Led by Marion Edmondson

The Lord be With You!

Welcome:
We begin by acknowledging that we are worshipping on the unceded territory of the Comox First Nation.

Hymn: Once in Royal David City
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.

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.

And our eyes at last shall see Him,
Through His own redeeming love;
For that Child so dear and gentle
Is our Lord in heaven above,
And He leads His children on
To the place where He is gone.

Not in that poor lowly stable,
With the oxen standing by,
We shall see Him; but in heaven,
Set at God's right hand on high;
When like stars His children crowned
All in white shall wait around.

Venite Psalm 95.1–7: Come, let us sing to the Lord; * let us shout for joy to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving * and raise a loud shout to him with psalms. For the Lord is a great God, * and a great king above all gods. In his hand are the caverns of the earth, * and the heights of the hills are his also. The sea is his for he made it, * and his hands have moulded the dry land. Come, let us bow down, and bend the knee, * and kneel before the Lord our maker. For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his hand. * Oh, that today you would listen to his voice! Glory to the Father, and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.

Confession: Let us confess our sins against God and our neighbour.

Silence is kept. Most merciful God, we confess that we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbours as ourselves. We are truly sorry and we humbly repent. For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, have mercy on us and forgive us, that we may delight in your will, and walk in your ways, to the glory of your name. Amen.
Almighty God have mercy upon us, pardon and deliver us from all our sins, confirm and strengthen us in all goodness, and keep us in eternal life; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Readings: 2 Samuel 7:1-11, 16; Canticle 18 (Luke 1:47-55) Romans 16:25-27; Luke 1:26-38

Hymn: Infant Lowly
Infant holy, infant lowly
For His bed a cattle stall
Oxen lowing, little knowing
Christ, the babe is Lord of all

Swift are winging, angels singing
Noels ringing, tidings bringing
Christ, the babe is Lord of all

Flocks were sleeping, shepherds keeping
Vigil till the morning new
Saw the glory, heard the story
Tidings of a gospel true

Gospel: The Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Luke
Glory to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
Then at the conclusion of the Gospel, the reader says,
The Gospel of Christ.
Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Hymn (cont’d)
Thus rejoicing, free from sorrow
Praises voicing greet the morrow
Christ, the babe was born for you
Christ, the babe was born for you

Stars were gleaming, shepherds dreaming
Oh, the night was dark and chill
Angels' story, manger glory
Shepherds heard it on the hill

Ah, that singing, hear it ringing
Earthward winging, praises bringing
Christ, the babe was born for you
Christ, the babe was born for you
Christ, the babe was born for you

Sermon

Affirmation of Faith: Together, let us affirm our faith as we say the: Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. This is the first and the great commandment. The second is like it: Love your neighbour as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these.

Prayers of the People

Collect: Let Us Pray: Almighty God, you have shed upon us the new light of your Incarnate Word. May this light, enkindled in our hearts, shine forth in our lives; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

Lord’s Prayer: And now, we pray as one people using the words I lord and saviour 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

Hymn: Joy to the World
Joy to the world, the Lord has come
Let earth receive her King
Let every heart prepare Him room
And heaven and nature sing, and heaven and nature sing
And heaven, and heaven and nature sing

Joy to the world, the Savior reigns
Let men their songs employ
While fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains
Repeat the sounding joy, repeat the sounding joy
Repeat, repeat the sounding joy

No more let sins and sorrows grow
Nor thorns infest the ground
He comes to make His blessings flow
Far as the curse is found, far as the curse is found
Far as, far as the curse is found

He rules the world with truth and grace
And makes the nations prove
The glories of His righteousness
And wonders of His love, and wonders of His love
And wonders, wonders of His love

Dismissal: Let us bless the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with us all evermore. Amen.