Morning Service for Christmas 2022
HYMN – Once in royal David’s city BCS 4 – Irby
1 Once in royal David’s city
Stood a lowly cattle shed,
Where a mother laid her baby
In a manger for his bed:
Mary was that Mother mild,
Jesus Christ her little Child.
2 He came down to earth from heaven
Who is God and Lord of all,
And his shelter was a stable,
And his cradle was a stall:
With the poor and mean and lowly,
Lived on earth our Saviour holy.
3 And through all his wondrous childhood
Day by day like us he grew,
He was little, weak, and helpless,
Tears and smiles like us he knew:
And he feeleth for our sadness,
And he shareth in our gladness.
5 Not in that poor lowly stable,
With the oxen standing by,
We shall we see him: but in heaven,
Set at God’s right hand on high,
Where like stars his children crowned,
All in white shall wait around.
PRAYER OF PREPARATION
Almighty God, to whom all hearts are open,
all desires known,
and from whom no secrets are hidden:
cleanse the thoughts of our hearts
by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit,
that we may perfectly love you,
and worthily magnify your holy name;
through Christ our Lord. Amen
PRAYERS OF PENITENCE
Christ the light of the world has come to dispel the darkness of our hearts. In his light let us examine ourselves and confess our sins.
Lord of grace and truth, we confess our unworthiness
to stand in your presence as your children.
We have sinned:
Forgive and heal us.
The Virgin Mary accepted your call to be the mother of Jesus.
Forgive our disobedience to your will.
We have sinned:
Forgive and heal us.
Your Son our Saviour was born in poverty in a manger.
Forgive our greed and rejection of your ways.
We have sinned:
Forgive and heal us.
The shepherds left their flocks to go to Bethlehem.
Forgive our self-interest and lack of vision.
We have sinned:
Forgive and heal us.
The wise men followed the star to find Jesus the King.
Forgive our reluctance to seek you.
We have sinned:
Forgive and heal us.
May the God of love and power
forgive you and free you from your sins,
heal and strengthen you by his Spirit
and raise you to new life in Christ our Lord. Amen
THE COLLECT
Almighty God,
you have given us your only-begotten Son
to take our nature upon him
and as at this time to be born of a pure virgin:
grant that we, who have been born again
and made your children by adoption and grace,
may daily be renewed by your Holy Spirit;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen
FIRST READING – Isaiah 9.2-7
The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness— on them light has shined. You have multiplied the nation, you have increased its joy; they rejoice before you as with joy at the harvest, as people exult when dividing plunder. For the yoke of their burden, and the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor, you have broken as on the day of Midian. For all the boots of the tramping warriors and all the garments rolled in blood shall be burned as fuel for the fire. For a child has been born for us, a son given to us; authority rests upon his shoulders; and he is named Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. His authority shall grow continually, and there shall be endless peace for the throne of David and his kingdom. He will establish and uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time onward and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this.
HYMN – Infant holy, infant lowly BCS 23
1 Infant holy, infant lowly,
for his bed a cattle stall;
oxen lowing, little knowing
Christ the babe is Lord of all.
Swiftly winging angels singing,
bells are ringing, tidings bringing:
Christ the babe is Lord of all!
Christ the babe is Lord of all!
2 Flocks were sleeping; shepherds keeping
vigil till the morning new
saw the glory, heard the story,
tidings of a gospel true.
Thus rejoicing, free from sorrow,
praises voicing, greet the morrow:
Christ the babe was born for you!
Christ the babe was born for you!
GOSPEL – Luke 2.1-20
In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. All went to their own towns to be registered. Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David. He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.
In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying,
“Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace among those whom he favours!”
When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.” So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger. When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.
SERMON
God meets us in the ordinary and we celebrate the fact in the extraordinary. In this extraordinary place, at this extraordinary time.
Mary gave birth like countless millions of women have done before and since, and every birth, every single birth that has been, and will be – full of fear and agony, deepest joy or deepest sadness. In the extraordinary and surreal moment of new life, as it hangs in the balance, all the risk and glory, pain and intensity of life meets. It was the same for Mary as it has been and will be for every human mother across the world and across time.
The point of the theology of the incarnation is that it is God’s complete revelation of himself. And it begins here in the mess and agony of birth.
Some Roman Catholics believe the birth of Jesus to be like light projected from Mary’s womb, no pain, no mess – she must, after all, be ‘ever virgin’. But that completely misses the point. It is in the mess and the pain of human life that the theology of the incarnation insists that God can be revealed, experienced, even understood. It maintains that God does not step back from the consequences of life as it is.
If he is not in it up to his elbows then what on earth is it all for.
