consolation

I was reading in Luke 2 this morning, the familiar passage about Simeon, and it struck me what a special relationship he had with the Holy Spirit. 

Luke 2:25-35 Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was on him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts.”

Simeon lived before Pentecost, and while there are many accounts of the Spirit coming on people temporarily, Simeon seemed to have a different level of interaction. The Spirit was on him, Luke says, and then on this day the Holy Spirit prompted him to go to the temple. 

Of course, it was all oriented on Jesus. Simeon knew what the coming of the Savior would mean – he saw the Messiah as the consolation of Israel. Consolation is something you need when you’ve been hurt, or disappointed. Consolation is that thing that makes you feel better. This gift of the Spirit enabled Simeon to keep his focus when most of Israel had lost theirs.

I’m reminded that as a post-Pentecost believer, I have the same blessing as Simeon. I have the Spirit always with me. If I listen, the Spirit nudges me toward what I should be doing. And it’s all to keep my focus where it belongs: on the someday return of Jesus, and what I should be doing in the meantime. 

Yet another gift I take for granted. And a reminder that Advent isn’t the only time I should watch and wait.