Listen to the Angels Sing

In one paragraph

On the Sunday before Christmas, Pastor Blake walked through the angels' announcement to the shepherds in Luke 2, zeroing in on the final phrase of their song. He traced the persistent question of what "peace on earth" actually means and who it is actually for, and he closed with communion as an invitation to respond to that message the way the shepherds did. The sermon grew out of a single...

Read together

1. Luke 2 (multiple verses, specific range unclear from transcript) The Christmas passage read and expounded throughout the sermon, including the shepherds in the fields, the angel appearing, and the heavenly host
2. John 3:16-17 Read during the advent candle lighting as the basis for the candle of love
3. Isaiah (specific verse not cited) Referenced briefly to say God does not sleep or grow weary
4. Ephesians 4:32 (paraphrased, not cited by reference) Mentioned that Christians are commanded to forgive just as God in Christ has forgiven you

Talk about it

1. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote 'I heard the bells on Christmas day' after losing his wife to a fire and his son in battle, and in the middle of that grief he wrote 'in despair I bowed my head, there is no peace on earth, I said.' Have you ever been in a season where hatred seemed to mock the song of peace on earth? What brought you through it, or where are you still in it?
2. The sermon walked through a long list of Bible translations, some reading 'peace, goodwill toward men' and others reading 'peace to those on whom his favor rests.' Before hearing that explanation, which version had you grown up with, and did the difference surprise you or unsettle you?
3. The preacher described the tension between God's sovereignty and human responsibility as something 'it seems easier to go to a consistent extreme than to stay at the center of.' Where do you personally feel pulled toward one extreme or the other, and what has helped you hold both?
4. The shepherds did not say 'let us go see if this thing has come to pass' but 'let us go see this thing that has come to pass.' What is the difference between those two attitudes, and where do you see that difference show up in your own response to what God has said?
5. The sermon closed by describing communion as identification with Jesus, the ground level of Christianity, and tied it back to the angels' message of peace on earth. How does sitting at the Lord's table change the way you think about carrying that message out into ordinary life?