SIMEON IN THE TEMPLE
[p. 53] SIMEON IN THE TEMPLE
I have read these verses with the thought of bringing them, by the Lord’s grace, into present application, for, as we know, Luke writes with method, and ever has before him moral and spiritual instruction, and not merely what is historical.
It seems to me that we have in Simeon the thought of one who was at the very centre of divine things; “there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon”. God would have us, beloved brethren, to cherish the thought of being at the centre of divine interests. Alas! our hearts are too ready to be content to be at a distance, but why should we be found at Dan or Beer-sheba if it is possible to be in Jerusalem? After the return from captivity “the people cast lots, to bring one of ten to dwell in Jerusalem, the holy city”, Nehemiah 11: 1. Nine out of every ten were content to dwell in their cities away from the divine centre, and yet they recognised that Jerusalem was the favoured spot, for they blessed those “that willingly offered themselves to dwell in Jerusalem”. This shows that even in times of recovery there is danger of missing the greatest privilege of the moment.
I would press on my own heart, and on the hearts of others, that we should really live at the centre of things in a spiritual sense. It cannot be denied that at the present time the assembly, and the great reality of the presence of the Holy Spirit, are the very centre of all that has divine importance, and yet how many believers live practically at a distance from that centre. It is sorrowful to think how much they miss.
This “man in Jerusalem” was marked by the fact that “the Holy Spirit was upon him”. Even in Old Testament times God called attention to certain individuals who were said to have the Spirit, or to have the Spirit upon them. This must have suggested to every pious Israelite the possibility of such a thing. It was clearly in God’s mind that His Spirit should be upon men. Thinking of those favoured men every pious Israelite must have been ready to say, Would that it had been me! But such a favour was not within the reach of all then. It was not until Jesus was glorified that the Holy Spirit became available for all who believe on Him. And this, indeed, in a much more blessed way than any Old Testament saint, or even Simeon himself, could know (see John 14: 16, 17).
[p. 54] But the very fact that it is so is intended to raise exercise. We are told of the five prudent virgins that they “took oil in their vessels with their torches”. It was their exercise to be thus furnished. The Holy Spirit is available on the divine side; there is no restriction, no limitation, on that side. Indeed, the Old Testament promise, quoted by Peter on the day of Pentecost, that the Spirit would be “poured out” on all flesh, showed how extensive was the thought of God. But on our side the Lord has suggested that we should “take oil” in our vessels. The Holy Spirit is the gift of God, but a gift is to be received, and many scriptures speak of the reception of the Spirit, and I do not think it is ever supposed that this takes place unconsciously. What God does sovereignly is His matter; I dare say He often gives the Spirit to believers on the Lord Jesus who have had little exercise about the Spirit, but normally He would give souls exercise about this great gift, so that it is not a matter in which they have part without their being aware of it. God would have His gift valued. The Lord suggested to the woman at the well the wonderful character of God’s giving, and His own giving, but He brought in a condition on her part. “Thou wouldest have asked ... he would have given”. The gift of the Spirit, as announced in the glad tidings, becomes the subject of faith; that is, we come to it in the faith of our hearts that it is in the mind and love of God to give us His Spirit. So we are encouraged to put in our claim with confidence; if we have received Christ as the gift of God, we are entitled also to receive the Spirit as His gift.
But we cannot contemplate the gift of the Spirit without realising that it necessitates moral suitability on the part of the recipient. The Spirit could be upon Simeon without any incongruity; he was “just and pious, awaiting the consolation of Israel”; there was nothing about him to jar on the sensitiveness of the Spirit. If there are dark corners where unrighteousness is hidden, or if there is a lack of piety, the Spirit cannot be restful. It can hardly be said of such that their hearts are purified by faith. It must be remembered that the gift of the Spirit is the divine witness to a certain condition of heart. Peter said, “the heart-knowing God bore them witness, giving them the Holy Spirit ... having purified their hearts by faith”, Acts 15: 8, 9. Believers are said to be “according to Spirit”, and to mind the things of the Spirit (Romans 8: 5).
[p. 55] If we are not in moral suitability to the Spirit we may miss practically the gain of this wondrous gift.
Then Simeon’s outlook was such that the Spirit could identify Himself with it; he was awaiting the consolation of Israel, he was looking for the Lord’s Christ. The saints today are marked off from those in the world by their different outlook. Those in the world have no outlook that the Spirit could identify Himself with, but the saints have a divine outlook, they are looking for the coming of the Lord. That has been God’s great objective ever since sin and death came in; it will bring all that is of God into the world. In Simeon’s case he was, of course, awaiting the first coming of Christ; it is ours now to await His coming the second time. None are in harmony with the Spirit who are not awaiting the coming of Christ. To be out of harmony with the Spirit is to disregard His presence.
