1)Listen to Podcast
2) GG Questions 12/09/2018
Advent: Worship Night! Luke 1:46-55, 67-79
1. Respond to Blessings in Song: Music is deeply embedded into the human experience. The book of Psalms teaches us to take just about all of life’s experiences, the good and the bad, and sing them back to God. How do both Mary (Luke 1:46-47) and Zechariah (1:68a) open their song? What situations were they responding to in song? Which Christian worship songs have meant the most to you, and why? Take out your smartphone and share some lyrics with your group!
2. Songs Rehearse Our Story: The best songs tell our story with better words than we know how to use. Zechariah praised God for sending the messiah, the “horn of salvation” (Luke 1:69), to “redeem his people” (v. 68). How does his song thank God for both a coming spiritual (vv. 77-79) and physical/political (vv. 71, 74-75) redemption of him and his people? Do you have a favorite psalm which seems to tell your story and speak into your soul in a unique way? (if you can’t think of one, take a look at Psalm 16; 23; 27; 63; 139)
3. Keeper of Promises: Many have described the Old and New Testaments with the words, ‘Promises Made’ and ‘Promises Kept’. How do both Mary (Luke 1:54, 55) and Zechariah’s (vv. 70, 72, 73) songs give praise to God as the great Promise Keeper? Are there particular promises of God you hold especially close?
4. Mary and Hannah’s Duet: Mary’s Magnificat has often been compared with Hannah’s song in 1 Samuel 2. After taking a look at her song in 1 Samuel 2:1-10, what are some points of comparison? (see especially 1 Sam. 2:1 // Luke 1:46-47 and 1 Sam. 2:3-8 // Luke 1:51-53) Both women saw their own life experience as a paradigm for how God works in the world. How is their common theme of the proud and the humble central to both the lives of David and Jesus?
