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Luke 2:22-40

Writer's picture: Jason BuckwalterJason Buckwalter





Lesson Focus

Jesus’ presentation at the temple reveals that God’s salvation is for all people and calls us to live transformed lives that reflect God’s inclusive kingdom.


Lesson Outcomes

Through this lesson, participants will:


  • Understand that Jesus' mission transcends societal divisions, offering salvation to all people.

  • Recognize the cost of embracing salvation, including the call to transformation and inclusivity.

  • Reflect on how God’s salvation empowers us to challenge societal norms and share His love and restoration.


Catching Up on the Story

This week’s passage occurs shortly after the events surrounding Jesus’ birth. Luke’s Gospel tells us of Mary’s song, the birth in Bethlehem, and the shepherds proclaiming the good news of Jesus’ arrival. As faithful Jews, Mary and Joseph carefully observed the rituals required by the Law of Moses. On the eighth day after His birth, Jesus was circumcised and officially given his name, as directed by the angel before His conception.


The story we encounter today unfolds forty days after Jesus’ birth when Mary and Joseph take Him to Jerusalem for two distinct purposes: Mary’s purification and Jesus’ presentation to the Lord. According to Jewish law, a woman was considered ceremonially unclean for a period following childbirth—forty days for a male child and eighty days for a female child. After this time, the mother was required to bring an offering to the temple for her purification, typically a lamb or, in the case of less wealthy families, two doves or pigeons.


At the same time, Jesus is presented to the Lord as is required for every firstborn male. This ritual recalls God’s deliverance of Israel from Egypt when the firstborn of Israel was spared and set apart for God. Mary and Joseph’s journey to the temple reflects their deep desire to honor God and fully submit their newborn son to God’s will.


While these actions may seem foreign, they represent a profound commitment to God. In a world where ritual and obedience to the law played a central role in religious life, Mary and Joseph embody what it means to live faithfully. Their story invites us to ask how we dedicate ourselves and our families to God in tangible ways today.


Yet this story is not only about ritual or law. When Mary and Joseph arrive at the temple, they encounter two individuals, Simeon and Anna, who reveal that Jesus’ arrival marks the breaking open of God’s salvation for all people. Both Simeon, a devout man awaiting the "consolation of Israel," and Anna, a prophetess devoted to worship and prayer, recognize in Jesus the fulfillment of God’s promises.


This moment takes place in the Court of Women, a space accessible to both men and women but still limited in proximity to the temple’s holiest areas. It is here, in this divided and stratified space, that Simeon proclaims that Jesus is salvation—not only for Israel but also for the Gentiles. Anna, a widow who likely represents those often marginalized by society, confirms this by spreading the good news to all she encounters. Together, they demonstrate that God’s salvation knows no boundaries and is offered freely to all who will receive it.


As we reflect on this story during the season of Epiphany, we are reminded that Jesus’ coming illuminates the truth that God’s kingdom is inclusive, restoring, and transformative. This salvation is not just for a select group; it is for everyone, and it challenges us to live in ways that reflect God’s boundless grace and love.


Social Context 

The world in which Jesus was born was a harsh world for anyone who was not a Jewish male. In Jerusalem and the nation of Israel, ethnicity ruled supreme, specifically at the Temple where our story takes place. 


The Temple is where these divisions could be seen most clearly. Those who were not ethnic Jews were not allowed past what was called the “Court of the Gentiles.” Foreigners who dared trespass further into the Temple courts could find themselves being put to death. Non-Jews were seen as a threat to the purity of the Temple. 


Likewise, there was also a special court for women. They, too, were not allowed past a certain point. Women in Jesus’ day were seen as little more than property to be managed. They held very little status in society at large (especially if they were barren or a widow). 


There existed a very narrow sense of who God’s chosen people were. For sure, all of Israel was. They were, after all, descendants of Abraham, but it seemed, for the religious establishment of the day, that God’s coming salvation would be predominantly for those who were male ethnic Jews. Luke’s account of Jesus’ presentation at the Temple helps show that God’s salvation, now found in the infant Jesus, is for all. 


The story takes place in the Court of Women. Simeon recognizes Jesus’ salvation as being for all people, and Anna emphasizes God’s working through even the lowliest, specifically a widowed woman. 


The Presentation

While we have likely all heard this story before, its very nature is quite unfamiliar. For those of us who have had children, the process surrounding this wonderful event is more medical than religious. Sure, we might have our child baptized or dedicated a few months after birth, but it isn’t immediate or pressing. 


For Mary, Joseph, and Jesus, the opposite is true. No less than five times does Luke mention that Mary and Joseph are doing all that the Law of Moses prescribes. This isn’t, however, shallow legalism that finds the couple traveling to Jerusalem out of duty. Rather, it is the kind of religious desire for everything to be right, for their new child Jesus to be, to the fullest extent possible, situated within the sphere of God’s will. 


