“Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace, according to
your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you prepared
in the sight of all the peoples: a light for revelation to the
Gentiles, and glory for your people Israel.” Luke 2:29–32
At the time of Jesus’ birth, there was a man named Simeon who had
spent his whole life preparing for one significant moment. Like all
faithful Jews at the time, Simeon was waiting for the coming
Messiah. The Holy Spirit had revealed to him that he would indeed
see the Messiah before his death—and so this happened when Mary and
Joseph brought Jesus into the Temple to offer Him to the Lord as an
infant.
Try to imagine the scene. Simeon had lived a holy and devout life.
And deep within his conscience, he knew that his life on earth
would not come to an end until he was privileged to see the Savior
of the World with his own eyes. He knew this by a special gift of
faith, an interior revelation of the Holy Spirit, and he
believed.
It’s helpful to think about this unique gift of knowledge that
Simeon had throughout his life. Normally we gain knowledge through
our five senses. We see something, hear something, taste, smell, or
feel something, and as a result come to know it to be true.
Physical knowledge is very reliable and is the normal way we come
to know things. But this gift of knowledge Simeon had was
different. It was deeper and was spiritual in nature. He knew he
would see the Messiah before he died, not because of some external
sensory perception he had received but because of an interior
revelation from the Holy Spirit.
This truth begs the question, which type of knowledge is more
certain? Something you see with your eyes, touch, smell, hear or
taste? Or something that God speaks to you in the depths of your
soul by a revelation of grace? Though these types of knowledge are
different, it’s important to understand that the spiritual
knowledge that is given by the Holy Spirit is far more certain than
anything perceived through the five senses alone. This spiritual
knowledge has the power to change your life and direct all your
actions toward that revelation.
For Simeon, this interior knowledge of a spiritual nature suddenly
united with his five senses when Jesus was brought into the Temple.
Simeon suddenly saw, heard and felt this Child Whom he knew he
would one day see with his own eyes and touch with his own hands.
For Simeon, that moment was the culminating moment of his
life.
Reflect, today, upon anything that our Lord has spoken to you in
the depths of your soul. Too often we ignore His gentle voice as it
speaks, preferring instead to live only in the sensory world. But
the spiritual reality within us must become the center and
foundation of our lives. It is there where God speaks, and it is
there where we, too, will discover the central purpose and meaning
of our lives.
My spiritual Lord, I thank You for the countless ways in which
You speak to me day and night in the depths of my own soul. Help me
to be always attentive to You and to Your gentle voice as You speak
to me. May Your voice and Your voice alone become the guiding
direction of my life. May I trust in Your Word and never waver from
the mission You have given to me. Jesus, I trust in You.
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Featured image above: Presentation of Jesus at the Temple By
Giotto di Bondone, via Wikimedia Commons
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