Our waiting turns into a song of praise when we recognize and receive Jesus as our Savior. “How long will this keep going on?” is a question we’ve all asked and will likely all ask again. There are circumstances in life that will have you thinking that God isn’t working like you thought He would and wondering when He is going to come through. In those times, you will have a choice to give in to the temptation of discouragement and despair or to continue trusting and praising God. Simeon had lived in anticipation of God’s promised Messiah. Recognizing Jesus as the One through whom salvation would be made available to all people, Simeon offered praise to God. Following his example, we should recognize and receive the salvation God offers in Jesus, and we should make praise to God for His salvation a prominent element of our lives.

KEY VERSES

LUKE 1:5-25 (NASB)

Birth of John the Baptist Foretold

5 In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zacharias, of the division of]Abijah; and he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. 6 They were both righteous in the sight of God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and requirements of the Lord. 7 But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both advanced in years.

8 Now it happened that while he was performing his priestly service before God in the appointed order of his division, 9 according to the custom of the priestly office, he was chosen by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense. 10 And the whole multitude of the people were in prayer outside at the hour of the incense offering. 11 And an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing to the right of the altar of incense. 12 Zacharias was troubled when he saw the angel, and fear gripped him. 13 But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your petition has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will give him the name John. 14 You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth. 15 For he will be great in the sight of the Lord; and he will drink no wine or liquor, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit while yet in his mother’s womb.16 And he will turn many of the sons of Israel back to the Lord their God. 17 It is he who will go as a forerunner before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children, and the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous, so as to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

18 Zacharias said to the angel, “How will I know this for certain? For I am an old man and my wife is advanced in years.” 19 The angel answered and said to him, “I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news. 20 And behold, you shall be silent and unable to speak until the day when these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their proper time.”

21 The people were waiting for Zacharias, and were wondering at his delay in the temple. 22 But when he came out, he was unable to speak to them; and they realized that he had seen a vision in the temple; and he kept making signs to them, and remained mute. 23 When the days of his priestly service were ended, he went back home.

24 After these days Elizabeth his wife became pregnant, and she kept herself in seclusion for five months, saying, 25 “This is the way the Lord has dealt with me in the days when He looked with favor upon me, to take away my disgrace among men.”

LUKE 1:67-80 (NASB)

Zacharias’s Prophecy

67 And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying:

68 “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
For He has visited us and accomplished redemption for His people,
69 And has raised up a horn of salvation for us
In the house of David His servant—
70 As He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from of old—
71 Salvation from our enemies,
And from the hand of all who hate us;
72 To show mercy toward our fathers,
And to remember His holy covenant,
73 The oath which He swore to Abraham our father,
74 To grant us that we, being rescued from the hand of our enemies,
Might serve Him without fear,
75 In holiness and righteousness before Him all our days.
76 “And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High;
For you will go on before the Lord to prepare His ways;
77 To give to His people the knowledge of salvation
By the forgiveness of their sins,
78 Because of the tender mercy of our God,
With which the Sunrise from on high will visit us,
79 To shine upon those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death,
To guide our feet into the way of peace.”

80 And the child continued to grow and to become strong in spirit, and he lived in the deserts until the day of his public appearance to Israel.

COLOSSIANS 3:15 (NASB)

15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful.

UNDERSTANDING

• When have you received a gift that you waited on for a very long time? What was it?

• Did waiting increase your appreciation for the gift once you finally received it?

• Did the gift live up to your expectations? Why or why not?

  Most holiday seasons come with a few “must-have” toys. Marketing campaigns seek to make consumers feel left out or “incomplete” unless they have the one thing they desire. However, a few years removed from any given Christmas season, you are just as likely to see one of those “must-have” toys in an attic or at a garage sale as in a child’s playroom. The pleasure of receiving the gift is fleeting. It can only be “must-have” for so long before our attention is drawn to something else. The happiness does not last. Yet in the beginning chapters of Luke, we see a man who waited for and received real and lasting peace from a gift that would never disappoint. God loved us so much that He sent Jesus Christ to bring His people true and lasting peace that will never fade.

