A teenage girl, surrounded by scandal, travels 120 kilometres through the mountains with her fiancé to give birth in a stinking animal cave, this is what the birth of God looked like. This Christmas sermon, based on the Gospel of Luke (Luke 2), shows that seemingly unfavourable circumstances, the emperor’s decree, despised shepherds as the first hearers, were all part of God’s plan. Good news announced to people at the very bottom of the social ladder is good news for everyone, without exception. Listen and ask yourself whether in your heart you are denying it to someone, perhaps even to yourself.
Discussion questions
For your small group or for personal reflection after the sermon.
- Luke places Jesus' birth during the census ordered by Emperor Augustus. What in this passage shows that God, not the emperor, is directing history?
- According to the sermon, why was choosing shepherds as the first to hear about the Savior so surprising to people at that time?
- Mary and Joseph face scandal, a forced journey, and a birth in a stable. What difficult circumstances in your life have turned out, looking back, to be part of God's plan?
- The speaker tells about the Slave Bible, from which passages about freedom were removed. Who do you find it hardest to grant a right to the good news in your heart, and why?
- Do you ever think the good news is for everyone except you? How does the story of the shepherds answer those thoughts?
- The shepherds returned glorifying and praising God. How can you, amid the holiday rush this week, thank God and share the good news with someone specific?
