THE LESSONS

Lesson 1: Micah 5:2-5a
Out of Bethlehem will come a shepherd king who will be great. Micah was a prophet of the seventh century during the reigns of Ahaz and Hezekiah. The first three chapters are considered to be the work of Micah, but chapters 4 and 5 are believed to be the work of an unknown author writing during or near the end of the Babylonian exile. In the dark years of the exile, the Jews looked for a restoration of the nation under a Davidic shepherd-king who, like David, would be born in Bethlehem. Matthew sees the passage as a promise fulfilled that Christ would be born in Bethlehem.

Lesson 2: Hebrews 10:5-10
Christ came to the world to do the will of God by offering himself as a sacrifice. The author of Hebrews points to the finality and all-sufficiency of Chris…