How do you view the past? We can look back and see all of the things that did not go quite as we wanted, or we can choose to look back and see all of the ways in which the Lord was faithful. He is faithful to His people because He is faithful to His promises. That means we do not need to wonder whether we have been good enough or obedient enough to earn the Lord’s favor. We have His objective promises that He will do what He has said He will do.

It is God’s continued faithfulness that kept Simeon’s hope alive that he would see the Lord’s Christ. After all, God had said that would happen, and so Simeon could rely on it! It was God’s continued faithfulness that kept Anna waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem. Remember that it had been centuries since God had spoken regularly to His people. The silence had been deafening, and a reason why many had given up hope. In the same way, we can be tempted to judge God’s faithfulness by our circumstances, and lose hope because we cannot see God at work. In Luke 2:21-40, Luke reminds us that in Jesus Christ, God has brought about the “Fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets,” and that all He has promised is “Yea, and Amen” in Christ.

I.  Obedience
A. Revealing Our Need
B.  Revealing God's Presence

II.  Expectation
A. Waiting on God
B. Beyond Our Expectations

III. Joy
A. Joy for Life
B. Joy to Share

Questions for consideration: (1) Why is it significant that Jesus obeyed the law from his earliest days? (2) How can Simeon’s life of waiting help us in our own struggles? (3) How can Anna help us to think about your service to God and your worship of Him?