Second Sunday of Christmas

Date
January 2, 2022
Author
Don Bennett
Category
Bulletins

Created, saved and gifted by God, we seek, serve and share Jesus Christ.

Second Sunday of Christmas
January 2, 2022 10:30 a.m.

Good Shepherd Lutheran Church
901 East Stroop Road
Kettering, OH 45429-4688
(937) 298-0136

Introduction

Within the gospel reading’s profound words lies the simple message that God is revealed in a human person. Though we may try to understand how the Word existed with God from the beginning of time, the wonder we celebrate at Christmas is that the Word continues to dwell among us. Christ comes among us in the gathered assembly, the scriptures, the waters of new birth, and the bread and the wine. Through these ordinary gifts we receive the fullness of God’s grace and truth.
Cross My Heart
A “Cross my heart and hope to die.” Children say this, almost casually, to reinforce something they are promising a sibling or friend. They don’t really mean that they hope to die; it’s just a reassurance that they take seriously the promise they are making. In today’s luminous reading from the Gospel of John, we encounter God’s ultimate promise kept: “And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). This is the one promise for which “hope to die” is appropri- ate, because Jesus comes to us so that he may die for us and, through his death, bring the promise of life everlasting.
In most cases, when we make a promise it’s for a limited amount of time. But we are repeat- edly shown in the Bible that God keeps promises, even if they take many generations to come to fruition. Today the prophet Jeremiah shares the word of God, promising that exile will not last forever. And the psalmist invites us to praise God as one who keeps promises to heal and make whole: “The LORD rebuilds Jerusalem, and gathers the exiles of Israel. The LORD heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds” (Psalm 147:2-3, ELW).
Finally, in his letter to the Ephesians, Paul reminds his congregation of the infinite promise granted to us by the coming of Christ. Through Christ, he says, we are redeemed, our sins are forgiven, and we are granted an inheritance—one that means that though we don’t hope to die, we need not fear death, because Christ has conquered death forever.

GATHERING

The Holy Spirit calls us together as the people of God.

PRELUDE

WELCOME & ANNOUNCEMENTS

GREETING

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.

OPENING PRAYER

Let us pray.
You are gracious and merciful, O God, slow to anger, rich in love. Receive our prayers as you have promised and uphold us by your Spirit, until all things, mended by your mercy, are made whole and well in you, through Jesus Christ, our healer and our hope.
Amen.

GATHERING HYMN Hark! the Herald Angels Sing (King of Heaven)

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 hosts proclaim: Christ is born in Bethlehem;
Hark! the herald angels sing: glory to the newborn King.

Hail the heaven-born Prince of Peace, hail the Son of righteousness;
Light and life to all he brings, risen with healing in his wings;
Mild he lays his glory by, born that we no more may die;
Born to raise each child of earth, born to give us second birth;
Hark! the herald angels sing: glory to the newborn King.

King of heaven, come down; King of heaven, come now;
Let your glory reign, shining like the day. King of heaven, come.
King of heaven, rise up. Who can stand against us?
You are strong to save, in your mighty name.
King of heaven, come. (Oh…)

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, incarnate deity!
Pleased as man with us to dwell, Jesus, our Emmanuel.
Hark! the herald angels sing: glory to the newborn King, the newborn King.

King of heaven, come. King of heaven, come.
King of heaven. come. King of heaven, come.

King of heaven, come down; King of heaven, come now;
Let your glory reign, shining like the day.
King of heaven, come.

WORD

God speaks to us in scripture reading, preaching, and song.

FIRST READING Jeremiah 31:7-14

God promises to bring Israel back to its land from the most remote parts of exile. In Zion Israel will rejoice over God’s gift of food and livestock. Young women will express their joy in dancing; God will give gladness instead of sorrow.

A reading from the book of Jeremiah.
Thus says the LORD: Sing aloud with gladness for Jacob, and raise shouts for the chief of the nations; proclaim, give praise, and say, “Save, O LORD, your people, the remnant of Israel.”
See, I am going to bring them from the land of the north, and gather them from the farthest parts of the earth, among them the blind and the lame, those with child and those in labor, together; a great company, they shall return here.
With weeping they shall come, and with consolations I will lead them back, I will let them walk by brooks of water, in a straight path in which they shall not stumble; for I have become a father to Israel, and Ephraim is my firstborn.
Hear the word of the LORD, O nations, and declare it in the coastlands far away; say, “He who scattered Israel will gather him, and will keep him as a shepherd a flock.”
For the LORD has ransomed Jacob, and has redeemed him from hands too strong for him.
They shall come and sing aloud on the height of Zion, and they shall be radiant over the goodness of the LORD, over the grain, the wine, and the oil, and over the young of the flock and the herd; their life shall become like a watered garden, and they shall never languish again.
Then shall the young women rejoice in the dance, and the young men and the old shall be merry. I will turn their mourning into joy, I will comfort them,and give them gladness for sorrow.
I will give the priests their fill of fatness, and my people shall be satisfied with my bounty, says the LORD.

