An All Hallows Service of the Word for the Second Sunday after Christmas (January 3, 2021)

 

As we wind down our celebration of the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, let us lift our hearts and voices once more in rejoicing for the grace that God has shown us in his Son. 

Open this link to play the traditional Christmas carol, “O Come, All Ye Faithful.”

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 True God of true God,
Light of light eternal,
our lowly nature he hath not abhorred;
born of a woman,
here in flesh appearing. [Refrain]

3 Sing, choirs of angels,
sing in exultation,
sing, all ye citizens of heav’n above:
“Glory to God,
all glory in the highest!” [Refrain]

4 Yea, Lord, we greet thee,
born this happy morning,
Jesus, to thee be all glory giv’n;
Word of the Father,
begotten, not created. [Refrain]

Silence is kept.

Blessed be God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit:
And blessed be God’s kingdom, now and for ever. Amen.

The Lord be with you.
The Lord bless you.

O Christ, Son of God, existing before time,
you came into the world to save us.
Lord, have mercy.

Sun of Righteousness, shining with the Father’s love,
you illumine the whole universe.
Christ, have mercy.

Son of Mary: born a child,
you shared our humanity.
Lord, have mercy.

May the Lord forgive what we have been, help us to amend what we are and direct what we shall be, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Blessed is the Lord:
Who has heard the voice of our prayer.

Therefore shall our hearts dance for joy:
And in our song will we praise our God.

Open this link to hear Richard Proulx’s choral arrangement of the Gloria in Excelsis for choir and bells.

Glory to God in the highest,
and peace to his people on earth.
Lord God, heavenly King,
almighty God and Father,
we worship you, we give you thanks,
we praise you for your glory.
Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father,
Lord God, Lamb of God,
you take away the sin of the world:
have mercy on us;
you are seated at the right hand of the Father:
receive our prayer.
For you alone are the Holy One,
you alone are the Lord,
you alone are the Most High,
Jesus Christ,
with the Holy Spirit,
in the glory of God the Father. Amen. Amen.

Silence is kept.

Let us pray

A short period of silent prayer is recommended before the Collect of the Day is said.

Almighty God,
you have filled us with the light of the Word,
who became flesh and lived among us:
let the light of faith shine in all that we do,
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit.
one God, now and forever. Amen.

Silence is kept.

The Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John.
Glory to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

He was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God.

And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of the Father’s only Son, full of grace and truth. (John testified to him and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks ahead of me because he was before me.’”) From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. The law indeed was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God. It is the only Son, who is close to the Father’s heart, who has made him known.

The Gospel of Christ
Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Silence is kept.

Jesus, the Face of a Loving God 

The two most important verses in this passage from the Gospel of John are the last two verses. “No one has ever seen God. It is the only Son, who is close to the Father’s heart, who has made him known.” Together they form a central article of the Christian faith. In Jesus of Nazareth God revealed himself to us in a way that he had not previously done. God in the person of the Son visited us. Jesus was God embodied in human flesh. Those who saw Jesus saw God. Jesus was the human embodiment of God.

What are the implications for us? If we want to know God in this life, we must come to know Jesus, the Jesus of the New Testament, his story, his character, his teachings, and his example, as they are recorded in the New Testament. Those who know the Jesus of the New Testament will know God. Or more precisely they will know as much of God as a human can know in this life.

Knowing Jesus entails more than an intellectual knowledge of Jesus. It requires an experiential knowledge of Jesus.

It is true that Jesus, having risen from dead, no longer walks the earth but has returned to heaven and is at the Father’s right side. We cannot sit down and chat with Jesus, except in prayer. But we can experience Jesus through his teachings and his example by framing our lives around them.

God himself indwells us in the person of the Holy Spirit and unites us not only to each other but also to the Son, to Jesus. Through the power of the Holy Spirit Jesus’ teachings and example are infused with Jesus. They are the embodiment of Jesus and our connection with him.

We will not experience Jesus in his teachings and his example if we mechanically follow them as we might a set of rules. Rather we follow his teachings and example as a disciple would follow the teachings and example of a much-loved teacher, someone whose teachings and example are a gift to us for our benefit so we can walk closely with God and live our lives in harmony with him. Indeed, they are an expression of God’s grace, his favor and goodwill toward us.

Jesus invites us to follow him in a life of loving obedience, not mindless obedience. Loving obedience is at the heart of our relationship with Jesus.

There is more to being a follower of Jesus than making a decision for Jesus--whatever that may mean, going to church, feeling near to God, and chasing after signs and wonders. Jesus calls us to a life of discipleship, a life of followership. We cannot accept Jesus as our Savior and go about living our lives our own way. Jesus’ lordship over our lives comes with the package.

As John tells us in today’s reading, “But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, who were born…of God.” In the Gospel of Matthew we read that Jesus urged those who flocked to hear him to live the way that he taught and show themselves to be the children of the Most High.

