The Festival of Christ the
King
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Prelude, Welcome, and Information
Hymn
#434 Jesus Shall Reign
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The grace of our Lord Jesus
Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you
all.
And also with
you.
Psalm: Psalm 46
God is our refuge
and strength,
a very present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change,
though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea,
though its waters roar and foam,
though the mountains tremble with its tumult. (Selah)
There is a
river whose streams make glad the city of God,
the holy habitation of the Most High.
God is in the midst of the city; it shall not be moved;
God will help it when the morning dawns.
The nations are in an uproar; the kingdoms totter;
he utters his voice; the earth melts.
The Lord of hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our refuge. (Selah)
Come, behold the works of the Lord;
see what desolations he has brought on the earth.
He makes wars cease to the end of the earth;
he breaks the bow and shatters the spear;
he burns the shields with fire.
“Be still, and know that I am God!
I am exalted among the nations;
I am exalted in the earth.”
The Lord of hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our refuge. (Selah)
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The Lord be with you. And
also with you.
Let us pray.
O God, our
true life, to serve you is freedom, and to know you is unending joy. We
worship you, we glorify you, we give you thanks for your great glory. Abide
with us, reign in us, and make this world into a fit habitation for your
divine majesty, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and
reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
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Reading:
Jeremiah 23:1-6
A reading from the prophet, Jeremiah
Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture!
says the Lord. Therefore thus says the Lord, the God of Israel,
concerning the shepherds who shepherd my people: It is you who have scattered
my flock, and have driven them away, and you have not attended to them. So I
will attend to you for your evil doings, says the Lord. Then I myself
will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the lands where I have driven
them, and I will bring them back to their fold, and they shall be fruitful and
multiply. I will raise up shepherds over them who will shepherd them, and
they shall not fear any longer, or be dismayed, nor shall any be missing, says
the Lord. The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will
raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal
wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. In his
days Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety. And this is the name
by which he will be called: “The Lord is our righteousness.”
The Word of the Lord
Reading:
Colossians 1:11-20
A reading from the letter to the Colossians
May you be made strong with all the strength that comes from his glorious
power, and may you be prepared to endure everything with patience, while
joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the
inheritance of the saints in the light. He has rescued us from the power
of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son, in
whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. He is the image of the
invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; for in him all things in
heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether thrones
or dominions or rulers or powers—all things have been created through him and for
him. He himself is before all things, and in him all things hold
together. He is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the
firstborn from the dead, so that he might come to have first place in
everything. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to
dwell, and through him God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things,
whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of his cross.
The Word of the Lord.
Gospel
Verse:
Alleluia! Blessed is the one
who comes in the name of the Lord. Blessed is the coming kingdom of our
ancestor David. Alleluia! (Mark 11:9)
Gospel Reading: Luke 23:33-43
A reading from the Gospel of Luke
When they came to the place that is called The Skull, they crucified
Jesus there with the criminals, one on his right and one on his left. Then
Jesus said, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.”
And they cast lots to divide his clothing. And the people stood by,
watching; but the leaders scoffed at him, saying, “He saved others; let him
save himself if he is the Messiah of God, his chosen one!” The soldiers
also mocked him, coming up and offering him sour wine, and saying, “If you
are the King of the Jews, save yourself!” There was also an inscription
over him, “This is the King of the Jews.” One of the criminals who were
hanged there kept deriding him and saying, “Are you not the Messiah? Save
yourself and us!” But the other rebuked him, saying, “Do you not fear God,
since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed have
been condemned justly, for we are getting what we deserve for our deeds, but
this man has done nothing wrong.” Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when
you come into your kingdom.” He replied, “Truly I tell you, today you will
be with me in Paradise.”
This is the Gospel of the Lord. Praise
to you, O Christ.
Sermon
(added at the end of the document)
Hymn
#842 O Worship
the King
Thanks and Offertory
Prayers of the Church:
Creating and redeeming God, we rely on your grace
and mercy in all things. Hear our prayers for the world, the church, and for
all people according to their needs.
[Short
pause]
For an
increase of desire to follow Jesus where he may lead us, we pray... Lord, in
your mercy, Hear our prayer.
For all who
suffer for the sake of your Son and who suffer or have suffered for the sake of
the kingdom of God, we pray... Lord, in your mercy, Hear
our prayer.
For a good
harvest with seasonal weather as well as a blessing for all travellers and all
who work in the open air, we pray... Lord, in your mercy, Hear our prayer.
For peace
among all who are concerned about our schools and those who work there, we
pray… Lord, in your mercy, Hear our
prayer.
For any who
live without hope or direction, and for the renewal of their lives, we pray...
Lord, in your mercy, Hear our prayer.
For peace in
Ukraine, Russia, and all of eastern Europe, as well as in Iran and Afghanistan,
and especially for all who suffer the terrors and dangers of war anywhere, we
pray… Lord, in your mercy, Hear our prayer.
For those
still struggling with the COVID-19 virus as well as all the respiratory viruses
found now and for all who work for healing in any way, we pray... Lord, in your
mercy, Hear our prayer.
