December 31, 2015 – New Year’s Eve Text: Luke 2:21-40
Dear Friends in Christ,
Life is full of surprises. Some we enjoy, some we could do without. You be the judge: “The doctor would like to discuss your x-rays.” “Class, take out a sheet of paper. We are having a pop quiz!” “Congratulations! You made the team.” “The tumor we feared was malignant is actually benign.” “Would you like to go to the winter dance with me?” “Sure, I’d love too.” “The boss wants to see you. No need to take off your coat.”
Life is full of surprises, good and bad. What will happen in the New Year? What will be good? What will be bad? The thing is, we don’t know. Except…right here. There is one sure thing in all the universe, and it is given to us.
“THE SURE THING OF JESUS”
For centuries, Hebrew parents had brought their infant to be circumcised and named on the eighth day of life. So Joseph and Mary brought Jesus to the temple as the Law required. The name Jesus means “Savior” or “the Lord saves!” That was also a confession of faith for his parents. Remember the angel of the Lord had announced what his name would be because he would “save his people from their sins.” God’s people were expecting someone to come with impressive power; instead, God comes in weakness, in a baby, laid in a manger.
Simeon confessed Jesus as his Savior from sin. The Lord told him he would not see death until he had seen the Lord’s Christ. So the Lord made sure Simeon was in the temple that day. Right there, before Simeon’s eyes, Jesus was beginning the work of saving us, even while only an infant.
Consider all your failures, all your mistakes, all your shortcomings. Consider all those words and all those actions of the past year that you’d love to take back. Right there in the temple, as an infant, Jesus began to make up for them. Right there, Jesus began to be what his name says he is, our Savior from sin.
Yes, life is full of surprises, both good and bad. But the one sure thing is this: Jesus means “Savior”, and that name applied to us brings blessings. Eternal blessings!
With that blessing God surprised an old woman named Anna. She had been waiting and hoping and waiting. And just when it seemed as if she should give up, God came through. God showed her the Savior. God brought her the blessing. She gave thanks to God and told everyone that God had come for his people.
We have the surprise also for us. Sometimes when we least expect it. When things look their worst. When we think that life has dealt us a bad hand, God comes through with a big surprise. In fact, the whole nature of the Gospel is a big surprise. We normally expect that nothing is free, everything has to be earned, worked for. And that’s absolutely true…of all except this: God’s free gift of eternal life in Jesus. Blessed surprise!
Think about all the surprises in the Bible. When Noah’s neighbors realized that it was beginning to rain. When the up in years Sarah told her husband Abraham that she was going to have a baby. When Moses saw a burning bush and the voice of God coming out of it. When the walls of Jericho came tumbling down. When the angel came to Mary, and then to Joseph to tell them they would have a baby, conceived by the Holy Spirit. When Jesus grew up to be nailed to a cross and the one whom his disciples had believed in now lay stone-cold dead in a grave.
But soon followed that great and grand surprise when Mary saw him again in the resurrection. He was alive! Wonderfully and gloriously alive.
And there is the surprise of our guilty lives when we hear the Lord Jesus tell us again and again, “Your sins are forgiven. You didn’t earn it, you can’t earn it, but I give it to you. You are free. Go in peace!”
There will be one more surprise that comes to us who confess Jesus to be our Savior, who live under his blessing. This will be a big one. He’s coming back! It didn’t happen last year, but he could come this year. And when he does, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, he will raise us to life, to gather us together to meet him and to be with him forever.
That will be the greatest surprise of all, saved for last. For those of us who know Jesus it will be the greatest occasion to celebrate. The greatest miracle of all is that I will be there rejoicing. You will be their rejoicing. All who believe in him will be there rejoicing. It is a sure thing.
What is coming for you in this New Year? What surprises are in store? The only sure thing we have is this: the name of Jesus. That name we confess, the name placed on us at our Baptism. He is our Savior from sin.
Amen.