Luke 2:22-40
If we left Christmas behind on December 25, we would only have some well-loved poetry, a heart-warming picture of mother and Child beside a lowly manger, and some sentimental memories of worship services. But that’s not enough to get you to life with God. By themselves those things don’t get to the real heart of the matter—your heart of sin and God’s heart of forgiveness. On Christmas Eve and Christmas Day we can finally locate God—He’s in the flesh, lying in a manger. But that’s just the beginning of the picture. We need the picture to be filled out; we need the vibrant colors added. This little, holy Child is God’s salvation before your very eyes. This little, holy Child is destined for the fall and rising of many people. This little, holy Child is the very source of holiness for you, no matter what your age or family situation may be.
Today we move from the stable to the Temple of God, the place where God’s glory dwells on earth. And notice how worship life and family life go hand in hand in this account.
Mary and Joseph bring Baby Jesus to God’s house—holy mother, holy father and holy Child. They make a sacrifice according to God’s Word. Simeon is waiting in God’s house for God-in-the-Flesh to reveal Himself. A devout, holy man focused on God’s salvation. The Holy Spirit gave him faith. And that faith kept him in constant vigil in the Lord’s House. That faith prompted him to sing a marvelous song of God’s salvation. And aged Anna, a devout, holy widow, lived her life in constant attendance in God’s house. She lived a life of Temple prayers, she gave thanks to God for sending His Son, and she spoke of the Christ Child to all who looked for redemption. Christ-centered, liturgical worship always gives birth to confessing Christ in daily witnessing.
In our ongoing celebration of Christmas, we see how this holy Child comes not just to be born, but to redeem and make holy. Jesus’ conception in Mary’s womb makes all conceived children sacred. Jesus’ birth makes all births sacred miracles from God. And Jesus’ infancy—complete with nursing, spitting up and dirty diapers—makes infancy pure and holy for us and our children and grandchildren. When the Word becomes flesh, He revels in taking ordinary, fleshly things and making them sacred. And this also applies to families.
We can see from our Lord Himself that God’s design for a family is mom, dad, and children. Family is a holy and precious thing in God’s eyes. It’s not just some traditional invention of society that we can throw in the trash dumpster because we think we have better, more modern, alternative lifestyles. You see, in God’s design the family is the very foundation for society. All the centuries of history prove this. When the family—mom, dad, and children together—is revered, honored and protected, society does well. When the family is scorned or dishonored, used and abused, society crumbles.
In our society the family is under assault. And we Christians seem to be tripping and falling under the pressure rather than standing up to the assault. Instead of holding on to the life-long, one-flesh union and commitment of one man and one woman in marriage, we give in to the world’s disposable marriages, successive marriages, even same-sex marriages. Instead of parents treasuring their children and taking the responsibility to raise and teach their children, parents go off pursuing their own interests and viewing their children as inconveniences or nuisances. Instead of children respecting their parents as gifts from God, pop culture and progressive education teach our children either to ignore parents or despise them.
This is exactly what Jesus comes to purify and make holy: the family broken by sinful self-seeking. He comes to purify and restore us in our family relationships. How does He do this? By being God’s very life and salvation in the flesh. By living in a family Himself. By keeping the very law of God in our place. By being spoken against by people who did not want Him. And, ultimately, by being rejected, nailed to a cross, and killed in our place. That’s the destiny of this holy Child. But that dark destiny of death for Him means pure, life-giving forgiveness for you in your family.
Is any family perfect? No, not this side of heaven. Even Christian marriages have their flaws. Perhaps you suffer from a past indiscretion as a spouse or as a parent. Perhaps you look at yourself in the mirror of God’s law and see only sin and failure—as a child, as a spouse, or as a parent. Let today’s story of the holy Child in His holy Temple be your comfort. This holy Child came to die for you. As Simeon said, “My eyes have seen Your salvation.” Look to the Christ Child for God’s rescue from your sin and failure. Look to the Christ Child who lived a perfect family life for you.
So, whether you wrestle with infidelity or divorce, whether you suffer pain from abuse or guilt over abortion, or whether you endure the daily bickering and hassles of family life, Christ Jesus the holy Child is for you. His falling in death and His rising in resurrection is yours. Now you may die in your sins by confessing them and you may rise again in Jesus’ forgiveness. And your Baptism ushers you into a lifetime of such dying and rising. “What does such baptizing with water indicate? It indicates that that Old Adam in us should by daily contrition and repentance be drowned and die with all sins and evil desires, and that a new man should daily emerge and arise to live before God in righteousness and purity forever.” All of that just for you; all of that just for your family; all of that courtesy of the Holy Child.
And by the way, no matter what your family situation is, this whole story of Christ in His Temple is for you. It’s for the married, the single, and the divorced. It’s for the young and the old, the tot, the teenager, the thirty-somethings, the middle-agers, and the senior citizens. No need to divide ourselves up by group or class or age. Holy Jesus wants to keep us together. Notice what everyone in our story today is focusing on: the Holy Christ Child. Mary and Joseph go to the Temple because of Him. Simeon is waiting for Him, and when he sees the Holy Child, his life is complete. And Anna sees the Child, thanks God for Him, and confesses Him. Here’s the medicine and the hope for today’s troubled family, for today’s weary senior citizens, and for today’s singles: the holy Christ Child, God in the flesh, salvation in God’s house.
So, when you need help and strength in family matters, here it is: Holy Jesus in His holy house. After all, the Church is our true family and this holy place is our true home. Here we learn Jesus’ forgiveness so that we can forgive in our families. Here we are made holy, so that we can live as holy people in our homes, set apart for God’s own special use. Here we not only see the Christ Child with eyes of faith, as did Simeon, but we also get to taste Him in His Body and Blood. And pay close attention to what you get to sing right after Communion. It becomes your song for all of life: “Lord, now You let Your servant go in peace; Your word has been fulfilled. My own eyes have seen the salvation which You have prepared in the sight of every people.” (LSB, p. 165) Amen.
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