Walk to Easter: Luke 2, The Birth of the Savior that Pierces Our Souls

Luke 2:34-35 "And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, 'Behold, this child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is opposed (and a sword will pierce through your own soul also), so that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.'"

Swords are sharp, are they not? Furthermore, a double-edged sword is probably pretty rough to run into. But what would it look like if the most piercing sword of all was a sword that hit our souls? And what if this sword came in the birth of the Savior?

In Luke 2, we get the popular birth narrative of Jesus Christ. Charlie Brown knows it well, and you probably do too. But let us not think that we have any portion of the Bible mastered, lest we fall into pride and forget of the goodness contained in the Word of God. When approaching a study of the Gospels, we must remember that each one was written for a specific purpose. Matthew seeks to show how Jesus is the promised Messiah of the Old Testament. Mark seeks to give a fast-moving and intense account of Jesus' life to show that he is the Lord of all while at the same time the Suffering Servant. Luke seeks to show us that Jesus is the Savior of the outsider. Luke (who was most likely Gentile) highlights the Gentiles (those outside the Jewish covenant), the poor (those outside of common social statuses), the sick (those outside the temple worship because they were unclean), and many other outsiders in his Gospel to show that Jesus is the Lord of both the Jew and the Gentile, the rich and the poor, the physically healthy and the sick. A overarching theme in Luke's Gospel is that Jesus saves those who come to him in faith, no matter what their circumstance is.

We see this theme greatly in Luke 2 in the person of Simeon. The story goes like this: Joseph and Mary go to present Jesus at the temple, as was the custom of Jewish law. At the temple, Simeon, a rightoeus and devout man who was waiting for the Savior to be born (25), takes Jesus in his arms and blesses God. His words are glorious:

"Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel." - Luke 2:29-32

Notice here Simeon's emphasis on the Gentiles in the last verse. Those outside the covenant of God (that is, Gentiles) will be able to gain salvation through Jesus Christ. Praise the Lord! But Simeon doesn't stop there. He goes on to say to Mary: "Behold, this child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is opposed (and a sword will pierce through your own soul also), so that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed" (Luke 2:34-35). Did you catch the parenthetical statement within Simeon's words? Good. Let's discuss them.

The parenthetical statement here is what is called a narrative comment. This statement is what Luke is saying directly to us, his reader. Although the entire Gospel is written to us, these words are outside of the story helping us to interpret it. And what is the point of this comment? Luke is encouraging us to realizes that the birth of the Savior pierces our hearts. How is this so? Because the birth of the Savior reveals our sin ("thoughts from many hearts may be revealed"). Jesus came to live a perfect life and die a perfect death, which by nature convicts our hearts that we are falling short of that standard. Notice the objectivity of this statement: "And a sword will pierce through your own hearts also." Jesus will pierce your heart. He is born, and the truth about him is that he is Savior, and that will pierce your heart. The question is this: how have you responded to that soul-piercing? Have you responded correctly? "How do I know if I have responded correctly to Jesus?" you might ask. Hmmm. If only there was more to this Gospel to read...