67A – Reign of Christ

66A - Sunday 33A — 01B – Advent 1B
 
See also my post from 2017, 2020 , 2023

 
PSALM 100
Our psalm is for giving thanks:
shout to the LORD, all the earth
serve the LORD gladly;
come before the LORD with a joyful song.  
Know that the LORD is God:
the LORD made us; we are God’s people,
the flock which God shepherds.
Enter the gates of the LORD with thanksgiving,  
the courts of the LORD with praise;
give thanks to the LORD, and bless God’s holy name!  
For the LORD is good, whose lovingkindness is forever,
and from generation to generation is his faithfulness. 

For use in worship, with acknowledgement. © Jeff Shrowder 1999.
CHRIST THE KING
Glorious King of Light,
whose kingdom is without bounds:
King whose reign with God precedes the beginning
and surpasses the end.
You are the lamp with the True Light,
to light our way:
you lead us from our own darkness
into your kingdom of light.

Christ, King of Ages,
through you we are inheritors with all the saints;
to share the gifts of your kingdom
as sons and daughters,
reconciled to the Father
through your living and dying.

Christ, King of Life,
by whom and for whom all things were made,
Risen, you seek to live in us,
as the Father lives in you;
you empower us to remain steadfast
in the hope and light and promise of your good news.

(Scattered Seeds JBCE 1994. © Jeff Shrowder. Revised 2011)
For use in worship, with acknowledgement. © Jeff Shrowder 1999.

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A CREATIVE MOMENT – Matthew 25: 31-46
Materials/Preparation: 
(a) An outline picture of a crown reproduced in the pewsheet, OR
(b) drawn on a length of clean newsprint.
(c) On the Sunday before, invite the congregation to find (in magazines, newpapers etc.) and bring to worship, pictures of acts of kindness/charity in line with those which Jesus mentions in this parable.
(d) either a gold-painted cardboard/metal crown or a crown of “thorns” to place on or at the base of a cros on the communion table;
(e) a loaf of bread, a cup of water, a coat or blanket, a key, and/or other symbols of the love that is the reign of Christ.

Preceding, or as part of, the Intercessions, the pictures of acts of kindness/charity/hospitality could be glued onto the “newsprint” crown. They colour it, and give it substance, as our acts of kindness done to others give substance to our faith, and point to the reign of Christ.

Alternatively, (again as part of the Intercessions), with the outline crown printed in the pewsheet, members of the congregation could be invited to reflect with the person sitting next to them ways in which they are, our could be, Christ to those around them. Each member could in this way, name one way, write it on the outline crown, and attach it to their refrigerator door for the following week as a personal reminder.

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THE PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE
(A prayer to gather the spoken and silent concerns/joys/thanks expressed by the congregation and lead into a more structured Intercession with connection to the lections for the day. Sometimes this prayer will borrow lightly from other sources e.g. Uniting in Worship 2 or publications of the Iona Community.)

Gracious and eternal God,
in whom we find rest and shelter,
hear the cries of our world …
those for whom today is the beginning of life…
who face new ventures and new challenges…
who are engulfed by loneliness, despair or grief…
who feel cast off from your presence…
who are walled in by circumstance…
whose will to live is exhausted…
who this day will encounter death…
in Jesus’ name we pray…..
(The Prayers of the People continue)

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Looking for contemporary music and song resources?
Try David MacGregor’s Together to Celebrate

HYMN SUGGESTIONS FOR REIGN OF CHRIST – YEAR A
Jesus shall reign where’er the sun	TIS 207
Lord enthroned in heavenly splendour	TIS 520
Rejoice, the Lord is King	TIS 216
Ezekiel 34: 11-16, 20-24
Come, sing praises to the Lord above	TIS 53
Hail Redeemer, King divine!	TIS 237
The king of love my shepherd is	TIS 145
Psalm 100
All people that on earth do dwell	TIS 59
All the earth proclaim the Lord	TIS 60
In you is gladness	TIS 200
Jubilate Deo, omnis terra [Rejoice in God…]	TIS 731
Serve you the Lord, heart filled with gladness	TIS 60
Shout to the Lord for joy	TIS 62
Sing of the Lord’s goodness…	TIS 183
Sing praise and thanksgiving…	TIS 107
Sing, all creation, sing to God in gladness	TIS 61
When morning gilds the skies	TIS 227
Ephesians 1: 15-23
All praise to our redeeming Lord	TIS 442
Bring many names, beautiful and good	TIS 182
Christ from whom all blessings flow	TIS 440
Glory to our boundless God	TIS 189
God be in my head	TIS 549
Hallelujah, sing to Jesus	TIS 517
I know that my Redeemer lives	TIS 376
Join all the glorious names	TIS 205
Lord, I come to you	TIS 685
This is a day of new beginnings	TIS 653
We limit not the truth of God	TIS 453
Matthew 25: 31-46
All go to God when they are sorely place	TIS 240
All the sleepy should have a place to sleep	TIS 697
Christ is the world’s light, he and none other	TIS 246
Lord, hear my praying, listen to me	TIS 689
O Jesus Christ, may grateful hymns be rising	TIS 620
Son of God, eternal Saviour	TIS 606
There’s a spirit in the air	TIS 414
When I needed a neighbour, were you there…	TIS 629
When he comes back	TIS 280

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