

that the

world

doesn't

squeeze

you

into

its

mold

a

Christian

writer

said

I

looked

for the

church

and I

found

it

in

the

world

and

then

I

looked

for the

world

and I

found

it

in

the

church

let's

be

careful

that we

don't

become

so

user

friendly

that we

lose

our

identity

as

those

who

are

called

to be

saints

of the

living

God

so

as we

face

2015

let's

hold the

challenge

of Simeon

and Hannah

before us

and live

lives

of

holiness

the

second

thing

that I

think

we

have

here

is

that

Simeon

and Hannah

looked

for Christ

and looked

to

Christ

if you

look at

verse

25

you read

about

Simeon

that he

was

waiting

for the

consolation

of

Israel

so

here was

a man

who was

versed

in the

Old

Testament

scriptures

he

was

looking

for

that

comforter

he

knew

what

the

Old

Testament

had

to

say

he

had

the

law

he

had

the

Psalms

he

had

the

prophets

they

were

all

there

before

him

and

he

knew

them

and

he

waited

for

the

one

that

had

been

promised

the

seed

of

the

woman

that

were

crushed

Satan's

head

he

knew

that

a

promise

had

been

given

to

Abraham

that

from

the

seed

of

Abraham

would

come

one

who

would

bring

a

blessing

to

the

nations

he

knew

of

David

and

all

that

was

promised

of

his

seed

that

one

from

his

family

would

rule

eternally

eternally

he

knew

the

promises

that

were

given

by

the

prophet

Isaiah

that

a

virgin

would

conceive

and

of

the

increase

of

his

government

and

peace

there

would

be

no

end

and

he

knew

Psalm

40

what

does

Psalm

40

say

well

Psalm

40

Isaiah

40

says

this

not

Psalm

40

Isaiah

40

comfort

comfort

my

people

says

your

God

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

he

was

looking

and

waiting

for that

consolation

that

comfort

that

would

come

and

he

was

looking

for

the

Savior

constantly

now

we

live

in a

later

generation

we

have

the

fullness

of

revelation

the

promises

have

been

fulfilled

we

believe

do we

not

that

Jesus

is

the

Christ

the

Son

of

the

living

God

but

are

we

looking

for

Christ

with

the

same

intensity

with

which

Simeon

looked

are

we

looking

for

him

to

be

our

comforter

in

all

things

no

one

else

can

be

our

comforter

as

the

Lord

Jesus

can

be

our

comforter

do

we

read

the

scriptures

looking

for

the

Lord

Jesus

are

we

thrilled

with

Christ

and

all

that

he

is

oh

dear

friends

face

the

coming

year

looking

for

comfort

in

him

you

see

it's

so

easy

to

look

for

comfort

in

other

things

in

increased

opportunity

in

a

better

job

a

better

house

but

only

true

comfort

can

come

with

knowing

Christ

and

knowing

him

personally

and

walking

with

him

day

by

day

to

feel

the

closeness

of

fellowship

with

him

I like

those

words

of the

old

Scots

preacher

who said

this

I live

my life

as though

Christ

died

yesterday

rose

again

from

the

dead

today

and

is

coming

again

tomorrow

so

I urge

you

look

for

Christ

in

his

word

look

for

him

in

your

personal

reading

look

for

him

in

your

worship

seek

to

proclaim

him

to

a

needy

world

look

for

Christ

in

the

law

look

for

Christ

in

the

prophets

look

for

him

in

the

gospels

in

the

epistles

in

revelation

in

their

place

of

worship

and

long

to

know

him

more

if

you

look

at

Simeon's

life

you

don't

get

a

picture

of

a

man

who

could

take

or

leave

the

Christ

he

longs

for

Christ

verse

26

tells us

it had

been

revealed

to him

by

the

Holy

Spirit

that

he

would

not

die

before

he

had

seen

the

Lord's

Christ

and

moved

by

the

Holy

Spirit

he

goes

into

the

temple

with

a

longing

to

see

Christ

and

isn't

that

the

task

of

the

Holy

Spirit

to

glorify

Christ

that's

his

chief

task

and

here

is

Simeon

looking

with

expectation

with

anticipation

he

knew

the

promised

Messiah

but

he

longs

to

look

upon

Christ

and

can

you

imagine

his

face

as

he

goes

in

that

particular

day

and

sees

in

this

infant

sees

this

infant

in

the

arms

of

Mary

and

he

recognizes

him

as

the

promised

one

he

takes

Christ

into

his

arms

this

devout

this

righteous

one

he

lays

hold

of

Christ

the

saviour

of the

world

the

promise

becomes

the

reality

veiled

in

flesh

the

Godhead

he

sees

