Organ Prelude

Kleine Präludien und Intermezzi (4th movement)
H. Schröder

Holy Communion Service

Celebrant: Revd Ernesto Lozada-Uzuriaga

Introit: Holy Ground

This is holy ground.
We’re standing on holy ground,
for the Lord is present
and where he is is holy. [Twice]

Welcome

Welcome in the name of Christ.
God’s mercy, grace and peace be with you.

Good morning, Living Stones, and welcome to our Holy Communion Service on the eighteenth Sunday after Trinity.

We begin with the Prayer of the Week.

Let us pray.

Prayer of the Week

O God, our life, our health, our salvation,
look with mercy on your people.
Stir up in us a saving faith, that believing, we may be healed,
and being healed, we may worthily give you thanks.

We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God for ever and ever.

Amen

Hymn: The King of love my shepherd is

The King of love my shepherd is,
whose goodness faileth never;
I nothing lack if I am his
and he is mine for ever.

Where streams of living water flow
my ransomed soul he leadeth,
and where the verdant pastures grow
with food celestial feedeth.

Perverse and foolish oft I strayed,
but yet in love he sought me,
and on his shoulder gently laid,
and home rejoicing brought me.

In death’s dark vale I fear no ill
with thee, dear Lord, beside me;
thy rod and staff my comfort still,
thy cross before to guide me.

Thou spread’st a table in my sight;
thy unction grace bestoweth;
and O what transport of delight
from thy pure chalice floweth.

And so through all the length of days
thy goodness faileth never;
good Shepherd, may I sing thy praise
within thy house for ever.

H.W. Baker (1821–1877)
CCL31580

Gathering Prayer

Jesus said: My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations.

Welcome to the house of God.
We have come from all the corners of the earth.

Welcome to the hospitality of God.
We come as we are; we bring our life, our stories, our journey.

Welcome, brothers and sisters.
We are the rainbow people of God.

Welcome, chosen people.
May God our companion bind us in his love.

Amen

The Confession

Forgive us for the things we have done and have not done.
Forgive us for the things we have said and have not said.
Forgive us for the life we have lived and not lived.
Beloved God, help us to reflect the image
of the one we profess to follow
in thought, word and deed,
and in discovering our true self
draw others into that light.

Amen

The Word of the Lord

Psalm 23

Read by Martha George

The LORD is my shepherd;
I have everything I need.
He lets me rest in fields of green grass
and leads me to quiet pools of fresh water.
He gives me new strength.
He guides me in the right paths,
as he has promised.
Even if I go through the deepest darkness,
I will not be afraid, LORD,
for you are with me.
Your shepherd’s rod and staff protect me.
You prepare a banquet for me,
where all my enemies can see me;
you welcome me as an honoured guest
and fill my cup to the brim.
I know that your goodness and love will be with me all my life;
and your house will be my home as long as I live.

RSV

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

Matthew 22: 1–14

Read by Pat Kyd

The parable of the wedding banquet

¹ Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying: ² The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son. ³ He sent his servants to those who had been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come.

⁴ ‘Then he sent some more servants and said, “Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner: my oxen and fattened cattle have been slaughtered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.”

⁵ ‘But they paid no attention and went off – one to his field, another to his business. ⁶ The rest seized his servants, ill-treated them and killed them. ⁷ The king was enraged. He sent his army and destroyed those murderers and burned their city.

⁸ ‘Then he said to his servants, “The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come. ⁹ So go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.” ¹⁰ So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, the bad as well as the good, and the wedding hall was filled with guests.

¹¹ But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. ¹² He asked, “How did you get in here without wedding clothes, friend?” The man was speechless.

¹³ ‘Then the king told the attendants, “Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

¹⁴ ‘For many are invited, but few are chosen.’

NIV®

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

An Affirmation of Faith

We believe in the Creator:
the maker of all things.

We believe in the Son:
the redeemer of our broken world.

We believe in the Spirit:
The sacred wind that binds all things together in the family of God.

Creator Father, beloved Son and living Spirit.

Amen

Intercessions

By Don Head

Let us bring our concerns before the throne of grace.

We pray for the world-wide church in a week that the Church of England has been criticised for not believing the witness of those who have been violated by clergy and lay leaders, and not dealing with these victims in a caring and supportive way.

Heavenly Father, you have kept the Church over centuries; we pray for the people of your Holy Church today, where it is persecuted, protect it, where it is in error, reform it, where it is overwhelmed, provide for it and nurture it so that by your grace we and all your people may each of us fulfil your calling for us to your praise and glory.

Lord in your mercy,
hear our prayer.

We pray for our world divided in so many ways between those with plenty and those in need, often dire, life-threatening need. Our generation is failing to answer the invitation to your banquet so you are calling your servants to go into the main streets and byways. We pray for all those involved in their employment or in voluntary work with helping the poor, sick, homeless, hungry, lonely and distressed. We have for several generations been upsetting the balance of the ecology of our earth by greed and wastefulness and need to find better ways of living particularly in the developed economies of the world which includes our own country.

