GDLC Audio

This week, we tie together the presence of the star with the wise men from the east who came to find this new king of Israel. Since the Israelite captivity in Babylon, the wise men of the east had access to Hebrew Scriptures. From the scriptures, they learn of a new king that is to be born and they were skilled in reading the stars. God intertwines these two realities to guide these men to the house of Mary and Joseph and the unexpected appearance of these wise men who fall down in the worship of Jesus. 

This week, we tie together the presence of the star with the wise men from the east who came to find this new king of Israel. Since the Israelite captivity in Babylon, the wise men of the east had access to Hebrew Scriptures. From the scriptures, they learn of a new king that is to be born and they were skilled in reading the stars. God intertwines these two realities to guide these men to the house of Mary and Joseph and the unexpected appearance of these wise men who fall down in the worship of Jesus. 

This week, we look at this peculiar and unexpected appearance of a star that pointed the wise men to Jesus. On the weekend, we will dive deeper into the wise men, but for this midweek service, we stay focused on this common Christmas image of the Bethlehem star. There is much mystery and lore that surrounds this cosmological phenomenon, but we know that God created the heavens to point to His eternal glory, and so here we see how God used this unexpected to lead and point to His glory, now born in Bethlehem. 

This week, we look at the unexpected messengers in the angels and shepherds. Being a shepherd was a very blue-collar sort of occupation, yet a bunch of shepherds were chosen to hear the news of the birth of Jesus in a very unexpected way. After the unexpected messengers depart, the shepherds become messengers of their own. They carry the message of the birth of Jesus as God shows us; He can use anyone, anywhere, to proclaim the greatest & most unexpected message ever. 

This week, we look at the unexpected messengers in the angels and shepherds. Being a shepherd was a very blue-collar sort of occupation, yet a bunch of shepherds were chosen to hear the news of the birth of Jesus in a very unexpected way. After the unexpected messengers depart, the shepherds become messengers of their own. They carry the message of the birth of Jesus as God shows us; He can use anyone, anywhere, to proclaim the greatest & most unexpected message ever. 

This week, we will focus on Joseph and all the unexpected events that swirled around this man’s life. His life went from a simple engagement to the news that his fiancé was pregnant. Joseph is then faced with how to handle this unexpected situation to bring the least amount of shame on himself and Mary. In the middle of this contemplation, he then is given a very unexpected dream that changed the course of his life forever.  

This week, we will focus on Joseph and all the unexpected events that swirled around this man’s life. His life went from a simple engagement to the news that his fiancé was pregnant. Joseph is then faced with how to handle this unexpected situation to bring the least amount of shame on himself and Mary. In the middle of this contemplation, he then is given a very unexpected dream that changed the course of his life forever.

Our midweek service will focus on this interaction when the pregnant Mary unexpectedly visits her aunt Elizabeth's house. Both women are experiencing unexpected pregnancies, but it isn’t the presence of Mary that is the most remarkable visitor when John the Baptist and Jesus meet for the first time. Even in the womb John was jumping for joy that the Savior was in the world!