12-24-23 4th Sunday of Advent for Oakdale

Psalm 89:1-2 & Psalm 96:7-13

Greeting: The Lord be with you… and also with you Lift up your hearts to the Lord… we lift them up to the Lord The Living Christ is with us… Praise the Lord Welcome and announcements. As always I'm thankful for all of you that have come this morning. -------------------- Invocation and the Lord's prayer: Dear Heavenly Father,,, As we begin our worship service today,,, I thank you for those that are here in person and those watching by video this morning. We ask for guidance through this service so that it will be pleasing to You! Open our hearts and our mind,,, to make us aware of your presence this morning. We ask these things in Jesus' name,,, who taught us to pray,,, by saying,,, Our Father,,, which 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,,, forever,,, Amen. -------------------- 4th Sunday of Advent: Love Speaker 1: Once God’s plan was a mystery, hidden from our sight. Now God has disclosed what was kept secret for so very long; he has brought it out in the light. In the brighter light on this fourth Sunday in Advent, may we see more clearly the glory of God in Christ and sing of the steadfast love of the Lord forever. Speaker 2: “With my mouth I will proclaim your faithfulness to all generations. I declare that your steadfast love is established forever; your faithfulness is as firm as the heavens” (Psalm 89:1b-2). (Light the previously lit purple candles and the pink candle, then the last purple candle) Speaker 3: Light four candles, see them glow brightly, so that all may know how four candles show the way making our darkness bright as God’s day. Let us pray: Dear God, your faithfulness has been great, leading us to this day of anticipation and celebration. May the glorious light of your steadfast love shine brightly in us and through us, that all may give you praise and glory. In the Savior’s name we pray. Amen. -------------------- Pastor's message on "love"! We are gathered here on Christmas Eve,,, in anticipation of the celebration of Jesus' birth tomorrow. The 4th Sunday of Advent candle was just lit,,, and the reading completed,,, and they used Psalm 89:1-2 to show us what we need to do as we continue through this Christmas season,,, and,,, each and every day as well. But this is especially important during Christmas,,, a time when love is something that we all are looking for! And what better love can be shared at this time,,, than the love that God has for us! A love that is faithful,,, a love that is true,,, a love that is unconditional,,, a love that is steadfast,,, a love that is unchanging,,, and,,, a love that we don't deserve,,, but yet,,, God loves us anyway,,, even while we fall short each day,,, most of the time,,, unintentionally! Regardless of the reason why we fall short,,, if we make a turn back to Him,,, He always forgives,,, and brings us back to Him,,, not because of anything that we've done to deserve that love,,, but only because God loves us that much! And it's that love that we need to share with others this Christmas season,,, so that all can feel true "love",,, as only God can give,,, especially to those,,, that have never felt His love,,, for the first time in their life!

God's love is there for them,,, just as it's there for you and I,,, and because it's free,,, it's the best gift there is!

God loves us all so much,,, just as John 3:16 says: “For God loved the world in this way: He gave His One and Only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.”

It's that type of self-giving love,,, that makes every Christmas season,,, special!

