Christmas Study Guide- Day 11
Part of Christmas Study Guide
November 26, 2021

He Shall Be Called - Day 11

Life and Death Prophecy: The Messiah would speak to the people and teach them with parables.

Scripture: Read the prophecy – Psalm 78:2 – 4; Isaiah 6:9 - 10
Read the fulfillment – Matthew 13:10 – 15; Matthew 13:34 – 35

A parable has been defined as an earthly story that has a heavenly meaning. The teaching style of Jesus as He addressed the crowds that flocked to hear His message was through the use of parables. He knew this was an effective way to get folks to think about important issues and get them to change their thinking. He used this style of teaching to help people form new conclusions about basic truths rather than just tell people what to believe. The Pharisees often came to Jesus with a difficult question in a futile effort to trip Him up. Jesus usually addressed their issue with a parable that forced the Pharisees to analyze and discover the weakness of their own beliefs.

Many people today, both Christ followers and non-believers, don’t stop to analyze their own beliefs and actions. Someone once described this as “the tragedy of an un-examined life”. All of us would be well served to periodically examine what we believe and what we are doing with the time we have. God tells us many times in scripture that we should “be still and know that I am God”. There can be tremendous power in “Being still” before God and letting the Holy Spirit speak into our lives. If the God of the universe wants to speak directly to us, why would we ever be too busy to hear His thoughts and direction for our lives?

Q1. What is the difference between reading God’s Word and meditating on God’s Word?

Q2. Do you ever set aside time to just meditate on God’s truth and let it challenge the opinions that you have formed?

Q3. What changes could you make in your quiet time that might help you meditate on God’s truth and hear more effectively from the Holy Spirit?

Search me, O God, and know my heart today, try me, O Savior, know my thoughts, I pray;
See if there be some wicked way in me; cleanse me from every sin, and set me free.
I praise Thee, Lord, for cleansing me from sin; fulfill Thy word and make me pure within;
Fill me with fire, where once I burned with shame; grant my desire to magnify Thy name

PRAYER FOCUS: Lord, I want to hear from You. I want my thinking to be firmly planted on the foundation of Your word. I want Your word to change me from within by changing my heart and my desires. I don’t want my life to be about what I think but rather it should be about what You think. Help me to focus on You and hear Your truth.