We did an exercise at 728 this week. We listed the names of the people we knew in the different age bands who come to St Chad’s.
How many people do you know by name who are under 5 ? How many can you name in the 5 to 15 age range. What about the 15 to 35’s and the 35’s to 60’s ? The over 85’s ?
The idea was to show we are all part of the church family. Young, old, or in between. Nobody is denied access to worship God and that is the prime purpose of the church family; to worship God.
We meet here Sunday by Sunday to worship God.
Simeon and Anna were practically residents at the Temple in Jerusalem. They were there to worship God.
Anna, an elderly widow, the only woman in the New Testament who is given the title of prophetess, is reckoned to be in her late 80’s. Of the tribe of Asher she devoutly served daily at the temple and was there at the presentation of the infant Jesus. She, like Simeon, recognized the Messiah then she went on to proclaim redemption to all in Jerusalem.
Simeon, a righteous and devout man also encountered Joseph and Mary when they brought the infant Jesus to the temple for presentation. Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Simeon recognized the baby to be Israel’s Messiah. He offered a prayer to God, the Nunc Dimittis and then a prophecy to Mary.
Two elderly people who worshipped in the temple daily. Two elderly people who hold before God prayers for their nation, for the people and for the couple who shyly turn up at the temple intent of carrying out the letter of the law for their young son. Two poor people…they could only afford a pair of turtle doves for the sacrificial offering after their son’s birth. Richer people would offer a sheep. Yet they are greeted by Simeon who takes the child in his arms and praises God.
On 2nd February each year the church celebrates the festival of Candlemas, when Mary and Joseph took the baby Jesus to the Temple in Jerusalem to dedicate him to God’s service. The Prophetess Anna, is so excited by what she sees that she becomes one of the first evangelists of the gospel.
The great Temple in Jerusalem would have been a breath-taking sight for this young couple from the north. The splendour of a famous religious building contrasts with the tiny bundle of the baby in Mary’s arms and the poor man’s gift of two pigeons that Joseph was carrying.
Anna was as busy serving God as his people. The temple in Jerusalem was the centre of her life. She was there for services morning and evening, rain or shine, she was always there singing and praying and was also there for all the routine temple jobs:
• She did the cleaning
• She made the tea
• She welcomed people at the door , so well that no one ever felt a stranger.
• She was always ready with a smile, a kind word for the lonely or a special prayer for those in trouble.
They called her the Prophetess and that was quite an honour in those days. Very few women in history had been given such a special title.
Anna had a special secret too. From time to time, she shared it with those who were ready to listen. When she was praying, singing, welcoming, making the tea, cleaning and caring for others, she was also doing something else. She was on the lookout, waiting for God’s promised rescuer the one that God had said would come to sort out the mess of this world. She was sure she was going to meet him one day, although Anna was getting older.
Then one day a young couple arrived with their six-week-old baby for a special thank-you service. Anna, as usual, was handing out the books, smiling to the worshippers and welcoming new visitors. But when she saw this couple, and in particular this baby boy, she thought that there was something special about him. But what was it? By the time she went into the service to join with everyone for the celebration, she saw a most amazing thing.
The baby was no longer in the arms of his mother but had been picked up by a friendly, elderly man. She knew him, because he often visited the temple – younger than her but even so a granddad in his own right! Simeon – was singing about the baby:
Now I can go in peace
And my long waiting cease.
God’s rescuer has come
A light for everyone.
This baby was the one Anna had been waiting for; God’s special rescuer. God’s special light for the world. Because of Anna, many people got to hear about Jesus, the light of the world.
And we meet here today to worship God, to give thanks for his Son Jesus, and are we as excited by our knowledge of God, Father, Son and Spirit as was Anna? Are we able to tell everyone about Jesus.
We do not have to be old like Anna and Simeon to pray regularly, to welcome newcomers to St Chad’s, to share fellowship and church cleaning and to tell neighbours, friends, family of our love of and for God. Anna had finally met the one she’d been waiting for. The baby Jesus! He was the light of the world. And of course Anna could not contain herself. She told everyone about it.
•She told the people, who came to the temple doors.
•She told the people, who drank her temple tea.
•She told the people she prayed with on the temple steps.
•She told the people with whom she cleaned the temple ornaments.
This year Back to Church Sunday will be combined with Harvest Festival, so it should not be quite so embarrassing to invite a family member, a friend or a neighbour to the service.
If we want our church to grow we need to start considering today who we want to invite to Back to Church Sunday in September. As we move out of the Christmas Season it is not too early to start asking God who he wants us to invite to that autumn service. Start praying today and like Simeon and Anna, listen to what God says. For over the weeks and months God will put a name in your heart which will be repeated so many times that you will know that that is the person you need to invite. And that person could be the parent of an under five, it could be someone in your age group, it could even be a newcomer to the area.
Rev’d Edwina Wallace.