30 December 2015
Opening Prayer/Worship
Hymn: Joy to the World
Theme: The Kingdom of God
is Near
Topic: Glory of the Lord has risen upon you
Reading: Isaiah 60:1-6
Arise, shine; for your light has come,
and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.
2 For darkness shall cover the earth,
and thick darkness the peoples;
but the Lord will arise upon you,
and his glory will appear over you.
3 Nations shall come to your light,
and kings to the brightness of your dawn.
and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.
2 For darkness shall cover the earth,
and thick darkness the peoples;
but the Lord will arise upon you,
and his glory will appear over you.
3 Nations shall come to your light,
and kings to the brightness of your dawn.
4 Lift up your
eyes and look around;
they all gather together, they come to you;
your sons shall come from far away,
and your daughters shall be carried on their nurses’ arms.
5 Then you shall see and be radiant;
your heart shall thrill and rejoice,
because the abundance of the sea shall be brought to you,
the wealth of the nations shall come to you.
6 A multitude of camels shall cover you,
the young camels of Midian and Ephah;
all those from Sheba shall come.
They shall bring gold and frankincense,
they all gather together, they come to you;
your sons shall come from far away,
and your daughters shall be carried on their nurses’ arms.
5 Then you shall see and be radiant;
your heart shall thrill and rejoice,
because the abundance of the sea shall be brought to you,
the wealth of the nations shall come to you.
6 A multitude of camels shall cover you,
the young camels of Midian and Ephah;
all those from Sheba shall come.
They shall bring gold and frankincense,
Introduction
One of the remarkable
features of yuletide is light. During
Christmas, the world literally lights up.
Beyond the immediate decorative satisfaction we derive from the
different colours and types of light, this trend reminds us that the light of
God is with us. A lot of untold
hardships and terrible events happened this year. However, as we end the year, celebration of
the birth of Christ should encourage our hearts to know that amidst life’s
woes- personal, family, community and global- the glory of the Lord has risen
upon us in Christ our saviour. Weeping
may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning. The joy of knowing that we are saved, and that
God loves us immensely and is in control of our lives will carry us through
2016 and all through our lives. Have a
joyful and blessed 2016!
Questions/Discussion
1) What gives us hope and
joy in the face of unfortunate events?
Isaiah 52:7-10
7 How
beautiful upon the mountains
are the feet of the messenger who announces peace,
who brings good news,
who announces salvation,
who says to Zion, ‘Your God reigns.’
8 Listen! Your sentinels lift up their voices,
together they sing for joy;
for in plain sight they see
the return of the Lord to Zion.
9 Break forth together into singing,
you ruins of Jerusalem;
for the Lord has comforted his people,
he has redeemed Jerusalem.
10 The Lord has bared his holy arm
before the eyes of all the nations;
and all the ends of the earth shall see
the salvation of our God.
are the feet of the messenger who announces peace,
who brings good news,
who announces salvation,
who says to Zion, ‘Your God reigns.’
8 Listen! Your sentinels lift up their voices,
together they sing for joy;
for in plain sight they see
the return of the Lord to Zion.
9 Break forth together into singing,
you ruins of Jerusalem;
for the Lord has comforted his people,
he has redeemed Jerusalem.
10 The Lord has bared his holy arm
before the eyes of all the nations;
and all the ends of the earth shall see
the salvation of our God.
Matthew 1:18-23
Now the
birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way. When his
mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was
found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. 19Her
husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public
disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly. 20But just
when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a
dream and said, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your
wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21She will bear a son, and you are to name him
Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.’22All this
took place to fulfil what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet:
23 ‘Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
and they shall name him Emmanuel’,
which means, ‘God is with us.’
23 ‘Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
and they shall name him Emmanuel’,
which means, ‘God is with us.’
Luke 2:8-20
In that region there were shepherds living in the fields,
keeping watch over their flock by night. 9Then an angel of the
Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they
were terrified.10But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; for see—I am
bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: 11to you is born this
day in the city of David a Saviour, who is the Messiah, the Lord. 12This will be a sign
for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a
manger.’ 13And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the
heavenly host, praising God and saying,
14 ‘Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace among those whom he favours!’
