Our children's nativity play this year begins and ends in the carpenters workshop and talks about Jesus growing up there and learning his father's trade.
Although the very last line does talk about how he died [and rose] for us.

Whilst I understand what DK is saying, I am also conscious that many of the people who come in to our building in the next few weeks may genuinely never have made any connnection between the cradle and the cross.

It is VITAL to help people realise the glory of the Incarnation - but is it not also CRUCIAL to share the joy of the Resurrection?

blessings, as you prepare all those Christmas sermons!!

Hi Angela, thanks for you comment. David had certialy got people thinking, which must be good.

I guess it is about knowing our own context and our own heart.

In my place, with the exception of our community carol service that simply lets scripture speak and has no sermon, it will be predominantly church folk at servcies and the visitors we have mainly family, freinds or people from other churches holidaying in Glasgow. For us, as we seek to be Kingdom people, living out the Kingdom manifesto, at this time the right thing is to centre on incarnation.

Hopefully, and with God's gracious drawing and convicting, peoplw who have not yet encountered the mystery of calvary will find they want to know more and the Jesus who attracts as a man can in time be recognised as Lord... a rather Johanine view I suspect. I think (as did Peter Grange I know and whose wisdom I valued) that conversion and disicpleship are both as much, if not more, process than event.

Thnakfully God can overturn my mess-ups in theology and practice!

Thnak you for making me think too - it's good for my brain!