July 19 - The Infant Jesus in the Temple

July 19 - The Infant Jesus in the Temple
Luke 2:21-40

This passage is filled with wonderful information.

First of all, we see traditions happening.  Jesus was eight days old and had to be circumcised, but then after all of the purification rites had been attended to, they went to Jerusalem to present Jesus to the Lord and to present a sacrifice (purification after childbirth).

The temple was a huge part of their lives, even if they didn’t live in Jerusalem.

But their next two encounters are also a glorious part of the temple experience.  One we don’t think about much anymore.  Who has prophets hanging around the front of the church these days?

Well … God does.

Simon, not a prophet, but a righteous and devout man, had been sent by the Holy Spirit to see this child.  He praised God, then prophesied regarding the child.  What better place for this to happen than in sight of the temple.

There was also a prophetess – Anna.  She spent every moment at the temple, worshiping, fasting and praying.  She prayed over Jesus and then began to tell everyone about him.

These little vignettes actually give us a glimpse of activities in the temple.  There were people who lived out their lives there, there were others who came in from outside of Jerusalem to ensure the commitment to tradition and to the covenant laws of the Torah.  There were people like Simon who was not a priest, not a prophet, yet his life was filled with the Holy Spirit.

God was very present in the lives of his people.