Margins

Re:Verse passage – Luke 2:4-7; 3:23, 31-34, 38 (day three)

Joseph also went up from Galilee…

Joseph seems to get pushed to the margins of the nativity story. From where he stood, he surely didn’t feel marginalized. Stunned by news of his betrothed’s pregnancy, visited by an angel in that troubled hour, facilitating a grueling journey with the pregnant Mary, visited again by an angel warning of a murderous Herod, undertook a perilous flight to Egypt, living as an immigrant for several years, making a return to his homeland, finding himself in yet another conversation with heaven providing geographical guidance for the continued safety of the child. Is this the portrait of a minor character? An extra on the set of a Biblical epic? When you look at this person’s experience, you see the indispensability of his life. What awaits as you look at others with the same curiosity?

Bloodline

Re:Verse passage – Luke 2:4-7; 3:23, 31-34, 38 (day two)

…the son of God. v. 3:38b

Merry Christmas Eve-Eve! I am hopeful that each and every one of you are blessed sharing the blessing of the season with those close to you.  The message and hope of Jesus is meant to be shared, because it is our purpose to help everyone recognize they were created to love and serve the Lord. To see the lineage of Jesus is an incredible testament that reminds us that families matter. More than that, we are reminded we have all been grafted into the family of God to be made joint heirs with Jesus. The hope of Jesus is not limited to those in his ancestral bloodline. We can all claim that heritage because of his shed blood. This week, may you celebrate the child, and may you rejoice in your place in the family.

Monday Re:Vlog – 12/22/25

Re:Verse passage – Luke 2:4-7; 3:23, 31-34, 38 (day one)

Join us as Senior Pastor Chris Johnson, Associate Pastor Aaron Hufty, and Associate Pastor Bryan Richardson walk us through Luke 2:4-7; 3:23, 31-34, 38  in our Advent Re:Verse Series: “Luke: Long-Expected.”

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Two Turtledoves

Re:Verse passage – Luke 2:21-38 (day seven)

and to offer a sacrifice according to what was said in the Law of the Lord, “A pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.” Luke 2:24

In the words of Kevin McCallister in Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, “I never knew that. I thought they were just part of a song.” Kevin was given his turtledoves to become a token of eternal friendship, but the two turtledoves in the Bible were actually the Offering of the Poor.

Leviticus 12:8  “But if she cannot afford a lamb, then she shall take two turtledoves or two young pigeons, the one for a burnt offering and the other for a sin offering; and the priest shall make atonement for her, and she will be clean.”

The King of Kings stepped down into poverty. We would expect a coming King to be born in a palace or to be followed with grandeur (Wisemen have not yet arrived), but our King needed to sympathize with us. He came to be the God for the poor, not just for the rich. He showed us that He is the God for all of us. The faithfulness of Mary and Joseph to bring Him to the temple shows us their heart. The humbleness of Mary and Joseph to admit that they couldn’t afford a lamb shows us their character. Little did they know, they brought the Lamb that would atone for their sins and the sins of the entire world. Jesus is the Lamb of God and our friend for eternity!

Found

Re:Verse passage – Luke 2:21-38 (day six)

There was a prophetess, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. Luke 2:36

Luke doesn’t waste words. Every detail matters. Anna’s lineage is not incidental; it is theological.

The tribe of Asher was one of the lost northern tribes, scattered during the Assyrian exile centuries earlier. These tribes were never fully reconstituted as a people. Many assimilated into surrounding nations; others quietly migrated south into Judah. By the time of Jesus, Asher existed mostly as a memory, fragmented, overlooked, and seemingly beyond restoration.

And yet here she is.

Anna stands in the temple, faithful, prayerful, and waiting. Luke names her tribe to signal something deeper: the Messiah has come not only for the obvious heirs of promise, but for those history seems to have forgotten. In Anna, we glimpse the Messiah’s redemptive reach and the heart of God’s Kingdom, a Kingdom that gathers the scattered, restores the overlooked, and remembers what the world has written off.

