The Advent Season
The Miracle Of Christmas
01 - Promise Of The Christ Child
November 25, 2012 • Pastor Ronald H. Gann
Christmas is not about children fables. It’s not meant to tell the story of jolly Old St. Nick who lavishes children with gifts, depending upon whether they are naughty or nice. Rather, Christmas tells the story of the Christ-Child -- the God Man -- first promised in Genesis 3 and made Manifest in Matthew 1. In this Advent series, Pastor Ronald H. Gann examines the Promise, the Proclamation, the Proof, the Prophecy, and the Premiere of the Christ child as well as the Christmas traditions behind the candy stick, Christmas tree, and wreath.
02 - Proclamation Of The Christ Child
December 2, 2012 • Pastor Ronald H. Gann
The first proclamation of the Christ-child of Christmas happened in the unlikeliest of places and to the unlikeliest of parents. Moreover, it revealed the unlikeliest of pregnancies. In this Advent series, Pastor Ronald H. Gann examines the Promise, the Proclamation, the Proof, the Prophecy, and the Premiere of the Christ child as well as the Christmas traditions behind the candy stick, Christmas tree, and wreath.
03 - Proof Of The Christ Child
December 9, 2012 • Pastor Ronald H. Gann
Of all the herculean announcements that God has made to mankind throughout history, as recorded in His Word, His announcement to Mary about the birth of the Christ-child of Christmas is one of only a few in the Bible where God offered a miraculous sign to substantiate His promise. In this Advent series, Pastor Ronald H. Gann examines the Promise, the Proclamation, the Proof, the Prophecy, and the Premiere of the Christ child as well as the Christmas traditions behind the candy stick, Christmas tree, and wreath.
04 - Prophecy Of The Christ Child
December 16, 2012 • Pastor Ronald H. Gann
It can be difficult to see how Jesus came as the embodiment of peace if one were to judge it by the political climate of the day. But that’s exactly who Jesus is—the Prince of Peace—and that’s precisely what he did. However, it's evident that world peace was not the type peace that Jesus brought on Christmas morning. The babe in Bethlehem brought a much greater peace than we could ever possibly imagine, much less hope for. In this Advent series, Pastor Ronald H. Gann examines the Promise, the Proclamation, the Proof, the Prophecy, and the Premiere of the Christ child as well as the Christmas traditions behind the candy stick, Christmas tree, and wreath.
05 - Premiere Of The Christ Child
December 23, 2012 • Pastor Ronald H. Gann
Beginning with Christmas morning 2,000 years ago and culminating on the cross of Calvary some 33 years later, Christ came to save sinners. Despite all our sinful rebellion and our hatred toward God and the things of God, in His great mercy and surpassing grace, God came down to us so that He might reconcile us to Himself. Christmas represents the Grace of God in action. In this Advent series, Pastor Ronald H. Gann examines the Promise, the Proclamation, the Proof, the Prophecy, and the Premiere of the Christ child as well as the Christmas traditions behind the candy stick, Christmas tree, and wreath.
06 - Unlikeliness Of Christmas
November 25, 2018 • Pastor Ronald H. Gann
Christmas is not about mistletoe, reindeer, elves, and jingle bells. Nor is it about wish lists and snowball fights. Christmas is about knowing the God who made you and who gave you the greatest gift you will ever receive—a gift that came on Christmas morning in the form of a little baby born in a dingy cave, amid the odor of animals, a sweaty mother, and smelly shepherds. In this Advent series, Pastor Ronald H. Gann examines the Promise, the Proclamation, the Proof, the Prophecy, and the Premiere of the Christ child as well as the Christmas traditions behind the candy stick, Christmas tree, and wreath.
07 - Candy Stick Of Christmas
December 2, 2018 • Pastor Ronald H. Gann
Legend has it that what started off as a makeshift pacifier for unruly children overcome with boredom with medieval Christmas sermons soon became a worldwide phenomenon that teaches through symbolism the meaning of Christmas. The birth of Jesus Christ--the Good Shepherd--announced first to lowly shepherds of Bethlehem who were keeping their flocks by night, is the meaning behind the Candy Cane of Christmas. In this Advent series, Pastor Ronald H. Gann examines the Promise, the Proclamation, the Proof, the Prophecy, and the Premiere of the Christ child as well as the Christmas traditions behind the candy stick, Christmas tree, and wreath.
08 - Tannenbaum Of Christmas
December 9, 2018 • Pastor Ronald H. Gann
In 723, the Christmas tree was born. But it’s one thing to plant an evergreen tree in one's home every winter to commemorate the birth of Christ but it’s another thing altogether to decorate it with ornaments of illumination. What does the symbolism of the Christmas tree mean? In this Advent series, Pastor Ronald H. Gann examines the Promise, the Proclamation, the Proof, the Prophecy, and the Premiere of the Christ child as well as the Christmas traditions behind the candy stick, Christmas tree, and wreath.
09 - Wreath Of Christmas
December 16, 2018 • Pastor Ronald H. Gann
The Christmas Wreath not only marks the time until Christmas, but it illustrates how the baby born in Bethlehem 2,000 years ago on that first Christmas morning was a king, a warrior, and a savior all rolled into one. It's the child of Christmas who gives to those who believe in him and come to him in repentance the gift of eternal life. In this Advent series, Pastor Ronald H. Gann examines the Promise, the Proclamation, the Proof, the Prophecy, and the Premiere of the Christ child as well as the Christmas traditions behind the candy stick, Christmas tree, and wreath.
10 - Miracle Of Christmas
December 23, 2018 • Pastor Ronald H. Gann
What is the true meaning of Christmas? It is the perennial question heard year after year among the faithful and faithless alike. At the heart of the nativity story is the answer. Amid the most unlikely of circumstances and to the most unlikely of parents, God incarnated Himself—in the person of Jesus Christ—in order to reconcile sinners to Himself. But exactly why is Christ's birth so significant beyond the affirmation of a historical fact, a theological truth, or a creedal confession? In this Advent series, Pastor Ronald H. Gann examines the Promise, the Proclamation, the Proof, the Prophecy, and the Premiere of the Christ child as well as the Christmas traditions behind the candy stick, Christmas tree, and wreath.