Luke’s Canticles

Go Deeper into the Christmas Story! The course is based on the book Songs in Waiting by Paul Gordon-Chandler which weaves together the perspectives of the four stories from Luke with insights from artists, prayers, and hymns from around the world. It provides a glimpse through many centuries and cultures of God’s coming among us. Luke’s songs are the songs of Advent and Christmas. As such they are timeless. These stories celebrate the beautiful nature of God together with qualities of love, devotion and sacrifice. The 4 songs show different responses to Christ. They effectively illustrate the feelings of the characters, draw the reader into the story, and movingly teach broader doctrine. Like Matthew’s formula quotations, Luke’s canticles connect his story with the Old Testament past and draw upon its promises. The canticles in particular draw on the books of Genesis and Samuel. They are songs of adoration about the wonderful surprises of God and God’s faithfulness. The theme through the stories is praise. There are 4 main characters (Mary, Zechariah, the Shepherds, Simeon), 4 main texts (The Magnificat, Benedictus, Gloria and Nunc Dimitis) and 4 themes (Praise and adoration of God, Mercy, Gloria, and Freedom): A. Mary – Magnificat – Praise and adoration of God B. Zechariah -Benedictus – Mercy C. The Shepherds -Gloria – Greatness of God resulting in praise D. Simeon -Nunc Dimitis – Freedom

Course Instructor

Ben Hicks Author

• Enrollment in this course closed on .