It begs the question, when do we ever do this? When do we ever desire for everything to be right and totally within the sphere of God’s will? As the story progresses, Mary and Joseph are confronted by a strange man they have never seen before. As they move through the Temple courts to return to Nazareth, Simeon approaches. We aren’t told if he asks to hold Jesus, but either way, Simeon has him. How many parents would let a stranger hold their six-week-old baby? 


Not only does this strange old man want to hold Jesus, but he begins to speak strange words about the boy’s future. At this point, Simeon is echoing the words (although not directly quoting) of the prophet Isaiah. There is no doubt about what Jesus will do with his life. He is to be salvation. 


And this salvation is to be for both Gentiles and Jews. The distinctions found in the Temple no longer matter in God’s salvation. Simeon’s words declare it. 


In the context of Luke’s gospel, salvation is depicted in a very particular way. For Luke (and the other gospel, to be sure), salvation is more than just being “saved from my sins” so that I can go to heaven. Rather, for Luke, salvation is about restoration and wholeness. Luke 4:16-21 has Jesus quoting exactly how and what salvation looks like. The rest of Luke’s gospel depicts Jesus doing what he said in chapter four he would do. 


The point is, for Luke’s audience, a people who were living in a world plagued by all kinds of brokenness and divisions, divisions of class, gender, and ethnicity, that salvation is about to come for all of them, and it is coming to break down those divisions. But then something happens. Mary and Joseph are amazed at what Simeon is saying. Simeon blesses Jesus and then begins to speak again. Only this time, the words are a little darker. While the salvation that Jesus brings will break down the distinctions found in the world, it will also create some. 


The distinctions and divisions that Jesus’ good news will cause are not due to people’s place in life, gender, or ethnicity but to their willingness to allow God to transform their lives. 


Simeon declares that Jesus is destined to cause many to rise and fall. Some will take hold of his message of salvation, embody and proclaim it to their world, and some will reject it. Why will some reject it? Precisely because it breaks down false distinctions between people.


The good news that calls us to be made whole in Christ and live transformed lives is not good news to some because it means they will lose the power they have worked so hard to obtain and maintain. 


After Simeon finishes speaking, he turns and walks away. Mary and Joseph think the day’s amazing events are over, but they are again surprised when Anna, an old lady, comes over to them. While she doesn’t speak directly to the couple in the story, she goes about the court proclaiming that God’s salvation for Israel has finally come. 


So What?

So what does this crazy story about Mary and Joseph’s confrontation at the Temple have to say to us today? A large part of what I think is happening in this story is that Luke, through the words of Simeon, is making us aware that this long-awaited salvation will come at a cost. The people of Israel will be faced with a challenging decision to make. Will they accept this Jesus, whose message is far different from what they expected, or will they reject him? The answer seems easy to us. Who wouldn’t want to accept Christ’s message of love, forgiveness, healing and restoration? But what the rest of Luke points out to us is that the offer for salvation is given with the mandate that our lives be consumed by giving away the very same things we have received in salvation.


Many of us in the church, in Christianity in general, want to accept Jesus’ message of salvation. We want love, forgiveness, healing, and restoration, but we want it for free. We want to accept Jesus into our hearts, to read our bible, and to come to church, but we do not have to change anything else. 


What we miss is that we reject Jesus’ message when we do this. As a community of faith that says we follow Christ, we must constantly challenge and encourage each other to live our lives in ways that give away the very things we have received. 


The question we asked earlier, “When do we ever desire for everything to be right, to be totally within the sphere of God’s will?” is the question we must ask. We must desire to be both recipients of God’s good salvation and givers of God’s salvation. Perhaps this is what it means to be in God’s will. 


Discussion Questions

Read the text aloud. Then, read the text to yourself quietly.  Read it slowly, as if you were very unfamiliar with the story.


  1. What does it mean that Jesus’ salvation is for “both Gentiles and Jews”?

  2. How does the temple setting highlight the divisions that Jesus’ mission seeks to break down?

  3. In what ways do Simeon’s words challenge traditional expectations of salvation?

  4. How do Mary and Joseph demonstrate faithfulness to God’s will in this story?

  5. Why do you think Simeon describes Jesus as causing "the falling and rising of many"?

  6. What divisions or false distinctions exist in our society today, and how does Jesus challenge them?

  7. How can we, like Anna, proclaim God’s salvation to others in our daily lives?

  8. What might it cost us to fully accept Jesus’ message of love, forgiveness, and restoration?

  9. How does God’s salvation invite us to live differently in our relationships with others?

  10. What practical steps can we take to be both recipients and givers of God’s salvation?

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