December 20, 2015 Fourth Sunday of Advent Mic. 5:2 5a Luke 1:46b 55 or Ps. 80:1 7 Heb. 10:5 10 Luke 1:39 45 (46 55) Goal for the Session Adults will explore Micah s notion of power expressed in service and name unexpected places of God s activity. PREPARING FOR THE SESSION Focus on Micah 5:2 5a WHAT is important to know? From Exegetical Perspective, Neal Walls The one who shall come forth (yêsê) (v. 2b) is identified by the same verb that describes the appearance of a Davidic messiah in Isaiah 11:1: A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse. The related Hebrew word translated whose origin (v. 2c) does not appear elsewhere in the Bible (cf. Ps. 19:6), but it refers to the dynasty founded by David. The phrases of old and from ancient days also describe the ancient lineage of the great eleventh-century king of Israel. WHERE is God in these words? From Theological Perspective, Stephen B. Boyd According to Micah, this ruler will bring peace not with a sword, which might suggest that the ruler brings peace with arbitration, diplomacy, and service. He will feed his flock in the strength of the Lord. It is, evidently, a strength of a different sort than many in his day imagined. It is a strength that shows itself in service. It is a notion of power or strength that corresponds to that of Jesus. When he was asked by his disciples to allow them to sit at his right hand the place of power or strength Jesus responded, But it is not so among you; but whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant (Mark 10:42 43). SO WHAT does this mean for our lives? From Pastoral Perspective, Nancy S. Taylor Micah inspires us to look for God s activity in people and places that are off the map, in the Bethlehems and the stables of our world and lives. We are invited to follow the prophet s gaze and so turn our full attention to God. It is the pastor s joy and responsibility to be ever vigilant as to where God is acting and to keep an ear cocked for those through whom God is speaking. More often than not, God is in the nooks and crannies, the alleys and kitchens. Advent s call then is a call to eyes, ears, and hearts that are trained to expect the unexpected and to listen for the least likely voices. NOW WHAT is God s word calling us to do? From Theological Perspective, Stephen B. Boyd Micah is convinced that, once again, YHWH will act on behalf of those who are unjustly subjugated, exploited, and demoralized even if the perpetrators are the royal successors of David. He believed, with Dr. King, that the arc of the moral universe is long but it bends toward justice. Micah s people saw so much greed and deception in high places. Could they believe with him that the arc of the moral universe bends toward justice? Could they believe that the one of peace, whose only weapon is gentleness, would win for them security and safety, when they experienced so much violence around them? Could they believe that someone from little, out-of-the-way Bethlehem would be great to the ends of the earth? Can we? 1
FOCUS SCRIPTURE Micah 5:2 5a Focus on Your Teaching Most adults who were raised in the church have grown up loving the Christmas story. The powerful images evoked in pageants and treasured crèches give shape to how we view the gospel narrative. From our vantage point across the centuries, Bethlehem and its stable are places of importance and meaning. But the stark reality is that a pregnant teenager and her husband made an exhausting journey mandated by the dictates of an oppressive empire, ending not at some center of power, but an insignificant village. Stripping away the sentimentalized trappings can allow adults to encounter anew the God who comes when and where we least expect it. Loving God, make me a means of conveying your message of grace. Amen. YOU WILL NEED Bibles copies of Resource Sheet 1 copies of Resource Sheet 2 newsprint or board markers Advent wreath Advent candles matches or lighter copies of Resource Sheet 1 for December 27, 2015 For Responding option 1: newsprint or board, markers, writing paper, pens option 2: Resource Sheet 1, writing paper, pens option 3: copies of O Little Town of Bethlehem LEADING THE SESSION GATHERING Before the session, for option 1 in Responding, print and post the following questions: Identify the power grid in your community, nation, or the world. How is power expressed by those who lead? What places might be contemporary equivalents to Bethlehem and the stable the nooks, crannies, back alleys, and kitchens? Whose voices are muted? Who seeks to enable those whose voices are muffled to be heard? For option 3 in Responding, arrange for accompaniment for the carol. Welcome participants. Form pairs and invite them to discuss the following: P Describe a time or a situation where God s presence was made known when it was least expected. What happened? P If you have never had that experience, what do you imagine it might be like? Tell participants that in this session, they will consider unexpected or surprising places and ways where God may be at work. Light all four Advent candles, noting that traditionally this final candle has been designated the candle of love. Invite the group to sit in silence for a few moments, considering how we can best live out the love God has freely given in the gift of Jesus Christ. Pray the following: Come, Lord Jesus. Prepare us for your coming with thankful hearts for your extravagant love, demonstrated in the gift of Jesus Christ. Amen. EXPLORING Remind participants that in the last session they explored a Scripture from Isaiah. Today s focus scripture is from Micah, who was prophesying in roughly the same time period as Isaiah. 2
