February 2, 2024
Today’s Reading: Luke 2:22-40
Daily Lectionary:Zechariah 12:1-13:9; Titus 1:1-2:6
Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace,
according to your word;
for my eyes have seen your salvation
that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,
a light for revelation to the Gentiles,
and for glory to your people Israel.” (Luke 2:29-32)
In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. A number of things happened that day in the temple. Mary came into the temple to keep the Old Testament law with two different sacrifices. The instructions for these sacrifices are in Leviticus 12. After the birth of a firstborn son, that son was redeemed by the sacrifice of a lamb. That’s a confession that the Lord possessed all the firstborn of Israel since the Passover. A mother was also expected to make a sacrifice 40 days after the birth of a baby boy to purify her. (The same sacrifice was to be made 80 days after the birth of a girl, but the Bible doesn’t say why it’s 40 days for a boy and 80 days for a girl.) That’s why we celebrate this festival 40 days after Christmas.
There was still more going on in the temple that day.Old Simeon took the child, Jesus, in his arms and prophesied. He had been promised that he would not die until he saw the Lord’s Messiah. Now that he held the Messiah in his arms, he could die. Because the Lord had kept His promise of sending the Messiah, Simeon could die in peace.
There is a reason that the Church prays along with Simeon each week in the Divine Service after receiving the Lord’s Supper. The same Messiah that Simeon held in His arms comes in, with, and under bread and wine, truly present in His body and blood. There, He forgives sins and strengthens faith. Christians now pray that, since the Lord Jesus has come to them, they can die in peace. We have seen the Lord’s salvation in Christ.
When we come to the Divine Service, we don’t bring any animals with us to sacrifice there, like Mary did in the temple. The sacrifice has already come, and this is no mere lamb born in a sheep-pen, but this is the Lamb of God, born for you and your salvation. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.
Almighty and ever-living God, as Your only-begotten Son was this day presented in the temple in the substance of our flesh, grant that we may be presented to You with pure and clean hearts; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
-Pastor Peter W. Ill is pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois.
Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.
The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.
