2. Jesus: So Much More Than a Prophet

LOOKING BACK

Care:

Share how you are doing.
Practice generosity.

Worship:

Worship together in song and prayer.

Celebrate Faithfulness:

Encourage one another in victories.

Cast Vision:

Encourage each other to be committed
followers of Christ.

LOOKING UP

+ Context

Several hundreds of years before Jesus, the prophet Isaiah prophesied that Israel would be given a sign: a virgin will conceive a son (Isaiah 7:14).

This Son, Jesus, humbled Himself so low that He even became the most humble of all beings: a baby. He experienced humanity to the fullest extent, demonstrating that He was not only fully God, but fully man as well. He was willing to face growing pains, sickness, hunger, thirst, grief and injury to restore relationship with us. And when Jesus was born, He was born to a virgin: the virgin Mary.

Show. Watch the segment twice.
Tell. Ask a member of the group to tell the story of the segment in their own words.
Complete. Allow the group to fill in any gaps in the story or make any corrections.
Discuss. Group Discussion. Note: It is not necessary to complete all questions.

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²⁶In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, 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 conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him 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 Jacob’s descendants 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 on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called 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 unable to conceive is in her sixth month. ³⁷For no word from God will ever fail.”

What did you like the most about the story? What caught your attention?
How do you think Mary felt when she heard the angel’s message? How would you have felt if you had received such news?
The angel says, “Nothing is impossible with God.” What feels impossible for you right now?
What does it mean that the angel said the baby would be called “the Son of God?”

Going Deeper (further discussion if time allows)...:

Why do you think it is important that Jesus was born to a virgin?

+ Conclusion:

Meditate on the incredible nature of Jesus’ conception and birth. He is both God and man. He is both the Creator of the world and human. He is someone we can both identify with and trust as a Savior.

Consider Jesus.

LOOKING FORWARD

Apply:

How did God demonstrate Himself as trustworthy?
How will you apply what you’ve learned about God?

Practice:

Practice telling the story to one another.

Who will you share this story with?

Pray

Thank God for what you learned.
Pray for one another.
Pray for others in the community.

2.

Jesus: So Much More Than a Prophet