Christmastide
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FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH OF FLINT Christmastide DECEMBER 29, 2019 SUNDAY AFTER CHRISTMAS THE TWELVE DAYS OF Christmas CONTINUING THE CELEBRATION OF THE INCARNATION TOGETHER The arrival of Christmas Day is the beginning of a twelve-day season called Christmastide, a season of sustained reflection on the birth of Christ. This season is brought to dramatic conclusion on January 6 with the arrival of Epiphany and the telling of the story of the magi from the East who arrive bringing gifts to the child Christ. As we worship during this season, we do so joyfully and exuberantly, singing the songs of Christmas each week and considering the wide-ranging impact of God’s incarnation among us as Jesus Christ. During this season we have exchanged our Advent yearnings for the Christmas proclamation of joy; each week we remind one another that God has come to us in Christ, forever welding his own eternal divinity to our fragile humanity. Today’s Gospel reading is the story of the murderous King Herod whose brutality forces Mary and Joseph to seek shelter in a foreign land, and thus, the story of Jesus intersects with the story of so many across time and space who have become refugees not by choice but by circumstance and who look to God for daily bread and provision while they wander. Today we remember with the writer to the Hebrews that the story of Jesus intersects with our own in every way, and we find in Jesus’ humanity a kinship with God, unlike anything else that preceded it. Gathering GREETING PRELUDE Carl Angelo, organist “Little Jesus, Sweetly Sleep” (Wyton) CHORAL INTROIT Stay with us, Lord Jesus Christ, night will soon fall; Then stay with us, O Lord Jesus Christ, light in our darkness. ▲ LIGHTING OF THE CHRIST CANDLE Our help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth. Jesus Christ is the light of the world, he is the Light no darkness can overcome. Stay with us Lord, for it feels dark in our world and the daylight of hope feels far gone. (The Christ candle is lit, while all sing) ™ b 4 œ œ œ œ œ œ & 4 œ œ œ #œ œ œ nœ œ œ œ œ ˙ œ œ œ œ œ O ho-ly child of Beth-le-hem de scend to us wœe pray! Cast out our sin and en-ter in; be b ™ & œ œ œ œ œ ˙ œ œ œ œ œ ˙ œ œ œ œ œ œ born in us to - day! We hear the Christ-mas an - gels the great glad ti -dings ™ ™ b œ œ œ œ j ™ & ˙ œ œ œ #œ œ œ œ œ œ ˙ tell; O come to us! A - bide with us, our Lord Em - man - u - el! Let your light scatter the darkness And illumine your church. ▲ HYMN antioch “Joy to the World” Hymn No. 134 3 Confessing PRAYER OF CONFESSION Almighty God, who inhabits eternity, but dwells with those who are of a humble and contrite spirit: before you and our Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit’s urging, we confess our sins this day. Lord, our love for you is tepid and weak, our love for our neighbors is conditional and restricted. We have forgotten to see our Savior in the faces of the hungry, the exiled, the destitute, the sick, the mistreated, and the imprisoned. In your great goodness, put away our offenses and cleanse us from our sin, for Jesus’ sake. Amen. TIME OF SILENCE ANNOUNCING THE GOOD NEWS Friends, believe the good news of the Gospel. In Jesus Christ, we are forgiven. Alleluia! Amen! ▲ SHARING OF PEACE The peace of Christ be with you all. And also with you! (We share a sign of peace - handshake/embrace/gesture - with those in worship today.) 5 Blessing137-he came down-332.mus, Page 1 JESUS CHRIST: BIRTH ▲ WELCOMING SONG He Came Down 137 3 # 4 j œ œ œ ‰ j & 4 œ œ œ œ œ œ œ ˙˙ œœ HeJ came down that we may have love; heJ j œ œ œ œ œ œ ˙ ? # 4 œ œ œ œ œ œ œ ˙ ‰ œ 4 J 3 J 3 3 # j œ œ œ œ œ œ ‰ œ œ œ œ œ & œ œ œ ˙ œ œ œ œ œ cameœ downœ that we mayœ have love;˙ he came down that we may œ œ nœ œ œ ? # œ œ œ œ œ œ ˙ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ ‰ 3 3 J Leader: Why did he come? 3 # œ œ œ œ œ œ . œ œ œ ‰ & œ ˙ bœ œ œ œ œ œ œ ˙. have love; hal - le - lu - jah for - ev - er - more. œ ˙ œ œ œ œ œ œ ˙. ? # œ ˙ œ œ œ œ œ œ ‰ œ œ 3 ˙. CHILDREN’S SERMON Additional stanzas: Paul Ytterock … that we may have light BLESSING OF THE CHILDREN … that we may have peace Joseph Novak … that we may have joy People of God, what is your prayer for these children? May the Lord be with you! (Children) And also with you! May the Word of the Lord grow in your hearts. (Children) Thanks be to God! Go in peace! Because this traditional Cameroon piece begins with the refrain, it does not initially reveal that it is cast as a call-and-response song. Assigning the answers to the congregation rather than to the leader is a notable affirmation of the corporate wisdom of God’s people. