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. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required,Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying: “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you may now dismiss your servant in peace. (NIV)

If asked to make a list of virtues, skepticism probably wouldn't be at the top of your list. And yet, I'd argue that in our day and age, skepticism is essentially seen as a virtue. I'll believe it when I see it could be the motto of our "just google it" world today. And for good reason; in this age of information and misinformation, we are well aware of the danger of being misled. And yet, does this propensity toward skepticism serve us well when it comes to faith?  

Possibly - Acts 17 records Paul's time with the church in Berea, where the people responded to Paul's teachings about Jesus with healthy skepticism. Verse 11 says, "Now the Berean Jews...received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true." The Bereans' skepticism drove them back to the Word, where they discovered that what Paul said was indeed truth! Verse 12 goes on, "As a result, many of them believed..." Their skepticism actually led them to the doorstep of faith. Maybe you've experienced this same journey - praise God!  

 However, notice the key - instead of allowing skepticism alone to guide their hearts, they let it guide them back to God's Word. Our society so often forgets this step; we hope skepticism will protect us from hurt and injured pride, and instead we miss out on the opportunity to believe.

In today's passage, we see another choose the better way, too. Simeon had received a personal promise from God that he would not die until he had seen the Messiah with his own eyes. What faith it would have required to believe such a promise - Israel had been waiting for the Messiah for years, to the point that the idea had grown into more of a myth than something to believe you might see with your own eyes! And yet, Simeon chose to trust the promise he had been given. And perhaps more importantly, not just to trust it with a skeptical heart posture of I'll believe it when I see it, but with trusting hope, so that when he did actually see it, his belief was ready to leap into action.

The question in my mind, though, is how? How did Simeon remain authentically hopeful where so many had allowed their hope for messiah to sour into cynical skepticism? The answer lies within today's passage: Simeon's belief was fueled by his relationship with the Holy Spirit.  

This passage characterizes his relationship with the Spirit in three ways, which point to three ways WE can press into the Spirit more, that we might be a people who respond with faith and joy when we see God at work, just as Simeon did, rather than with cynical skepticism.

1. The Holy Spirit was on him.

Simeon lived under the influence of the Holy Spirit. He not only had the "deposit" of the Spirit that Eph. 1:13-14 promises all believers when we give our lives to Jesus, but the Holy Spirit was also on him. Simeon surrendered his life to the leading of the Spirit of God, and look where it led him! Pastor Brian said it this way one time: Have you asked the Spirit to live in you but not to touch anything? If we want to be people of faith, we must allow the Holy Spirit to pervade every corner of our lives. It's not enough for him to live in us, we must also ask him to rule our lives, guiding and directing our hearts closer and closer to God. I believe this posture made all the difference for Simeon as he waited for his promise.  

2. The Holy Spirit revealed to him.

Some of us have been guilty of wishing God would strike lightning in front of us, making the sign or direction for our lives as clear as day! And while that might be nice, we do have access to his guidance through the Spirit. The fact that the Spirit revealed something to Simeon implies that Simeon conversed with and spent time with the Spirit of God regularly. We cannot expect God to reveal or communicate things to us to help us believe if we do not spend time talking with him.  

3. The Holy Spirit moved him.

Ah, obedience. It's the trickiest step in belief, isn't it? Simeon didn't just choose to believe that he would see the Messiah; when the Spirit nudged him that it was time to step into the promise, he moved. Had Simeon only said, I'll believe it when I see it, but had not actually gone into the temple courts that day when the Spirit prompted him to take this step of faith, he would not have seen what he had so long believed for.  

What step of faith is God asking you to take today? Is it to invite the Holy Spirit to take the lead in your life, not to just sit in the corner? Is it to begin communing with the Spirit more intentionally, that he would speak to you in ways that would provide opportunities for your faith to be strengthened? Or is it just time for you to move - to take that step of faith, that you would see the wonders of God in action before your very eyes?  

Holy Spirit, we need you to invade our lives! By your Spirit, Father, may we no longer need to see to believe; may we believe and see your glory on display in our lives! In the name of Jesus, make it so! Amen.