Fulfilled： The Prophecies of Christmas

In one paragraph

This was the third and final week of the Hope Is Here series. Brian looked at two Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah, the virgin birth from Isaiah 7:14 and the birthplace of Bethlehem from Micah 5:2, and traced how each one was fulfilled in the New Testament accounts of Jesus' arrival. The aim was to pull familiar Christmas details out of autopilot and let them land with fresh weight....

Read together

1. Isaiah 7:14 Central prophecy of the virgin conceiving and bearing a son called Immanuel, read aloud by a congregation member and discussed at length
2. Micah 5:2 Prophecy that a ruler of Israel would come from Bethlehem, read by Brian as the second fulfilled messianic prophecy
3. Matthew 1:18-19 Fulfillment of the virgin birth prophecy, read aloud by a congregation member
4. Luke 2:1-7 Account of Joseph and Mary traveling to Bethlehem for the census and Jesus being born there, read aloud by a congregation member
5. Genesis 1 The Holy Spirit hovering over the chaos waters compared to the Holy Spirit overshadowing Mary
6. Isaiah 9 Referenced from the previous week's sermon about a child being born with the government on his shoulders
7. Judges 6 Gideon's fleece used as an illustration of asking God for a sign

What was said

• Bring a friend, coworker, or neighbor to the Christmas Eve service on the town square this Wednesday at 5pm.
• Take one of the printed invitations from your chair and hand it to someone specific you have been praying for.
• Sign up to greet at the Christmas Eve service, since many people who hear the gospel that night are just walking by the square and a greeter is what draws them in.
• Fill out the back of the connect card with a prayer request so the Tribe team can partner with you in it.
• Sit with one of the four prophecies Brian walked through and let yourself think about the odds, then bring whatever impossible circumstance you are facing to God in prayer this week.

Talk about it

1. Brian pointed out that the virgin birth leaves a generous margin of faith required, saying God is still giving us free will to believe or not. Where else in the Christmas story do you see God doing that, and what does it stir up in you?
2. Several people in the room noticed that Emmanuel was a title, not a name on a birth certificate. What difference does it make to you personally that Emmanuel, meaning God with us, is a title rather than just a name?
3. Brian read the Micah prophecy about Bethlehem being a small, insignificant village and said it is easy to just skip right off the surface of familiar passages. Is there a verse or part of the Christmas story you have heard so many times it has stopped landing? What might help you hear it fresh?
4. The statistical odds of Jesus fulfilling just those four prophecies came out somewhere between one in fifty billion and one in five hundred trillion. Brian then turned that toward people facing their own statistically impossible circumstances. Has there been a moment in your life where something felt truly impossible, and how did you hold that against what you believe about God?
5. Brian closed by saying most of this town is void of the peace, joy, and community that the congregation takes for granted. As Christmas Eve on the town square comes up, what feels like the most honest and natural way for you personally to invite someone in?