Sunday Worship Bulletin

Call to Worship

Adapted from Candle Litany for Longest Night

The Lighting of the Christ Candle

Presider • Invitation
All Advent we gathered around this wreath to light candles.
The wreath reminds us of the circle
of our human community,
and the candles illuminate the many ways
in which we bring ourselves to Emmanuel —
God with us and God coming to us —
as we anticipate the birth of Jesus of Nazareth
in Bethlehem long ago.

Reader 1
We light the candle of Hope
as we await the coming of Jesus,
who is our source of hope.

— Purple candle of hope is lit —

Together
Thank You, Lord,
for the gift of hope,
in our times of despair.

Reader 2
We light the candle of Peace,
knowing that Jesus
is the Prince of Peace.

— Purple candle of peace is lit —

Together
Thank You, Lord,
for the gift of peace
in our times of strife.

Reader 3
We light the candle of Joy,
knowing that the joy of the Lord
is our strength.

— Pink candle of joy is lit —

Together
Thank You, Lord,
for the gift of joy
in our times of sadness.

Reader 4
We light the candle of Love,
knowing that God is Love
revealed to us in Jesus Christ.

— Purple candle of love is lit —

Together
Thank You, Lord,
for the gift of love
in Christ and one another.

Presider
In the beginning was the Word
and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God.
The Word became flesh and lived among us,
full of grace and truth.
In Him was life,
and that life was the light of all.
We light the Christ Candle,
knowing that Jesus is
our hope, our peace, our joy,
and the source of love.

— The Christ candle is lit —

Together
Thank You, Jesus,
for coming to us.

Worship Song

Led by Ian & Ethan Kim

O Come All Ye Faithful

O come all ye faithful,
joyful and triumphant
O come ye, o come ye to Be — thlehem
Come and behold Him,
born the King of angels

O come let us adore Him
O come let us adore Him
O come let us adore Him… Christ… the Lord

Sing, choirs of angels,
sing in exultation
O sing, all ye bright hosts
of heaven above!
Glory to God,
all glory in the highest

Yea, Lord, we greet Thee,
born this happy morning
Jesus, to Thee be
all glo — ry giv’n
Word of the Father
now in flesh appearing!

Scripture Reading

First Christmas Scripture reading

Reader 5

Isaiah 9:2; 6 (GNT)
The people who walked in darkness
have seen a great light.
They lived in a land of shadows,
but now light is shining on them.
You have given them great joy, Lord;
You have made them happy.
They rejoice in what You have done,
A child is born to us!
A son is given to us!
And he will be our ruler.
He will be called,
“Wonderful Counselor,”
“Mighty God,”
“Eternal Father,”
“Prince of Peace.”
His royal power will continue to grow;
his kingdom will always be at peace.
He will rule as King David’s successor,
basing his power on right and justice,
from now until the end of time.
The Lord Almighty is determined to do all this.

Prayers of the People

Together

Throughout Advent,
we have been lighting candles
for people we know
who need God’s hope, peace, joy, and love.
On this Christmas Day,
let’s light candles again in prayer
for those we know and love.

Holy One,
be the light in our darkness this day,
that we might reflect Your light
into the dark corners of our world.
Amen.

Worship Song

Led by Pastor Jeya and Ian & Ethan Kim

Holy, Holy, Holy

Holy, holy, holy!
Lord God Almighty
Early in the morning
our song shall rise to Thee
There is a sign at the sight of Thee,
merciful and mighty
God in three Persons
God in three Persons, blessed Trinity

Holy, holy, holy!
Though the darkness hide Thee
Though the eye of sinful man
Thy glory may not see
Only Thou are holy
There is none beside Thee
Perfect in power
Perfect in power, in love, and purity

Holy, holy, holy!
Lord God Almighty
All Thy works shall praise Thy Name
in earth and sky and sea
There is a sign at the sight of Thee
There is none beside Thee
God in three Persons
God in three Persons… blessed Trinity

Scripture Reading

Second Christmas Scripture reading

Reader 6

Luke 2:1-7 (CEB)
In those days Caesar Augustus
declared that everyone throughout the empire
should be enrolled in the tax lists.
This first enrollment occurred
when Quirinius governed Syria.
Everyone went to their own cities to be enrolled.
Since Joseph belonged to David’s house
and family line, he went up
from the city of Nazareth in Galilee
to David’s city, called Bethlehem, in Judea.
He went to be enrolled together with Mary,
who was promised to him in marriage
and who was pregnant.
While they were there,
the time came for Mary to have her baby.
She gave birth to her firstborn child, a son,
wrapped him snugly, and laid him in a manger,
because there was no place for them in the guestroom.

Worship Song

Led by Ian & Ethan Kim

Hark the Herald Angels Sing

Hark! The herald angels sing,
Glory to the newborn King!
Peace on earth and mercy mild,
God and sinners reconciled!

Joyful, all ye nations rise,
join the triumph of the skies
With angelic host proclaim
“Christ is born in Bethlehem”
Hark! The herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King!”

Christ, by highest heaven adored;
Christ, the everlasting Lord
Late in time behold Him come,
offspring of a virgin’s womb

Veiled in flesh the Godhead see;
hail the incarnate Deity
Pleased with us in flesh to dwell,
Jesus, our Emmanuel
Hark! The herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King!”

Hail the Heav’n-born Prince of Peace!
Hail the Son of righteousness
Light and life to all He brings,
ris’n with healing in His wings

Mild He lays His glory by,
born that we no more may die
Born to raise children of earth,
born to give them second birth
Hark! The herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King!”

