Study Guide: "Are You Ready for Christmas?"

Text: Luke 2:21-35

Open:

A common question during the hectic holiday season is, “Are you ready for Christmas?”  Most often that question probes our preparation in gift buying, baking and decorating.  When people ask, “Are you ready for Christmas?” they are usually referring to the mechanics of celebrating Christmas and the question has very little, if anything, to do with the condition of our heart and its readiness to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ.  As we continue this morning our series "A Simple Christmas", I want us to consider a person in Scripture who was fully prepared for Christmas, because I’m convinced his experience has a lot to say to us today as we approach Christmas.

In this story from the Gospel of Luke, we see that the story of Jesus has only just begun. Mary has not had much time to bask in the afterglow of childbirth. Instead, we find Joseph and Mary in Jerusalem, presenting their newborn baby in the temple, offering a sacrifice of thanksgiving according to Jewish custom. And while they are there, they have a rather disturbing encounter with a strange old man named Simeon, who forces them to look beyond Bethlehem to Calvary.

What I want us to see from this story today is that Simeon was ready for the coming of Jesus, the Messiah, because his heart was right with God.  In the same way, you and I are ready for Christmas when our hearts are right with God. This morning I want you to examine yourself very carefully to determine whether or not your heart is really prepared to meet Jesus Christ the Lord.

I.  We Prepare For Christmas By Knowing God Personally.

1.  What little we know about Simeon comes from this brief passage of  scripture: 

1) We know he is very old when we meet him. 

2) There is nothing great and remarkable about him; he holds no high office, standing or power.  His name is quite common among Jews at that time.

3) We know he is "righteous and devout." The word “righteous” connotes a judge who pronounces the verdict of approval.  This means that Simeon is viewed as standing before God’s judgment bar and receiving a sentence of approval.  This term goes beyond outward conformity to the Jewish legal requirements.  “Righteous” means approved of God in heart as well as in life.  Simeon has evidently so walked with God that God finds no fault in him and stamps his life, “righteous.”

4) But most importantly, we know that Simeon has one singular goal he wants to accomplish before he dies. Simeon is looking for "the consolation of Israel." Simeon lived in such close communion with his God that the spirit of God has revealed to Simeon that he will not die until he has seen the Messiah, the Chosen One of God. That’s all Simeon is living for, the only thing that gets him out of bed every morning. He gets up wondering, "Will this be the day?" He hangs out in the temple every day, checking out the new babies being brought in by their parents, looking for that one special infant who will deliver the children of Israel and the nations of the world.  What fellowship with God that God would choose to bless in such a way and that you would hear Him when He speaks!       

     2.  God Orchestrated the Encounter Between Simeon and Jesus.

1) After giving birth to a child and waiting the prescribed period of time, a Jewish woman had to come to the Temple to be purified in the prescribed way.  It was in connection with this levitical act that Mary and Joseph brought Jesus to Jerusalem.  Every first-born Jewish son had to be presented to Jehovah God as belonging to Him in a special sense.

2) Joseph and Mary offered a sacrifice of two young doves, which cost about 16 cents.  They obviously could not afford to offer a lamb, so the one dove was to serve as a burnt sacrifice instead of the lamb with the other dove as a sin offering.

3) The remarkable thing is that Simeon knew at once that this was the heavenly child, and that, when he stretched out his arms, Mary gave him the baby to hold.  In fact, the Greek tense used indicates that Joseph and Mary brought Jesus in at the very moment Simeon entered to see the child.

Lenski: “It all seemed so natural and yet was all directed supernaturally.”

     3.  Simeon’s relationship with God caused him to recognize Jesus as the Christ.

1) What kind of relationship do you have with God this morning?  If He chooses to speak to you this Christmas will you be close enough to hear and understand?

 2) Is your faith and your commitment to God a living, growing experience, or are you just going through the motions, doing what you’ve always done just because that’s what you’ve always done? Do you live your faith at home and at work, or do you separate your Sunday morning faith from what you do the rest of the week? If you were accused of being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?

3) Are you doing your best to make Christ real to the people around you, or is there nothing about the example you set that would tell people you believe and follow Him? Do you have a faith that asks what you can do for God, or do you only care about what God can do for you?

II. Do you really know God this morning?

Do you know Him well enough that you seek Him more than anything else in this life?

Paul expresses this kind of passion for God: “Whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ.  What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things.  I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ – the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith.  I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death.” (Phil. 3:7-11) 

Throughout Scripture God urges us to seek Him so that we may know and experience Him:

Deu. 4:29, “But if from there you seek the Lord your God, you will find Him if you look for Him with all your heart and with all your soul.”

1 Chron. 28:9, “For the Lord searches every heart and understands every motive behind the thoughts.  If you seek Him, He will be found by you.”

Prov. 8:17, “I love those who love me, and those who seek me find me.”

Isaiah 55:6, “Seek the Lord while He may be found: call on Him while He is near.”

Perhaps what you need most this Christmas is not bigger and better gifts, but instead, a life transforming encounter with the Christ of Christmas!

Jesus came to change the world, one person at a time, to call us away from the things that lead to spiritual death and lead us to the way of truth and life. He came to make us new creations, to reassemble us as our Creator intended us to be.

CLOSE:

Are you ready for Christmas?  

No, I don’t mean have you bought all the gifts you intend to buy.  

No, I don’t mean will there be enough money (or credit) to go around this year. 

No, I don’t mean have you done your baking.  

No, I don’t mean, are the decorations all in order.

What I’m asking is, are you prepared for Christmas by knowing the Christ of Christmas.  Is He your Lord?  Do you walk daily in intimate communication with Him?  Is He your first thought at the beginning of the day and your last thought as you go to sleep at night?

You can invite Him today to have that kind of relationship with you.  Why not make your best preparation for Christmas this year by seeking Him?

(Dr. Dane Fowlkes, pastor)