What would it have been like to be present at the birth of Jesus? The characters of Jesus’ birth may be familiar to us by now— we know them well, but do we really know their stories? What surprises you? Or encourages, challenges and intrigues you?
This is an opportunity to consider the stories of those who God chose to be a part of His Amazing Story, and what we might learn about the baby in the manger from their responses to the arrival of the newborn King.
- Mary: What message does the angel have for her? And what is her response? How did that moment shape the rest of her life? Luke 1:26, Luke 2:1-7;19, 41ff, John 2:1ff, Mark 3:31ff, John 19:26ff.
- Elizabeth and her husband, Zechariah, and their son, John: What role does this family play in the arrival of Jesus? What would that have been like? Luke 1, Luke 1, 3, 7, John 1, 3, 5, Mark 1, Matthew 3, Matthew 11, 14 and 17, Mark 6
- Joseph: What would have been like to be the earthly father of Jesus? How did Joseph respond to this call? Matthew 1:16-25, 2:13-23 and Luke 2:1-50
- The Angels and Shepherds: What was it like to deliver this news? And to receive it? Luke 2:8ff
- The Wisemen: Why did they make such a long journey? When they finally arrived, what would it have been like to be in that room? Matthew 2:1ff
- The Roman officials or leaders (under whose occupation the Jews lived in Israel at the time): What were the leaders of the day like? What was their goal and concern? Luke 2:1-3; Matthew 2:1ff
Now, what about you? We sing on Good Friday, “were you there when they crucified my Lord?” Today, what if we were to ask, “Were you there when they glorified my Lord? Were you there when they laid him the straw? Were you there when they hung their hope on him? Were you there when Jesus Christ was born? Ephesians 1:3-10; Colossians 1:15-29