Trusting in Jesus for our salvation carries with it acceptance of Jesus; lordship over every area of our life. While we may not surrender every area of our life to him all at once, acceptance of his lordship requires that we eventually surrender all areas of our life to him. It means living a life that honors God in every way, not just singing praise and worship songs on Sundays, listening to a sermon, and experiencing an emotional high.

“What about grace?” you may ask. “Where’s the grace?” God shows his love toward us in Jesus’s teachings and example as he did Jesus’ offering of himself for the sins of the world on the cross. They are both expressions of his grace. As Jesus says in the Gospel of John, the words that he spoke were not his own, they were God’s. They were what he had heard from the Father. We cannot live our lives in accordance with Jesus’ teaching and example apart from God’s grace, the power of God’s presence working in us. Indeed, we cannot accept Jesus as our Lord unless God enables us to do so.

As the Christmas season draws to a close, as we conclude our celebration of the birth of our Savior and Lord, we must not forget that the Son came into the world not just to show God’s love for us and be an offering for our sins but also to be the pattern for our lives. Jesus not only revealed the face of a loving God to us but also taught us that we should show the same love toward others that God shows toward us. We should be kind, compassionate, generous, and forgiving as God is. In doing so we show ourselves as worthy of being called God’s children.

Silence is kept.

Open this link to Keith and Kristyn Getty and Stuart Townsend's hymn, "We Believe."

We believe in one true God
Father, Spirit, Son
One Church, one faith, one Lord of all
His kingdom come

We believe in God the Father
Almighty, Lord of life
Creator of the Heavens
The earth, the sea, the sky
And we believe in Jesus
The only son of God
Born of the virgin Mary
Who lived as one of us

We believe in one true God
Father, Spirit, Son
One Church, one faith, one Lord of all
His kingdom come

We believe that Jesus suffered
Was beaten, crucified
He died and he was buried
Entombed in darkest night
The third day rose victorious
Ascended into Heav'n
Will one day come to judge us
The living and the dead

We believe in one true God
Father, Spirit, Son
One Church, one faith, one Lord of all
His kingdom come

We believe in God the Spirit
One Church, empowered by Him
Communion of God's people
Forgiveness of our sin
Our bodies resurrected
To everlasting life
To worship, love and wonder
Before the throne of Christ

We believe in one true God
Father, Spirit, Son
One Church, one faith, one Lord of all
His kingdom come

We believe in one true God
Father, Spirit, Son
One Church, one faith, one Lord of all
His kingdom come

Silence is kept.

Let us pray for all people and the Church throughout the world.

After each petition silence may be kept. Further specific petitions may be added at appropriate points in the prayers or before the response.

We pray for the peace of the world, for the leaders of the nation, and for all in authority.

God of grace, hear our prayer.

We pray for the welfare of your holy church, our bishop William, and for all clergy and people.

God of grace, hear our prayer.

We pray that we nay share with justice the resources of the earth, and live in trust and goodwill with one another,

God of grace, hear our prayer.

We pray for the aged and infirm, for the bereaved and the lonely, and for the sick and the suffering.

God of grace, hear our prayer.

We pray for the poor and the oppressed, for prisoners and captives, and for all who care for them.

God of grace, hear our prayer.

We pray for ourselves and each other.

God of grace, hear our prayer.

We praise you, Lord God, for the communion of the saints, and for the glorious hope of the resurrection to eternal life.

God of grace, hear our prayer.

Faithful God,
you have promised to hear the prayers
of all who ask in Jesus’ name.
In your mercy, accept our prayers.
give us what we asked in faith,
according to your will;
Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Let us pray the prayer that Jesus gave us.

Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done; on earth
as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who
trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power and the glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.

Lord Jesus Christ,
Send us out with confidence in your word
to tell the world of your saving acts,
and bring glory to your name. Amen.

Open this link in a new tab to Percy Dearmer’s hymn, “God Is Love—His the Care.”

1 God is love — his the care,
tending each, everywhere;
God is love — all is there!
Jesus came to show him,
that we all might know him:

Refrain:
Sing aloud, loud, loud;
sing aloud, loud, loud:
God is good,
God is truth,
God is beauty — praise him!

*2. None can see God above,
Jesus shows how to love,
thus may we Godward move,
joining sisters, brothers,
finding him in others. [Refrain]

3 Jesus shared all our pain,
lived and died, rose again,
rules our hearts, now as then —
for he came to save us
by the truth he gave us: [Refrain]

4 To our Lord praise we sing —
light and life, friend and king,
coming down love to bring,
pattern for our duty,
showing God in beauty: [Refrain]

Let us bless the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

The Lord be with you.
The Lord bless you.

May the God of all grace bless us. Amen.

*Omitted in the video.