A separate video feed of the choir will be available here during the service.

Led by Revd George Mwaura

Gathering Music

Cornerstone Children’s Choir

Welcome and Greetings

May grace, mercy and peace from our Merciful God, our Saviour Jesus Christ,
and the Holy Spirit be with you all.

And also with you.

Today we enter the season of Advent: a season of preparation, both practically and spiritually.
Over the next few weeks we will ponder the foretelling words of Isaiah
and respond to the still small voice crying in the wilderness.

Lighting the first Advent Candle

Our hope is in God, and in his son Jesus Christ.
He is the one appointed by God to be judge of all things.
He is the one through whom God has promised to save and redeem his people.

Children’s Song

Cornerstone Children’s Choir

Christmas is coming,
the Church is glad to sing,
and let the Advent candles
burn brightly in a ring.

We light this candle today to remind us that he is our hope and the hope of the world.
We thank God for the promises he has made to us
and for the light he has brought into the world.

Amen

Hymn: Long ago, prophets knew

Long ago, prophets knew
Christ would come, born a Jew,
come to make all things new,
Bear his people’s burden,
freely love and pardon.
Ring, bells, ring, ring, ring!
sing, choirs, sing, sing, sing!
when he comes,
when he comes,
who will make him welcome?

God in time, God in man,
this is God’s timeless plan:
he will come, as a man,
born himself of woman,
God divinely human.
Ring, bells, ring, ring, ring! …

Mary, Hail! Though afraid,
she believed, she obeyed.
In her womb God is laid:
till the time expected,
nurtured and protected.
Ring, bells, ring, ring, ring! …

Journey ends! Where afar
Bethl’em shines, like a star,
stable door stands ajar.
Unborn Son of Mary,
Saviour, do not tarry!
Ring, bells, ring, ring, ring!
sing, choirs, sing, sing, sing!
Jesus comes!
Jesus comes!
We will make him welcome!

Fred Pratt Green (1903–2000)
CCL31580

Prayers of Thanksgiving and Confession

We thank you, Loving God that you have given us an enduring hope,
one which cannot disappoint us or mislead us.
We thank you, that through our faith in you and in your Son Jesus Christ,
you enter into every believing heart
and make new lives that have been torn apart by the darkness of this world;
by the darkness of human sin.
But, Lord, even as redeemed people we know we are not perfect
and so, we confess that we are often distracted by the season’s razzamatazz,
by the stress of commitment,
and even by putting our own traditions ahead of the true meaning of Christmas.
We confess we often prefer being sentimental to being sacrificial.
Forgive us for all the times we have missed seeing you in our midst,
for all the times we have doubted your presence,
and for all the times we have failed to hold the light for those in darkness.

Almighty God, give us grace to cast off the works of darkness
and put on the armour of light in the time of our earthly life,
so that when Christ returns in his glorious majesty,
we may rise to the life immortal.

Amen

Advent Theme

Introduced by Nerys Steeds and Ruth Moorhouse

Prayer of the Week

Christ our redeemer, you came, so that we might know we are yours by choice;
loved, embraced, saved and welcomed to your family and precious in your sight.
In this Advent, draw us together in unity that our praise and worship
might echo in these walls and also through our lives.
You came, so that we might be made complete, draw us together in mission,
that the hope within might be the song we sing, and the melody of our lives.

Amen

Ministry of the Word

Isaiah 2: 1–5

Read by Robin Kyd

The Mountain of the Lord

¹ This is what Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem:

² In the last days

the mountain of the Lord’s temple will be established
as the highest of the mountains;
it will be exalted above the hills,
and all nations will stream to it.

³ Many peoples will come and say,

‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
to the temple of the God of Jacob.
He will teach us his ways,
so that we may walk in his paths.’
The law will go out from Zion,
the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
⁴ He will judge between the nations
and will settle disputes for many peoples.
They will beat their swords into ploughshares
and their spears into pruning hooks.
Nation will not take up sword against nation,
nor will they train for war anymore.

⁵ Come, descendants of Jacob,
let us walk in the light of the Lord.

NIV®

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

Song: Soon, and very soon

Soon, and very soon, we are going to see the King. [×3] Halleluiah, halleluiah, we are going to see the King.

No more crying there, we are going to see the King. [×3] Halleluiah, halleluiah, we are going to see the King.

[Repeat both verses]

Andraé Crouch (1942–2015)
CCL31580

Matthew 24: 36–44

Read by Brian Halstead

The Day and Hour Unknown

³⁶ ‘But about that day or hour no-one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. ³⁷ As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. ³⁸ For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; ³⁹ and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. ⁴⁰ Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. ⁴¹ Two women will be grinding with a hand-mill; one will be taken and the other left.

