Series: The Call of Christmas  
Message: The Call to Praise 
Preacher: Japhet De Oliveira

Refresh: Open with prayer. Read or listen to Psalm 45:10-17.

Read: Luke 2:1-20—As you read in the New International Version, note 1-3 insights/questions that arise. 

Reflect: Leonard Sweet and Frank Voila, who wrote this brilliant book called Jesus: A Theography, on page 65 shares this:

“In spite of all that has been written about that little town of Bethlehem, which lies just inside the West Bank, many of its most important features have yet to be explored. What is postcard familiar is that Bethlehem birthed princes, and as a boy, David tended sheep in the very northwest hills where today shepherds still tend their flocks of sheep and goats.
“But what is less widely known and what connects with the Arabic translation of ‘Bethlehem‘ as a ‘house of meat’ is this: The kind of sheep cared for by Bethlehem shepherds was a special kind that made the name ‘Bethlehem‘ synonymous with fields full of lambs ripe for slaughter. Bethlehem carried another brand identity alongside ‘house of bread’: ‘house of meat.’
“In the midst of the butcher shop, incarnation.
“Bethlehem shepherds were not just any shepherds tending sheep. They were descendants of David, tending ‘David’s flock’—sheep destined for the temple (another possible translation of ‘Beth’ besides ‘house of’ is ‘temple’). Jerusalem was only a short two miles from those Bethlehem slopes. You may even think of Bethlehem shepherds as outsourced employees of the temple, royal shepherds.”

Recalibrate: 

1. What “ordinary things” in life are actually incredibly valuable? 
2. How can we give more value to the everyday actions that shape and make our community better?

Respond: Pray for insight and a tender heart.

Research: “Incarnation”-- explore this Web site: www.adventistbiblicalresearch.org