Ready to Die

All the Christmas festivities are done. All our Christmas bonuses are probably spent. All the hypes—the busyness and the frantic cramming—are over. For some, Christmas vacation is done. So what now? Where do we go from here?

These questions were probably raised by Joseph and Mary after Jesus was born. Before and during the birth of Jesus, there were supernatural events surrounding them. Angels visited Mary and Joseph (Matt 1:18-21; Luke 1:26-38). Even their cousins experienced the same (Luke 1:5-25). When Jesus was born a star shone brightly in the skies (Matt 2:2). Shepherds have gone around telling stories about a multitude of angels singing (Luke 2:8-20).

But after Jesus was born, what should Joseph and Mary do next? When all the festivities and attention were gone, what were their next agenda in life? Quite shockingly, their next actions seemed to be so ordinary. They were just following a routine required by the law. On the eighth day of Jesus birth, they had Jesus circumcised (Luke 1:21) and on the 40^th day, Jesus was taken into the temple to be presented to the Lord (Luke 2:22-24).

But what happens at the Temple, particularly with Simeon, is quite exhilarating. When Simeon saw Jesus Christ, he exclaimed:  

²⁹ “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised,
    you may now dismiss your servant in peace.
³⁰ For my eyes have seen your salvation,
³¹     which you have prepared in the sight of all nations:
³² a light for revelation to the Gentiles,
    and the glory of your people Israel” (Luke 2:29-32)

Simeon’s response is quite extraordinary, or even weird. Imagine that you are wearing Simeon’s shoes. You have always known that you will meet the promised Messiah. And finally, such a happy occasion happened. What would you do? What would you say? When the magi saw Jesus, they bowed down in worship and gave their presents to Him (Matt 2:11). Shepherds were so overjoyed that they spread the news to everyone (Luke 2:17). But Simeon was different. As soon as he took the baby Jesus in his arms, his first words were: “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you may now dismiss your servant in peace” (Luke 2:29). Basically, the first words he said when he saw Jesus was: Kill Me Now!

This response sounds really off, when in the presence of the King. But it is actually quite profound. The birth of Christ allows us to embrace our death. This is crucial because our attitude about death and life affects our whole being. Most people are inactive or are playing things safe or are not prone to take risks because they are afraid. And humanity’s greatest fear is death. Fear of pain and death is a mighty weapon that can be used against us so that we will be timid and petrified in doing God’s offensive work in the world.

Just imagine with me. What changes in our lifestyle will happen—in our giving, in our decision-making, in our service, in our approach to others, in our ministry, in our mission—if like Simeon we have the attitude of readiness to die? Would we be more courageous? Would we be less afraid? Would we try to accomplish more? Would we be completely different from who and where we are right now?

Now how does a simple encounter with Christ change our perspectives about life and death? It is simple. For Simeon, right before His eyes is the Lord of the universe. This, for him, was the greatest thing in the world. Is it not true that we usually do not want to die because we have many things left unaccomplished? We want to see more because we feel that we have not yet seen the best views and locations in the world. We want to enjoy more because we feel that we have not yet experienced true happiness and joy. We want to know more because we feel that the heights and depths and width of knowledge is still far from our grasps. We want to stay alive more because we feel that we have not yet experienced the fullness of life.

But what if seeing Jesus is all our joy? What if knowing Jesus is everything we want (Phil 3:8-10)? What if experiencing Jesus is everything we want in our lives? What if there is nothing in the world anymore that can be offered to us that can outmatch the joy of encountering Jesus?

This is a post-Christmas story. The question is this: what has changed about you and your perspective about life since you encountered Jesus Christ?