Led by: Revd George Mwaura

Gathering Music

Welcome

Grace, mercy and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ
be with you all.

And also, with you.

Call to Worship

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.
The Spirit of God moved over the waters.
Christ, the eternal Word, brought light and life to all creation.

Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty; Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
we worship and adore you.

Amen

Greetings and Welcome

Hymn: Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord God Almighty!

Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty!
early in the morning our song shall rise to thee;
holy, holy, holy! merciful and mighty!
God in three persons, blessèd Trinity!

Holy, holy, holy! all the saints adore thee,
casting down their golden crowns around the glassy sea;
cherubim and seraphim falling down before thee,
which wert and art and evermore shalt be.

Holy, holy, holy! though the darkness hide thee,
though the eye of sinful man thy glory may not see,
only thou art holy, there is none beside thee
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;
holy, holy, holy! merciful and mighty!
God in three persons, blessèd Trinity!

Reginald Heber (1783–1826)
CCL31580

Prayers of Thanksgiving and Confession

Holy and eternal God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
we give you thanks that in love you created the world, formed us in your image,
breathed into us the breath of life, and called all creation good.
We thank you for Jesus Christ, who came among us in humility and grace, who taught, healed,
suffered, died and rose again, and who sends us into the world to proclaim your love and truth.
We thank you for the Holy Spirit, who moves among us still,
bringing comfort, wisdom, courage and new life.

Yet, merciful God, we confess that we have not lived as your faithful people.
We have wounded your creation, neglected your call to justice and mercy,
and failed to love one another as Christ loves us.
We have been slow to trust you, slow to follow Jesus, and resistant to the guidance of your Spirit.
Forgive us, renew us and restore us.
Shape us again in your image, that our lives may reflect your glory
and our words and actions may bear witness to your kingdom; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen

[Silence for personal prayers]

Assurance of Forgiveness

Hear the good news: Christ died for us while we were still sinners;
that proves God’s love toward us. In Jesus Christ we are forgiven.

Thanks be to God.

Amen

Prayer of the Week

Triune God, go before us into the week ahead.
Strengthen us in faith, guide us in truth, and fill us with love,
that in all we do we may reflect your image and bear witness to Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit;
through Jesus Christ our Lord who lives and reigns with you in the perfect unity of One God,
Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

Amen

Hymn: Immortal, invisible, God only wise

Immortal, invisible, God only wise,
in light inaccessible hid from our eyes,
most blessed, most glorious, the Ancient of Days,
almighty, victorious, thy great name we raise.

Unresting, unhasting, and silent as light;
nor wanting, nor wasting, thou rulest in might –
thy justice like mountains high-soaring above
thy clouds which are fountains of goodness and love.

To all life thou givest, to both great and small;
in all life thou livest, the true life of all;
we blossom and flourish as leaves on the tree,
and wither and perish; but naught changeth thee.

Great Father of glory, pure Father of light,
thine angels adore thee, all veiling their sight;
all laud we would render: O help us to see
’tis only the splendour of light hideth thee.

W. Chalmers Smith (1825–1908)
CCL31580

Ministry of the Word

Genesis 1: 1 – 2: 4a

Read by Stuart Kean

The beginning

^{1: 1} In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. ² Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.

³ And God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light. ⁴ God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. ⁵ God called the light ‘day’, and the darkness he called ‘night’. And there was evening, and there was morning – the first day.

⁶ And God said, ‘Let there be a vault between the waters to separate water from water.’ ⁷ So God made the vault and separated the water under the vault from the water above it. And it was so. ⁸ God called the vault ‘sky’. And there was evening, and there was morning – the second day.

⁹ And God said, ‘Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear.’ And it was so. ¹⁰ God called the dry ground ‘land’, and the gathered waters he called ‘seas’. And God saw that it was good.

¹¹ Then God said, ‘Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.’ And it was so. ¹² The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. ¹³ And there was evening, and there was morning – the third day.

¹⁴ And God said, ‘Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years, ¹⁵ and let them be lights in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth.’ And it was so. ¹⁶ God made two great lights – the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars. ¹⁷ God set them in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth, ¹⁸ to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good. ¹⁹ And there was evening, and there was morning – the fourth day.

²⁰ And God said, ‘Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky.’ ²¹ So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living thing with which the water teems and that moves about in it, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. ²² God blessed them and said, ‘Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth.’ ²³ And there was evening, and there was morning – the fifth day.

²⁴ And God said, ‘Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: the livestock, the creatures that move along the ground, and the wild animals, each according to its kind.’ And it was so. ²⁵ God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.

²⁶ Then God said, ‘Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.’

²⁷ So God created mankind in his own image,
in the image of God he created them;
male and female he created them.

²⁸ God blessed them and said to them, ‘Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.’

²⁹ Then God said, ‘I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. ³⁰ And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground – everything that has the breath of life in it – I give every green plant for food.’ And it was so.

³¹ God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning – the sixth day.

^{2; 1} Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array.

