Sharon Reformed Presbyterian Church · Sermon study sheet

The King is Born

Bryan Schneider · December 23, 2023

Luke 1:26-38

sharonrpc.org/sermons/the-king-is-born

Summary

Gabriel comes not to Jerusalem's elite but to Mary in an obscure Galilean village, showing God's surprising choice of a humble servant for an unmatched privilege.
Mary's promised son is named Jesus because the Lord saves; he is the Holy One, Son of the Highest, and Son of God.
Jesus fulfills God's covenant with David by receiving David's throne, reigning over Jacob forever, and possessing a kingdom without end.
Mary's virginity creates a genuinely supernatural problem answered by the Spirit's creative power, not by ordinary generation.
Elizabeth's pregnancy supplies a confirming sign that nothing is impossible with God, and Mary responds with believing submission to God's Word.
Mary is uniquely favored as the mother of Jesus but remains a recipient and servant of grace rather than an object of worship.
Luke presents the conception as an orderly eyewitness history, not myth; the virgin birth is anti-naturalistic but not irrational for the Creator.
The child is fully human and fully divine, the promised King who now reigns and will return; citizenship in his kingdom comes through faith in the Savior.

Why does Gabriel's destination in Nazareth matter to the story?
Which promises to David are fulfilled in the angel's announcement?
Why does Mary's own question establish that the conception is miraculous?
How does the Spirit's overshadowing echo God's creative work?
What is the proper way to honor Mary without turning a recipient of grace into an object of worship?
How does Luke describe the historical method and purpose of his Gospel?
Why is the virgin birth coherent if God is Creator?
What does it mean for Jesus to be fully God and fully man in one person?
How does a sinner enter the eternal King's kingdom?

Virgin conception: The Holy Spirit's miraculous conception of Jesus in Mary without an earthly father.
Incarnation: The eternal Son of God taking a complete human nature while remaining fully divine in one person.
Son of David: The promised royal heir who fulfills God's covenant that David's throne and kingdom would be established forever.
Jesus: The name Yeshua, meaning that the Lord saves, identifying the child's saving mission.
Hypostatic union: The inseparable union of Christ's complete divine and human natures in his one person without confusion or change.
Saving faith: Receiving God's testimony about Christ and trusting the crucified, risen, reigning Savior.