Word of God, word of life.
Thanks be to God.

SECOND READING Ephesians 1:3-14

In Jesus, all of God’s plans and purposes have been made know as heaven and earth are united in Christ. Through Jesus, we have been chosen as God’s children and have been prom- ised eternal salvation.

A reading from the book of Ephesians.
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, just as he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless before him in love. He destined us for adoption as his children through Jesus Christ, according to the good pleasure of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace that he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and insight he has made known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure that he set forth in Christ, as a plan for the fullness of time, to gather up all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth. In Christ we have also obtained an inheritance, having been destined according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to his counsel and will, so that we, who were the first to set our hope on Christ, might live for the praise of his glory. In him you also, when you had heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and had believed in him, were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit; this is the pledge of our inheritance toward redemption as God’s own people, to the praise of his glory.

Word of God, word of life.
Thanks be to God.

GOSPEL John 1:[1-9] 10-18

John begins his gospel with this prologue: a hymn to the Word through whom all things were created. This Word became flesh and brought grace and truth to the world.

The holy gospel according to John.
Glory to you, O Lord.

[In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.
There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light. The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.]
He was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God.
And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth. (John testified to him and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks ahead of me because he was before me.’ ”) From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. The law indeed was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father’s heart, who has made him known.

The gospel of the Lord.
Praise to you, O Christ.

MESSAGE

HYMN OF THE DAY As with Gladness Men of Old (ELW 302)

As with gladness men of old
did the guiding star behold;
as with joy they hailed its light,
leading onward, beaming bright;
so, most gracious Lord, may we
evermore be led by thee.

As with joyful steps they sped,
Savior, to thy lowly bed,
there to bend the knee before
thee, whom heav’n and earth adore;
so may we with willing feet
ever seek thy mercy seat.

As they offered gifts most rare
at thy cradle, rude and bare,
so may we with holy joy,
pure and free from sin’s alloy,
all our costliest treasures bring,
Christ, to thee, our heav’nly king.

Holy Jesus, ev’ry day
keep us in the narrow way;
and when earthly things are past,
bring our ransomed souls at last
where they need no star to guide,
where no clouds thy glory hide.

In the heav’nly country bright
need they no created light;
thou its light, its joy, its crown,
thou its sun which goes not down;
there forever may we sing
alleluias to our king.

APOSTLES’ CREED

I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.

I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit,
born of the virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended into hell.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come to judge the living 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.

PRAYERS OF INTERCESSION

Joining our voices with the heavenly host and Christians throughout time and space, let us pray for the church, the world, and all in need.

A brief silence.
Each intercession concludes:
Merciful God.
Receive our prayer.

Rejoicing in your Word made flesh among us, we commend these prayers to you, confident of your grace and love made known to us in Jesus Christ, our Savior.
Amen.

MEAL

God feeds us with the presence of Jesus Christ.

GREAT THANKSGIVING

DIALOGUE

The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your hearts.
We lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.

PREFACE

It is indeed right, our duty and our joy, that we should at all times and in all places give thanks and praise to you, almighty and merciful God, through our Savior Jesus Christ. In the wonder and mystery of the Word made flesh you have opened the eyes of faith to a new and radiant vision of your glory, that, beholding the God made visible, we may be drawn to love the God whom we cannot see. And so, with all the choirs of angels, with the church on earth and the hosts of heaven, we praise your name and join their unending hymn:

Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might, heav’n 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, hosanna in the highest.

THANKSGIVING AT THE TABLE

In the night in which he was betrayed, our Lord Jesus took bread, and gave thanks; broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying: Take and eat; this is my body, given for you. Do this for the remembrance of me.

Again, after supper, he took the cup, gave thanks, and gave it for all to drink, saying: This cup is the new covenant in my blood, shed for you and for all people for the forgiveness of sin. Do this for the remembrance of me.

LORD’S PRAYER

Gathered into one by the Holy Spirit, let us pray as Jesus taught us.
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.

INVITATION TO COMMUNION

Come to the banquet, for all is now ready.
Amen.

COMMUNION

The body of Christ, given for you.
The blood of Christ, shed for you.
Amen.

COMMUNION SONG We Three Kings

We three kings of Orient are;
bearing gifts we traverse afar,
field and fountain, moor and mountain,
following yonder star.