NOTES for Luk 2:22-40
In the Gospel we read about how the infant Jesus is brought to the temple for the first time, what happens there, and what is said about it. Knowing the Gospel story and remembering how throughout the past twenty centuries Jesus has remained "a sign that is spoken against," we need not be surprised by anything. The prophet Malachi brings us back to what escapes us against the background of the heavy words of Simeon's prophecy. The Savior's first appearance in the temple is described this way: "the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to His temple." Everything here is unsettling. Does a person know what kind of God he is seeking? Are we seeking the Child who constantly causes contradiction and strife? You are waiting for God, and suddenly a little Child is brought in, and you stand before the need to accept that this very Child is the light for revelation to the Gentiles and the glory of Israel.