In this week’s sermon, we read about Jesus staying behind in Jerusalem as a twelve-year-old boy to talk to the teachers in the Temple. Johnny discusses the importance of this year in Jesus’ life, the significance of his ability to debate with the religious leaders in the temple, and how this connects to our need to grow in our faith.

In this first Sunday of Christmas, we hear about the second set of witnesses to Jesus: the older saints, Simeon and Anna. Dean talks about how the story of these two being included in Lukes gospel continues to show how God highlights those we might not notice, and marvels at the amount of time it would have taken Simeon and Anna to attune so closely to God’s Spirit that they would recognize Jesus.

In our Christmas Eve service, we read from Luke 2 about Jesus’ coming to the world. Johnny talks about the hardships of the journey to Bethlehem, the contrast of Caesar Augustus and Mary, and the glory of God, come to bring good news to shepherds.

In this brief sermon, Dean narrates a story from the perspective on Zechariah about Luke 1, where he meets the angel Gabriel, he and Elizabeth have a son in their old age, and Mary comes to tell them of her child, who will be the Messiah.

In the third Sunday of Advent, the Sunday of Joy, we hear about Mary’s visit to Elizabeth from Juan Esteban in Spanish, with translation by Rod Nuñez. Juan Esteban talks about the two parts of the passage, the surprise of joy and the surprise of praise, and how we can integrate this joy and praise into our modern lives.

As we continue through the Gospel of Luke, we hear about the Annunciation of Mary by the angel Gabriel. Dean tells us the story and compares it to Gabriel’s appearance to Zechariah, which was covered in last week’s sermon. He then gives context to better understand the implications of Mary’s calling, and how well Mary demonstrates discipleship in the passage.

In our first Sunday of the Advent season, we begin our study of The Gospel of Luke. Dean introduces us to Luke and shows us the picture that Luke paints of Jesus’ life through his Gospel, tells us the story of Zechariah and Elizabeth, and shows us the importance of remaining faithful to God even through our own barrenness.