The Peace of the Lord and the Presentation of Jesus

Almost 1,500 years earlier, the Lord claimed every firstborn in Egypt. He claimed those who sheltered under the blood of the Passover Lamb as his own special possession, but those who didn’t were claimed by the angel of death. From then on, the firstborn of Israel belonged to the Lord, and he said they could be redeemed when they brought the redemption price to the temple. So according to the Law of Moses, Joseph and Mary bring Jesus to the Temple forty days after he is born so he can be redeemed.

Isn’t that ironic? The Redeemer of the world needs to be redeemed from an obligation of special service to the Lord. The Servant of the Lord, who would be anointed for a service only he could accomplish and who would do it perfectly, was here to be redeemed. 

That’s why they’re in the temple on the 40th day after Jesus’s birth; a lot happens on this visit. We could talk about a lot of different things, but I want to spend a little time talking about Simeon. He knew the Messiah would come. He trusted God’s promises, and so he tried to live a “devout” life, a life devoted to the Lord, a life lived as close as he possibly could to God’s standard of righteousness. He was waiting for “the Consolation of Israel,” waiting for the Lord to keep his promise. He finally saw this fulfillment in the child he took into his arms that day. In Jesus, he held the Light of the world, the Glory of Israel, his Savior, and he prayed, “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you may dismiss your servant in peace, according to your Word” (Luke 2:29).

The Redeemer of the world needs to be redeemed from an obligation of special service to the Lord.

Jesus came to be a Savior from sin. Sin is very real. We tend to forget how serious sin is and too often give little thought to it, but we see reminders of it every day. Every tragic headline, every hardship in various phases of life, every time a relationship strains, every illness, every death tells you sin, and its consequences are very real. You see it at work in your own life with each failure and mistake, every hurtful word, every hateful or lustful or prideful thought. Sin! Sin is in need of redemption.  

That’s exactly why Jesus came. He came so we could find relief from sin and its consequences. He was born as one of us. He placed himself alongside us under the requirements of law, and yet he never broke a law himself. He never sinned nor needed redemption. Instead, he took the sins of the world onto himself as the true Passover Lamb and carried them to the cross. He did that to establish peace first between God and his people.  

Jesus shares that peace with us in the Gospel. He uses his Word, all those promises that Simeon knew well, and their fulfillment, which Luke and others so diligently and faithfully recorded. In the Word, you find peace. It proclaims peace first between you and God because of Jesus. That empowers you to deal peacefully with others and brings you peace of mind. This peace is strengthened and reinforced when you receive the Lord’s Supper. There, Jesus offers you the very price he paid for your peace: his true body and blood. That brings forgiveness. It empowers you to live at peace with others. It assures you of eternal life in heaven, and so it prepares you to pray with Simeon, “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you may now dismiss your servant in peace.” Amen.