On Sunday, January 11, 2025 at Wildwood Community Church I preached a sermon based on Luke 2:39-52.  This message was part 2 of our series,”Prepare the Way”.  Below you will find questions related to the message for personal reflection or group discussion.  You will also find audio and video of the message to listen to/watch, download, or share.

Sermon Questions:

1. Pray
2. Read Luke 2:39-52
3. We are familiar with the birth story of Jesus.  It is somewhat easier to imagine Him as the full grown man we see teaching and performing miracles in the bulk of the material found in the Gospels.  But imagining Jesus as a young boy or adolescent really stretches our understanding of the incarnation.  What do you imagine Jesus’ childhood was like?  What questions do you have about these years in Jesus life?
4. Jesus lived roughly 30 years of His life in relative obscurity.  What does this tell you about the pace at which our lives develop?  Have you ever been in a hurry to “get there” in life?  How does seeing this progression in the life of Jesus encourage you?
5. Humanity is not static, but dynamic.  We can grow … just as Jesus did!  What is your plan for spiritual growth in the year ahead?
6. How does knowing about the full incarnation of Jesus (the fact that He lived a fully human life) encourage you and invite you to “draw near to Him in our time of need” as Hebrews 4:14-16 says?
7. How does seeing Jesus example of submitting to His parents provide direction to you as you follow Him in this life filled with authority figures who “do not understand”?
8. How can you be about “your Father’s business” in the year ahead?  
9. What stands out to you most from this message?  Any particular takeaway?

To access these questions in pdf format, click here!

 

To listen offline, click link below:

Prepare the Way 2

 

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Since 2015 I have had the distinct privilege of helping to guide various groups of people on tours of Israel.  I was invited into this opportunity by my friend Mark Burget, who guided many trips through the land of the Bible during his time with Search Ministry.

Mark (who passed from this life into eternity just over three years ago) and his wife Elaine were/are involved in many ministries in the Oklahoma City area over the years, one of which was the High School/Middle School ministry of Young Life.  As I understand it, in many ways Mark is the “Godfather” of Young Life in Cleveland County, helping to bring this ministry to the Norman area 40 years ago.

If you don’t know, Young Life is an evangelistic ministry to students and has expanded from its Texas roots to now having a presence in many countries worldwide.  It is not an exaggeration to say that Jesus has saved hundreds of thousands of young lives through this ministry over the years.   Incidentally, I was also involved as a Young Life leader during my time in seminary, and we support Young Life missionaries and ministries on two continents today.

On one trip to Israel, Mark Burget was enjoying dinner at a hotel on the Sea of Galilee when he saw a man wearing a T shirt that caught his eye.  On the front was a Young Life logo above the word “Nazareth.”  On the back, were the words “doing ministry where Jesus went to school.”  Given Mark’s background with Young Life, leading trips in Israel, and as a Christ follower, he fell in love with the shirt.  Striking up a conversation with the wearer of this shirt, Mark found out that there WAS indeed a Young Life ministry in the modern day city of Nazareth, and the next day, the owner of that shirt returned to the hotel giving Burget a version of the T-shirt he so admired.

Isn’t it wild to think of Jesus as a middle schooler?  How about as an 8 year old?  A toddler!?!  Imagine Him losing his teeth or cooing instead of speaking!  Imagine the creator of the universe, building His first chair in His father’s workshop.  Imagine the author of the world’s greatest best seller learning to read. What wild thoughts!

To be clear, when Jesus came to this earth He did not subtract His divinity, He added humanity … but He did so placing access to His divine capabilities under the direction of His Heavenly Father.  And (by the providence of God) presenting the divinity of Jesus to the world would take three decades to fully unveil.

Jesus really grew up.  He really had a childhood.  He really learned to walk.  He really had a gangly awkward phase where the proportions of His body were aligning.  He really had siblings that He grew up with and parents to which He submitted.

The Bible does not give us much information about the first 30 years of Jesus’ life, but in Luke 2:39-52, we get a snapshot of one central event in Jesus’ life that happened when He was 12 years old.  This Sunday, at Wildwood Community Church, we will look at those verses together in part 2 of our “Prepare the Way” series.

This section of Scripture is fascinating to look at for EVERYONE … but I think there are special things for us to see if we are a young person (under the age of 30), or if we are a parent/grandparent (responsible for someone under the age of 30), or if we are simply in a period of waiting and preparation in our own lives for things that may be decades away.  If any of this describes you or interests you, make plans to join us on Sunday in our 8:30, 9:45, or 11:00 service.  And if you know anyone that you think may want to hear this also … bring them with you!  See you Sunday!

