Simeon Had No
Regrets
In the
middle of all of the people coming in and out of the temple that day, masked by
the smoke from the burnt offerings, surrounded by the smells of incense and the
sounds of Old Testament worship life echoing off the walls, there was
Jesus. Finally, at long last, there was
Jesus: an infant held in his mother’s arms as his father, Joseph, gave two
pigeons to the priest for the appropriate sacrifice. There he was: the Savior of the world in the
Lord’s own temple while people passed him by that day without a second
thought. But not Simeon. Not this old man who had been waiting for
this moment. Not this seasoned Christian
who had been told that he would see the Savior with his own eyes before he was
taken from this earth. And there the
Savior finally was, in the flesh, in a real human body. And so Simeon ran up to Mary and Joseph, took
the baby from her arms, are praised his God: “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, now dismiss your servant in
peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the
sight of all people, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to
your people Israel.”
That was
it. That was all Simeon had ever wanted:
to see his Savior. And now that he had
seen his salvation in human form, he was ready to go. “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, now
dismiss your servant in peace.” Simeon
didn’t want to do anything else in this life.
Simeon didn’t want to experience anything else in this life. He was completely content. He had no regrets. And all he wanted to do now was rest in
peace.
What’s Keeps
You Up at Night?
“Rest in
peace” - R.I.P. - placed on old tombstones
or written on drawings of tombstones nowadays.
And although every body does “rest in peace” in a way when a person
dies, I can’t think of anyone who personifies the mindset of “resting in peace”
better than Simeon. He truly rested in
peace! Because he had left nothing undone.
There were no loose ends he wanted to
try and tie up. By the end of his life,
Simeon rested in peace because he had no regrets.
If your
life ended today, would you have that same attitude? I ask that only because I look back at my
life and I have plenty of regrets! There
are a whole bunch of things that I would like to take back! I’ve done plenty of things that were absolutely
unbecoming of a Christian. I’ve said
hundreds of things to people that should have never come out of my mouth. I’ve thought thousands of thoughts that I
would be absolutely embarrassed about if anyone else found out about them. Forget about resting in peace at the end of
my life! There are things that keep me
up on plenty of night while I’m still here!
Aren’t there things that keep you up at night?
You lie
down in your bed and you look back on the day that has now gone by and you
think to yourself: “I shouldn’t have done that.
What was I thinking?... Why did I
have to say that in that way to that person?
I really messed up!... My mind
has been in the gutter all day long.
What is my problem?” As sinful
people with a sinful nature living in a sinful world, our lives are full of
regrets, aren’t they? One after
another! A whole bunch on top of a whole
bunch more! And so if your life really
ended today, could you really look your God in the face and say, “You know what,
Lord? I’m OK with it. I’m satisfied with the way I’ve lived my life. I don’t take any of it back. My conscience is completely clear. I wouldn’t do anything different. I don’t’ have any regrets at all. Now dismiss your servant in peace.” That would be a pretty bold statement,
wouldn’t it? That kind of attitude could
really only come from someone without any regrets at all.
Jesus Wipes
Away All Regrets
So why
did Simeon say it? As a regular human
being Simeon undoubtedly had plenty of words and actions and thoughts that he
would have liked to take back too - just like we do. He was a sinful, imperfect human being. He wasn’t any different than we are
today. And so why does it seem in this
story as if Simeon wasn’t bothered by those things? Why wasn’t he troubled by what he had
done? Why didn’t he have any
regrets? Simeon didn’t have any regrets
because of the baby that he was holding that day. Simeon was cradling his salvation in his arms. At that moment Simeon was actually holding in
his hand the child that would one day have his hands pierced through. At that moment Simeon was holding this child in
the temple in which this child would one day be condemned to die. At that moment Simeon was holding this child in
the city outside of which this child would one day be murdered. At that moment Simeon was holding this child standing
right next to the altar of sacrifice that had always pointed to this child who
would one day make the ultimate sacrifice for all people. At that moment Simeon was holding this child
and looking God in the face. He was
touching the body that would bleed for his forgiveness. He was holding the hero of heaven in his
human hands. No, Simeon didn’t have any
regrets because he knew that this little child was about to take them all away.
And that’s
exactly what happened. Jesus soon took
Simeon’s regrets away; he covered over all of his faults; he forgave Simeon
every one of his sins. And Simeon knew
that was going to happen. And so when
Simeon’s time did come to be taken away from this earth, you can be sure:
Simeon truly rested in peace.
We Can Rest In
Peace
There is
no reason why we can’t have that same attitude.
Because here we sit in God’s house just like Simeon once did, here we
are celebrating our Savior’s birth just like Simeon once did, and here Christ’s
cross is our backdrop just like it always has been. That baby, that Savior, has taken your
regrets away, he has wiped out your faults, he has forgiven your sins. You never have to look back on your life
again and feel guilty. Jesus was the
guilty one. You are innocent. Jesus went through with the death
sentence. You are free. Your conscience can be clean from here on out
and you can truly rest in peace when your time comes.
In fact,
you can rest in peace tonight. Tonight
as you lie down on your beds after a hectic Christmas season, sleep well. Don’t worry about what has happened in the
past. Don’t bother yourself with the
difficulties that still may be ongoing in your life. Don’t dwell on all of the possible problems
that you will have to deal with in the days and the weeks and the months to
come. Because along with Simeon your
eyes have just seen God’s salvation which has been prepared in the sight of all
people. A light for revelation to the
Gentiles and for the glory of God’s people Israel. What more could you want to do in this life
than to praise your Lord for your salvation?
What more could you want to experience in this life than the forgiveness
you’ve just received? What more could
you possibly say in this life than what Simeon said at the end of his? “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, now
dismiss your servant in peace.” That’s
exactly what he did for Simeon. And that’s
exactly what he will do for you.
Amen.
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