Friday of the Fourth Week of Advent

Today's Readings

In the Gospel Reading for this windy Friday, we learn about the birth of John the Baptist. At the end of the reading, we learn about Zechariah getting his voice back following the declaration that the child will be named John, not Zechariah as they had planned. The people who hear about this are amazed, and they say: “What, then, will this child be? For surely the hand of the Lord was with him.”

I was reflecting on Luke 2:27-32 the other day and there is a natural connection that I would like to share. Here is the passage:

"Moved by the Spirit, [Simeon] went into the temple courts. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying:

'Sovereign Lord, as you have promised,
you may now dismiss your servant in peace.
For my eyes have seen your salvation,
which you have prepared in the sight of all nations:
a light for revelation to the Gentiles,
and the glory of your people Israel.'" (NIV)

A friend of mine beautifully pointed out Simeon's action of taking Jesus in his arms. The main point here is that God desires to be in a personal relationship with each of us. The incarnation is God coming to earth to be with us. It follows that Jesus is our Emmanuel, which means, "God with us," and it also follows that Jesus is our salvation and, therefore, God being with us is our very salvation.

Take a look at this quote from New Testament scholar John Piper: "Christ did not die to forgive sinners who go on treasuring anything above seeing and savoring God. And people who would be happy in heaven if Christ were not there, will not be there. The gospel is not a way to get people to heaven; it is a way to get people to God. It's a way of overcoming every obstacle to everlasting joy in God. If we don't want God above all things, we have not been converted by the gospel.”

Simeon is waiting in the temple (for a long, long time), and, when he sees the little baby Messiah, he embraces Him - he savors the moment. This is God come down to him. It is steadfast love and unstoppable faithfulness - the core of God's character - delicately knit into flesh which propels Jesus to the cross and through death to pave our way to being with God forever - astonishing! Not even death can separate us from God. His love is more than deep enough to forgive us of our sins when we approach Him in faith, and then He will never leave us - God will always be with us.

So, going back to today's Gospel Reading: “What, then, will this child be? For surely the hand of the Lord was with him.” If God is with you, what will you be? John the Baptist prepared the way of the Lord - will you do the same? When you set your roots down in the peace, joy, hope, love, faithfulness, and power that is Christ, only God knows what amazing fruit you will produce. Embrace Christ like Simeon, focus on abiding in the vine - enjoying and treasuring Christ - and the fruit will follow from there. Be like Simeon this Christmastime. Search for new ways to embrace and treasure Jesus, and let your newfound, rekindled, deepened joy propel you into the new year.

The second verse of "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" highlights at least a hint of the dynamic that I've described above, so I'll leave you with a nice recording of said song by Phil Wickham. Nat King Cole's version is my favorite, but he skips the second verse, so I've decided to post this version instead.

Timothy Nagy
Assistant Director, Mission, Ministry & Interfaith Dialogue, St. Francis College

"Pleased as man with man to dwell -

Jesus, our Emmanuel."