On Sunday, January 4, 2025 at Wildwood Community Church I preached a sermon based on Luke 2:21-38.  This message was part 1 of our new series “Prepare the Way”.  Below you will find questions related to the message for personal reflection or group discussion.  You will also find audio and video of the message to listen to/watch, download, or share.

Sermon Questions:

1. Pray
2. Read Luke 2:21-38
3. In Jesus’ earthly lifetime, it was much easier (for His contemporaries) to imagine Him as the Jewish Messiah.  For us today, we most easily identify Him as the Savior of the world.  Why do you think it was easier for them to think in terms of “Messiah,” and easier for us to think in terms of “Savior of the world”?
4. How does the Old Testament point to Jesus?  How does Jesus help us understand the Old Testament?
5. Are you looking for a Bible reading plan for 2026?  Consider a one year chronological Bible reading plan on YouVersion or in print!
6. Simeon looked upon Jesus and said he saw the salvation of the Lord.  When you look at Jesus, who/what do you see?  Is Jesus’ YOUR Savior?
7. Anna told others of Jesus … the news was too good to keep to herself.  Who might you share the good news of Jesus with this year?  
8. What stands out to you most from this message?  Any particular takeaway?

To access these questions in pdf format, click here!

 

To listen offline, click link below:

Prepare the Way 1

 

To listen online, use media player below:

 

To watch the stream, use YouTube online:

 

 

 

Imagine you are an art teacher in a middle school in Italy.  You have a young, promising student who turns in a painting for his final assignment.  Young Leo’s subject is a waist-up portrait of a woman with a wry smile and arms folded.  You think the painting has promise … maybe even good enough to be the best in the school and might raise at least $100 at the PTO fundraiser auction at year’s end.

Imagine you are a high school music instructor in New York City.  You have the responsibility of casting the lead for the school’s musical.  At the tryouts, a young woman named Indi impressed you with her vocal range and stage presence.  You decide she is worthy of the lead and maybe the best the school has seen in many years.

Imagine you are tasked with determining which basketball team is the best in the state of Oklahoma.  There are some fantastic high school teams, a few very competitive college teams, but you have your eye on that group of pros in OKC … I think they call them the Thunder?  Yeah, Thunder.  They would probably get your vote as the best in the state!

Now in all three of these hypotheticals, your decisions would prove accurate, but a bit incomplete.

• If Leonardo Da Vinci would have painted the Mona Lisa as a middle school art project, it WOULD HAVE BEEN the best in the school.  It also would have fetched a nice price in a school fundraiser.  But saying it is best in school and worth at least $100 (though true) would be an understatement of its true value.  Many would say Leonardo Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa is the best in the history of the western world, and AI says it is worth $1.4 BILLION today! Best in school, yes … but so much more!
• Indina Menzel WOULD be a great lead in a high school play.  She has amazing vocal talent and is a phenomenal stage performer.  But saying she would be a good lead in the school play is an understatement of her true ability.  Indina Menzel has brought to life both Elphaba (from “Wicked”) on Broadway, and Elsa (from “Frozen”) on film.  Great lead in the school play, absolutely … but so much more!
• The OKC Thunder ARE the best basketball team in the state of Oklahoma.  No question about it.  But saying that they are the best in Oklahoma would be an understatement of their aptitude.  The OKC Thunder are the world champions of the NBA and on pace for another historically great season this year as they try for a repeat title.  Best in the state, of course … but so much more!

Now why do I run through these obvious examples today?  This Sunday at Wildwood Community Church, we are beginning 2026 with a new sermon series titled “Prepare the Way.”  This series will walk through Luke 2-4 and explore the first 30 years of Jesus’ earthly life.  In the opening chapters of Luke’s Gospel, in what we know as the Christmas story, we have seen Jesus referred to as the Jewish Messiah.  Certainly this is true!  But limiting Jesus’ impact and significance to one geographic area would be a vast understatement.  He is the Jewish Messiah, but He is also so much more … the Savior of the world!  These two notions (of Jesus as the Messiah and Savior) are not added back onto Jesus’ life as revisionist history.  They are things prophecized over Jesus by two prophets about 40 days after His birth.  We will see this in Luke 2:21-38 in part 1 of our series on Sunday.  We will be back to our normal schedule with full children, student, and adult programming.  Join us in either our 8:30, 9:45, or 11:00 service … and bring friends.  Let’s follow Jesus together and live for His glory in 2026.  To say following Jesus in the new year would be a good idea would be accurate, but way understated!