⁴² ‘Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. ⁴³ But understand this: if the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. ⁴⁴ So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.

NIV®

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

Sermon

By Revd George Mwaura

Choral Response

By the Cornerstone Children’s Choir

Affirmation of Faith

We believe in God, who had the wild idea of becoming one of us.
We believe in Jesus, who restricted himself to Mary’s womb for a while.
We believe in the Holy Spirit, who overshadowed Mary.
We believe in the incarnation of God. We believe that God lives within us.
We believe that God is with us now in this place.

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

Sharing Peace

Christ is our peace.
He has reconciled us to God in one body by the cross.
We meet in his name and share his peace.
May the peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be always with you!

And also with you!

Offertory

Songs by the Cornerstone Children’s Choir

Notices

Trubys Garden Tea Room Interfaith Café

12.30–5.30 pm this Sunday (27 November 2022) in the Guildhall

We are delighted that Debbie Brock, High Sheriff of Buckinghamshire will be visiting us and presenting a cheque to the MK Food Bank to support our efforts to tackle the cost of living crisis facing our communities. Diabetes UK will also be there giving valuable advice and information on diabetes along with the Palestinian Solidarity Campaign stall.

Supporting local connections and communities through these difficult times.

Hoping to see you all there for conversations and yummy food!

For more information visit our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/100069169221585/posts/pfbid02zvnLCMkGtprNkipDQVXnW7AbbgbwJ8awKgSLm7Nnb9J8FViYGRXVGssQdXcPmziFl/?d=n

Peace and blessings
Kurshida Mirza (Trubys Garden Tea Room)

Congregational Meeting

12.30 pm Sunday, 11 December by Zoom

Please join us for this special Congregational Meeting, to hear the progress towards the church becoming a CIO, and to agree the interim First CIO Trustees proposed by Ecumenical Council. Brief biographical details for the nominated trustees will be available beforehand. The list of First CIO Trustees has to be included in the application to the Charity Commission for CIO status. The consideration of Standing Orders, how the CIO will work, will follow after the CIO is set up.

Pat Kyd
Clerk to the Ecumenical Partnership

Could you help your neighbours by donating your energy rebate?

All households are due to get a rebate on their energy bills amounting to £66 per month for the next six months to help with the cost of living crisis. For many people this will be a vital contribution to help make ends meet. Some of us, on the other hand, are in the fortunate situation of being able to manage without it, and might consider donating some or all of the rebate to those is greater need. One way of doing this, which ensures that the money goes to those most vulnerable, is through the ‘Donate the Rebate’ website: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/donatetherebate.

Social Justice Committee

Fair Trade Advent and Christmas

Cornerstone shop now has a supply of fairly traded sustainably sourced Christmas cards and Advent calendars on the shelves, including ‘The Real Advent Calendar’ by the Meaningful Chocolate Company, which includes a booklet telling the story of the birth of Jesus, price £4.50. You may pay slightly more for these items than you would over the road in the shopping centre, but you can then rest assured that the workers who produce our luxuries such as chocolate and coffee receive a fair price, enabling them to feed their families and send their children to school without having to rely on charitable handouts. Also, keep an eye on the shop for fair trade gifts of many sorts …. Turnover is fast and many items are supplied in small numbers only!! There are copies of the Traidcraft ‘Autumn Gift Guide’ on the display unit nearest the entrance in Reception; please take a copy to browse and return it or pass it to a friend when you have finished. For orders or further information contact Joy Chapman, in person or on 07854 762676, email cjoy.chapman9@gmail.com. (Orders through Joy rather than direct to Traidcraft also benefit the church.)

Joy Chapman

Hymn: Go, tell it on the mountain

Go, tell it on the mountain,
over the hills and everywhere.
Go, tell it on the mountain
that Jesus Christ is born.

While shepherds kept their watching
o’er wandering flocks by night,
behold from out of heaven
there shone a holy light.

Go, tell it on the mountain, …

And lo, when they had seen it,
they all bowed down and prayed,
they travelled on together
to where the Babe was laid.

Go, tell it on the mountain, …

When I was a seeker,
I sought both night and day:
I sked my Lord o help me
and he showed me the way.

Go, tell it on the mountain, …

He made me a watchman
upon the city wall,
and if I am a Christian,
I am the least of all.

Go, tell it on the mountain, …

Traditional
CCL31580

Benediction

Friends, we rejoice that a long time ago, our Redeemer came to live on earth as one of us.
When he comes again in glory, may he reward you with endless life

And the blessings of God almighty,
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
rest and remain upon you all today and always.

Amen

The Dismissal

Church, go in peace to love and serve the Lord.
In the name of Christ.

Amen