Live Stream
Order of Service
ST COLUMBA’S, PONT STREET
SUNDAY 29th NOVEMBER 2020, 11.00am, ADVENT SUNDAY
Introduction & Lighting of Candles
Call to Worship
Hymn 273 O come, O come, Emmanuel (Veni Emmanuel)
Prayers of Approach & Lord’s Prayer
Children’s Talk
Old Testament Reading: Isaiah 64:1-9
New Testament Reading: I Corinthians 1:3-9
Anthem: Adam Lay ybounden (Ord)
Gospel Reading: Mark 13: 24-37
Hymn 279 Make way, make way, for Christ the King (Make Way)
Sermon
Musical Interlude
Prayers of Thanksgiving & Intercession
Intimations
Hymn 477 Lo, he comes with clouds descending (Helmsley)
Benediction
Organ Postlude Herr Christ, der einig Gottes Sohn J.S. Bach BWV 601
Hymn 273 O come, O come, Emmanuel (Veni Emmanuel)
O come, O come, Emmanuel,
and ransom captive Israel
that mourns in lonely exile here
until the Son of God appear.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Immanuel
shall come to you, O Israel.
O come, O come, thou Lord of might,
who to thy tribes on Sinai's height
in ancient times didst give the law
in cloud and majesty and awe.
O come, thou Rod of Jesse's free,
thine own from Satan’s tyranny;
From depths of hell thy people save,
and give them victory o'er the grave.
O come, thou Key of David, come
and open wide our heavenly home.
Make safe the way that leads on high
and close the path to misery.
O come, thou Dayspring, come and cheer,
Our spirits by thine advent here;
disperse the gloomy clouds of night
and death’s dark shadows put to flight.
Hymn 279 Make way, make way, for Christ the King (Make Way)
Make way, make way for Christ the King
In splendour arrives
Fling wide the gates and welcome Him
Into your lives
Make way! Make way! for the King of kings
Make way! Make way! and let his kingdom in.
He comes the broken hearts to heal
The prisoners to free
The deaf shall hear, the lame shall dance
The blind shall see.
And those who mourn with heavy hearts
Who weep and sigh
With laughter, joy and royal crown
He'll beautify
We call you now to worship Him
As Lord of all
To have no gods before Him
Their thrones must fall!
Hymn 477 Lo, he comes with clouds descending (Helmsley)
Lo! he comes with clouds descending,
Christ, the Lamb, for sinners slain;
thousand, thousand saints attending
join to sing the glad refrain:.
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
God appears on earth to reign.
Every eye shall now behold him,
robed in dreadful majesty;
those who set at naught and sold him,
pierced, and nailed him to the tree,
deeply wailing, deeply wailing, deeply wailing,
shall the true Messiah see.
Those deep wounds of cross and passion
Still his glorious body bears;
Cause of endless exultation
To his ransomed worshippers;
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
See! the day of God appears.
Yea, amen! let all adore you,
high on your eternal throne;
Saviour, take the power and glory,
claim the kingdom for your own.
Oh come quickly, Oh come quickly, Oh come quickly;
alleluia! come, Lord, come.
Old Testament Reading: Isaiah 64:1-9
64O that you would tear open the heavens and come down, so that the mountains would quake at your presence— 2as when fire kindles brushwood and the fire causes water to boil— to make your name known to your adversaries, so that the nations might tremble at your presence! 3When you did awesome deeds that we did not expect, you came down, the mountains quaked at your presence. 4From ages past no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who works for those who wait for him. 5You meet those who gladly do right, those who remember you in your ways. But you were angry, and we sinned; because you hid yourself we transgressed.
6We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a filthy cloth. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away. 7There is no one who calls on your name, or attempts to take hold of you; for you have hidden your face from us, and have delivered us into the hand of our iniquity. 8Yet, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand. 9Do not be exceedingly angry, O Lord, and do not remember iniquity forever. Now consider, we are all your people.
New Testament Reading: I Corinthians 1:3-9
3Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 4I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that has been given you in Christ Jesus, 5for in every way you have been enriched in him, in speech and knowledge of every kind— 6just as the testimony of Christ has been strengthened among you— 7so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ. 8He will also strengthen you to the end, so that you may be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9God is faithful; by him you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Gospel Reading: Mark 13:24-37
24“But in those days, after that suffering,
the sun will be darkened,
and the moon will not give its light,
25and the stars will be falling from heaven,
and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.
26Then they will see ‘the Son of Man coming in clouds’ with great power and glory. 27Then he will send out the angels, and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.
28“From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near. 29So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that he is near, at the very gates. 30Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place. 31Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
32“But about that day or hour no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 33Beware, keep alert; for you do not know when the time will come. 34It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his slaves in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to be on the watch. 35Therefore, keep awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or at dawn, 36or else he may find you asleep when he comes suddenly. 37And what I say to you I say to all: Keep awake.”
SCRIPTURE & SILENT PRAYER FOR ADVENT
ST COLUMBA’S, PONT STREET & ST ANDREW’S, NEWCASTLE
29th November 2020, ADVENT I
“Advent is the hush in the theatre,
between the house lights going down and the curtain going up.”
To create times of silent prayer and reflection each day calls for a sense of its importance and for a discipline.”
BEFORE WE PRAY
This Advent we use a mixture of scripture & poetry to lead us into our silent prayer. The scriptures chosen, reflect those selected by the Revised Common Lectionary which we use at Morning Service. Once the silence begins let yourself be drawn towards/ to savour a particular verse, or even just a single word. Our normal prayer time lasts for fifteen minutes.
OPENING PRAYER
God of Advent,
In this fading year, with so much loneliness and loss,
come to heal and hold:
In this interrupted year, with so much left undone or un-begun –
come to hold and mend:
In this locked-down year, with so much grounded and reduced –
come to liberate, launch and renew.
Christ, our child of promise,
within your infant hands
you hold the grace and joy that will transform -
our lives, our Church, our world.
Make us ready to receive. Amen.
SCRIPTURE: Psalm 80:1-3
Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, you who lead Joseph like a flock! You who are enthroned upon the cherubim, shine forth before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh. Stir up your might, and come to save us! Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved.
POEM: The Coming, R S Thomas
And God held in his hand
A small globe. Look he said.
The son looked. Far off,
As through water, he saw
A scorched land of fierce
Colour. The light burned
There; crusted buildings
Cast their shadows: a bright
Serpent, A river
Uncoiled itself, radiant
With slime.
On a bare
Hill a bare tree saddened
The sky. Many People
Held out their thin arms
To it, as though waiting
For a vanished April
To return to its crossed
Boughs. The son watched
Them. Let me go there, he said.
TIME OF QUIET
COLLECT FOR FIRST SUNDAY OF ADVENT
Almighty God, give us grace to cast away the works of darkness and put on the armour of light, now in the time of this mortal life, in which your Son Jesus Christ came to us in great humility; that on the last day, when he shall come again in his glorious majesty to judge both the living and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal; through him who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.
SENDING PRAYER
In Advent, Christmas and coming New Year,
let us grow with You:
from darkness, into light,
from isolation, to community,
from despair, to hope.
Holy Child, Servant King, Prince of Peace,
with us, despite us,
for us, beside us.
be near us, now and always. Amen.
(Prayers adapted from Life & Work, December 2020)