-------------------- Let's stand as we sing "Love Divine, All Loves Excelling" from the projector,,, and page 384 1st and last verses. Remain standing for the Affirmation of Faith and the Gloria Patri: The Affirmation of Faith and the Gloria Patri: I believe in God the Father Almighty,,, Maker of heaven and earth, And in Jesus Christ His only Son, our Lord; Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, Born of the Virgin Mary, Suffered under Pontius Pilate, Was crucified, dead, and buried; The third day He rose from the dead; And ascended into heaven, And sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty; From thence He shall come to judge the quick and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit,,, The Holy catholic church,,, The communion of saints,,, The forgiveness of sins,,, The Resurrection of the body,,, And the life everlasting,,, Amen. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost; As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. Amen. You may be seated: -------------------- Hymn: from the projector -------------------- Praise and Prayer Concerns: Have you seen or heard anything this week that we can give God praise and glory for? What about prayer concern's,,, anything that we need to add to our prayer list? On the prayer list we have,,, Dear Heavenly Father,,, Again I want to thank you for the chance to come together in worship this morning! I lift those up that have been mentioned this morning,,, those already on our prayer list,,, and even any need that was spoken or silent because I know that You will take care of that need regardless! I ĵalso pray for guidance to be given to the leaders of our country,,, our states,,, our cities,,, and most importantly,,, our churches! We ask all of these things in Jesus' name! Amen! -------------------- Offering Doxology: Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Praise him all creatures here below. Praise Him above ye heavenly host. Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen. Offertory Prayer Dear Lord, we thank you for these tithes and offerings. May we use them to the best of our ability and for your glory. In Jesus's name, Amen. -------------------- Hymn from the Projector, "Jesus Loves Me".Hymn: From the projector, "Love Lifted Me". -------------------- Christmas Eve: The four Advent candles are lit before the service begins. Speaker 1: The season for watching and waiting is over. The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light. This is the light of the world, and the darkness cannot extinguish it. (Light the Christ candle.) Speaker 2: “O sing to the Lord a new song; Sing to the Lord, all the earth. Tell of his salvation from day to day. “Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples” (Psalm 96:1-3). Speaker 3: “Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the peoples, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength. Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; bring an offering, and come into his courts. Worship the Lord in holy splendor; tremble before him, all the earth” (Psalm 96:7-9). Speaker 4: “Say among the nations, ‘The Lord is King!’ Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice. He will judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples with his truth” (Psalm 96:10a, 11a, 13b). Let us pray: Dear God, we are here today, to praise You for Your love that is shown to us every day, and for that same love that is visible every Christmas Eve. We celebrate Your birth because we have seen that great light, and we look forward to walking in that light as we spread Your love to all that we meet, in Jesus' name we pray, amen. -------------------- Pastor's closing message on Christ Luke 1:26–38 (HCSB) —

26 In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, 27 to a virgin engaged to a man named Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 And the angel came to her and said, “Rejoice, favored woman! The Lord is with you.” 29 But she was deeply troubled by this statement, wondering what kind of greeting this could be. 30 Then the angel told her: Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 Now listen: You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will call His name Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. 33 He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end. 34 Mary asked the angel, “How can this be, since I have not been intimate with a man?” 35 The angel replied to her: “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore, the holy One to be born will be called the Son of God. 36 And consider your relative Elizabeth—even she has conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called childless. 37 For nothing will be impossible with God.” 38 “I am the Lord’s slave,” said Mary. “May it be done to me according to your word.” Then the angel left her.

God bless the reading and the hearing of your word this morning.

Let us pray:

Dear Lord,,, as we begin this morning,,, with everyone here today and all that are listening and watching by video,,, we ask that you open our ears to hear and our hearts and minds to receive the message that you have for us today,,, In Jesus' name I pray,,, Amen.(3 minutes)

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Mary found favor with the Lord,,, those words have always intrigued,,, and encouraged me!

I'm intrigued because I wonder how she lived her life up to this point,,, and it must have been special for God to have found favor in her.

At the same time,,, God finds favor in us as well when we turn to Him like we should.

But Mary was chosen to be the mother of our Lord and Savior,,, and they were to name Him Jesus,,, and,,, 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. 33 He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end.

The reading said: The season for watching and waiting is over. The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light. This is the light of the world, and the darkness cannot extinguish it.

There is nothing that satan can do to defeat God's plan.

And because of that,,, we should always realize that God is in control.

Psalm 96:3 said: “Declare His glory among the nations, His wonderful works among all peoples.”

As I said during the earlier reading,,, this is news that should be shared,,, at all times,,, but especially during the Christmas season.

God had a plan in place knowing that Adam and Eve would fall in the Garden of Eden,,, and that plan is working today,,, and will continue to work,,, until Jesus comes again to make everything right that has been ruined by sin in this world today!!

So this Christmas season,,, and every season,,, we must tell of "His glory",,, along with "His love" for us,,, as we spread the Christmas story to all that will hear,,, no matter where they are,,, or who they are,,, God loves us all,,, just as He sent His son for all,,, and that's the greatest story ever told,,, as we look forward to the celebration of His birth tomorrow!

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Communion:

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So as we turn to our thoughts of communion this morning,,, remember the sacrifice that Jesus made for each one of us,,, and that He gave His life for us,,, even though we didn't deserve it,,, and for that we should always be truly thankful,,, and through His word we can receive the strength that we need to get us through anything today.