Then the Holy Spirit made communications to Simeon; He made known to him “that he should not see death before he should see the Lord’s Christ”. We are living in a wondrous time, for the Spirit is even now making communications to the saints. In John 14 - John 16 the Lord enlarged upon the way in which the Spirit would make divine communications. Clearly this was in the first place to those who had been with the Lord in the days of His flesh, but they were of our company, and what they got was for us. The Comforter brought to their remembrance all the things which Jesus had said to them. There must have been much more in that than has been recorded in the Scriptures.
Overcomers today are marked by having an ear to hear what the Spirit is saying to the assemblies. I wonder if we are habituated to hearing what He is saying? We may be quite sure that He will never say anything contrary to the Scriptures, or that cannot be substantiated from the Scriptures, but He can bring out the mind of God in a way that never would have been gathered from the Scriptures alone apart from His speaking. The Spirit has always something to say to the assemblies. Speaking is characteristic of each Person of the Trinity, and this is in a special way the time of the Spirit’s speaking. I think it possible that when the time comes for the assembly to be translated the Spirit may communicate to many that they will not see death. One would covet to be amongst those thus favoured of God, but whether [p. 56] we have this privilege or it is reserved for others, let us see to it that we do get the communications which the Spirit is making. Let us consider the possibility of having communications from the Holy Spirit who is dwelling here, and who is acquainted with everything that is in the mind of God. There is no part of the will of God, or of divine counsel, that is not perfectly known to the Holy Spirit, and He is here that it may be made known to us.
But if we are to have the gain of this we must not be “scattered abroad”. We must be at the centre of things. Simeon was there, and because he was there he missed nothing that was possible at the moment. He was where divine communications were not missed. A well-known servant of the Lord said that he always got things first by the Spirit, and then he had to search them out in the Scriptures. I say this, that we may be encouraged to give a very real place to the Holy Spirit, and to expect to get spiritual things from the Spirit.
Then we see that Simeon moved in a practical way under the control of the Spirit. If he had been half an hour earlier in coming into the temple, or half an hour later, he might have missed a most blessed opportunity. If we move with the Spirit and in the Spirit we shall not miss divinely-given opportunities.
Simeon saw the whole salvation of God — all that the Scriptures had spoken of for thousands of years — substantiated in a little Child. It was no longer promises or statements of Scripture, but all that was of God was there substantiated in a Babe six weeks old! And he received Him into his arms. There have been moments, I dare say, when we have thought how blessed it would have been to embrace that holy Babe. But, beloved, it is our portion to do so — to embrace Him in our affections.
What appeared to be small was really infinitely great. Its outward smallness tended to hide its greatness, but it was not hidden from Simeon. He saw that all peoples were before God in relation to that Babe; the gentiles were to come to light for blessing, and He would be the glory of His people Israel. The man at the centre could take in the whole circumference of divine thoughts.
We may be sure that those who are at the centre think much of Christ, and they think much of what is of Christ, that is, of the assembly which is His body. Christ is not now here personally, but He is here substantially in His body. The [p. 57] Spirit would lead us to see what is here now — His body deriving from Him. He said to Saul of Tarsus of His suffering saints, They are “me”. If we truly embrace Christ in our affections we cannot fail to take account of His body here. He is here substantially in His body. We look at every believer as of the body potentially, and we want him to be of it substantially as formed in the features and moral qualities of Christ. We do not want merely to think of the statements of Scripture in an abstract way, but to have them brought into concrete expression in ourselves and in all saints. We can see that Simeon received very real substance into his arms, and God would have us to regard the assembly, the body of Christ, as a substantial thing, composed of persons who have very definitely derived from Him so as to be in their measure expressive of Him.
We do not wonder that Simeon “blessed God”, and we may well bless Him for all that He has brought within our range. It is of all importance that we should be at the centre of what is of God. Christ and the assembly are at the centre; the assembly is the body, the fulness, the completeness of Christ. If we are really in mind and affection at the centre the Spirit will have His way with us; we shall get communications such as no worldly or carnal believer could know anything about. The whole moral universe comes within the scope of the communications of the Spirit, and it is the privilege of the saints of the assembly to dwell, as it were, at the very centre. Hence the apostle prayed that we might be “strengthened with power by his Spirit in the inner man; that the Christ may dwell, through faith, in your hearts, being rooted and founded in love, in order that ye may be fully able to apprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and depth and height”. If Christ personally dwells in our hearts what is of Him in His members — His body down here — will have a very great place with us. We shall then look at the saints according to what they are potentially, and we shall desire that what they are potentially as called ones they may be substantially as formed by the Spirit in the features of Christ. It is evidently of immense importance that Christ should come out in His body in a substantial way; that is, as morally and spiritually formed in His members here. May the Lord help us in regard to these things!