and

he

hails

the

incarnate

deity

and

now

he

is

ready

to

depart

for

his

eyes

have

seen

the

salvation

that

the

Lord

had

prepared

now

how can

we

apply

this

to

ourselves

as

we

enter

2050

well

surely

it is

to

live

our

lives

in

the

light

of

eternity

and

we

can

only

do

that

successfully

as

we

have

this

same

longing

for

Christ

are

we

then

hungering

and

thirsting

for

him

are

we

finding

our

satisfaction

in

him

who

loved

us

and

gave

himself

for

us

and

is

coming

again

for

us

psalm

42

and

verse

1

says

as

the

deer

pants

for

the

water

so

my

soul

pants

for

you

oh

God

can

you

see

that

timid

creature

hiding

away

through

the

heat

of

the

day

longing

that

it

might

go

to

the

water

hole

to

take

a

sip

of

water

to

slack

its

thirst

longing

do we

have

that

same

kind

of

longing

for

Christ

to

know

him

better

to

know

him

as

perhaps

we

have

never

known

him

before

the

apostle

Paul

certainly

had

that

longing

hear

him

praying

for

the

Ephesian

Christians

in

chapter

3

of

Ephesians

in

verse

14

he

says

for

this

reason

I

kneel

before

the

father

from

whom

the

whole

family

in

heaven

and

on

earth

derives

his

name

I

pray

that

out

of

the

glorious

riches

he

may

strengthen

you

with

power

through

his

spirit

in

your

inner

being

why

so

that

Christ

may

dwell

in

your

hearts

through

faith

and

I

pray

that

you

being

rooted

and

established

in

love

may have

power

together

with

all

the

saints

to

grasp

how

wide

and

long

and

high

and

deep

is

the

love

of

Christ

and

to

know

this

love

that

surpasses

knowledge

that

you

may

be

filled

to

the

measure

of

all

the

fullness

of

God

is

is

that

your

longing

for

2015

a

longing

for

Christ

William

Cowper

the

hymn

writer

says

this

Lord

it

is

my

chief

complaint

that

my

love

is

weak

and

faint

yet

I

love

thee

and

adore

oh

for

grace

to

love

you

more

so

as

we

face

the

new

year

let's

live

the

holy

lives

that

we

ought

to

be

living

and

let's

look

for

Christ

with

a

longing

that

we

might

know

him

more

and

more

certainly

that's

what

Amma

did

for

we

read

in

verse

38

that

she

spoke

to

all

of

those

who

looked

for

redemption

in

Israel

she

was

looking

and

she

found

may

we

also

find

him

in a

way

that

in

2015

that

perhaps

we

didn't

know

him

in

2014

and

there's

one

thing

further

I

want

to

say

before

I

sit

down

as

we

face

the

new

year

as

we

face

it

let's

look

beyond

our

personal

boundaries

we

live in

a

sinful

world

and

it

was

a

sinful

world

that

Christ

came

into

the

world

to

save

and

Simeon

knew

this

hear him

speak

in

verses

30

to

32

for

my

eyes

have

seen

your

salvation

which

you

have

prepared

in

the

sight

of

all

people

a

light

for

revelation

to

the

Gentiles

and

for

glory

to

your

people

Israel

it's

a

remarkable

statement

isn't

it

let's

remember

who's

making

the

statement

he's

a

Jew

and

the

average

Jew

would

have

looked

down

his

nose

at

the

Gentile

nations

but

there's

no

prejudice

with

this

man

here

he

announces

the

good

news

that

in

this

child

was

salvation

for

all

who

would

believe

for

Jew

and

for

Gentile

Gentile

eyes

would

be

open

and

blessing

would

come

to

the

Jews

what

faith

as

he

holds

a

scrap

of

humanity

in

his

arms

this

fragile

infant

he

sees

salvation

for

a

lost

world

and

he

looks

out

and

sees

salvation

for

that

world

isn't

it

the

tendency

of us

all

to

look

in

to

be

concerned

about

our

own

problems

to

be

concerned

with

the

water

charges

etc

etc

instead

of

focusing

our

eyes

beyond

our

personal

boundaries

to

Christ

for

the

nations

see

Anna

coming

at that

very

moment

she

gives

thanks

to

God

and

spoke

about

the

child

to

all

who

are

looking

forward

to

redemption

of

Israel

John

Wesley

penned

the

lines

happy

if

with

my

latest

breath

I

might

but

gasp

his

name

preach

him

that

is

Christ

to

all

and

cry

in

death

behold

behold

the

lamb

Christ

for

Syria

Christ

for

those

who

are

suffering

and

going

through

so

much

in

Nigeria

salvation

for

North

Korea

for

Ukraine

for

Israel

salvation

for

our

neighbors

and

families