14 ‘Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace among those whom he favours!’
15 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.’ 16So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child
lying in the manger.17When they saw this, they made known what had been told them
about this child; 18and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told
them. 19But Mary treasured all
these words and pondered them in her heart. 20The shepherds
returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it
had been told them.
2) What are the lessons
for us in Luke 2:21-32 regarding being joyful especially in hard times?
Luke 2:21-32
After eight days had
passed, it was time to circumcise the child; and he was called Jesus, the name
given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb.
22 When the time came
for their purification according to the law of Moses, they brought him up to
Jerusalem to present him to the Lord 23(as it is written in the
law of the Lord, ‘Every firstborn male shall be designated as holy to the
Lord’), 24and they offered a
sacrifice according to what is stated in the law of the Lord, ‘a pair of
turtle-doves or two young pigeons.’
25 Now there was a man
in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; this
man was righteous and devout, looking forward to the consolation of Israel, and
the Holy Spirit rested on him. 26It had been revealed to
him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the
Lord’s Messiah. 27Guided by the Spirit,
Simeon came into the temple; and
when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him what was customary
under the law, 28Simeon took him in his arms and praised God,
saying,
29 ‘Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace,
according to your word;
30 for my eyes have seen your salvation,
31 which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,
32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles
and for glory to your people Israel.’
29 ‘Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace,
according to your word;
30 for my eyes have seen your salvation,
31 which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,
32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles
and for glory to your people Israel.’
3) How do we overcome spirit
of despondency?
Psalm 98:1-9
1 O sing to
the Lord a new song,
for he has done marvellous things.
His right hand and his holy arm
have gained him victory.
2 The Lord has made known his victory;
he has revealed his vindication in the sight of the nations.
3 He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness
to the house of Israel.
All the ends of the earth have seen
the victory of our God.
for he has done marvellous things.
His right hand and his holy arm
have gained him victory.
2 The Lord has made known his victory;
he has revealed his vindication in the sight of the nations.
3 He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness
to the house of Israel.
All the ends of the earth have seen
the victory of our God.
4 Make a joyful
noise to the Lord, all the
earth;
break forth into joyous song and sing praises.
5 Sing praises to the Lord with the lyre,
with the lyre and the sound of melody.
6 With trumpets and the sound of the horn
make a joyful noise before the King, the Lord.
break forth into joyous song and sing praises.
5 Sing praises to the Lord with the lyre,
with the lyre and the sound of melody.
6 With trumpets and the sound of the horn
make a joyful noise before the King, the Lord.
7 Let the sea
roar, and all that fills it;
the world and those who live in it.
8 Let the floods clap their hands;
let the hills sing together for joy
9 at the presence of the Lord, for he is coming
to judge the earth.
He will judge the world with righteousness,
and the peoples with equity.
the world and those who live in it.
8 Let the floods clap their hands;
let the hills sing together for joy
9 at the presence of the Lord, for he is coming
to judge the earth.
He will judge the world with righteousness,
and the peoples with equity.
Matthew 2:13-18
Now after they 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.’ 14Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother
by night, and went to Egypt, 15and remained there until
the death of Herod. This was to fulfil what had been spoken by the Lord through
the prophet, ‘Out of Egypt I have called my son.’
16 When Herod saw that
he had been tricked by the wise men, he
was infuriated, and he sent and killed all the children in and around Bethlehem
who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had learned from
the wise men. 17Then was fulfilled what
had been spoken through the prophet Jeremiah:
18 ‘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.’
18 ‘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.’
Hebrews 1:1-4
Long ago
God spoke to our ancestors in many and various ways by the prophets, 2but in these last days he has spoken to us by a
Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through
whom he also created the worlds. 3He is the
reflection of God’s glory and the exact imprint of God’s very being, and he
sustains all things by his powerful word. When he had
made purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on
high, 4having
become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more
excellent than theirs.
Intercession/Worship
Conclusion
The joy of knowing that we
are saved, and that God loves us immensely and is in control of our lives will
carry us through 2016 and all through our lives. Have a joyful and blessed 2016!
Closing Prayer (Collect
for Fourth Sunday of Advent)
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 for ever. Amen.