"DREAMERS"
LUKE 2:22-40
We're just a week away from Christmas...and for many it is an exciting time...especially for the children. I enjoy asking kids what they want for Christmas. Most have little hesitation in naming off a few dozen things they'd like to have. Some may be realistic...and others are just things they dream about.
And I find that quite a bit of that never seems to go away with age...this looking for something that seems almost impossible to have. I guess there are maybe 2 kinds of people...dreamers...and pragmatists...those who never seem to venture out of reality for very long.
We all know people who are dreamers. One person comes to my mind when I think of this...a young man who is always talking about doing so many great things...but yet he never seems to be able to make it out to get a job that would at least enable him to make a legitimate attempt at achieving some of these lofty goals.
I'm sure we all have dreams...and probably more than we realize or would admit. Like when we get those thick envelopes from Ed McMahon saying you're in the running for $10 million. Or when someone does something pretty spectacular, some often fantasize of achieving those things themselves. Or maybe because things are tough we dream of what it could and should be like if we'd just get our big break.
Now, I don't know how you'd classify yourself or even if you've ever thought about such trivial matters...but it was made pretty clear to me on Thursday night just what kind of person I am. Nancy and I were praying together, actually praying for each other...and as she was praying, Nancy said to God..."Lord, I know John is a dreamer."
I guess for a second or two I was shocked to hear that...but it is true. And it wasn't meant in a negative way when she said it. I am a dreamer. I have dreams for my family...dreams for my ministry...dreams for this church.
But what is it that makes some dreamers waste their lives in a meaningless mind game...while others seems to be able to pursue their dreams with a passion and fire that will stop at nothing short of completion? What makes some dreams merely an escape from reality while others become the motivating force in a person's life?
There are many dreamers who have made a definite impact on the world. Thomas Edison was a dreamer. He had a vision of, among other things, a means to create artificial light that would be a practical tool for the common person. And we all know how important that is today.
When I was a kid, 2 of my heroes were Alan B. Shepherd and John Glenn...2 men who dreamed of traveling through space...something that way back then was a dream just beginning to be realized.
What about Martin Luther King, Jr? One of the most famous speeches of all time was given when he shared his dream of racial harmony with the world. "I Have a Dream!" He never lived to see his dream come true...but he was a man who lived - and died - working to see that dream come true.
And then there's me...another of the many dreamers in the world today. I may never see all my dreams come true...but I believe that the dreams I have are what motivate me...they keep me going when times are tough...when it seems like there's no earthly way possible for them to come true...they still just never seem to fade.
Even when I want to bury them and forget they ever existed...they always burn deep in my heart. .........Is there any hope for dreamers like me? But more importantly...I think we need to ask the question, "Is there any purpose in all this dreaming? Is it sometimes more than just an exercise in escaping reality? Could there be a divine purpose?"
This morning I want to look at another man who had a dream...who had a vision of something that motivated and dominated his life...a man we probably seldom think about when we think of the Christmas story. That man's name was Simeon.
Simeon is a man we know little about. He pops on the scene for just a brief moment and is never seen or heard of again. But he has much to share with us in this brief encounter. I want to look at this man with a dream. READ Luke 2:25-35
Now, just a casual glance at this passage tells us a lot about this man Simeon. We can see that he was a man who was very sensitive to the spirit of God. This is a man whose faith was not shallow...requiring "a sign" at every turn in order to believe.
He was righteous and devout...a man who was filled with the Holy Spirit in a time before that infilling was available to all. And it says he was waiting for the consolation of Israel...which means he was looking for the Messiah.
But so was the whole nation of Israel...in fact they all had been waiting for Him to come...for years and years - thousands of years! And especially now with the Roman oppression and corruption within their ranks.
But there was a difference between the dream this man had of the Messiah's coming...and that of most in his day. For Simeon it was more than just a faint hope...it was something deep inside him that couldn't be denied...couldn't be stifled...that wouldn't go away. It was something that became his life!
So what made his dream of the Messiah so much different than most? I think verse 26 holds the key. READ v. 26
Now, it's so very important that we understand the truth of that verse...and how it can apply to us individually. This is what separates the dreamers of the world. The Holy Spirit was the source of Simeon's dream...of his hope...a hope that was infinitely greater than any exercise in wishful thinking.
Much of the dreaming we do as human beings focuses on the physical or natural realm. Often the focus is centered on things that will one day rust...rot...fade or completely pass away when this life on earth is over. These are the desires that come from our human nature. But there are others that have a different source.