² By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. ³ Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.

⁴ This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created….

NIV®

This is the word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Matthew 28: 16–20

Read by Don Head

The great commission

¹⁶ Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. ¹⁷ When they saw him, they worshipped him; but some doubted. ¹⁸ Then Jesus came to them and said, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.’

NIV®

This is the Gospel of Christ.
Praise to Christ our light.

Sermon

By Revd George Mwaura

[Silence]

Musical Meditation/Silence

Affirmation of Faith

We believe in God the Father, creator of heaven and earth,
who spoke light into darkness and called creation good.
We believe in God the Son, Jesus Christ, who came among us in love and truth,
who died and rose again, and who sends us to make disciples of all nations.
We believe in God the Holy Spirit, who gives life to the Church,
guides us in wisdom and truth, and remains with us always.
This is our faith. We believe in one God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

Amen

Prayers of Intercession

Led by Cheryl Montgomery

The Lord’s Prayer

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 for ever.

Amen

Hymn: For the beauty of the earth

For the beauty of the earth,
for the beauty of the skies,
for the love which from our birth
over and around us lies,
Lord of all, to thee we raise
this our sacrifice of praise.

For the beauty of each hour
of the day and of the night,
hill and vale, and tree and flower,
sun and moon and stars of light:
Lord of all, to thee we raise
this our sacrifice of praise.

For the joy of human love,
brother, sister, parent, child,
friends on earth and friends above,
pleasures pure and undefiled:
Lord of all, to thee we raise
this our sacrifice of praise.

For each perfect gift of divine
to our race so freely given,
joys bestowed by love’s design,
flowers of earth and fruits of heaven:
Lord of all, to thee we raise
this our sacrifice of praise.

For thy church which evermore
lifteth holy hands above,
offering up on every shore
her pure sacrifice of love,
Lord of all, to thee we raise
this our sacrifice of praise.

F.S. Pierpoint (1835–1917)
CCL31580

The Peace

Christ is our peace. Through the cross he has reconciled us to God in one body.
We meet in his name and share his peace.
May the peace of the Lord be always with you,
and also, with you.

Let us offer one another a sign of peace, and wave to those watching on the live stream.

Offertory and Notices

Vacancy for Anglican Minister at Cornerstone

A short list of candidates will be drawn up shortly. Short-listed candidates will be invited to Milton Keynes on 23 & 24 June 2026, with interviews on Wednesday, 24 June 2026. Please continue to pray for all those involved in this important process.

Prayer Vigil for World Environment Day

5.30–6.00 pm Friday, 5 June 2026 at MK Rose, Campbell Park

Friday, 5 June 2026 is World Environment Day and Churches Together in Milton Keynes (CTMK) will be organising a prayer vigil at the World Environment Day pillar at the MK Rose in Campbell Park from 5.30 to 6.00 pm.

Celebrating ten years of Eco Church

2.30–4.30 pm Sunday, 7 June 2026

We’re delighted that Andy Atkins, the Chief Executive of A Rocha, the organisation that founded and continues to support the Eco Church movement in England and Wales, will be giving a talk here at Christ the Cornerstone on Sunday, 7 June 2026 from 2.30 to -4.30 pm. The programme will include some worship before Andy’s talk and discussion, which will be followed by refreshments in the Guildhall. We hope there will be a large turnout, so please book your free ticket: at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/celebrating-10-years-of-eco-church-tickets-1989213888288?aff=oddtdtcreator.

Cornerstone Eco Church Core Group

Offertory Prayer

Gracious God, all abundance flows from your endless love.
We humbly present these offerings before you. Those placed before your altar today,
and those given faithfully throughout the week,
whether shared in person or offered electronically, seen and unseen.
Receive them all as signs of our gratitude and tokens of our trust in you.
Bless these gifts and those who give them, that they may serve your purposes, proclaim your kingdom,
and reflect the generous love revealed to us in Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen

Hymn: Go forth and tell! O Church of God, awake!

Go forth and tell! O Church of God, awake!
God’s saving news to all the nations take:
proclaim Christ Jesus, Saviour, Lord and King,
that all the world his glorious praise may sing.

Go forth and tell! God’s love embraces all,
he will in grace respond to all who call:
how shall they call if they have never heard
the gracious invitation of his word?

Go forth and tell! Some still in darkness lie;
in wealth or want, in sin they live and die.
Give us, O Lord, concern of heart and mind,
a love like yours which cares for all mankind.

Go forth and tell! The doors are open wide:
share God’s good gifts – let no-one be denied;
Live out your life as Christ your Lord shall choose,
your ransomed powers for his sole glory use.

James E. Seddon (1915–1983)
CCL31580

Blessings and Sending out

May the love of the Father enfold you, the grace of the Son redeem you,
and the power of the Holy Spirit strengthen you.
And the blessing of God almighty, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
be among us and remain with us always.

Amen

Church go into the world to love and serve the Lord,
making disciples of all nations in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

In the name of Christ.

Amen