Rise Up Shepherd And Follow - "Mary Had A Baby" Advent Bible Study- Lesson Two

Lesson Two

RISE UP

D R E H P SHE AND FOLLOW

Mary Had A Bible Advent Bible Study Material From: The Advent Bible Study “Mary Had A Baby” Cheryl A. Kirk-Duggan and Marilyn E. Thornton Questions By: Marben Bland www.zoom.us Meeting ID: 903 988 1805 Passcode: 982846 Call 301 715 8592 ID :903 988 1805 Passcode: 982846 www.Facebook.com/gbaathens

LESSON 2 TABLE OF

CONTENTS The Prominent Image Of The Shepherd

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Song Rise Up Shepherd And Follow

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Lyrics Rise Up Shepherd And Follow

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Luke 2:15

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Questions For Luke 2:15

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The Wise Men From Afar

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Matthew 2:1-12

08-09

Questions For Matthew 2:1-12

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Arise, Shine, for Your Light Has Come

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Arise, Shine, for Your Light Has Come

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Bonus Audio

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The Authors

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The Prominent Image Of The Shepherd From Abel, a keeper of sheep (Genesis 4:2); to God, the shepherd of Psalm 23; to the reprobate shepherds of Israel (Ezekiel 34); to Jesus, the good shepherd (John 10:11), the image of shepherd is prominent in biblical literature.

After his resurrection, Jesus instructed Peter to be a good shepherd, feed and take care of the sheep.

However, it was only by following Jesus—that is, by being a sheep—that he could be the right kind of shepherd. “Follow me,” said Jesus (John 21:15-19).

When Jesus comes back, he will come as a shepherd-king, separating those who have followed his way, being sheep, from those who have not, being goats. His way is described as feeding the hungry, giving water to the thirsty, visiting the imprisoned, and caring for the sick (Matthew 25:31-46). As we await his return, let us rise up like the shepherds in the Judean highlands and lead others to and in the light of Jesus Christ.

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Lesson Two

RISE UP

D R E H P SHE AND FOLLOW

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Lyrics

RISE UP SHEPHERD AND FOLLOW Verse 1: There’s a star in the east on Christmas morn; rise up, shepherd, and follow. It will lead to the place where the Christ was born; rise up, shepherd, and follow.

Verse 2: If you take good heed to the angel’s words; rise up, shepherd, and follow. You’ll forget your flocks, you’ll forget your herds; rise up, shepherd, and follow.

Refrain: Follow, follow, rise up, shepherd, and follow; rise up, shepherd, and follow. Follow the star of Bethlehem; rise up, shepherd, and follow.

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LUKE 2:15

15 When the angels returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go right now to Bethlehem and see what’s happened. Let’s confirm what the Lord has revealed to us.”

The Common English Bible

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Questions For

LUKE 2:15 1.Who were the Shepherds? What role they the play in society?

2.What role do shepherds play with God? Why did the angel of the Lord come to them?

3.What compelled the Shepherds to “confirm what the Lord has revealed to us.”

4.Why was it important for the Shepherds to be there with Jesus?

5.What messages does the story of Angles and The Shepherds provide? Especially for people who are oppressed.

15 When the angels returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go right now to Bethlehem and see what’s happened. Let’s confirm what the Lord has revealed to us.”

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The Wise Men From Afar

The shepherds were not the only ones who were watching, waiting, and wondering. There were astrologers in the East, the scientists of their day, wise men who studied the skies and the formation of the stars. Matthew reports that this priestly class discovered a new star either to the east or west of where they were situated. Both Persia (east) and Egypt (west) had a priestly class of wise men in their social system.

If the star was in the east, it would mean that the travelers came from the west—Egypt or Ethiopia. Our spiritual, however, directs shepherds, rather than kings or wise men, to follow the star.

It was against the law for enslaved persons to read. They could only hear the stories concerning Jesus’ birth. One such story was about wise men, and another was about shepherds.

A conventional reading of Luke and Matthew make it difficult for some to harmonize a setting of royalty, wealth, and knowledgeable strangers with that of mangers and sheep.

