A Long-Ago Birth in a Right-Now World - by Michael B Brown (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John each has his own way of telling the Story of stories--an account of the arrival of the Messiah into our world. Each author writes to a unique audience with a specific purpose in mind for addressing them as he does. But in every case, the author's message connects not only with his specific readers back then, but also with us personally here and now. The Story becomes our story. A Long-Ago Birth in a Right-Now World brings the meaning of Bethlehem from a manger to our doorsteps, where it intersects with our personal needs and fears, hopes and dreams, guilt and grief, priorities, relationships, and spiritual journeys in an oftentimes challenging world.

Review Quotes

"For pastors grappling for novel insights on the Christmas story, this book is a welcome addition to your library. With his wisdom and wit, Brown fleshes out the familiar passages by engaging fresh images and inspiring stories. Brown has the unique ability to weave the ancient texts with relevant anecdotes and gently lead us to experience the Christmas story anew."
--Lara "Willis" Greene, senior minister, First United Methodist Church

"These reflections on the familiar Christmas stories remind us of what we already know with fresh and imaginative insight that sparkle on the page. Reading these pages is like pulling up a chair with someone of uncommon wisdom and listening to the familiar with renewed wonder and discovery. Michael Brown's wide and ever-growing audience will return to these pages again and again!"
--W. Douglas Hood, senior pastor, First Presbyterian Church

"Each Michael Brown sermon is a master class in preaching. Here, with sermons put to page, the depths of God's Spirit will call to the depths within you as Brown retells the backstory and understory of God's in-breaking that we have come to know as the Christmas story. Be prepared to be awakened to the miracle that is Christmas."
--Preston Davis, minister, High Point University

"In this relevant devotional collection, Brown reflects on the Christmas story of yesterday and today. . . . Brown's meditations remind us to absorb the warmth of the incarnation into the precious parts of our spiritual, psychological, and social well-being. Biblically sound, historically accurate, philosophically profound, and pastorally practical, A Long-Ago Birth in a Right-Now World invites the reader to worship and
reflect."
--Micah L. McCreary, New Brunswick Theological Seminary

About the Author

Michael B. Brown, for many years the senior minister of Marble Collegiate Church in New York City, has been featured on national television specials for ABC, NBC, and PBS. While in New York, he was viewed each week in 167 different countries via live-streaming. He currently teaches biblical studies at High Point University, leads preaching cohorts for practicing pastors at Duke University Divinity School, and travels nationally as a preacher, lecturer, and keynote speaker.