Communion

Together

Words of Invitation & institution

This is a joyous day! Emmanuel, God-with-us,
has come to touch our world, our lives.
Emmanuel has come to bring us out of darkness
into God’s glorious light.
Emmanuel invites us now to come to the table,
believing in the promises of God fulfilled today.
Here we hear angels and see shepherds,
and are transformed by a baby.
Here love is offered, and love is found,
in the sharing of bread and cup.
Here we find our journey’s end and its beginning.

The Lord Jesus, on the night of His betrayal,
sat with His friends at a special meal.
And He took bread, and after giving thanks for it,
He broke it saying, “Take and eat,
this is my body given for you.
When you eat it, remember me.”

In the same way, He took the cup and He said,
“This cup is a symbol of the new promise
of forgiveness and hope and life.
When you drink it, remember me.”

Every time we eat this bread and drink this cup,
we remember that Jesus is Emmanuel —
the God who is with us,
who will never leave us
and will never forsake us.

Let us pray.

Our God who draws near to us,
You established Your people
to be a light for the nations,
and called us to walk in Your paths
and follow Your ways.
Even now, You are coming to bring
justice and peace to the world.

In Christ, we have seen and heard
the good news of God:
the sick are healed, strangers are welcomed,
the poor have hope,
and the dead are raised to new life.
With thanksgiving, we offer our very selves to You.

Gracious God,
pour out Your Holy Spirit upon us
and upon these, Your gifts of bread and wine,
that the bread we break and the cup we bless
May make us one with You
and unite us with each other.

Through Christ, with Christ,
in Christ, in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
all glory and honor are Yours, almighty God,
now and forever.
Amen.

Let’s come to the Table!

Scripture Reading

Third Christmas Scripture reading

Reader 7

Luke 2:8-16 (CEB)
Nearby shepherds were living in the fields,
guarding their sheep at night.
The Lord’s angel stood before them,
the Lord’s glory shone around them,
and they were terrified.
The angel said, “Don’t be afraid!
Look! I bring good news to you —
wonderful, joyous news for all people.
Your savior is born today in David’s city.
He is Christ the Lord.
This is a sign for you:
you will find a newborn baby wrapped snugly
and lying in a manger.”
Suddenly a great assembly of the heavenly forces
was with the angel praising God.
They said,

Together:
“Glory to God in heaven,
and on earth
peace to everyone who pleases God”

When the angels returned to heaven,
the shepherds said to each other,
“Let’s go right now to Bethlehem
and see what’s happened.
Let’s confirm what the Lord has revealed to us.”
They went quickly and found Mary and Joseph,
and the baby lying in the manger.

Christmas Offering
and Prayer

Together

Our Christmas offering this year will go to support Justice Ventures International and Big Table San Diego.

Worship Song

Led by Pastor Jeya and Ian & Ethan Kim

Joy to the World / Our God Saves

Joy to the world, the Lord is 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 earth, the Savior reigns!
Let all their songs employ
While fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains
Repeat the sounding joy
Repeat the sounding joy
Repeat, repeat the sounding joy

Hear the joyful sound of our offering
As Your saints bow down,
as Your people sing
We will rise with You,
lifted on Your wings
And the world will see that…

Our God saves…
Our God saves…
There is hope…
in Your name…

You rule the world with truth and grace
And make the nations prove
The glories of Your righteousness
And wonders of Your love
And wonders of Your love
And wonders, wonders of Your love

Hear the joyful sound of our offering
As Your saints bow down,
as Your people sing
We will rise with You,
lifted on Your wings
And the world will see that…

Our God saves…
Our God saves…
There is hope…
in Your name…

Mourning turns…
to songs of praise
Our God saves…
Our God saves…

Joy to the world
the Lord… is… come

Scripture Reading

John 1:1-5 & 14 (CEV & the Message)

In the beginning was the one who is called the Word. The Word was with God and was truly God. From the very beginning the Word was with God. And with this Word, God created all things. Nothing was made without the Word. Everything that was created received its life from him, and his life gave light to everyone. The light keeps shining in the dark and darkness has never put it out.

The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood. We saw the glory with our own eyes, the one-of-a-kind glory, like Father, like Son, Generous inside and out, true from start to finish.

Presider: This is the Word of the Lord.
All: Thanks be to God!

Christmas Reflection

Led by Pastor Dan So

Christmas Sunday

Discussion Questions:

• What kind of Neighbor would Jesus be?
• What kind of house would Jesus build?
• And also, what kind of neighborhood would you want to invite Jesus to?
• What kind of house would you invite Jesus to?
• How can you be a neighbor like Jesus to others?

Gingerbread Neighborhood

Together

We will continue our annual tradition of building a gingerbread house neighborhood together as a fun symbol of the Word becoming flesh and moving into the neighborhood!

Benediction and Food

Led by Pastor Dan So

Being sent with God’s blessing into the world
to join Jesus’ mission of redemption

Announcements

The New Year Ahead!

We will not gather for community worship next Sunday (January 1st). Please keep an eye out via email for a Reset Sunday worship guide.

The following week, we will begin our first service as Anchor & Hope Church! Here are the details:

• Date: January 8, 2023
• Time: 10:00 am Coffee hour/setup • 10:30 am Worship begins
• Location: Sandburg Elementary School in Mira Mesa (1230 Avenida Del Gato, San Diego, CA 92126)

Clean-up & Move-out Help

We’re looking for volunteers to help clear out the Anchor City office here at MSPC next Saturday, January 7th at 10:00 am.

Giving in the New Year

Thank you so much for your love and generosity in building up our church. Starting January 1, 2023, please write offering checks to “Cyclical Inc.” with “Anchor & Hope Church” in the memo section. You can continue to give through Tithely as usual!