  Even though it was not emphasized, Jesus’ circumcision revealed the solidarity of God’s Son with His people, namely, that He was born under the law (Gal 4:4). The “purification” contained several elements: Mary’s purification (Lev 12:6-8), which involved a sacrifice being offered at the Nicanor Gate in the Court of the Women; the redemption of the firstborn son (Exod 13:1-2). The Son with His parents fulfilled all righteousness in fulfilling all the Law, as Luke repeatedly emphasized. The Son, like Samuel, was dedicated to God and His service as a helpless infant (see 1 Sam. 2).

• We haven’t yet encountered Simeon in these verses, but how do these verses help us better understand the purpose of his waiting?

• Does it help you to know that your times of waiting are impacted by how God is working

  in other people’s lives as well? When have you seen this truth play out in your own life?

• Who was Simeon? What type of man was he?

• If you were in Simeon’s shoes, do you think it would have been difficult to wait on God to

  fulfill His promise? Explain.

• What do you do when what you see is nothing like what God has said?

  Simeon’s age and vocation are not given to us by Luke, but we do learn about Simeon’s character as a righteous and devout man. In his relationship with the Lord, it was revealed to Simeon that he would not die before he saw the Messiah. Often we allow our waiting to cause us to become discouraged and doubt God’s goodness, but Simeon held on to God’s promises. Jesus is the fulfillment of every promise of God (2 Cor 1:20).

• How did Simeon become aware of God’s promise? Why might this have influenced his ability to believe God’s promise?

• What are some promises God has given to believers that are relevant today? Why are we

  tempted to doubt the things we know that God has promised?

  In this week’s message, you learned that God is calling you to raise your perspective. Pastor Bobby explained, “There is a direct correlation between a person’s private devotional life and his or her personal faith.”

• Based on this truth and Simeon’s example, what are some key steps you should take in order to wait well?

  Simeon believed God because he had the assurance of the Holy Spirit. It’s easy for us to sit back and think to ourselves, “Well if only I had the assurance Simeon had.” But if we are in Christ, we do. The Holy Spirit is constantly with us, giving us the same assurance He gave to Simeon. However, our assurance is truer and better than Simeon’s because we know the full story. We see fully in the Scriptures what Simeon only saw dimly. We know that the little baby Simeon sang overlived a perfect life, died a sacrificial death, and rose again to restore our relationship with God and bring true, lasting peace.

• What does Simeon’s song (vv. 29-32) teach us about who Jesus is?

• Why should realizing who Jesus is and what He came to do motivate us to give praise to God, just as Simeon did?

• How did seeing Jesus bring Simeon peace? How does Jesus bring you peace?

  Having seen the promised Christ, Simeon praised the Lord and acknowledged that God could now dismiss him in peace. Simeon understood that seeing Jesus meant He was seeing salvation in the flesh. One of the features of Luke’s Gospel is the crucial link between salvation and the person of Jesus. This little baby Simeon held was the revelation of God to all people and the glory of Israel. Jesus brought Simeon peace because Simeon was patiently waiting to meet the Messiah. Having seen Jesus, Simeon no longer had to wait. To this day, Jesus fulfills the longing of our souls.

• What evidence of the gospel message do you see in these verses?

  Simeon did not locate God’s saving mission in one place or with one specific people group. In Simeon’s song, we see the global initiative of God to bring many into the covenant blessing that Israel enjoyed. Jesus is a “revelation to the Gentiles.” To be a revelation means that Jesus communicates something true about God to us. Jesus is proof that God loves us, cares for us, and desires to restore His relationship with us. Such a revelation caused Mary and Joseph to marvel at the truth about their Son, and it should cause us to marvel as well. God sought us through Jesus, and that motivates us to worship Him.

  APPLICATION

• In this week’s message, you were encouraged to renew your praise as you wait. What are some reasons you have to praise God?

• What is something you are waiting on God to do? How is God speaking to you about that through Simeon’s song?

• How can we encourage one another to wait and seek Jesus together as a community?

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