January 1, 2006 Sermon

Word after Word
Luke 2:22-40

Have you ever wanted to die? A friend of ours once wandered into a shoe store at the mall. A salesman approached to ask if he wanted help. Yes, he replied, did they have one particular type of hiking boot in his size? The salesmanÁs face, which he had struggled to keep straight, finally cracked. That would depend, he said, on what ladies size he wore. It was a womanÁs shoe store.

It turns out that the salesman drew a cartoon for the local university student newspaper. He used this episode as the plot line for one of his strips. As if that were not bad enough, a syndicate had just purchased the rights to his work. His cartoon about the guy in the womenÁs shoe store was one of his first to appear nationally. And as if that were not bad enough, the salesman and the customer were best friends. They had gone to the same high school and roomed together in college.

Have you ever wanted to die? Actually, I refer not to the feeling we occasionally get when embarrassed. I mean the question literally.

A doctor had a massive stroke. After his initial recovery, in which he briefly regained his speech, he regressed. He had to go back into the hospital. There he caught an exotic infection. It ate away at his flesh. After a few weeks spent on the respirator about the only thing functioning was his mind. He remained in this terrible state for days. Then his condition deteriorated and in less than thirty-six hours he died. His wife, a former nurse, told me she was certain he had decided to die. As a doctor he knew too much. He had no illusions about the life he might lead, post-stroke, and willed himself to die.

Have you ever wanted to die? Actually, though I mean this question literally, I do not mean it to apply to the decision to give up a life of suffering. I mean it to apply to that rare case of a person feeling so completed, so fulfilled that they embrace death. I mean it to apply to people like the man we met in our passage from Luke: Simeon.

By SimeonÁs day prophets had foretold the coming of the Messiah for centuries. Now rumors swirled around Jerusalem . Herod was agitated. A few shepherds were spreading wild stories about angels singing in the sky. Could the Messiah finally have arrived? Luke tells us that GodÁs Spirit had promised Simeon he would not die until the Messiah came. Now the Spirit moves Simeon to go to the temple. There he meets Mary and Joseph. He takes the baby Jesus from them, holds him and blesses God. Anna, a prophetess, shows up and agrees Jesus is the Messiah.

God sent word after word to humanity. For centuries God alerted us that salvation would appear on this earth in the form of a Messiah, a person who would deliver not only Israel , but all humanity, from the powers of sin and death. But now Simeon, who holds the Messiah in his arms, says he wants to die. A paradox? No.

When we finally believe the word about Jesus we can die in peace. Jesus, the Word with a capital W, the Word of salvation God speaks to all who believe in Him, eases our fears. Believe in Jesus as the Messiah. Let go of your fear of dying. Want to die but for the right reason.

As Simeon held Jesus he prayed, ËLord, now let your servant depart in peace, according to thy word; for mine eyes have seen thy salvationü.Ó When he grew up Jesus would often tell his followers that only those who had eyes to see could see. What did Jesus mean? He meant that only those who believe in Him as Lord and Savior can truly see him. Only they can truly receive what he longs to give to all: salvation and the peace it brings. Simeon saw. Peace flooded over him. He begged God to die.

Which of us honestly longs to die because we have such peace through faith in Jesus? Which of us has eyes to see that well? In fact, Jesus tests us. And the question number one on the Jesus Test is this: do we believe in him? Everything depends on our answer. As Simeon put it, ËBehold, this child is set for the fall and rising of manyü.that thoughts out of many hearts may be revealed.Ó What thoughts do we have about Jesus? Do we see Him as the Messiah or not?

Have you answered the faith question? We might prefer an essay question, in which we could get partial credit for writing a long answer. Or perhaps we would prefer a multiple-choice question with many options:

(a) Yes, I believe in Jesus as the Messiah

(b) Sometimes I believe and sometimes I donÁt

(c) I believe Jesus was a great teacher but no more

(d) I do not believe in Jesus as the Messiah

(e) A and B

(f) None of the above

Unfortunately, the Bible tells us we do not get multiple choice options on the faith in Jesus as the Messiah question. Only one answer qualifies us for the peace of Christ which helps us to face even death: Ë(a) Yes, I believe in Jesus as the Messiah.Ó

Fortunately, the Bible also tells us how to get to ËyesÓ on the faith question. We must receive the Holy Spirit of God, which gives us faith as a free gift. We cannot buy it. We cannot earn it. We can only accept it. We can only embrace it as Simeon embraced the baby Jesus.

But where do we find the Spirit? We turn to three places: prayer, worship and fellowship with the people of God. Since I have recently preached on prayer and fellowship, today I choose to focus on worship. Worship can help us connect with the Spirit who gives faith. But in order for it to work we must worship regularly and seriously.

Come to church every Sabbath you possibly can. The discipline of worshipping with the crowd has virtue all by itself. The best testimony to this truth I know comes from the many elderly people who make the effort to attend church every week. Earlier in my career I confess I did not do older churchgoers the honor they deserve. I did not understand how difficult it can become as your body ages just to get out the door. And I misunderstood their motives. I assumed that the older generations came to church mostly out of a sense of duty that younger generations lack. Now I see that many older people come to church because the Holy Spirit feeds them there like no place else. Come to church and worship Jesus with the people of God. The payoff is peace and it is worth it.

But once you get to church, worship seriously. I do not mean to worship with a long face, but with effort and attention. For you English teachers out there, I use the word worship as a verb an active verb. Do not come to church expecting to be entertained. Come to church prepared to pray and to sing with energy. We have gotten too used to the idea that we can get anything we want by taking a pill or by flipping through the cable channels until we find exactly what we ordered.

Football coaches like to tell their players, ËCome hard or donÁt come at all.Ó If a football player tries to make a play softly he probably will fail and might get hurt in the bargain. In the same way I would encourage you to come hard to church. Come prepared to worship with passion.

I truly believe that GodÁs Holy Spirit uses our active worship to plant faith in our hearts. Come to church regularly. Worship actively once you arrive. And invite somebody who does not go to church to join you. When you taste the peace of Christ you want others to have it, too. That peace makes it possible to die without fear. Praise God for that!