The Christmas (His)Story: The History of HIS story.
The Christmas story, the story of the birth of Jesus, is not just another story we hear at Christmas. The Christmas story is history, it really happened, and it is HIS story, the true story of the arrival of Jesus, “God with us”, here to save us. And His story needs to impact our story.
Week 2: The Christmas (His)Story According to Matthew and Luke
The birth of Jesus is recorded in detail in both the Gospel of Matthew and the Gospel of Luke, the most familiar places we read the account of the birth of Jesus and they both include genealogies of Jesus family lineage. Why? Any why are the genealogies different? Why does it matter? Any why are some seemingly controversial people included in these genealogies? It is not about what you have done…it is about what God has done for you through Jesus! This is the story of Christmas.
LIVE OAK CONNECTION POINT:
A great opportunity to serve this season is with the Salvation Army as part of their Red Kettle Campaign. Grab your friends, family, your small group and join in this effort to support all the great work that the Salvation Army does in our community and nationally. You can register to ring here
DISCUSSION/REFLECTION QUESTIONS:
- What were some of your family’s Christmas traditions when you were a child?
- What is one of your favorite Christmas traditions you practice now? When and how did that tradition start?
READ: Luke 1:26-38
Spend some time SOAPing this passage. You can either spend time SOAPing individually and documenting for a several minutes and then spend time sharing with each -OR- SOAP in real time with each other. Either way make as many observations as you can.
- OBSERVATIONS: What are the things that stand out to you about this passage?
- What stands out to you about Mary’s story?
- What are some takeaways from Mary’s story that need to be part of your story?
Both Matthew (Matthew 1:1-17) and Luke (Luke 3:23-37) contain a genealogy of Jesus in their Gospels. Why do you think they did that? What purpose do the genealogies serve?
Matthew made some interesting inclusions in the genealogy in Matthew 1:1-17, including Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, and Uriah’s wife (Bathsheba)…4 women, some with sketchy pasts, and highlighting some messy stories. Doug said that maybe they a part of the story because they are the point of the story! Jesus includes and shows up for messy, broken, sinful people. It is not about what you have done…it is about what God has done for you through Jesus! This is the story of Christmas! How are some of the messy and painful moments from your past weighing on you now?
READ: Titus 3:3-8
Spend some time SOAPing this passage. You can either spend time SOAPing individually and documenting for a several minutes and then spend time sharing with each -OR- SOAP in real time with each other. Either way make as many observations as you can.
- OBSERVATIONS: What are the things that stand out to you about this passage?
- How have you seen the impact of God’s grace in your life? What is your messy grace story?
- What else stood out from this week’s sermon?
- What is your big takeaway from this week’s sermon?
- What are some ways you could be intentional this Christmas season? What plans could you make to meaningfully engage with Jesus and others during this Christmas season?
NEXT STEPS:
Everyone has a next step to apply what we have learned. What is your next step?Be specific.
MEMORY VERSE: *Challenge yourself or your group to commit this verse to memory:
Titus 3:4-5 “But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit…”
PRAYER:
Spend some time praying for each other.
Scripture References:
Matthew 1-2; Luke 1-2; Luke 1:1-4; Matthew 1:1-17; Luke 3:23-37; Matthew 1:21-23; Isaiah 7:14; Titus 3:4-8