Luke 2

New International Version (NIV)

The Birth of Jesus

2 In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. ² (This was the first census that took place while^[a] Quirinius was governor of Syria.) ³ And everyone went to their own town to register.

⁴ So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. ⁵ He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. ⁶ While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, ⁷ and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.
⁸ And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night.⁹ An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. ¹⁰ But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. ¹¹ Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah,the Lord. ¹² This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
¹³ Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

¹⁴ “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
    and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

¹⁵ When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

¹⁶ So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger.¹⁷ When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, ¹⁸ and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. ¹⁹ But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. ²⁰ The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.
²¹ On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise the child, he was named Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he was conceived.

How to tell if you are proud or humble... Which one hits you the hardest?

1. Proud people… are self-protective of their time, their rights, and their reputation.

Humble people…are self-denying.

2. Proud people…are wounded when others are promoted and they are overlooked.

Humble people…are eager for others to get the credit and rejoice when others  are lifted up.

3. Proud people…feel confident in what they know.

Humble people…are humbled by how very much they have to learn.

4. Proud people…keep others at arms’ length.

Humble people…are willing to risk getting close to others and to take risks of loving intimately.

5. Proud people…are unapproachable or defensive when criticized.

Humble people…receive criticism with a humble open spirit.

6. Proud people…tend to deal in generalities when confessing sin.

Humble people…are able to acknowledge specifics when confessing their sin.

7. Proud people…are concerned about the consequences of their sin.

Humble people…are grieved over the cause, the root of their sin.

8. Proud people…compare themselves with others and feel worthy of honor.

Humble people…compare themselves to the holiness of God and feel desperate need for His mercy.

9. Proud people…have to prove they are right.

Humble people…are not argumentative.

10. Proud people…desire to be served.

Humble people…are motivated to serve others.

Luke 1: 67-80

Zechariah's Prophecy

⁶⁷ And his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit andprophesied, saying,

⁶⁸ “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
    for he has visited and redeemed his people
⁶⁹ and has raised up a horn of salvation for us
     in the house of his servant David,
⁷⁰ as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old,
⁷¹ that we should be saved from our enemies
    and from the hand of all who hate us;
⁷² to show the mercy promised to our fathers
    and to remember his holy covenant,
⁷³ the oath that he swore to our father Abraham, to grant us
⁷⁴     that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies,
might serve him without fear,
⁷⁵      in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.
⁷⁶ And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High;
    for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,
⁷⁷ to give knowledge of salvation to his people
     in the forgiveness of their sins,
⁷⁸ because of the tender mercy of our God,
    whereby the sunrise shall visit us^[h] from on high
⁷⁹ to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
    to guide our feet into the way of peace.”

⁸⁰  And the child grew and became strong in spirit, and he wasin the wilderness until the day of his public appearance to Israel.

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Luke 1: 57-66

The Birth of John the Baptist

⁵⁷ Now the time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son. ⁵⁸ And her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lordhad shown great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her.⁵⁹ And on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child. And they would have called him Zechariah after his father,⁶⁰ but his mother answered, “No; he shall be called John.”⁶¹ And they said to her, “None of your relatives is called by this name.” ⁶² And they made signs to his father, inquiring what he wanted him to be called. ⁶³ And he asked for a writing tablet and wrote, “His name is John.” And they all wondered.⁶⁴  And immediately his mouth was opened and his tongueloosed, and he spoke, blessing God. ⁶⁵ And fear came on all their neighbors. And all these things were talked about through all the hill country of Judea, ⁶⁶ and all who heard them laid them up in their hearts, saying, “What then will this child be?” For the hand of the Lord was with him.

Luke 1:26-56

The Birth of Jesus Foretold

²⁶ In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, ²⁷ to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. ²⁸ The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”

²⁹ Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. ³⁰ But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. ³¹ You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. ³² He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, ³³ and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”

³⁴ “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”

³⁵ The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called^[b] the Son of God. ³⁶ Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. ³⁷ For no word from God will ever fail.”

³⁸ “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her.

Mary Visits Elizabeth

³⁹ At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, ⁴⁰ where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth. ⁴¹ When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. ⁴² In a loud voice she exclaimed: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! ⁴³ But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? ⁴⁴ As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. ⁴⁵ Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!”

Mary’s Song

⁴⁶ And Mary said:

“My soul glorifies the Lord 
⁴⁷     and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, 
⁴⁸ for he has been mindful
    of the humble state of his servant. 
From now on all generations will call me blessed, 
⁴⁹     for the Mighty One has done great things for me—
    holy is his name. 
⁵⁰ His mercy extends to those who fear him,
    from generation to generation. 
⁵¹ He has performed mighty deeds with his arm; 
    he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts. 
⁵² He has brought down rulers from their thrones
    but has lifted up the humble. 
⁵³ He has filled the hungry with good things 
    but has sent the rich away empty.
⁵⁴ He has helped his servant Israel,
    remembering to be merciful 
⁵⁵ to Abraham and his descendants forever,
    just as he promised our ancestors.”

⁵⁶ Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months and then returned home.

Luke 1:1-25

Luke 1

English Standard Version (ESV)

Dedication to Theophilus

1 Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that have been accomplished among us, ²  just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word have delivered them to us, ³ it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, ⁴ that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught.

Birth of John the Baptist Foretold

⁵  In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah,^[a] of the division of Abijah. And he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.⁶ And they were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord.⁷ But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were advanced in years.


⁸ Now while he was serving as priest before God when his division was on duty, ⁹ according to the custom of the priesthood, he was chosen by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense. ¹⁰ And the whole multitude of the people were praying outside at the hour of incense. ¹¹ And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. ¹² And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him. ¹³ But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. ¹⁴ And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, ¹⁵ for he will be great before the Lord. And he must not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb. ¹⁶ And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, ¹⁷ and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.”


¹⁸ And Zechariah said to the angel, “How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.” ¹⁹ And the angel answered him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news. ²⁰ And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time.”²¹ And the people were waiting for Zechariah, and they were wondering at his delay in the temple. ²² And when he came out, he was unable to speak to them, and they realized that he had seen a vision in the temple. And he kept making signs to them and remained mute. ²³ And when his time of service was ended, he went to his home.


²⁴ After these days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and for five months she kept herself hidden, saying, ²⁵ “Thus the Lord has done for me in the days when he looked on me, to take away my reproach among people.”

Luke

Hello lovely ladies,

Joanne and I have decided to embark on a journey...and read the book of LUKE!
It is the book that will be studied during the Urbana conference, and we thought it would be a great idea to have studied it/read it on our own first.

We are inviting you to do the same! Join us as we try to tackle the 24 chapters before December :)

Our plan is to read 1 section each day, so that we can finish 1 chapter each week. This is just a baseline for us to follow...you are more than encouraged to read 'ahead'...read as much of the Bible as you want!! haha

After reading 1 section, we will be posting the passage and commenting on it...about how the passage spoke to us or how God has been speaking to you.

So let us know if you would like us to keep you accountable and vice versa :)

This will not be easy, I guarantee that! But with some prayer and perseverance on our part, it is not impossible because He is faithful.

Work in the summer

what I spend my days doing...!