The Holy Spirit will sometimes place inside us a dream...a promise...a hope of eternal significance. That's what happened with Simeon. His dream was to cast his eyes on the Messiah. And probably for many years that was the guiding force in his life. It was his focus...and his whole life centered on being ready for the time when it would take place.
Then one day a young couple walked into the Temple to perform the rite of purification...bringing with them a baby boy. This boy would probably have been about 2 months old...just old enough to keep the parents up at night.
But when the old dreamer Simeon cast his eyes upon this child...there rose up in his heart such a joy and gladness that would have caused him to explode if he would have held it in. His dream was finally coming true. The promise was being fulfilled. The Savior...the Messiah had come...and he saw Him face to face.
But how did Simeon know? How could he be sure this was the fulfillment of that dream that had burned in his heart since the day the Holy Spirit birthed it deep within him? No one said a word! There were no introductions. But yet Simeon saw something others didn't see. That same Holy Spirit that birthed the dream...now revealed that the dream had come true.
This is a great story...but what can it mean for us today...what can it mean for you and me? Well, Simeon was a man who found his place in life. He was a man who had discovered, maybe even early in his life, where he was to fit in the scheme of things. He was a man who found his lot in life.
He wasn't a great king like David...not a bold, strong Daniel...not a fiery John the Baptist. But important enough to be found within the immortal pages of Scripture. For him it was a lifelong search for intimacy with God...it was public as well as private worship...it was the firm and sure conviction that God's way would be his way...he had a dream and a belief that could not and would not be moved.
And we can't help but admire a man like Simeon. His life was simple yet motivated by a dream given him by the Holy Spirit. He was one who offered up thanks and praise to the God who fulfilled that desire in his heart...allowing him to see - face to face - the Savior of the world.
It doesn't seem like he accomplished much...and yet he proclaimed nothing but gratitude, peace and joy at the end of his life. That is quite a contrast! Because there are so many unhappy, discouraged, and unfulfilled people who have gone through life without finding a real purpose...without sensing that divine goal of achieving their purpose in life...regardless of how big or small that might seem.
I guess maybe contentment might be the word that best describes Simeon. He was one of those fortunate few who have come to the end of their lives convinced that life could not have been any more rewarding or fulfilling. And again, it would seem that he accomplished very little...he's not known for any great heroics or wealth or great deeds.
The one single event that fulfilled his dreams was recognizing the Messiah in this little baby. Seeing and holding the Christ child was the high point in his life. In that moment he had scaled the highest mountain and stood there with God. He had become personally acquainted with God's salvation.
This is the story of Christmas. Christmas is a time for dreams to come true. Not dreams of material gain...not presents or parties or family dinners or bowl games. Christmas is a time for realizing the dream we have for peace...contentment...fulfillment.
Simeon's dream was to meet the Savior before he died...and not just to simply gaze at him from a distance...but to experience the eternal life-changing transformation that comes as we give our lives to Him.
I think the lesson we need to learn from this man is that God...by the Holy Spirit...puts in each of us a purpose. For some it may be simple...for others maybe a little more involved. But whatever the particulars, we'll never find true peace and fulfillment until we've allowed God control of our lives so we can see these dreams fulfilled.
The first and most important purpose for each of us is to cast our eyes upon the Savior... to find that intimacy that Simeon realized when he not just recognized but also accepted Jesus as his Savior and the Savior of the world.
But I think God also places in our hearts other dreams...other goals and purposes that center on that greatest goal of accepting Him personally into our lives. We need to be like Simeon...we need to take those dreams God puts in our hearts and let them be the guiding force in our lives.
There are times when we may think our dreams have been completely shattered...when there is no possible way of ever seeing them come to pass. I'm sure many of you have felt this way. I went through this once before in my life...and now again that horrible feeling has come.
I feel like my work here is far from completed...I feel like my dreams for you and for me and my family have taken a direct hit from the enemy...but yet I see the faith and trust of Simeon. I see the way he held to his dream and remained faithful...and most importantly I see how God brought it all to completion...IN HIS TIME!
What are your dreams? What is it that God has placed deep in your heart? The answer and the fulfillment to each of these is found in the birth that we celebrate this Christmas season.
Simeon found the salvation that his heart longed for...and the answer to his lifelong dreams all in the person of Jesus. The Savior who came as a baby is now seated at the right hand of the Heavenly Father...in all His glory...that much has changed. But the promise of peace and fulfillment remains as true and as strong as it was for Simeon.
Jesus is the answer...will you come to Him today?