However, in a world in which African royalty, priests, and elders had become part of a chattel slavery system, in a world in which the creative imagination of the slave was not limited by convention or literacy, the two stories are reconciled in the spiritual “Rise Up, Shepherd, and Follow” with shepherds following the star.

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MATTHEW 2: 1-12 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in the territory of Judea during the rule of King Herod, magi came from the east to Jerusalem. 2 They asked, “Where is the newborn king of the Jews?

We’ve seen his star in the east, and we’ve come to honor him.” 3 When King Herod heard this, he was troubled, and everyone in Jerusalem was troubled with him. 4 He gathered all the chief priests and the legal experts and asked them where the Christ was to be born. 5 They said, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for this is what the prophet wrote: 6 You, Bethlehem, land of Judah, by no means are you least among the rulers of Judah, because from you will come one who governs, who will shepherd my people Israel.

7 Then Herod secretly called for the magi and found out from them when the star had first appeared.

The Common English Bible

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MATTHEW 2: 1-12 8 He sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go search carefully for the child. When you’ve found him, report to me so that I too may go and honor him.” 9 When they heard the king, they went; and look, the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stood over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they were filled with joy. 11 They entered the house and saw the child with Mary his mother. Falling to their knees, they honored him. Then they opened their treasure chests and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 12 Because they were warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they went back to their own country by another route.

The Common English Bible

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Questions For

MATTHEW 2:1-12 1.Who were the Wise Men? What role they the play in society?

2.How did the Wise Men discover the birth of Jesus? Contrast their discovery with the Shepherds?

3.What compelled the Wise Men to “confirm what the Lord has revealed to us.”

4.Why was it important for the Wise Men to be there with Jesus?

5.How did the Angle of the Lord interact with the Wise Men? 6.What messages does the story of Wise Men and the Shepherds provide? Especially for people who are oppressed.

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Arise, Shine, for Your Light Has Come The role of shepherd certainly was relatable to the African American slave. Although very necessary to a functioning economy, in most cultures, shepherding is a dirty, isolating job, not unlike being a slave. Christmas, however, was a special time for those enslaved. The season was not only a time to celebrate the birth of Jesus, sometimes receiving small gifts or new clothing, it was a time to celebrate themselves.

By replacing Matthew’s priestly travelers with persons of lowly estate, the slave songsters subtly created a revolution in status for themselves. They became the wise seekers because they were following the star that leads to the place where salvation is found. Nevertheless, many plantation owners were hesitant for slaves to become Christians. They thought that if slaves experienced spiritual liberation, they would also want physical liberation.

From colonial times, laws were put in place to make sure that both the enslaved and the slaveholder understood that this was not to be. In 1664, Maryland was the first colony to pass a law stating that baptism had no effect on the social status of slaves.

This put an end to judicial decisions that had freed slaves after baptism. North Carolina, New Jersey, New York, South Carolina, and Virginia quickly followed this example. By 1671, the Maryland law was expanded to include Blacks who had been converted before enslavement. Slaveholders feared losing their investment.

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Arise, Shine, for Your Light Has Come The lyrics for “Rise Up, Shepherd, and Follow,” would have been ample proof for their concern. In singing this song, the slaves admonished one another over and over to rise up and to follow.

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Bonus Audio

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The Authors Cheryl A. Kirk-Duggan is an African-American womanist theologian, professor, author, poet, and an elder in the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church. She is ProfessorEmerita of Religion and Women's Studies and Director of Women's Studies at Shaw University Divinity School.

Marilyn E. Thornton (Master of Divinity, Vanderbilt) has degrees in music from Howard University and from the Peabody Conservatory of the Johns Hopkins University. She is the lead editor for Abingdon Press’s Bible study series based on spirituals RTTable Of Content

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Greater Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church 140 Rose Street Athens, Georgia 30606 The Reverend Marben Bland, Pastor

Bible Study Thursday @ 7:00 PM ET www.zoom.us Meeting ID: 903 988 1805 Passcode: 982846 Call 301 715 8592 ID :903 988 1805 Passcode: 982846

www.gbaathens.org RTTable Of Content