SCRIPTURE
Luke 2:22-38

MAIN IDEA
Jesus is not just for us. Jesus is also for those who do not know Him. We are called to bring the light of Jesus to others. It won’t always be received positively, but that is not our responsibility. Who will we share the light of Christmas to this season?

OVERVIEW
So far in this series, we’ve talked about how much we need Jesus. But we need to understand Jesus did not just came for us – He came for the whole world.

That’s what we see in our story we’re looking at today. Our story today begins 40 days after Jesus’ birth. There, in the temple, was a man by the name of Simeon. Simeon had been told that he would see the Messiah before he died. Moved by the Spirit, he comes into the temple courts at the exact moment that Jesus arrives to be dedicated. Simeon, realizing that Jesus is the Messiah, breaks into a song of praise to God. In His song, Simeon recognizes something: that Jesus has come not just for Himself, but for the whole world, a fulfillment of God’s promise to redeem the world: “A light for revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of your people Israel.”

These words of Simeon’s pick up on a theme of Christmas going all of the way back to the beginning: God wants to redeem all of mankind. God sent Jesus into this world to be the light not just of the Jews, but of all mankind.

We learn from this passage that Jesus is not just the light that shines in the darkness; He’s not just the light that overcomes the darkness; but Jesus is also the light that reaches the darkness. Christmas season is one of the few seasons where people are open to receiving the gospel message, coming to church, etc. Of course, not everyone will accept Jesus and Simeon makes the clear: Jesus reveals hearts, and not everyone wants their hearts revealed. Nevertheless, we will never know who will reject or accept Jesus until we introduce ourselves to Him. Who is God laying on your heart to share Jesus with and to invite to church? Just the conversion of one soul can make a huge different… how can you take a step this week to do that?