Ephrathah was the place where Rachel, Jacob s wife, was buried. It was the ancient name for the region surrounding Bethlehem, and serves to distinguish that small, insignificant town from others of the same name. A brief summary of how David was anointed gives adults unfamiliar with the story the necessary background for understanding Micah s reference to that famous monarch. Isaiah was an aristocrat who was able to move comfortably in circles of power in Jerusalem, while Micah was a man of the land in Judah who associated with the common people. Give participants the information in the sidebar explaining the reference to Ephrathah. Invite them to listen for how the prophet describes the coming messiah as a volunteer reads Micah 5:2 5a. Ask: P What words, phrases, or images does Micah use to describe the one who is to come? Have participants quickly scan 1 Samuel 16:1 13. Invite a volunteer to describe how David was anointed king. Ask: P In what ways was David an unlikely or surprising choice to be king? Distribute Resource Sheet 2 (Job Description: Shepherd) and ask adults to read it silently. Then ask volunteers to describe the qualifications and responsibilities of a shepherd. Distribute Resource Sheet 1 (Focus on Micah 5:2 5a) Invite participants to read the Where? excerpt silently. Discuss: P What parallels do you see between the roles of the shepherd and the roles of a leader as described in the excerpt? P The common people in Micah s time were experiencing economic hardship because of corrupt leadership, as well as the threat of invasion by the Assyrians. Had you been one of those people, what kind of a leader do you think you would have wanted? To transition to Responding, read the Now What? excerpt aloud, pausing after each question posed in the excerpt to allow adults to reflect. Encourage them to then consider the questions from the perspective of our own political, social, and cultural perspective. EASY PREP RESPONDING Choose one or more of these activities depending on the length of your session. 1. Examine Public Service By looking at a designation commonly used for political officials, adults can gain a new perspective about how power might be expressed in service. Print public servant at the top left of a newsprint sheet or a board. Ask adults to name what the words bring to mind and jot these responses down under the term. Print strong leader at the top right, invite responses, and jot them down. Encourage adults to note where, if at all, the characterizations of these terms are in conflict with one another, and where they are in synch. Recall that the Where? excerpt suggests that the kind of strength Micah describes was evidently a strength of a different sort than many of his day imagined. Discuss: P In what ways would you say this is true, or not true, of our day? P Would you say that the kind of strength we expect of our leaders is inconsistent with service? Why or why not? Individually or in small groups or pairs, invite adults to create an imaginary campaign ad for someone running for prospective office. Encourage them to lift up both 3
characteristics of public service and qualities of strong leadership that are consistent with a servant leader. Invite volunteers to read their ads. Ask: P Which elected officials whom you know exemplify, at least in part, this idea of public service? Encourage adults to write an e-mail or a letter to any official they identified expressing their gratitude for their approach to public service. If adults cannot identify anyone, ask them to reflect on the characteristics they identified and plan to evaluate future candidates using those as yardsticks. 2. Identify Muffled Voices By identifying places, persons, or situations in this season that are off the normal power grid, adults can better discern God s activity in unexpected places and ways. Invite a volunteer to read the So What? excerpt from Resource Sheet 1 (Focus on Micah 5:2 5a) aloud. Form pairs. Ask participants to respond to the posted questions in writing and then to discuss their responses together. Then ask: P In what ways might I participate in service with those working in our community to help those with muffled voices to make their voices heard? Encourage participants to consider what steps God may be calling them to take, not just during Advent, but in the weeks following Christmas. 