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As we come forward to celebrate Communion,,, we must remember that it's the Lord's table,,, and He is the One that invites us to the table!

And all are welcome!

We do not refuse any who present themselves desiring to receive. Whether you should receive Communion with us,,, is between you and God.

As we begin,,, let us have a moment of prayer and confession,,, I'll begin,,, then we will have a few moments of silence,,, so that each of us can say our own prayer and confession silently,,, then I'll close the prayer.

Dear Heavenly Father,,, we come to you this morning and thank you for all the blessings that we have received. We thank you for your Son who died on the cross for our sin's and made it possible to come to you in prayer. I ask for forgiveness for my sins and I know that the Holy Spirit will put before you any that I miss. Now we will take just a few moments in silence to allow everyone to speak personally to you, then I'll finish,,,,. ,,,,

Most Gracious and Holy God,,, again we thank you for this opportunity to come before you. We ask forgiveness as a church family together,,, for any sins we've committed before we take of your Holy Communion. These things and all others we ask,,, in Jesus' name,,, Amen

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If you will take your handout,,, we will begin reading from the top.

And we will continue by reading responsively until we get to the Amen at the bottom of the page.

So lets stand as we begin reading.

And we will continue by reading responsively until we get to the end.

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The pastor stands behind the Lord's table.

The Lord be with you.

And also with you.

Lift up your hearts. The pastor may lift hands and keep them raised.

We lift them up to the Lord.

Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.

It is right to give our thanks and praise.

It is right, and a good and joyful thing,

always and everywhere to give thanks to you,

Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth.

You created light out of darkness and brought forth life on the earth.

You formed us in your image and breathed into us the breath of life.

When we turned away, and our love failed, your love remained steadfast.

You delivered us from captivity, made covenant to be our sovereign God,

and spoke to us through your prophets.

In the fullness of time

you gave your only Son Jesus Christ to be our Savior,

and at his birth the angels sang

glory to you in the highest and peace to your people on earth.

And so, with your people on earth and all the company of heaven

we praise your name and join their unending hymn:

The pastor may lower hands.

Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might,

heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest.

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.

The pastor may raise hands.

Holy are you, and blessed is your Son Jesus Christ.

As Mary and Joseph went from Galilee to Bethlehem

and there found no room,

so Jesus went from Galilee to Jerusalem and was despised and rejected.

As in the poverty of a stable Jesus was born,

so by the baptism of his suffering, death, and resurrection

you gave birth to your Church,

delivered us from slavery to sin and death,

and made with us a new covenant by water and the Spirit.

The pastor may hold hands, palms down, over the bread, or touch the bread, or lift the bread.

As your Word became flesh, born of woman, on that night long ago,

so, on the night in which he gave himself up for us, he took bread,

gave thanks to you, broke the bread, gave it to his disciples, and said:

"Take, eat; this is my body which is given for you.

Do this in remembrance of me."

The pastor may hold hands, palms down, over the cup, or touch the cup, or lift the cup.

When the supper was over he took the cup,

gave thanks to you, gave it to his disciples, and said:

"Drink from this, all of you; this is my blood of the new covenant,

poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins.

Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me."

The pastor may raise hands.

And so, in remembrance of these your mighty acts in Jesus Christ,

we offer ourselves in praise and thanksgiving

as a holy and living sacrifice, in union with Christ's offering for us,

as we proclaim the mystery of faith.

Christ has died; Christ is risen; Christ will come again.

The pastor may hold hands, palms down, over the bread and cup.

Pour out your Holy Spirit on us gathered here,

and on these gifts of bread and wine.

Make them be for us the body and blood of Christ,

that we may be for the world the body of Christ, redeemed by his blood.

The pastor may raise hands.

By your Spirit make us one with Christ,

one with each other, and one in ministry to all the world,

until Christ comes in final victory, and we feast at his heavenly banquet.

Through your Son Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit in your holy Church,

all honor and glory is yours, almighty Father, now and for ever.

Amen. -------------------- Hymn: Projector - "O How I Love Jesus" -------------------- Benediction: