Instructions – Station 1
Shocking News
You will need …
A quiet space, 20 minutes, a picture of yourself, and your bible or a printout of the bible reading below
· Ask the Holy Spirit to use this time helping you focus on the reading and anything that God wishes to relate to your own circumstances.
· Read Luke 1:26-38Luke 1:26-38
English: Good News Bible (1992) - GNB
The Birth of Jesus Is Announced
26 In the sixth month of Elizabeth's pregnancy God sent the angel Gabriel to a town in Galilee named Nazareth.
27 : . He had a message for a young woman promised in marriage to a man named Joseph, who was a descendant of King David. Her name was Mary.
28 The angel came to her and said, “Peace be with you! The Lord is with you and has greatly blessed you!”
29 Mary was deeply troubled by the angel's message, and she wondered what his words meant.
30 The angel said to her, “Don't be afraid, Mary; God has been gracious to you.
31 : . You will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus.
32 : ; . He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High God. The Lord God will make him a king, as his ancestor David was,
33 and he will be the king of the descendants of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end!”
34 Mary said to the angel, “I am a virgin. How, then, can this be?”
35 The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and God's power will rest upon you. For this reason the holy child will be called the Son of God.
36 Remember your relative Elizabeth. It is said that she cannot have children, but she herself is now six months pregnant, even though she is very old.
37 : . For there is nothing that God cannot do.”
38 “I am the Lord's servant,” said Mary; “may it happen to me as you have said.” And the angel left her.
WP-Bible plugin and Matthew 1:18-24Matthew 1:18-24
English: Good News Bible (1992) - GNB
The Birth of Jesus Christ
18 : . This was how the birth of Jesus Christ took place. His mother Mary was engaged to Joseph, but before they were married, she found out that she was going to have a baby by the Holy Spirit.
19 Joseph was a man who always did what was right, but he did not want to disgrace Mary publicly; so he made plans to break the engagement privately.
20 While he was thinking about this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, descendant of David, do not be afraid to take Mary to be your wife. For it is by the Holy Spirit that she has conceived.
21 : ; . She will have a son, and you will name him Jesus—because he will save his people from their sins.”
22 Now all this happened in order to make come true what the Lord had said through the prophet,
23 : . “A virgin will become pregnant and have a son, and he will be called Immanuel” .
24 So when Joseph woke up, he married Mary, as the angel of the Lord had told him to.
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· Consider Mary and Joseph’s response to their part in God’s plan
· Look at your picture … Use it as a reminder that you have been adopted as God’s child (see Ephesians 1:5Ephesians 1:5
English: Good News Bible (1992) - GNB
5 God b : before him. Because of his love God; or before him, and to live in love. God. had already decided that through Jesus Christ he would make us his children—this was his pleasure and purpose.
WP-Bible plugin). Talk to God about how this makes you feel …
Readings …
1 Luke 1:26-38Luke 1:26-38
English: Good News Bible (1992) - GNB
The Birth of Jesus Is Announced
26 In the sixth month of Elizabeth's pregnancy God sent the angel Gabriel to a town in Galilee named Nazareth.
27 : . He had a message for a young woman promised in marriage to a man named Joseph, who was a descendant of King David. Her name was Mary.
28 The angel came to her and said, “Peace be with you! The Lord is with you and has greatly blessed you!”
29 Mary was deeply troubled by the angel's message, and she wondered what his words meant.
30 The angel said to her, “Don't be afraid, Mary; God has been gracious to you.
31 : . You will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus.
32 : ; . He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High God. The Lord God will make him a king, as his ancestor David was,
33 and he will be the king of the descendants of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end!”
34 Mary said to the angel, “I am a virgin. How, then, can this be?”
35 The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and God's power will rest upon you. For this reason the holy child will be called the Son of God.
36 Remember your relative Elizabeth. It is said that she cannot have children, but she herself is now six months pregnant, even though she is very old.
37 : . For there is nothing that God cannot do.”
38 “I am the Lord's servant,” said Mary; “may it happen to me as you have said.” And the angel left her.
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The Birth of Jesus Foretold
26In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, 27to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”
29Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. 30But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. 31You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. 32He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.”
34″How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”
35The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called[a] the Son of God. 36Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. 37For nothing is impossible with God.”
38″I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.” Then the angel left her.
Footnotes:
Luke 1:35Luke 1:35
English: Good News Bible (1992) - GNB
35 The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and God's power will rest upon you. For this reason the holy child will be called the Son of God.
WP-Bible plugin Or So the child to be born will be called holy,
2 Matthew 1:18-24Matthew 1:18-24
English: Good News Bible (1992) - GNB
The Birth of Jesus Christ
18 : . This was how the birth of Jesus Christ took place. His mother Mary was engaged to Joseph, but before they were married, she found out that she was going to have a baby by the Holy Spirit.
19 Joseph was a man who always did what was right, but he did not want to disgrace Mary publicly; so he made plans to break the engagement privately.
20 While he was thinking about this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, descendant of David, do not be afraid to take Mary to be your wife. For it is by the Holy Spirit that she has conceived.
21 : ; . She will have a son, and you will name him Jesus—because he will save his people from their sins.”
22 Now all this happened in order to make come true what the Lord had said through the prophet,
23 : . “A virgin will become pregnant and have a son, and he will be called Immanuel” .
24 So when Joseph woke up, he married Mary, as the angel of the Lord had told him to.
WP-Bible plugin (NIV)
The Birth of Jesus Christ
18This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. 19Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.
20But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus,[a] because he will save his people from their sins.”
22All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23″The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”[b]—which means, “God with us.”
24When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife.
Footnotes:
Matthew 1:21Matthew 1:21
English: Good News Bible (1992) - GNB
21 : ; . She will have a son, and you will name him Jesus—because he will save his people from their sins.”
WP-Bible plugin Jesus is the Greek form of Joshua, which means the LORD saves.
Matthew 1:23Matthew 1:23
English: Good News Bible (1992) - GNB
23 : . “A virgin will become pregnant and have a son, and he will be called Immanuel” .
WP-Bible plugin Isaiah 7:14Isaiah 7:14
English: Good News Bible (1992) - GNB
14 : . Well then, the Lord himself will give you a sign: a young woman k : young woman: The Hebrew word here translated “young woman” is not the specific term for “virgin,” but refers to any young woman of marriageable age. The use of “virgin” in reflects a Greek translation of the Old Testament, made some 500 years after Isaiah. who is pregnant will have a son and will name him ‘Immanuel.’ l : immanuel: This name in Hebrew means “God is with us.”
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