04A - Advent 4A — 05A - Christmas Day
See also my post from 2016
CALL TO WORSHIP
Psalm 96:1 – 2
Sing to the LORD a new song,
sing to the LORD all the earth;
bless the name of the LORD,
tell of God’s saving acts day after day!
SING: Hymn 227: Hark! the herald angels
Psalm 96:3 – 6
Proclaim the greatness of the LORD around the world;
recount God?s marvellous works to all the peoples.
The LORD is great and greatly to be praised;
to be held in holy awe above all other gods.
For all the gods we make are good for nothing;
it is the LORD who made the heavens.
Honour and majesty are before our God;
strength and beauty are in God?s holy place.
SING: Hymn 224: Joy to the world.
Psalm 96:7 – 9
Honour and majesty are before our God;
strength and beauty are in God?s holy place.
Say of the LORD, all you families of the peoples;
say of the LORD, “Glory and strength”.
give to the LORD the glory due God?s name,
bring an offering and come into the courts of the LORD.
Bow down before the LORD in holy splendour
tremble before the LORD, all the earth.
SING: Hymn 241 Child in the manger
Psalm 96:10 – 13
Say among the nations: The LORD is king!
The world is set firm, immovable;
God will judge the peoples justly.
Let the cosmos be glad, let the earth rejoice;
let the sea roar, and all that is in it.
Let pasture, stock and crop shout;
then all the trees of the scrubland will sing for joy before the LORD,
for the LORD is coming, coming to judge the earth.
The LORD God will rule the earth with justice,
and all the peoples with faithfulness.
PRAYER OF ADORATION (in which images from Isaiah 9:2-7 are used to reflect on our less than perfect world.)
Holy mystery we name God,
we worship you.
You give hope to those who are yoked
to the burden of injustice, oppression, loneliness, and grief:
in lovjngkindness you have shone a great light
into the deep darkness of our world.
You give hope to those who suffer
under the rod of famine and war:
in your faithfulness you have established
a kingdom of endless peace.
You give hope to those whose shoulders ache
under the bar of apartheid and religious persecution:
in solidarity with humanity
you establish justice without end.
You give hope to those crushed by the tramping warriors
of homelessness, unemployment, intolerance:
by grace you reveal to us your action for putting things right.
Therefore we worship you;
Source of life,
Word of life,
Breath of life. Amen
For Christmas Day
Light shining
in a darkened cave:
cloth bindings carefully enfold
new life.
A borrowed birth place declares
“Hope is born!”
Light shining
in a darkened cave:
cloth bindings carefully folded –
lifeless.
A borrowed burial chamber declares
“Hope is Risen!”
Nothing can separate us
from your love:
we give you thanks and praise,
holy mystery and source of life. Amen.
A CREATIVE MOMENT
Click here for some ideas for worship in Advent and Christmas gleaned from the pages of “On the Move” (now out of print), originally published by the Joint Board of Christian Education, Melbourne, Australia.
Looking for contemporary music and song resources?
Try David MacGregor’s Together to Celebrate
| HYMN SUGGESTIONS FOR CHRISTMAS EVE | |
| Let earth & heaven combine | TIS 305 |
| O, how joyfully, O, how hopefully, | TIS 330 |
| Silent night, holy night | TIS 311 |
| When God almighty came to be one of us | TIS 281 |
| ISAIAH 9 | |
| Beauty for brokenness | TIS 690 |
| King of glory,King of peace | TIS 201 |
| Light one candle for hope | TIS 286 |
| O day of God, draw near | TIS 616 |
| The people that in darkness walked | TIS 274 |
| To us a child of royal birth | TIS 308 |
| PSALM 96 | |
| Creation sings a new song to the Lord | TIS 166 |
| Joy to the world, the Lord is come | TIS 268 |
| Let all mortal flesh keep silence | TIS 497 |
| Wake, awake! for night is flying | TIS 266 |
| Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness | TIS 454 |
| TITUS 2 | |
| God of all power and truth and grace | TIS 567 |
| Good Christians all, rejoice | TIS 313 |
| O come! O come, Emmanuel | TIS 265 |
| LUKE 2 | |
| Angels from the realms of glory | TIS 309 |
| Behold, a rose is growing | TIS 294 |
| Coldly the night winds winging | TIS 321 |
| Come, your hearts and voices raising | TIS 297 |
| Funny kind of night, funny kind of day | TIS 329 |
| Glory, glory, glory, – glory be to God on high | TIS 775 |
| God is love, let heaven adore him | TIS 153 |
| Good Christians all, rejoice | TIS 313 |
| Hark the herald angels sing | TIS 303 |
| Infant holy, infant lowly | TIS 292 |
| My soul gives glory to my God | TIS 171 |
| Never in all human story | TIS 320 |
| Not the powerful, not the privileged | TIS 288 |
| O sing a new song to the Lord | TIS 54 |
| On Christmas night all Christains sing | TIS 300 |
| Pull back the veil on the dawn of creation | TIS 326 |
| Silent night, holy night | TIS 311 |
| The first nowell the angel did say | TIS 301 |
| While shepherds watched their flocks | TIS 299 |