November 27, 2022 Worship

 

GOD IS LIGHT Of one thing we can be certain: our fragile, mortal lives will come to an end. We know neither the day nor the hour. Yet with our hearts enlightened by faith, we know that Christ--our life and our resurrection--is already with us in his word, his baptismal promise, his body and blood, his community of faith. We have been grasped and held for all time with Christ's steadfast love. In these gifts of grace, the people of God rejoice.

HYMN:Lost in the Night…………………………………….…..Red 243

CONFESSION AND FORGIVENESS

HYMN:  Brightest and Best……………………………………...Red 303

LIGHTING OF THE ADVENT CANDLES “Let there be light!” God’s Word proclaims the coming of the Lord. “The Lord is my light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear?  The Lord is the strength of my life; Of whom shall I be afraid? When the (enemies of darkness gather around me) My heart shall not fear” Psalm 27  Blessed are those who have learned to praise you, who walk in the light of your presence.  Psalm 89 Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.  Psalm 119 We light the candle(s) of hope/faith/joy/peace. Preparing ourselves for Christ’s coming. Enlighten us with your grace. Prepare our hearts to welcome him with joy. Grant this through Christ our Lord, whose coming is certain and whose day draws near. Amen Jesus told them, "You are going to have the light just a little while longer. Walk while you have the light… Put your trust in the light… so that you may become children of light." John 12: 35

Hymn: Kyrie……………………………………………………Red 157

Hymn: Let My Prayer………………………………………….Red 232

PRAYER:  Stir up your power, O Lord, and come. Protect us by your strength and save us from the threatening dangers of our sins, for you live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen

Genesis 1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and He separated the light from the darkness. God called the light "day," and the darkness he called "night." And there was evening, & there was morning—the 1st day.

John 3:14 Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life. "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son. This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God."

HYMN: Joyous Light………………………………………..….Red 561

John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it. There came a man who was sent from God; his name was John. He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe. He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world. He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God. The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Creed

Children Come Forward, Sermon

Hymn: O Come, O Come Emmanuel vss. 1-4……………….Red 257

Offering Prayers,  Lord’s Prayer

Benediction: May Christ, the Sun of righteousness, shine upon you

and scatter the darkness from before your path. Almighty God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, bless you now and forever. Amen  

HYMN: Rejoice, Rejoice………………………………..Red 244

Go in peace. Prepare the way. Thanks be to God.