December 10, 2017

Sunday School

The Virgin Mary, a mortal woman, the mother of Jesus!

&

The Humble Birth of Jesus

Manger – a long open box or trough for horses or cattle to eat from.

Inn – (ancient times) a private home with a large open room with a possible upper area.

Isaiah 7:14 – Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.

Isaiah 9:6 – For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Matthew 1:23 – “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”)

Luke 1:26-28 & 34-35 – In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”  V34-35 – “How will this be, “Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?” The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.”

Luke 2:15-20 – When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.”  And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger. And when they saw it, they made know the saying that had been told them concerning this child. And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them. And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

Galatians 4:4-5 – But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship.

John 1:14-18 – The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John testified concerning him. He cried out, saying, “This is the one I spoke about when I said, ‘He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’” Out of his fullness we have all received grace in place of grace already given.  For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known.

1 Timothy 3:16 – Beyond all question, the mystery from which true godliness springs is great: He appeared in the flesh, was vindicated by the Spirit, was seen by angels, was preached among the nations, was believed on in the world, was taken up in glory.

Hebrews 2:14-18 – Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death-that is, the devil-and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death. For surely it is not angels he helps, but Abraham’s descendants. For this reason he had to be made like them. Fully human in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.

The Humble Birth of Jesus

Keep in mind, Bethlehem was small and off the main road so Joseph and Mary had few options for a place to stay. Luke describes the manger area in a matter of fact way so it appears that this was an ordinary solution.  Read Luke 2:1-21

Micah 5:2 – “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, through you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.”

Luke 2:4-7 – And Joseph also went up for Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house of lineage of David:) To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child. And so it was, that while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.

 

Jesus’s birth was of the Holy Spirit along with the Virgin Mary. So Jesus was fully God but with the physical body that was human.  John 1:14 – And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the father,) full of grace and truth. 1 Timothy 3:16 – And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.
Jesus was born in meekness, as one of the human race. This makes him approachable, accessible, and available to us so that we may seek Him for ourselves and not via a third party (minister, priest, etc.)

References:

www.biblearchaeology.org

Google

www.biblegateway.com

www.bibletools.org

Sermon
Psalm 51:10 - Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit form me.
Subject: What Is It About Me?!

• In this new age, most are all about "me."
• The selfie.
• But what about me and how I feel?
• Let's focus on me, people!
• Me definition - a name that I call myself; me, myself and I.
• Our focus should be on bettering ourselves through the Word of God and not on what we can do selfishly.
• We are so much more than ourselves.
• When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visits him? For thou has made him a little lower than the angels, and has crowned him with glory and honor. Thou made him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou has put all things under his feet: Psalm 8:3-6

Christmas Luncheon
Brown Chapel enjoyed a great lunch with our neighboring churches, Mr. Pleasant Baptist Church and Shiloh Baptist Church.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Brown Chapel wishes you a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Our church's regular services will be back January 14, 2018.

Sunday School 9:45AM; Church Service 11:00 AM.