Anticipation
December 23, Fourth Monday of Advent
Light first (Hope) and second (Peace) purple candles, the pink (Joy) candle, and finally the last (Love) purple candle.
If someone was asked to describe you and how you live your life, what might he say? Perhaps he would mention your career choice, your physical features, your culture of origin. If someone close to me was asked for a description, the following might be conveyed: “Gay is super busy, involved in multiple organizations and doesn’t stay still for long; in fact, I never know where she is! If I need to get in touch with her, it’s best to call Dale. She has a big family, she loves to worship the Lord. She is competitive to a fault, especially in racquet and water sports, but honestly in any type of game.” While all of that is true - the good, bad and ugly - I desire to be known as one who spends her days looking ahead to Christ’s return, and pointing others towards that day as I walk alongside them in their joys and sufferings. In today’s Advent reading, we have an example of one who did just that!
Read Luke 2:21-40
“There was also a prophetess, Anna, a daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was well along in years, having lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, and was a widow for eighty-four years. She did not leave the temple, serving God night and day with fasting and prayers. At that very moment, she came up and began to thank God and to speak about him to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem.” Luke 2:36-38
And there was one Anna … this Hebrew name is similar to Hannah, the mother of Samuel, who also spent much time in the Temple, praying and crying out to God. The name signifies "grace" or “graciousness." As was Anna’s name, so was she: a gracious woman. She had the grace of God herself, and was a publisher of the glad tidings of grace and redemption by Christ to those around her who had eyes to see and ears to hear.
She was also described as a prophetess; an interesting role, as there were no active prophets in Israel at that time. Though prophecy had ceased among the Jews for at least four hundred years, it now revived upon the coming of the Messiah; and though instances of women prophets were rare, there were some, both before and after the coming of Christ - Miriam, the sister of Moses and Aaron, Deborah and Huldah, the wife of Shallum.
Anna was “the daughter of Phanuel.” Phanuel might have been a person of significance, or he may have been mentioned for the sake of his name, which signifies the “face of God,” and is the name Jacob gave to a certain place where he had seen God face to face (Gen 32:30). And now Phanuel's daughter both saw the light of the knowledge of God, in the face of Jesus Christ, and beheld his face in the flesh, who is God over all. What a privilege!
Anna was “of the tribe of Asher.” One of the ten tribes who splintered off from the original twelve and became the Northern Kingdom of Israel, known for their idolatry, this tribe was carried captive to Assyria with the rest of the ten. Yet there were some who returned along with Judah and Benjamin, and were dispersed among them. Thus Anna finds herself a Galilean, transplanted in Jerusalem.
Anna “was well along in years.” At the very least, she was 84 years old, but more likely upwards of 100 when she saw Jesus and His parents in the Temple. And most of her life was spent as a widow, her husband having died after only seven years of marriage. There is no evidence from the text that Anna went back home to live in her father’s household or that she even had children who would eventually grow up and care for her. She does not remarry, even though she was widowed around 25 years of age. All of this leads me to conclude that Anna depended on God for life and breath over the course of her entire life! She lived her life in the shadows of the temple, content with what she had and faithful with the hope and promise she had been given.
Anna “did not leave the temple, serving God night and day with fasting and prayers.” We become like those with whom we spend the most time. God reveals his secret purposes in history to humble servants who continually live in his presence, and Anna is a beautiful example of this principle. She simply lived her life in and around the Temple, patiently waiting for the Lord to provide for her needs, as well as those who desperately needed the encouragement she could give.
Anna “came up and began to thank God and to speak about him to all who were looking forward…” God took care that our Savior’s birth and purpose should be fully attested. By the testimony of the angels, the wise men, the shepherds, and Simeon, here is added another. Gracious and grace-filled Anna spent her days looking ahead to the Messiah’s arrival and pointing others towards that day as she walked alongside them in their joys and sufferings. What a wonderful life!
Reflect on God’s grace that exuded from Anna. Are you graciously looking ahead to Christ’s return and pointing others towards that day? Are you living dependent on your gracious and loving Father God to provide for every need you have for life and godliness in Jesus?
Sing the first and second verses and choruses of Sing We the Song of Emmanuel:
Sing we the song of Emmanuel
This the Christ who was long foretold
Lo in the shadows of Bethlehem
Promise of dawn now our eyes behold
God Most High in a manger laid
Lift your voices and now proclaim
Great and glorious Love has come to us
Join now with the hosts of heaven
Come we to welcome Emmanuel
King who came with no crown or throne
Helpless He lay the Invincible
Maker of Mary now Mary’s son
O what wisdom to save us all
Shepherds sages before Him fall
Grace and majesty what humility
Come on bended knee adore Him
Pray that God would deepen your trust in His perfect provision, in His perfect timing, filling you with all grace and peace through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Blessings,
Gay B Brown