In this 5-session Advent study, take a closer look at the Christmas story and the hope revealed in the lives of people in the Bible whose obedience and yeses to God's plans, even in difficult times, gave them great joy and led to God's glory in their lives and generations to come. As we explore the hope that Jesus brings, we'll learn to trust God's care for us as His beloved children in both times of abundance and times of lament. No matter what you're facing, at just the right time, in the fullness of time, God will act on your behalf too. In fact, He already has. In the advent season, we celebrate God's kindness to us, even as we wait on the future hope to come. Features: Personal study segments with homework to complete between 5 weeks of group sessions Leader helps to guide questions and discussions within small groups Beautiful, full-color interior to enhance the study experience Specific Advent activities for kids, students, and adults Benefits: Be encouraged to obey God despite difficult circumstances. Be reminded that God, in His sovereignty, works on behalf of His children at just the right time. Study the Christmas story and many of the individual stories of God's people in the Bible to capture the wonder of the holiday season. Consider how your testimony of faith may extend to generations in the future.

Often our Advent/Christmas journey is focused on us our memories, feelings, relationships and experiences. This study puts the focus on Gods action in Jesus Christ. It encourages participants to think more deeply in terms of the biblical, theological and spiritual meaning of the Nativity, while still applying it to their own life experience.

"O Come, O Come, Emmanuel, and ransom captive Israel..." The familiar carol rings true with beauty and grace, but few stop to consider the deep theology of this tune. O Come, O Come, Emmanuel: An Advent Study explores Jesus' work on our behalf in the message of Christmas. This study will not only fuel our worship of Jesus, but help the reader foster steadfast love anchored in biblical truth now and all year long. Readers will more fully understand the anticipation and waiting that the Old Testament world endured, the light and life Jesus came to bring us, and the eternal promise that Jesus is yet ushering us into. This beautiful resource will also include advent activities to help kids, students, and adults celebrate the Christmas season together. This Christmas season, set your focus on the anticipation and joy that only Christ can bring in this study of Advent. Features: Leader helps for group discussion 4 weeks of personal study to be completed between the 5 group sessions Beautiful 4-color interior to enhance the reader's experience Specific Advent activities for kids, students, and adults Benefits: Allow a deeper understanding of Advent to fuel your worship of Christ. Understand deeper theological truths of Christmas. Learn more about Jesus and how His coming brings us hope, light, wisdom, and gospel unity.

Rediscover the improbable story of Christmas. Four thousand years ago, God promised he would do something through the bloodline of Abraham. Two thousand years later, Jesus was born. And two thousand years after that, we’re still talking about it. Why? The story of Jesus’ birth was not what anyone expected: a baby . . . born in the armpit of the Mediterranean . . . to save us from sins that no one thought we needed saving from. This Christmas season, join Andy Stanley as he unpacks why the improbability of the Christmas story is what makes it so believable. No one could have or would have made it up. The Who Needs Christmas Study Guide includes session overviews, video teaching notes, discussion questions, personal reflection material, and a leader’s guide. Sessions include: The Story Behind the Story The Author of Life The Message of Christmas Ready or Not . . . He Is Coming Designed for use with the Who Needs Christmas / Why Easter Matters Video Study (9780310121121), sold separately. Streaming video also available.

How is our Christian hope both expressed and experienced in contemporary worship? In this Dynamics of Christian Worship volume, pastor, theologian, and songwriter Glenn Packiam explores what Christians sing about when they sing about hope and what kind of hope they experience when they worship together.

For years Christians have been asking, "If you died tonight, do you know where you would go?" It turns out that many believers have been giving the wrong answer. It is not heaven. Award-winning author N. T. Wright outlines the present confusion about a Christian's future hope and shows how it is deeply intertwined with how we live today. Wright, who is one of today's premier Bible scholars, asserts that Christianity's most distinctive idea is bodily resurrection. He provides a magisterial defense for a literal resurrection of Jesus and shows how this became the cornerstone for the Christian community's hope in the bodily resurrection of all people at the end of the age. Wright then explores our expectation of "new heavens and a new earth," revealing what happens to the dead until then and what will happen with the "second coming" of Jesus. For many, including many Christians, all this will come as a great surprise. Wright convincingly argues that what we believe about life after death directly affects what we believe about life before death. For if God intends to renew the whole creation—and if this has already begun in Jesus's resurrection—the church cannot stop at "saving souls" but must anticipate the eventual renewal by working for God's kingdom in the wider world, bringing healing and hope in the present life. Lively and accessible, this book will surprise and excite all who are interested in the meaning of life, not only after death but before it.