Our Advent Soup and Study this year will happen each Sunday evening through Advent. We will be working one week ahead, in order to allow Pastor Karen some ideas, stories or additions for each Sunday of Advent, and Christmas Eve.
If you would like to participate in this study, we will begin on November 30th at 6:30pm. We will meet in the Fellowship Hall with a light meal (soup and bread), and delve into our study.
The scriptures for Advent 2 are:
Matthew 3:1-12 “1In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea 2 and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” 3 This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah: ‘A voice of one calling in the wilderness, “Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.”’[Isaiah 40:3] 4 John’s clothes were made of camel’s hair, and he had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. 5 People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan. 6 Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River. 7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he said to them: “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? 8 Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. 9 And do not think you can say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. 10 The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire. 11 “I baptize you with [or in] water for repentance. But after me comes one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with[or in] the Holy Spirit and fire. 12 His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor, gathering his wheat into the barn and burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”
Isaiah 40:1-5 “1 Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. 2 Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her that her hard service has been completed, that her sin has been paid for, that she has received from the Lord’s hand double for all her sins. 3 A voice of one calling: ‘In the wilderness prepare the way for the Lord [Or A voice of one calling in the wilderness: “Prepare the way for the Lord”]; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. [ Hebrew; Septuagint make straight the paths of our God] 4 Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain. 5 And the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all people will see it together. For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.’”
Isaiah 11:1-10 “A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. 2 The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him— the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of might, the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord—3 and he will delight in the fear of the Lord. He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes, or decide by what he hears with his ears; 4 but with righteousness he will judge the needy, with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth; with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked. 5 Righteousness will be his belt and faithfulness the sash around his waist. 6 The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling [Hebrew; Septuagint lion will feed] together; and a little child will lead them. 7 The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. 8 The infant will play near the cobra’s den, and the young child will put its hand into the viper’s nest. 9 They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. 10 In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his resting place will be glorious.
Psalm 72:1-7,18-19 “1 Endow the king with your justice, O God, the royal son with your righteousness. 2 May he judge your people in righteousness, your afflicted ones with justice. 3 May the mountains bring prosperity to the people, the hills the fruit of righteousness. 4 May he defend the afflicted among the people & save the children of the needy; may he crush the oppressor. 5 May he endure[Septuagint; Hebrew You will be feared] as long as the sun, as long as the moon, through all generations. 6 May he be like rain falling on a mown field, like showers watering the earth. 7 In his days may the righteous flourish and prosperity abound till the moon is no more…18 Praise be to the Lord God, the God of Israel, who alone does marvelous deeds. 19 Praise be to his glorious name forever; may the whole earth be filled with his glory. Amen and Amen.”
Themes
John the Baptist/Elijah/Forerunner
Day of Judgment
The Kingdom of Heaven is near
People are forgetting God
There is need for repentance
The reign of God is at hand.
Discussion Questions
How many years do you think lapsed between the end of Mt. 2 and Mt. 3:1?
What do you know about John the Baptist?
What does the word "wilderness" mean to you?
What is, or has been, the wilderness in your life?
How did you cope with the wilderness you were in?
How did you escape this wilderness?
Did you encounter God’s grace during it?
If so, is there a story that you can share of how God blessed you in the midst of the wilderness?
Repentance is a threefold action. What are those three actions?
What does it mean that repentance is plural, that the call to repent is a collective call to the entire community?
What are we waiting for as we repent together as children of God?
What do we wait for during the season of Advent?
Closing Prayer