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ TEXT: Cameroon song HE CAME DOWN MUSIC: Cameroon melody; transcr. and arr. John L. Bell, 1986 LM Music Arr. © 1986 WGRG, Iona Community (admin. GIA Publications, Inc.) 6 Listening PRAYER FOR ILLUMINATION READING 1: ISAIAH 63:7-9 I will recount the gracious deeds of the LORD, the praiseworthy acts of the LORD, because of all that the LORD has done for us, and the great favor to the house of Israel that he has shown them according to his mercy, according to the abundance of his steadfast love. For he said, “Surely they are my people, children who will not deal falsely”; and he became their savior in all their distress. It was no messenger or angel but his presence that saved them; in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; he lifted them up and carried them all the days of old. READING 2: HEBREWS 2:10-11, 17-18 It was fitting that God, for whom and through whom all things exist, in bringing many children to glory, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through sufferings. For the one who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one Father... Jesus had to become like his brothers and sisters in every respect, so that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make a sacrifice of atonement for the sins of the people. Because he himself was tested by what he suffered, he is able to help those who are being tested. ▲ GOSPEL READING: MATTHEW 11:2-11 Now after the magi had left, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.” Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother by night, and went to Egypt, and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, OUT OF EGYPT I HAVE CALLED MY SON. When Herod saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, he was infuriated, and he sent and killed all the chil- dren in and around Bethlehem who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had learned from the wise men. Then was fulfilled what had been spoken through the prophet Jeremiah: A VoiCE WAS HEARD IN RAMAH, WAILING AND LOUD LAMENTATioN, RACHEL WEEPING FOR HER CHILDREN; SHE REFUSED TO BE CONSOLED, BECAUSE THEY ARE NO MORE. When Herod died, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who were seeking the child’s life are dead.” Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother, and went to the land of Israel. 7 But when he heard that Archelaus was ruling over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And after being warned in a dream, he went away to the district of Galilee. There he made his home in a town called Nazareth, so that what had been spoken through the prophets might be fulfilled: HE WILL BE CALLED A NAZOREAN. SERMON Rev. Jim Pope “Faith over Fear” director of youth + young adult ministries HYMN OF PRAISE “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” Hymn No. 119 Giving & Praying AN INVITATION TO GIVE PRESENTING OUR OFFERINGS /CHORAL ANTHEM Pacem (Dengler) LATIN: Dona nobis pacem. Et in terra pax hominibus bonum voluntatis. ENGLISH: Give us peace. And on earth peace to all of good will. PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE Departing ANNOUNCEMENTS ▲ DEPARTING SONG “Go, Tell it on the Mountain!” Hymn No. 136 ▲ CHARGE AND BENEDICTION ▲ CHORAL BENEDICTION ▲ POSTLUDE “The First Nowell” (Wyton) 8 Carl Angelo, organist WEEKLY CALENDAR LITURGICAL SCHEDULE Week of December 29 DATE DATE PREACHING PASTOR LECTORSLECTORS December 29 Jim Pope Gloria Nealy + Elyse Higgerson TODAY 12/29 January 5 Joseph Novak Anne Baldwin + Keith Baldwin 9:30a Worship Service January 12 Joseph Novak Gloria Nealy + Elyse Higgerson 6:00p Pipe Youth January 19 Paul Ytterock Joy Briggs + Meredith Doan MONDAY 12/30 DAILY READINGS: REVISED COMMON LECTIONARY TUESDAY 12/31 Monday Psalm 20; Isaiah 26:1-9; 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 Tuesday Psalm 20; 1 Kings 3:5-14; John 8:12-19 WEDNESDAY 1/1 Wednesday Psalm 8; Ecclesiastes; Revelation 21:1-6a; Matt.