Sermon Series Caroling the Christmas Story: What Child is This?

Key Points from the Sermon

1. God’s presence meets us in uncertainty — Emmanuel means “God-with-us.”

Matthew’s story shows Joseph facing confusion, fear, and social risk. Yet the angel announces that this child is Emmanuel — God fully present in human vulnerability and human complexity.

2. Isaiah invites us to name the “stumps” in our lives and world honestly.

Hope doesn’t come by ignoring what has been cut down. Isaiah’s image of the stump of Jesse reminds us that acknowledging loss, failure, and exhaustion is the first step toward resurrection.

3. God brings new life from what seems dead — “a shoot from the stump.”

The Hebrew words ḥōṭer (shoot) and nēṣer (branch) depict God growing possibilities from places that appear barren. Even when we cannot perceive it, God is germinating life beneath the surface.

4. The child of Matthew and Isaiah disrupts old expectations and reshapes our imagination.

From Joseph’s quiet righteousness to Isaiah’s peaceable kingdom, this child reveals a different kind of power — one rooted in justice, compassion, and Spirit-led transformation.

Reflection Questions

1. Where do you see “stumps” in your own life — places that feel cut down, stalled, or depleted?

What emotions or stories are connected to those places?

2. How does the promise of “Emmanuel — God-with-us” speak to your current uncertainties or fears?

Where might God already be present in ways you haven’t recognized?

3. Where do you sense God bringing about small shoots of new life, hope, or imagination?

What tender beginnings might the Spirit be nurturing beneath the surface?

4. How might this child — this unexpected Savior — be inviting you to imagine justice, peace, and belonging differently?

How is your faith being stretched toward God’s deeper vision of shalom?