3. Sing O Little Town of Bethlehem In singing a familiar carol about the insignificant place of Jesus birth, participants may draw parallels to unexpected places where God s activity may be present. Invite adults to read the lyrics of the stanzas of this familiar carol. Then discuss together: P What would you identify as the hopes and fears of all the years? P In what insignificant places is there evidence that Christ is born anew? Sing the carol, encouraging adults to substitute the name of your community or town for the words Little Town of Bethlehem, imagining where the Christ child might be incarnate today and in what ways they might participate in what God is doing to make things new. CLOSING Remind adults that as the holiday season reaches its climax, the impulses to engage in service that are predominant in the culture often abruptly end. But Christians understandings of service continue to nudge us toward the coming reign of God. Pray the following: Come, Lord Jesus. In your holy name, the One Who Comes. Amen. Distribute copies of Resource Sheet 1 for December 27, 2015, or e-mail it to the participants during the week. Encourage participants to read the focus scripture and Resource Sheet 1 before the next session. 4
December 20, 2015 Adult Resource Sheet 1 Focus on Micah 5:2 5a WHAT is important to know? From Exegetical Perspective, Neal Walls The one who shall come forth (yêsê) (v. 2b) is identified by the same verb that describes the appearance of a Davidic messiah in Isaiah 11:1: A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse. The related Hebrew word translated whose origin (v. 2c) does not appear elsewhere in the Bible (cf. Ps. 19:6), but it refers to the dynasty founded by David. The phrases of old and from ancient days also describe the ancient lineage of the great eleventh-century king of Israel. WHERE is God in these words? From Theological Perspective, Stephen B. Boyd According to Micah, this ruler will bring peace not with a sword, which might suggest that the ruler brings peace with arbitration, diplomacy, and service. He will feed his flock in the strength of the Lord. It is, evidently, a strength of a different sort than many in his day imagined. It is a strength that shows itself in service. It is a notion of power or strength that corresponds to that of Jesus. When he was asked by his disciples to allow them to sit at his right hand the place of power or strength Jesus responded, But it is not so among you; but whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant (Mark 10:42 43). SO WHAT does this mean for our lives? From Pastoral Perspective, Nancy S. Taylor Micah inspires us to look for God s activity in people and places that are off the map, in the Bethlehems and the stables of our world and lives. We are invited to follow the prophet s gaze and so turn our full attention to God. It is the pastor s joy and responsibility to be ever vigilant as to where God is acting and to keep an ear cocked for those through whom God is speaking. More often than not, God is in the nooks and crannies, the alleys and kitchens. Advent s call then is a call to eyes, ears, and hearts that are trained to expect the unexpected and to listen for the least likely voices. NOW WHAT is God s word calling us to do? From Theological Perspective, Stephen B. Boyd Micah is convinced that, once again, YHWH will act on behalf of those who are unjustly subjugated, exploited, and demoralized even if the perpetrators are the royal successors of David. He believed, with Dr. King, that the arc of the moral universe is long but it bends toward justice. Micah s people saw so much greed and deception in high places. Could they believe with him that the arc of the moral universe bends toward justice? Could they believe that the one of peace, whose only weapon is gentleness, would win for them security and safety, when they experienced so much violence around them? Could they believe that someone from little, out-of-the-way Bethlehem would be great to the ends of the earth? Can we? 2015 Westminster John Knox Press
December 20, 2015 Adult Resource Sheet 2 Position Summary: To provide care for the flock, ensuring their health and welfare. To seek out and make available sources of nutritious food and clean water. To protect against attack by wild beasts, and to guard against the injury or loss of individual sheep, particularly the young lambs and other vulnerable members of the flock. Essential Duties and Responsibilities: spring; fresh growth, dried blades, leftover ears of grain following harvest and gleaning; standing hay in hot weather; stored food in late autumn or winter); scratched or sunburned skin with olive oil); Job Description: Shepherd Required Knowledge and Skills: 2015 Westminster John Knox Press