On Our Way Rejoicing

Dismissed

Luke 2:22-38; Numbers 24:17a,b

Our passages this morning are about discovery—the search is over, and what is sought is found. That is often the feeling after Christmas morning—all the waiting is done, and now we have what we waited for. We celebrate the connections to one another and the love shared, the meals eaten, the specials watched—all of it—still a bit glad that there is one more festive night to go on New Year’s Eve. But the search is done, now we are on our way rejoicing.

Here, we encounter two figures from scripture we may not know all that well—Simeon and Anna. Simeon made the hymnal—way in the back—“The Song of Simeon,” sometimes known by its liturgical name—the Nunc Dimittus—but that doesn’t really mean we know who he is. They were prophets in that they spent their lives waiting for God. They took up residence at the Temple in Jerusalem, spending their days watching the flow of pilgrims, priests, rabbis, and general hangers-on, seeking one special face in the crowd—the Messiah—the Savior sent by God to redeem all God’s people. For years, perhaps decades, they kept vigil, growing old, growing into the landscape, passed by thousands of people, none of whom the one they were looking for. Then, all of a sudden the search is over! There he is! The promised one. No one else sees it, but they do. Simeon bursts into song and praise—the wait is over—now he can go on his way rejoicing. God heard him, answered him, and all is well. Anna follows suit, equally overwhelmed with joy, blessing God, the child, and everyone. What a beautiful, wonderful gift!

Now—freeze on that frame—look at it closely. 

Notice anything?

No one pays them the slightest attention.

No one joins their party. The family they confront is mildly horrified by them. Who could blame them? Two smelly old people in tatters and rags, slightly out of their minds, confront them, want to take their precious child in their arms, and are making a spectacle of themselves. Mary and Joseph want nothing more than to disappear into the throng and escape these two. 

Some revelations are intensely private—they are moments with God that are solely ours—no one else would really see anything special, or perceive an answered prayer. 

On one of my daily visits to my other office (Starbucks), I saw such a moment. I was at a table in the back of the store. I happened to glance up from my computer to see a person across the way. They clicked their keyboard and all of a sudden lit up like a Christmas tree, laughing fully and heartily, clapping their hands, and then immediately fell back to the keys, lost again in whatever was there—but for that one moment—something manifested, something profound, powerful, and joyous. No one else will ever know what it was. 

God works like that a lot. Scripture is utterly consistent in its emphasis that God prefers to work quietly, unspectacularly, and through ordinary means. There are so many times when it will only be in hindsight that we will know the touch of God—oh, that’s why that happened! Now I see the hand of God in that conversation, that meeting, or that event. Anna and Simeon gain a private audience with God and receive the blessing of hope realized, promises confirmed, and joyous dismissal into life.

The obscure prophecy tucked away in Numbers continues to remind us to take on the stance of Simeon and Anna. We are to be awake and watchful, scanning the world before us for signs of God. They will be hidden among the throng of all else. They will manifest in a face warmed by love, or in a moment of natural wonder like the sunset cracking through a stormy sky, or in a quiet conversation with a beloved child. No one else might notice it. No one else will fully understand—the Israelites were completely baffled by Balaam’s exhortation. But we will see. We will hear. And we will know.

That is the call to dismissal—not from life, the world, or any of the work that needs to be done, but rather dismissed to do that work, to enter the world, and to fully engage in with life. We are to make our way rejoicing, for we have seen and heard the mighty Word of God; we are God’s harbingers of the Kingdom come; and we are the servants of Christ the Servant of All.

That is the good news of this day.