Belief in the incarnation is the final affirmation of the point of life, the value of living. It is in this life, in all its discomfort, mess and pain that we may perceive God. Because we know he comes to us in the ordinary, the human and the physical we know that he is not remote or distant for us, and has not abandoned us to our fate. We know that the writer of the book of Exodus was correct when he termed his God as ‘the God who will be there’. God is not just spirit but it’s in the warp and weft of every fibre of the world’s being.
This is, in the end, what we come here tonight to celebrate, not just an extraordinary birth at an extraordinary time in extraordinary place, but an ordinary birth at an ordinary time in an ordinary place. It is its very ordinariness that St Luke tries to impress upon us. To him being born in the humblest of circumstances under oppressive power was ordinary, it was what the majority of humanity experienced, and still does.
What makes this birth remarkable is that we see in it the presence of God, and it is that presence that makes holy every birth to every woman in every place.
Hallelujah! let us praise our God.
AFFIRMATION OF FAITH
Let us declare our faith in the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ:
Christ died for our sins
in accordance with the scriptures;
he was buried;
he was raised to life on the third day
in accordance with the scriptures;
afterwards he appeared to his followers,
and to all the apostles:
this we have received,
and this we believe. Amen. 1 Corinthians 15.3-7
HYMN – In the bleak mid winter BCS 22
1 In the bleak midwinter
Frosty wind made moan,
Earth stood hard as iron,
Water like a stone:
Snow had fallen, snow on snow,
Snow on snow,
In the bleak midwinter,
Long ago.
2 Our God, heaven cannot hold him
Nor earth sustain;
Heaven and earth shall flee away
When he comes to reign:
In the bleak midwinter
A stable place sufficed
The Lord God Almighty,
Jesus Christ.
3 Enough for him, whom Cherubim
Worship night and day,
A breastful of milk,
And a mangerful of hay:
Enough for him, whom angels
Fall down before,
The ox and ass and camel
Which adore.
4 Angels and archangels
May have gathered there,
Cherubim and Seraphim
Thronged the air
But only his mother
In her maiden bliss
Worshipped the Beloved
With a kiss.
5 What can I give him,
Poor as I am?
If I were a shepherd
I would bring a lamb;
If I were a wise man
I would do my part;
Yet what I can I give him
Give my heart
INTERCESSIONS – Mary Hinton
Glory to God in the Highest and Peace to His people on Earth
May the image of the Christ child in the manger help us to understand the message of love, joy and hope which Jesus brought to all who would listen. We pray for peace and justice in our troubled world, may all in authority seek the common good and turn away from the abuse of power. We pray particularly for the people of war torn Ukraine, countries affected by drought in West Africa and those who are perilously trafficked in overloaded boats across the sea.
Lord in thy mercy hear our prayer
Lord we come together to celebrate your birth in a stable in Bethlehem. It is a time of gifts, Help us to see that you are the only gift we really need. Bless your church and all who support it. Day by day we give thanks for all your blessings and endeavour to share all that we have received.
Lord in thy mercy hear our prayer
Lord as we return home to our families and friends may our care for them reflect your care for us. We give thanks for the individuals and groups who reach out and support those who struggle with life: the homeless, families in financial difficulties, the lonely, the young.
Lord in thy mercy hear our prayer
Lord we pray for all those who are sick or frail and unable to be at home to celebrate Christmas with loved ones. May your healing presence be with all who are in need of support and bring them peace and hope.
Lord in thy mercy hear our prayer
Lord with love and thanksgiving we remember all those who have died. We pray for the victims of violence and accidents and their families. May all who mourn find comfort in thee, Lord.
Merciful Father,
accept these prayers, for the sake of your Son, our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen
As our Saviour taught us, so we pray:
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins as we forgive
those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours
now and for ever. Amen.
BLESSING
May the eagerness of the shepherds,
the joy of the angels,
the perseverance of the wise men,
the obedience of Joseph and Mary,
and the peace of the Christ-child
be yours this Christmas,
and the blessing of God Almighty,
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
be upon you and remain with you always. Amen
HYMN – O come all ye faithful BCS 13 – Adeste Fidelis
1 O come, all ye faithful,
Joyful and triumphant,
O come ye, O come ye to Bethlehem;
Come and behold him
Born the King of Angels:
Refrain:
O come, let us adore him,
O come, let us adore him,
O come, let us adore him, Christ the Lord!
2 God of God,
Light of Light,
Lo! he abhors not the Virgin’s womb;
Very God,
Begotten, not created: [Refrain]
6 Sing, choirs of Angels,
Sing in exultation,
Sing, all ye citizens of heaven above;
Glory to God
In the Highest: [Refrain]
7 Yea, Lord, we greet thee,
Born this happy morning,
Jesu, to thee be glory given;
Word of the Father,
Now in flesh appearing: [Refrain]
Go in peace to love and serve the Lord
In the name of Christ. Amen