Feast of the Presentation of the Lord: Our Relationship with God.
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Breakfast with the Word Feast of the Presentation of the Lord
Malachi 3:1-4, Hebrews 2:14-18, Luke 2:22-40 OR Luke 2:22-32
Today the Church celebrates the feast of the presentation of the Lord. The feast of the presentation of the Lord comes forty days after the celebration of Christmas. And today marks it 40 days after we celebrated the birth of the Lord.
According to the Jewish custom, two ceremonies follow the birth of a newborn child. These two ceremonies are; the purification rite for the mother (Leviticus 12), and the consecration of the firstborn male child. This is done as God demands in Exodus 13:1-2.
Normally when a male child is born, the law prescribes that the parents sacrifice a lamb in thanksgiving to God. But if they cannot afford such sacrifice, they can offer a pair of turtledoves as alternatives.
So forty days after the birth of Jesus, Joseph and Mary journey from Nazareth to Jerusalem to fulfil these laws. It is in this event that Simeon and Anna encountered Jesus.
They gave thanks to God for allowing them to behold the newborn child. Everything about the feast of the Presentation of the Lord teaches what we have to do if we truly want to have a perfect relationship with the Lord. They are:
Total Dedication to God.
The Holy family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph is highly dedicated to God. After the time, for the purification was completed, this family did not waste time to fulfill their obligations to God. We can see the hunger and eagerness to come to God’s presence in them despite the long distance from Jerusalem to Nazareth.
In our own, we will shout we love God, but when it comes to the things of God, we slack and get behind.
The feast of the Presentation of the Lord shows us the need to have the hunger for God’s presence if truly we are in love with the Lord. The things of God should give us a huge thirst. We do not need to lag behind in that.
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Obedience is the Key.
What the family of Joseph and Mary is doing today is to obey what the law prescribes. They do not want to count themselves out. Once it is something concerning God, this family is ready to go to any extent, not minding what is involved.
Through the feast of the presentation of the Lord, the Holy family is advising all who take God as a Father, that if truly He is your Father, then learn to obey Him at all cost, no matter what it may take.
We also need to follow the teachings and directives of the church. You do not choose what to obey and what not to obey. But today, many of us are abandoning the teachings of the Church to follow the teachings of one social media influencer. This then affected their faith. Many of us do not care about the teachings of God and the Church, and they tend to do what they like. To have a true relationship with God, we must also be ready to obey the Church.
To Persevere and be patient.
These two virtues are the two most powerful virtues we must have if we truly want a perfect relationship with the Lord. These virtues are exemplified in the lives of the two great servants of God we meet at the temple today; Simeon and Anna. God promises Simeon that He would never see death until He beholds the Messiah, and this man continues to wait without losing hope.
Despite the years it took, He did not doubt what God said, he was there waiting. The point here is that Simeon knows that the promise to see the Messiah comes from God. Then if it comes from God, He knows that God will not disappoint.
The Second person Anna only lived with her husband for seven years, and after that, she did not miss worshiping God day and night, in fasting and prayer.
Remember that Anna only lived with her husband for seven years. This only would have made her complain and blame God for such a misfortune.
No one would pray for such to happen to him or her. But despite these, She persevered and never lost faith in God. If we are in the position of this woman, we would blame God and even lose faith.
Therefore, the feast of the Presentation of the Lord teaches us that even if we lose everything in life, do not lose your relationship with God.
The efforts of these servants of God were rewarded. Therefore, God does not forsake His own. God does not forsake those little sacrifices and efforts that we make everyday.
Every sacrifice and effort that we make, simply counts. Therefore, when you are making sincere effort in your worship of God, do not grudge over it. The rewards come in the due time. At the end of our lives, our relationship with God is what will lead us through.
So, we need God. Let us remain close to Him.
Conclusion
1. The first thing that the presentation teaches us is obedience. Always try to do something as it is directed to you.
Do not do as if you know more than those above you. The problem many of us have today is disobedience or not doing something as it supposed to be.
This has made many of us lose their jobs and opportunities.
Quit going to work to busy yourself with other unimportant things instead of the work assigned to you.
Quit doing things any how but follow the rules and regulations if you want to succeed where you are.
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b.Mary and Joseph diligently observed Jewish law by presenting Jesus in the Temple and offering the prescribed sacrifice.
They demonstrated the importance of obedience to God and to the society.
When we also obey whatever God instructs, we will not have problems.
Imagine in a family where everyone chooses peace over violence, where everyone chooses love, prayer, work and helping each other. This is what God wants. Imagine if we always choose what God wants.
Imagine a life where everyone chooses to remain faithful to God instead of losing hope in the time of problems. There will be more progress.
This is what Joseph and the Blessed Virgin Mary did.
As Deuteronomy 5:33 instructs, “Walk in obedience to all that the Lord your God has commanded you, so that you may live and prosper and prolong your days in the land that you will possess.”
2. We can see that Anna and Simeon waited patiently for years, guided by the Holy Spirit, for the arrival of the Messiah.
These people teach us the value of patiently waiting for God’s promises to unfold in our lives.
When you pray, the next is to hope and trust. The next is not losing hope or impatience.
Once you develop impatience, you might lose the blessings to come. Patience is a key virtue.
The Bible says
“But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” (Isaiah 40:31)
3. Both Simeon and Anna, through spiritual discernment, recognized Jesus as the promised Messiah.
They teach us the importance of cultivating spiritual sensitivity to recognize God’s presence and activity in our lives.
When something is happening to you, try to discern what is actually happening. It could be the hand of God pushing you so hard to wake up but instead of doing that, you are still sleeping and blaming God for not doing anything while you are the one who is not doing anything.
Recognize when God is talking to you. Recognize when God wants you to take action. Let us learn this today.
4. In the gospel today, Anna, filled with joy, proclaimed Jesus to all who awaited Jerusalem’s redemption.
This highlights the importance of sharing our faith and testifying to God’s work in our lives.
Always be the one to proclaim Jesus Christ to others. Be the one to speak change of heart to people around you. Jesus says:
“Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation.” (Mark 16:15)
5. Mary and Joseph marveled at the prophecies spoken about Jesus. They accepted the unique path laid out for their son.
Remember that Simeon talked about the sword that would pierce the heart of Mary. Yet she accepted all.
This underscores the importance of surrendering to God’s will, even when it is challenging or unexpected.
The plans God has for us might be rosy but the path to the plan must not be rosy. Always understand this. He says:
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” (Jeremiah 29:11).
Though the path might be full of challenges, hence like the Blessed Virgin Mary, always be willing to accept all.
6. The gospel today concludes by highlighting Jesus’s growth in wisdom and God’s favour. It was so emphatic.
What this is telling us is that whatever you do in life, always focus on continuous spiritual and personal development throughout your lives.
Focus on growing in faith, love and wisdom of God. Focus on increasing your knowledge about God. It will teach you a lot.
Saint Peter says:
“But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” (2 Peter 3:18)
7. Finally, Simeon’s song of praise, “Now, Master, you can let your servant go in peace, just as you promised; because my eyes have seen the salvation,” reflects powerful trust in God’s promises.
This encourages us to place our faith in God’s faithfulness and the certainty of his word.
Our relationship to the word of God is not to doubt it but to accept it as certain and true. This is when it will have a big effect in our lives.
The Bible says:
“Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful.” (Hebrews 10:23)
If your God is faithful why then do you doubt?
May God bless you, dearest, help us, to remain faithful to Him and dedicate ourselves totally to Him. Amen.
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