Have you ever considered the importance of the people of the nativity? This Church Discipleship Campaign will help your whole church gain wisdom from Joseph, Mary, the Shepherds, and the genealogy of Jesus.
This bundle includes four weeks of sermons for Advent, a Powerpoint presentation to use with the sermons, a four-week study for your church's small groups that follows the sermons, and a bulletin insert. Use these tools to get your entire church on the same page.
Note: The different formats for each piece of the campaign are bundled as follows: one PDF for all four weeks of preaching material, one PDF for all four weeks of Bible study material, one Powerpoint presentation for all four weeks, and one Microsoft Word document for the bulletin insert.
If you're interested in purchasing only the Bible study, click here.
Session One
The Genealogy of Jesus
We tend to gloss over the genealogies in Scripture, but there's much about the human condition and about our Savior buried between the lines.
Matthew 1:1-17
Everybody knows the genealogies are the biggest yawn in the Bible. "Rehoboam begat Abijah, and Abijah begat Ralph." It warms your heart about as much as reading a phone book. What's not often said, but understood, is that it's probably best to skip over "the begats" and not get bogged down in all those funny old names.
Yet, at the same time, we pay lip service to 2 Timothy 3:16, which says, "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness." If that's true, it includes the begats.
Session Two
Joseph
Joseph was an ordinary man who sometimes believed his doubts and doubted his beliefs, yet he had enough faith to do what God wanted him to do.
Matthew 1:18-25
Most people know who Jesus was in the Christmas story. But most don't know him very well. He is often treated a bit like the father of the bride in a wedding—nobody notices him, but he has to pay for the whole affair. Christmas cost Joseph a great deal.
Session Three
Mary
God entered human history through Mary because she was open and obedient to his will.
Luke 1:26-28
From one generation to another, Mary has been known as the mother of God. She was the one who gave birth to Jesus Christ, who was fully human and fully divine, God's own son. What was God doing, and why did he choose Mary to do it?
Session Four
The Shepherds
God sent his son Jesus Christ as Savior, especially for unclean people.
Luke 2:1-20
Shepherds were on the lowest rung of society. They commanded little respect and had no wealth or prestige. But in their tasks, they exemplified how the Savior of the world would treat his people.