A Word in Season: The Oldest Evangelist (Luke 2:36-38)

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There is a woman who stands somewhat on the margins of the narrative of the

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Incarnation. She is often, and perhaps quite easily, overlooked.

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But there is in her an evangelical spirit and a heart for evangelism that sets her apart from so many others, not only then, but now.

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Her name is Anna and she is a true woman of God, she has a real heart for God, and she has a sweet message from God.

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We are introduced to her very briefly in Luke's Gospel and chapter 2, where we learn that she is a prophetess, she is a daughter of Phanuel, she belongs to the tribe of Asher, she is of great age, she's anywhere between 84 and possibly 100 or even a little more.

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The data there is a little difficult to tell, but this woman has been serving

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God for almost the entirety of her life. She did not depart from the temple, but served

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God with fastings and prayers night and day. Despite her own sufferings and sorrows, or perhaps even because of them, she has devoted herself to the service of the

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Lord. She is a woman like Simeon, upon whom the Spirit of God is resting, and she is a woman of eager expectation.

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She has been serving the Lord, she has been pleading with God. Her life is also devoted to this expectant looking for the consolation of Israel, the deliverer of God's people.

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And then there's one of those moments that in the eyes of the world might be a happy coincidence, in the eyes of a

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Christian is a great blessing from God, verse 38, and coming in that instant.

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In what instant? The instant when Simeon took up the infant Jesus in his arms and blessed him, and blessed

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God for him, as Joseph with Mary bring the child to the temple.

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At that moment we see this woman of God with her heart for the Lord and her message from the

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Lord, because she gave thanks to God. When she saw the infant

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Christ, whether it is because her spirit responded to what the

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Lord God had made known to Simeon, or whether because the Holy Spirit was operating upon her in a moment of immediate revelation for herself, she recognised that this was redemption, that this child was

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God's redeemer, God's ransomer, the one who would save his people from their sins.

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She was enraptured by what she had seen. She knew now that that for which she had been praying and waiting had finally come to pass.

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She recognised something of the fact that God had drawn near, that here was

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Emmanuel, God with us to bless us. And so she takes a message from God.

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We presume that she is relatively frail, being as old as she is, but that does not stop her.

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That old frail body is propelled as quickly as she can around the streets of Jerusalem, and she's telling them about Jesus Christ.

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She's making known that redemption has come. Those who've been waiting for him, those who've been looking for redemption, those who've been eagerly anticipating the acts of God for salvation, they form this little community there in Jerusalem.

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Anna's among them, Simeon is among them. We don't know many of the other names, but they are the waiters, they are the lookers, they are the expectant ones.

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And when Anna knows that he has come, she starts telling people that Christ has arrived.

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Now, if Anna could do that with what she knew and with what she saw, how much more could you or I?

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Anna saw only the incarnation. We see also the crucifixion and the resurrection.

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Anna said he will redeem. We can say he has redeemed.

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And not only can we use those glorious truths to encourage one another, but we can also speak to others, some who perhaps aren't even looking for redemption, but all who truly need it.

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This oldest evangelist sets for us a wonderful example. Yes, we may be frail.

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Yes, we may be weak. Yes, we may have lived lives of sufferings or sorrows.

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But when we see and know God's Christ, we have a message of good news, and we can take it to whomever and however we will.