Sermon text

Luke 1:57–80

The Birth of John the Baptist

[57] Now the time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son. [58] And her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her. [59] And on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child. And they would have called him Zechariah after his father, [60] but his mother answered, “No; he shall be called John.” [61] And they said to her, “None of your relatives is called by this name.” [62] And they made signs to his father, inquiring what he wanted him to be called. [63] And he asked for a writing tablet and wrote, “His name is John.” And they all wondered. [64] And immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he spoke, blessing God. [65] And fear came on all their neighbors. And all these things were talked about through all the hill country of Judea, [66] and all who heard them laid them up in their hearts, saying, “What then will this child be?” For the hand of the Lord was with him.

Zechariah’s Prophecy

        [67] And his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying,
[68] “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
for he has visited and redeemed his people
[69] and has raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of his servant David,
[70] as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old,
[71] that we should be saved from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us;
[72] to show the mercy promised to our fathers
and to remember his holy covenant,
[73] the oath that he swore to our father Abraham, to grant us
[74] that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies,
might serve him without fear,
[75] in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.
[76] And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High;
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,
[77] to give knowledge of salvation to his people
in the forgiveness of their sins,
[78] because of the tender mercy of our God,
whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high
[79] to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the way of peace.”
[80] And the child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness until the day of his public appearance to Israel. (ESV)

Scripture Readings

One of our Advent traditions is having families read the sermon text both in English and in a different language. This week, Amy Sullivan and Heiner Schwede read Luke 1:57-80 in English and German at the 8 am service.  Kyrsten Dallanegra and Rhonda Trevino read in English and French at the 9:30 am service. The Roark and Needham families read the text in English and Indonesian at the 11 am service.

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Call to Worship

Psalm 36:1–7

[1] Transgression speaks to the wicked
deep in his heart;
there is no fear of God
before his eyes.
[2] For he flatters himself in his own eyes
that his iniquity cannot be found out and hated.
[3] The words of his mouth are trouble and deceit;
he has ceased to act wisely and do good.
[4] He plots trouble while on his bed;
he sets himself in a way that is not good;
he does not reject evil.
[5] Your steadfast love, O LORD, extends to the heavens,
your faithfulness to the clouds.
[6] Your righteousness is like the mountains of God;
your judgments are like the great deep;
man and beast you save, O LORD.
[7] How precious is your steadfast love, O God!
The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings. (ESV)

Prayer of Repentance

Almighty God who is rich in mercy to all those who call upon You; hear us as we come to You humbly confessing our sins and transgressions, and imploring Your mercy and forgiveness. We have broken Your holy laws by our deeds and by our words, and by the sinful affections of our hearts. Have mercy upon us, most merciful Father; grant that we may hereafter serve and please You in newness of life; through the merit of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Benediction

Heavenly Father, You are good and faithful. You have kept Your promises to us through Your Son Jesus. We praise You for giving Your only Son that we might be made sons and daughters. As we prepare for Christmas, continue to remind us the ways You have kept all Your promises. We love You and pray in Jesus name. Amen.

Weekly Discipleship Resources

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