God our Father, you never cease the work you have begun and prosper with blessing all human activity: make us wise and faithful servants of your gifts that we may serve the common good, maintain the fabric of the world and seek justice where all may share the good things you pour upon us through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Lord in your mercy,
hear our prayer.

We pray for us all gathered here and those worshipping with us using digital media. We pray for our family and friends; for those known to us who are sick or otherwise in need of your love and healing touch this morning. We pray for those who have requested prayers from our on-line prayer group and all who will visit this building in the coming week seeking help in their lives. We pray for our AGM this morning. We ask that those who will be elected to take office in different capacities will be ready and prepared to answer your call

Loving and merciful God, we pray that you will invite many to serve and meet the needs for a broader mission from this place and that, by your grace, such a call to serve will be answered by more who are ready and willing to sacrifice their time and abilities to show your love to this city centre and the people of Milton Keynes.

Lord in your mercy,
hear our prayer.

We ask these and all our prayers in the name of our Saviour Jesus Christ.

Amen

Hymn: O love that will not let me go

O love that will not let me go,
I rest my weary soul in thee;
I give thee back the life I owe,
that in thy ocean’s depths its flow
may richer, fuller be.

O light that followest all my way,
I yield my flickering torch to thee;
my heart restores its borrowed ray,
that in thy sunshine’s blaze its day
may brighter, fairer be.

O joy that seekest me through pain,
I cannot close my heart to thee;
I trace the rainbow through the rain,
and feel the promise is not vain,
that morn shall tearless be.

O cross that liftest up my head,
I dare not ask to fly from thee;
I lay in dust life’s glory dead,
and from the ground there blossoms red
life that shall endless be.

Georg Matheson (1842–1906)
CCL31580

The Peace

Jesus says,

‘Peace I leave with you;
my peace I give you.
Do not let your hearts be troubled,
neither let them be afraid.’

The peace of the Lord be always with you.
And also with you.

Harvest Gift Appeal

Holy Communion

The Thanksgiving

Blessed are you, Lord, God of all creation.
Through your goodness we have this bread to offer,
which earth has given and human hands have made.
It will become for us the bread of life.

Blessed be God for ever.

Blessed are you, Lord, God of all creation.
Through your goodness we have this wine to offer,
fruit of the vine and work of human hands.
It will become our spiritual drink.

Blessed be God for ever.

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 thanks and praise.

Eucharistic Prayer

It is right to praise you, Father, Lord of all creation;
in your love you made us for yourself.
When we turned away
you did not reject us,
but came to meet us in your Son.

You embraced us as your children
and welcomed us to sit and eat with you.

In Christ you shared our life
that we might live in him and he in us.

He opened his arms of love upon the cross
and made for all the perfect sacrifice for sin.

On the night he was betrayed,
at supper with his friends
he took bread, and gave you thanks;
he broke it and gave it to them, saying:
Take, eat; this is my body which is given for you;
do this in remembrance of me.

Father, we do this in remembrance of him:
his body is the bread of life.

At the end of supper, taking the cup of wine,
he gave you thanks, and said:
Drink this, all of you; this is my blood of the new covenant,
which is shed for you for the forgiveness of sins;
do this in remembrance of me.

Father, we do this in remembrance of him:
his blood is shed for all.

As we proclaim his death and celebrate his rising in glory,
send your Holy Spirit that this bread and this wine
may be to us the body and blood of your dear Son.

As we eat and drink these holy gifts
make us one in Christ, our risen Lord.

With your whole Church throughout the world
we offer you this sacrifice of praise
and lift our voice to join the eternal song of heaven:

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 Lord’s Prayer

As our Saviour 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 for ever.

Amen

Breaking of the Bread

We break this bread to share in the body of Christ.

Though we are many, we are one body,
because we all share in one bread.

Take this bread:

Share this wine.

In these Christ comes to us with love from God.
The gifts of God for the people of God.

Amen

Hymn: Guide me, O my great Redeemer

Guide me, O my great Redeemer,
pilgrim through this barren land;
I am weak, but thou art mighty;
hold me with thy powerful hand:
Bread of heaven, Bread of heaven,
feed me now and ever more,
feed me now and ever more.

Open now the crystal fountain
whence the healing stream doth flow;
let the fiery cloudy pillar
lead me all my journey through:
strong deliverer, strong deliverer,
be thou still my strength and shield,
be thou still my strength and shield.

When I tread the verge of Jordan,
bid my anxious fears subside;
death of death, and hell’s destruction,
land me safe on Canaan’s side:
songs and praises, songs and praises
I will ever give to thee,
I will ever give to thee.

Welsh, Willian Williams (1717–1791) tr. Peter and Willian Williams
CCL31580

The Blessing

Thank you for joining us this morning.

May the Lord bless you and keep you.
May the Lord make his face shine on you
and be gracious to you.
May the Lord turn his face towards you
and give you peace.

And the blessing of God Almighty,
the Father,
the Son
and the Holy Spirit
be among you
and remain with you
today and always.

Amen

Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.
In the name of Christ.

Amen

Organ Postlude

Kleine Präludien und Intermezzi (1st movement)
H. Schröder