Saints, before the altar bending,
Watching long in hope and fear;
Suddenly the Lord, descending,
In His temple shall appear.
Come and worship, come and worship,
Worship Christ, the newborn King.
Angels, from the Realms of Glory
By: James Montgomery, 1771-1854 (1816)
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We continue our journey to Christmas and the celebration of the birth of our Savior. This week we consider the saints who are bending their lives to the will of God at the altar of God. Their role in the story shows us that God rewards those who earnestly seek Him. Let’s tune our hearts.
Simeon
Right after the shepherds in Luke 2 we are introduced to two other characters who for the purposes of our carol are the “saints”. They are truly saints since they are effectively described as such. They are people whose faith was in God, who had been waiting and watching for His appearing for a long time.
We are going to consider Simeon today and Anna Thursday.
You can read the entire passage about Simeon in Luke 2:25-35, or suffice it to say he was righteous and devout.
Simeon regularly bent his knee at the altar of God, so he had positioned himself to hear from God. This posture of humility is essential if we truly want to hear. It also allowed his life to be a welcome place to the Holy Spirit.
Welcoming the Spirit
So welcome was the Spirit in Simeon’s life that he had received a beautiful promise from God. He was told he would not see death before He would see the Lord’s Christ. What an incredible promise! We do not know how long He had held onto this promise. It could have been years, even decades. What we do know is that he was hopeful and watchful.
How do we know that? He had come in the Spirit to the Temple. When he saw the child He did not have to pray . He knew it was the Lord’s salvation. When the Lord suddenly appeared in the Temple he was ready.
He had come again to worship with an expectant heart, and that expectancy was rewarded with an encounter with the Savior.
What an incredible story of a faithful life! He was looking to God and that same God made Him an incredible promise. Is there some promise you have been holding onto for some time? Don’t let go. Are you struggling to maintain a watchful, hopeful posture after a long wait? Set your hope on God. Are you alert and ready to identify the Lord when He does appear? Stay alert. Otherwise you could miss it. Take a few moments and ask the Holy Spirit to reveal the answers to these questions, and then press in to one of them as we consider the lessons we might learn from Simeon.
Learning from Simeon
It is beneficial to look at Simeon’s like and marvel at the goodness of God to reveal Himself to this seasoned saint. It is far more profitable to consider how we may emulate his approach and replicate it in our lives. Which will you choose, beneficial or profitable? Both are good choices, but one is far better.
Let’s take the better course and examine our own lives around these three principles
- Don’t Let Go
- Set Your Hope on God
- Stay Alert
Don’t Let Go – It can be heard to hold on when you believe God has said something to you and a long time has passed. Many of us know just how difficult that can be. What Simeon teaches us is that it is so worth it to hold on. God is faithful, and He will do it.
What is that promise you are holding onto today? Speak it out loud. Is your grip loosening? Maybe you have already let go. But you can often just get another grip. Ask God to strengthen your grasp own that promise and trust Him until you see it come to pass.
Set Your Hope on God – This can be tricky. The Lord told Simeon he would see God’s salvation, but what would that look like. Simeon could easily have crafted his own idea of what form that salvation would take. If he was mistaken he might have missed the moment. Instead he put his hope in God and waited with open eyes and heart to see it.
What have you set your hope on? Is it God, or something of your own making that resembles Him? This can be so tricky as we pursue God’s best for us because we can shape it to our own likely, or weak faith when God may having something much better in mind. Determine to clearly set your hope on Him, and you will never be disappointed.
Stay Alert – We do not know the particulars of the arrival of Mary and Joseph at the Temple for the dedication of Jesus, but there were likely many people in and out for various reasons. Simeon could have easily missed this little family, but he did not. Certainly the Holy Spirit prompted him, but he had to stay alert.
What are you waiting to see? Have you grown weary in your waiting? It is difficult to maintain the kind of focus required to stay focused on one thing when there are many things moving around you. And Simeon was old. Still, he was ready when the what he was longing for suddenly appeared. Can the same be said of you? Are you alert today and watching for the thing you are hoping for?
Lok back over those three lessons and determine to address one of them today. That kind of reflection and discipline may be the very thing that positioned Simeon to experience the promise of God. Position yourself in a similar position today.
Holy Spirit, You came upon Simeon, but I believe your dwell in me. Show me what may be keeping me from listening to You the way he did. Then give me the courage to act on what you show me so I can be one the saints that sees You when You move in my life. In Jesus name. Amen!
Watchful Tuning!
Keep coming back and we will work help you remove the things that may hinder your longing for His return by cultivating an awareness of God’s presence. We will help you tune your heart to live out your worship by providing resources like this to help you acknowledge the greatness of God as you become more Resonant, 7 days a week.
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Video 54.4 Transcript, 12.4
Welcome to Tuesday Tunings at Resonant 7, where we reflect on the reality of God and resolve to let it resound in our lives, repeatedly. Let’s tune our hearts.
Saints, before the altar bending,
Watching long in hope and fear;
Suddenly the Lord, descending,
In His temple shall appear.
Come and worship, come and worship,
Worship Christ, the newborn King.
If you have not seen yourself in the story yet, hopefully you do here. I think this has a dual meaning, for the saints in that day, and for all who came after them. We humble ourselves at the place where we meet God. We depend on His work to make us holy. Then and now.
Saints are simply those who are looking to God for the fulfillment of their hope. The fear is evoked by a right understanding of the majesty of God. Are you watching for the coming of our Lord? He came once. He will come again. Are you ready?
Though they were waiting and we wait now, they were surprised as we will be when He makes His final appearance. He will come down again, not as a baby, but as the Lord of all. Even before then, He wants to come down upon us to make His glory known. Welcome Him.
Mary and Joseph brought newborn Jesus to the Temple as instructed by the law, and Simeon and Anna welcomed Him. Jesus comes to us as well and desires a similar welcome. Will He receive it when He comes to you?
Take a few moments to talk to Jesus about what has surfaced in your heart, or just listen to what He is saying to you, then we will sing once more.
Sing
Take the awareness of God’s presence cultivated in these last few minutes into the next ones and beyond. Until next time, be Resonant.
The post What Can the Saints Teach Us? REFRAMED appeared first on Resonant 7.
When Image Attributions
Simeon’s Moment – by Ron DiCianni – http://www.burrowdesigns.com/advent-simeon/
Learning from Simeon – https://pixabay.com/photos/climb-knot-hand-partner-check-517053/
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