Christmas Day

Photo by Francesco Paggiaro. Distributed freely under Pexels license.

Opening response

Hurry, God, to deliver us.
LORD, come quickly to help us.

Of old, you laid the foundation of the earth.
The heavens are the work of your hands.

Prayer of thanksgiving

Blessed are you, Sovereign God,
our light and our salvation,
to you be glory and praise forever.
To dispel the darkness of our night
you sent forth your Son, the firstborn of all creation,
to be the Christ, the light of the world.
Rejoicing in the mystery of the Word made flesh,
we acclaim him Emmanuel, as all creation sings to you:
Blessed be God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Blessed be God forever.

That this evening may be holy, good and peaceful,
let us pray with one heart and mind.

Silence is kept.

As our evening prayer rises before you, O God,
so may your mercy come down upon us
to cleanse our hearts
and set us free to sing your praise
now and forever.
Amen.

Hymn

Join All Ye Joyful Nations

Charles Wesley

Join all ye joyful nations
The acclaiming hosts of heaven!
This happy morn a child is born
To us a son is given.
The messenger and token
Of God’s eternal favor,
God hath sent down to us his Son,
A universal Savior!

The wonderful Messiah,
The joy of every nation,
Jesus His name, with God the same,
The Lord of all creation.
The counselor of sinners,
Mighty to deliver,
The Prince of Peace, whose love’s increase,
Shall reign in man forever.

Go see the King of glory,
Seek the heavenly stranger,
So poor and mean, his court an inn,
His cradle is a manger.
Who from his Father’s bosom
Now for us descended
Who built the skies, on earth he lies,
By only beasts attended.

Whom all the angels worship,
Hid in human nature;
Incarnate see the deity,
The infinite creator!
See the stupendous blessing
Which God to us hath given!
A child of man, in length a span,
Who fills both earth and heaven.

Gaze on that helpless object,
Endless adoration!
Those infant hands shall burst our bands,
And work out our salvation.
Strangle the crooked serpent,
Burn his works forever,
And open set the heavenly gate
To every true believer.

Till then, thou holy Jesus,
We humbly bow before thee,
Our treasures bring, to serve our king,
And joyfully adore thee.
To thee we gladly render,
What thy grace hath given,
Till thou appear in glory here,
And take us up to heaven.

Confession of sin

Let us confess our sins to God.

A time of silence and self-examination may be kept.

My God, for love of you
I desire to hate and forsake all sins
by which I have ever displeased you;
and I resolve by the help of your grace
to commit them no more;
and to avoid all opportunities of sin.
Help me to do this,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

The Lord enrich us with his grace,
and nourish us with his blessing;
the Lord defend us in trouble and keep us from all evil;
the Lord accept our prayers,
and absolve us from our offenses,
for the sake of Jesus Christ, our Savior.
Amen.

Psalm 8

Yahweh, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!
    You have set your glory above the heavens!
From the lips of babes and infants you have established strength,
    because of your adversaries, that you might silence the enemy and the avenger.
When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers,
    the moon and the stars, which you have ordained;
what is man, that you think of him?
    What is the son of man, that you care for him?
For you have made him a little lower than the angels,
    and crowned him with glory and honor.
You make him ruler over the works of your hands.
    You have put all things under his feet:
All sheep and cattle,
    yes, and the animals of the field,
    the birds of the sky, the fish of the sea,
    and whatever passes through the paths of the seas.
Yahweh, our Lord,
    how majestic is your name in all the earth!

Glory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning is now
and will be forever. Amen.

Psalm prayer

We bless you, master of the heavens,
for the wonderful order which enfolds this world;
grant that your whole creation
may find fulfillment in the Son of Man,
Jesus Christ our Savior.

Old Testament reading

Isaiah 65:17-25

“For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth;
    and the former things will not be remembered,
    nor come into mind.
But be glad and rejoice forever in that which I create;
    for, behold, I create Jerusalem to be a delight,
    and her people a joy.
I will rejoice in Jerusalem,
    and delight in my people;
and the voice of weeping and the voice of crying
    will be heard in her no more.

“No more will there be an infant who only lives a few days,
    nor an old man who has not filled his days;
for the child will die one hundred years old,
    and the sinner being one hundred years old will be accursed.
They will build houses and inhabit them.
    They will plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
They will not build and another inhabit.
    They will not plant and another eat:
for the days of my people will be like the days of a tree,
    and my chosen will long enjoy the work of their hands.
They will not labor in vain
    nor give birth for calamity;
for they are the offspring of Yahweh’s blessed
    and their descendants with them.
It will happen that before they call, I will answer;
    and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.
The wolf and the lamb will feed together.
    The lion will eat straw like the ox.
    Dust will be the serpent’s food.
They will not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain,”
    says Yahweh.

Silence may be kept.

New Testament reading

Philippians 2:5-11

Have this in your mind, which was also in Christ Jesus, who, existing in the form of God, didn’t consider equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to the point of death, yes, the death of the cross. Therefore God also highly exalted him, and gave to him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, those on earth, and those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Silence may be kept.

The Magnificat (The Song of Mary)

Luke 1:46-55

Refrain:
When peaceful silence lay over all, and night was in the midst of her swift course: from your royal throne, O God, down from the heavens, leapt your almighty Word.

My soul magnifies the Lord.
My spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior,
for he has looked at the humble state of his servant.
For behold, from now on, all generations will call me blessed.
For he who is mighty has done great things for me.
Holy is his name.
His mercy is for generations and generations on those who fear him.
He has shown strength with his arm.
He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
He has put down princes from their thrones,
and has exalted the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things.
He has sent the rich away empty.
He has given help to Israel, his servant, that he might remember mercy,
as he spoke to our fathers,
to Abraham and his offspring forever.

Glory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning is now
and will be forever. Amen.

Refrain:
When peaceful silence lay over all, and night was in the midst of her swift course: from your royal throne, O God, down from the heavens, leapt your almighty Word.

Brief silence.

The Apostle’s Creed

Let us unite in this historic confession of the Christian faith:

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

I believe 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, died, and was buried;
he descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and will come again 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.

Thanksgiving and intercession

Thanksgiving may be made for the day.

Intercessions are offered
for peace
for individuals and their needs

Prayers may include the following concerns:

The church, especially in places of conflict
The Holy Land, for peace with justice, and reconciliation
Refugees and asylum seekers
Homeless people
Families with young children

Other intercessions and supplications may be offered as the Holy Spirit leads.

Response

Father, by your Spirit
Bring in your kingdom.

Silence may be kept.

Collect of the day

Almighty God,
you have given us your only-begotten Son
to take our nature upon him
and as at this time to be born of a pure virgin:
grant that we, who have been born again
and made your children by adoption and grace,
may daily be renewed by your Holy Spirit;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever.
Amen.

The Lord’s Prayer

Rejoicing in the presence of God here among us, as our Savior taught us, so we pray

Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours
now and forever.
Amen.

Conclusion

May God, who has called us out of darkness into his marvelous light, bless us and fill us with peace.
Amen.