For all who minister in the name of your Son, especially Redeemer Church , London and their pastor, Pr. Katherine Gohm, we pray... Lord, in your mercy, Hear our prayer.
For our
unspoken prayers for those we care for and for those who have asked for our
prayers … * … we pray… Lord, in your
mercy, Hear our prayer. {*Gail Mauer, Deb Kirschner, Rose Gotzmeister}
Creating
and redeeming God, help us to seek first your Kingdom in all things. Hear all
our prayers this day and every day as we commend to you all for whom we pray,
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Hymn WOV #783 Seek Ye First The Kingdom…
The
Lord’s Prayer
Finally let
us pray for all things as our Lord would have us ask:
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, and the power,
and the
glory, forever and ever. Amen.
Closing prayer & Benediction
Almighty God,
you have made us a royal priesthood
in the kingdom of your Son our Saviour Jesus Christ.
Make known his victory through us, we pray,
that all the world may see his light.
We ask this
in the name of Jesus Christ the Lord. Amen.
Hymn
#535 Hallelujah!
We Sing Your Praises
Benediction & Sending
May the Lord
bless us and keep us.
May the
Lord’s face shine upon us with grace and mercy.
May the Lord
look upon us with favor and X give us peace.
Amen.
Go in peace. Serve the Lord. Thanks
be to God.
W
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Services
for the next few months will be in-person or on YouTube and accessible from
an email link or our church Facebook page. Services for November and December
are shown below:
November 27
Communion, Church, 11:00am
(First Sunday in Advent)
December 4 Service on YouTube, 11:00am (Advent
II)
December 11 Communion, Saxonia Hall, 11:00am (Advent
III)
December 18 Service on YouTube, 11:00am (Advent IV)
December 24 Communion, Church, 7:00pm (Christmas
Eve)
December 25 Service on YouTube, 11:00am (Christmas Day)
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Jesus, remember me when you come into
your kingdom.
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Last week, we
celebrated the circle of little known saint we are acquainted with and we heard
that that Jesus is the resurrection and the resurrected life begins now, not at
some later time when the mystery of death takes us. Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.
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A few days
ago, I helped at the burial of Diane Corns, someone well known to us. Again, in
burying a friend and fellow Christian, we speak of resurrection and of wiping
away tears of sorrow. The last few chapters of the book of Revelation makes
sense when we hear these words at grave side: I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “See, the
home of God is among mortals. He will dwell with them; they will be
his peoples, and God himself will be with them and be their God; he
will wipe every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; mourning and
crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away.”
(Rev. 21: 3-4) Jesus, remember me
when you come into your kingdom.
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Today we
celebrate Christ as king over all that is. It is an appropriate way to end the
church year (which is why this festival is placed where it is.) We end the
church year faced with the mystery of the Kingdom of God and all that could
mean. We face it now, yet we know it is not quite here yet. That is why
I used that often over-used word – mystery. We are left waiting and hoping. Jesus, remember me when you come into
your kingdom.
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Next Sunday,
the first Sunday in Advent, is the beginning of the new church year. In the
Advent season and the Christmas season, we see, enter into, and celebrate the
mystery of the incarnation of Jesus and the entry – even if just a little bit –
of the kingdom of God into the world as
it is. Not as we’d like it to be, simply just as it is! Jesus, remember me when you come into
your kingdom.
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As we gather
–even in this remote way over the Internet (Talk about your mysteries!)- we are
faced with the kingdom of God come near, among us, and still to come. Every
time we pray the Lord’s Prayer, we say Thy
kingdom come and we are square in the middle of the mystery of the
Kingdom.
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What about
the two men crucified with Jesus. One mocks Jesus while the other has a clue to
what is going on. (Church tradition or myth calls him “Dismas.”) The “penitent
thief” crucified with Jesus asks to be remembered by Jesus when you come into your kingdom.
He mentions his guilt and proclaims Jesus’ innocence before he asks to be
remembered. He makes a request of one who in his eyes might be a king. The
words of this man ring in our ears today. He turns from his own pain to ask
that he might be with Jesus when the kingdom is fulfilled. How does Jesus
answer? Truly I tell you, today you
will be with me in Paradise.
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Note the
words of Jesus: Today.
The Kingdom is present now, so where Jesus is, there is the kingdom. Since he
is among us, even in our separate places today, the kingdom is here.
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He is a king
who has suffered and took thorns as his crown, a ratty soldier’s cloak as a
robe, and mockery as his proclamation of royalty. In his poverty, his riches
are proclaimed. In his suffering, his healing power is celebrated. In his
death, his life is fulfilled and resurrected... and ours as well.
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We heard
Paul’s words: for in him all things
in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible…
In John’s Gospel, Jesus tells Pilate that he is a king and his kingdom does not
belong to this world. (John 18: 36) If his kingdom belonged to this world, he
says his followers would be fighting to stop his trial and crucifixion,
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Jesus is the
king of a kingdom that is here and yet to come in its fullness. He is king of a
kingdom that is present now and stretching into the future. He reigns from the
cross and we can say with awe, humility, and with a confidence, Jesus, remember me when you come into
your kingdom.