Caught and Taught

Re:Verse passage – Luke 2:21-38 (day five)

The Luke narrative gives us a few glimpses into the context and culture of Jesus’ earthly family. What we learn and see early on (particularly in our Re:Verse text this week) is that even though poor (sacrifice of turtledoves or pigeons), Mary and Joseph were righteous and faithful. No excuses. They did what the law instructed. There’s a lesson here for parents, future parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles. Our regular rhythms and practices express our faith maybe more than any speech or sermon ever could. Reading/Studying the Scriptures. Worshipping. Serving others. Intentional Community.

My son learned this lesson from my dad (grandparent). Just days after mom died he asked Marshall to go to church with him (Bible Study and Worship). When Marshall questioned “why,” so close to this traumatic event (thinking maybe one Sunday off would be a good idea), my dad adamantly responded, “We go to church because that’s who we are and that’s what we do.” Sometimes lessons like these are caught more than taught. Marshall still tells this story.

This Advent Season, may we be mindful to teach and model regular rhythms and habits. Others are watching and learning (especially children and grandchildren) and will learn what matters most to us.

Glimpse

Re:Verse passage – Luke 2:21-38 (day four)

When Moses saw a glimpse of the Promised Land from Mount Nebo, it’s a bittersweet picture. Moses had remained faithful in leading God’s people through challenging times, but his disobedience kept him from ultimately experiencing the land for himself. God, in his mercy, allowed Moses to see the promise from afar, giving him confidence that the Lord would lead his people into the land he had promised.

Simeon’s story is similar, but so much sweeter. Simeon not only caught a glimpse of God’s promise fulfilled, he got to hold that promise in his arms. That was all that was needed in order for him to experience the magnitude of God’s salvific power through Jesus. He was not simply holding an infant, he was holding the firstborn of all creation, the One who is before all things and the One in whom all things hold together. What an incredible kindness God showed Simeon. We, too, have been given the kindness to behold the Son of God.

Steeped

Re:Verse passage – Luke 2:21-38 (day three)

“…as it is written in the Law of the Lord…”

Something here transcends the kind of law and grace dichotomy that understands “law” merely as a shackle broken by “grace.” The Law, as Jesus made clear, still exists as that which has proceeded from the mouth of God, its steadfastness likened to the steadfastness of the heavens and the earth. Jesus’s nativity, his childhood, his adolescence, his adult years, his customs, his relations, his disciplines, his observances, his activities of daily living – in short, the whole of his life – was steeped in the Law of God. He believed it, observed it, obeyed it, loved it. And he was accused of breaking it. These accusations were one more way of suffering for him: he who loved the law more deeply than any person on earth ever had was vilified as a blasphemer.

Promise Fulfilled

Re:Verse passage – Luke 2:21-38 (day two)

For my eyes have seen Your salvation, v. 30

Simeon had been promised that he would behold the Messiah. He wasn’t surprised in the least when he held the baby. Jesus, as a man, hadn’t performed any miracle or told any parable yet. He was a helpless baby. Simeon knew. He knew this was the long-expected savior of Israel, and beyond that, of the Gentiles. It is unclear how long Simeon had waited to behold the Messiah, but he was ready. In both 25 and 26 Luke records that the Holy Spirit was with him/upon him. Simeon was able to discern this child as king because of the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Have you trusted the spirit to ably discern the will of God or His grand purpose for your life? You can read Simeon’s great joy. He was able to witness God fulfilling his promise, and what a promise it was – to see Jesus as Lord and Savior of the world.

Monday Re:Vlog – 12/15/25

Re:Verse passage – Luke 2:21-38 (day one)

Join us as Senior Pastor Chris Johnson, Associate Pastor Aaron Hufty, and Associate Pastor Bryan Richardson walk us through Luke 2:21-38  in our Advent Re:Verse Series: “Luke: Long-Expected.”

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