Voices of Advent: The Bible's Insights for a Season of Hope
Experience Advent with the Scriptures that inspire Christmas.
In Voices of Advent, Matthew L. Skinner leads readers through biblical texts and explores how they shape our lives and Christmas celebrations. We listen as Jesus promises to return to us in the future, to John the Baptist as he prepares the way for the Messiah, to the faithful people and poets who anticipate the magnificence of Jesus’s birth, and to the angels and visionaries who praise God when Christmas dawns. Listen carefully to the Bible’s various perspectives that shape our preparations for Christmas; you’ll hear hope in all of them. Voices of Advent helps readers experience Advent not only as the start of the Christian Church Year, but also as the powerful overture that sets the tone for the incredible story of Jesus
In addition to the book, other study components include a Leader Guide and video available on DVD.
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Endorsements for Voices of Advent
This book invites us to experience Advent at a level far deeper than simple sentimentality. Instead, Advent opens us to a frustration that the world isn’t as God would have it and the assurance that God is moving, right now, to bring life and healing. We won't find a more friendly guide than Matt Skinner, whose lively writing conveys profound scriptural insight.
—Greg Carey, Professor of New Testament Lancaster Theological Seminary/The Seminary at Moravian University
In Voices of Advent, Matthew Skinner doesn’t just guide us through a season; he invites us into a holy conversation across time. Drawing on the full texture of Scripture, Skinner lets the voices of prophets, angels, poets, and preachers stir our own. These voices call us to hope, to long, and to wait expectantly for newness and what God has in store. If Advent has ever felt like a blur of candles and countdowns, Voices invites you into the depth, grit, and grace of it all!
—Matt Rawle, Lead Pastor, Asbury United Methodist Church; author of The Heart That Grew Three Sizes: Finding Faith in the Story of the Grinch
Our congregation is looking forward to walking through Advent with Matthew Skinner’s newest book as our guide. Matthew makes the story and impact of Scripture approachable and engaging and helps us slow down and contemplate the history, majesty, and mystery of Christmas through a reflective yet actively hope-filled Advent. Matthew’s writing sings with the poetry of the hymns that embody Advent themes, and throughout, he brings us hospitably into an ongoing conversation Christians have been having for two thousand years, meeting the world’s desolation with God’s loving and transformative imagination.
—Michael Hegeman, Associate Pastor for Adult Faith Formation, Pinnacle Presbyterian Church
From beginning to end, Matthew Skinner, kept me on the edge of my seat, waiting and wanting to hear more and more of Voices of Advent. In this book, he combines his depth of biblical knowledge with his warm and accessible style of writing to bring the voices of Advent found in the Gospels to life for all of us. This is a must read for Advent!
—Susan Robb, author of The Angels of Christmas: Hearing God’s Voice in Advent
About the Author
Matthew L. Skinner is the Asher O. and Carrie Nasby Professor of New Testament at Luther Seminary in Saint Paul and the Scholar for Adult Education at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Minneapolis. His published works include resources for church leaders and laypeople who are interested in the Bible’s connections to faith and life. He is the author of Matthew: The Gospel of Promised Blessings and Acts: Catching Up with the Spirit and is a longtime cohost of Sermon Brainwave, a weekly podcast that accompanies preachers as they interpret biblical texts to prepare their sermons.
Matthew Skinner
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