Kyle Haack

For this Advent series, we decided to focus on the implications of the incarnation—the “already” side of the equation—by pairing passages from Romans with the narratives around Jesus’ birth. Those stories were represented by our Advent candles, lit by people in costume to bring the stories to life for our children. We also added a large, wrapped present representing the gifts each week (hope, love, joy, peace, and Jesus himself). On Christmas Eve we heard the surprising news from Romans 8 that the birth of Jesus means that we also are children of God. We ended our series on the Sunday after Christmas by contemplating our change in status: no longer are we slaves to sin; now we are slaves to righteousness.