Christmas Youth Group Blog…

Hey, what’s up everyone? I really wish we all could have gotten together tonight. We were just a little worried about the sheets of ice you would be driving home on afterward. I know, I know… I’m lame, old, and boring. But I care about you all and it just wasn’t worth the risk. Anyway, thanks for stopping by to catch the video and message for tonight. I hope you enjoy it. First, I have an announcement. Since we weren’t able to have youth group tonight we will be meeting on the 31st. It’ll be over in plenty of time for you to get to any New Year’s Eve shindig you may have planned. Alright, enjoy the videos and study and I’ll catch you again at the end of this blog.

Luke 2:1-20 (not quite as detailed as I wanted, but I ran out of time… it takes forever to upload a video)

Verses 1-3: It was custom for people to return to their hometowns for censuses. Basically, a census was a way for the Caesar to know who and how many people were under his authority.

Verses 4-5: Most readers assume that Mary and Joseph got to Bethlehem right before Jesus was born. In all actuality, it could have been quite a bit of time before Mary had Jesus.

Verses6-7: You know, in a lot of Christmas plays or stories, the innkeeper is looked at as if he was a bad guy. Luke never actually says that. The truth is, there was no room in the inn. It is actually fitting that Jesus would be born, in a way, apart from human society. It symbolized the rejection that He would encounter throughout His ministry, on the cross, and ultimately throughout the remainder of time. People have always and will always reject Jesus. It is sad and even confusing if you are a believer, but it is the truth.

Verse 8: I think it is so cool that the angel appeared to shepherds. In this time they would have been socially looked down upon. They would have been the outcasts. Their job made them unclean or unworthy in the eyes of the rest of society. I find this cool because really, they represent us. When compared with the righteousness of God, we are totally unclean and unworthy. Yet we are given the opportunity to be spotless because of Jesus.

Verses 9-11: The angel did what every angel in the Bible does… make sure the people they are appearing to aren’t scared. He is not bringing bad news, but good news. The time had come for the promised Savior to enter human history. We already expanded on verse 11…

Verses 12-14: The sudden appearance of all the other angels seems to symbolize how God often acts. It seems like it takes Him a long time to do something (usually it just seems long to us, but it isn’t that long), but when He does respond it always seems to be exactly what we need. God’s people had waited for the Messiah for what felt like a long time, and now, exactly what they needed. Jesus.

Verses 15-16: I love this… after the Shepherds heard this incredible news, they didn’t sit around and talk about it. No! They acted immediately. How many times have we experienced God or felt his nudge and then we sit around discuss it, think about it, and never actually do anything about it?

Verses 17-18: The shepherds saw Jesus and then began to tell other people about it. This is awesome because this is how God decided to share His love with the world. God’s only plan for sharing the life-giving Gospel is us. He doesn’t have a “plan B”. I also like how when people heard the testimony of the shepherds they were amazed. They’re response wasn’t to believe or not to believe, they were just amazed. I have always been curious about how many of these “amazed people”, would later choose to believe in Jesus as their Savior. Often we are not called to convert everyone talk to about Jesus. Sometimes God is just using us to “amaze” them, that is, to prepare them for things that will happen in their loves later. Remember, we are to be the salt of the earth. What does salt do? It adds flavor to something. In other words, our lives are to look a lot more like Fillet Mignon than chicken nuggets. When we talk to people about Jesus or live for Jesus, we can make people hunger for what He offers.

Verses 19-20: These two verses seem to stress how remarkable and significant the story of Jesus’ birth really is. When you and I really understand that Jesus was born to die to set us free from sin; we should meditate on that truth, share it with others, and praise God for his grace!

I hope you all enjoyed “youth group” tonight. Enjoy your night, tell your parents hi, and be safe. Be sure to leave your questions, prayer requests, thoughts, etc… Remember, it is a public site so anything you write can be seen by others. Peace and I’ll see you soon.