When Jesus was still a baby, he was taken to the temple in Jerusalem to be presented to God. Jerusalem was the Holy City of the Jews, and it was where King David had ruled. In the Jewish law the firstborn male of each family was consecrated to God, so Jesus was taken to Jerusalem. “Consecrated,” means to be given or dedicated to God.

In this city there lived an old man named Simeon who was a good-living man who loved God. The Holy Spirit of God arrived and told Simeon that Simeon would not die until he had seen Jesus, the Son of God. Through the Holy Spirit’s guidance, Simeon went to the Temple, and when he saw Joseph, Mary and Baby Jesus, he was so happy. He took Jesus in his arms and praised God.

He called God all-powerful and sovereign, and then said how God had kept His promise to let Simeon see Jesus before he (Simeon) died, and now the promise was kept, he could die in peace. Simeon also said he had now seen God’s “salvation.” Salvation is how we get to heaven; it is given to us as an undeserved gift from God through Jesus voluntarily dying for our sins. Salvation means we are saved from hell, exclusively because Jesus died for us. Simeon said Jesus was our path to heaven. He said Jesus was a “light for revelation to the Gentiles.” This light brings warmth and safety to those that it shines upon. The word “gentiles” are us: the non-Jews. We are now part of heaven because Jesus arrived to save us from hell. Simeon’s statement made clear that heaven is open to all-people, but the condition is that we believe in Jesus. He ended by saying Jesus would bring “glory” to the people of Israel.

Mary and Joseph were amazed at what Simeon said, and then he blessed them. Simeon said “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the soul of many hearts will be revealed. And a soul will pierce your own soul too.” By this, Simeon meant Jesus would be a dividing line between people; he would have followers who would love and obey him, and he would have enemies who would hate him. The ones who loved him would have love and kindness, and would help others who were in trouble; however, his enemies would lie, steal, kill, cheat and do all the other things that are evil. Jesus made the line between right and wrong 100% clear.

Simeon said Jesus would be spoken against. This happens when anyone uses Jesus’ name as a curse, or when someone denies Jesus exists, or that He is the Son of God, or when someone claims that Jesus is one of many sons on God. In this world there are many groups who insult Jesus this way. The only true Christian is one who knows that God only had one Son and that this Son is perfect, and He was with God in the beginning of creation, and that His Son is God. Anything else is a lie.

Simeon said Jesus would reveal the hearts of people. When we ignore the poor or enjoy being rich, then we reveal what is inside our hearts. Jesus set a perfect example of how we are to live, and when we abandon that, we reveal our hearts.

Simeon ended on the sad note that sadness would cut through Mary’s heart. Mary lived to see her son crucified, which made this statement come true.

In the temple on that day, there was an old widow named Anna. Anna was a lady who loved God and who stayed in the Temple every minute she could so she could worship and pray to God. She also fasted. Fasting was where the Jews would go for a certain time without food as a way of getting closer to God. She gave thanks to God, and then walked up to Mary and Joseph and told them about Jesus. From there she went and told others who were waiting for redemption.

After this, Mary and Joseph went back to their home in Nazareth in the region of Galilee, where the Bible says Jesus grew up to be wise and strong, and where the grace of God was upon him.

In this passage we see the happiness, patience and love for God of an old man, Simeon. His happiness is not in money, power or anything else physical, but is in the unbelievable joy of seeing the Son of God before he (Simeon) dies. God promised Simeon that he would see Jesus before he died, and God always keeps His promise. Simeon’s joy is something we cannot possible understand: he is holding the Son of God in his arms. From there, Simeon immediately praises God and calls Him all-powerful and sovereign.

We must realize these two facts: God is all-powerful and sovereign. He is all-powerful because He created everything, understands everything, planned everything, is in everything, and is everything. When we have problems or when people hurt us, we must remember that God is all-powerful; he will solve any difficulty.

God is also sovereign, which means nothing is above God or can overrule Him, His decisions are for Him alone to make and are completely binding on us.

Simeon says he has seen God’s salvation, which is Jesus. In God’s majesty He sends His only Son down to earth to die for us as Jesus dies on the cross to save us from our sins and hell. By dying for us there on the cross, all our sins are forgiven and forgotten by God and we become acceptable to Him. Jesus’ death for us was the ultimate sacrifice; therefore, we must believe in him and become His representatives on earth in order for us to fulfill our part in God’s plan.

Jesus is a dividing line between good an evil because we either follow the example of His perfection, or we follow the evilness of the world; therefore, there can be no compromise or negotiation: we either follow Jesus -- or the Devil.

Simeon speaks of Mary’s future sadness which will be deep because she will see her Son grow up to love and help everybody, only to be murdered for His goodness.

On that same day, an old lady named Anna was introduced to Jesus. She stayed in the temple and spent her life in prayer to God, which shows how we must never underestimate the power and importance of prayer. Anna, like Simeon, immediately gave thanks to God for the honor of seeing the Son of God, and for the arrival of the Messiah.