Preacher and Celebrant: Rt Revd Bishop Jonathan Meyrick
Led by: Revd George Mwaura

Gathering Music

Call to Worship

Come, all who seek the way of God.
We come to listen for God’s call upon our lives.

God has shown us what is good:
to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with our God.

Blessed are the poor in spirit, the merciful, the peacemakers.
God’s kingdom is near; let us worship with open hearts.

Come, let us worship the Lord.
We come with joy and reverence.

Amen

Welcome and Greetings

Hymn: The Church of Christ, in every age

The Church of Christ, in every age
beset by change but Spirit-led,
must claim and test its heritage
and keep on rising from the dead.

Across the world, across the street,
the victims of injustice cry
for shelter and for bread to eat,
and never live until they die.

Then let the servant Church arise,
a caring Church that longs to be
a partner in Christ’s sacrifice,
and clothed in Christ’s humanity.

For he alone, whose blood was shed,
can cure the fever in our blood,
and teach us how to share our bread
and feed the starving multitude.

We have no mission but to serve
in full obedience to our Lord:
to care for all, without reserve,
and spread his liberating Word.

Fred Pratt Green (1903–2000)
CCL31580

Prayers of Thanksgiving and Confession

Holy and gracious God, we thank you for revealing your will to us,
not hidden in mystery, but spoken plainly: to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with you.
We thank you for Christ, who blesses the poor in spirit, comforts those who mourn,
lifts up the meek, and calls peace-makers children of God.
Yet we confess, O Lord: we do not always seek justice,
we hesitate to show mercy, we walk proudly rather than humbly.
We cling to comfort instead of compassion, silence instead of truth, fear instead of peace.
Forgive us. Renew us by your Spirit.
Shape us again according to your blessing, that we may live as citizens of your kingdom,
in Christ’s holy name we pray.

Amen

Absolution

Rt Revd Bishop Jonathan Meyrick

Hear the good news: God has shown us what is good
and does not turn away from those who repent.
In Christ, your sins are forgiven.
Walk humbly, love kindly, do justice boldly,
for you are restored by God’s grace.

Thanks be to God.

Amen

Kyrie

Prayer of the Week

God of justice and mercy, you have shown us the life that pleases you
and blessed us through the words of Christ.
Send your Spirit upon us in the week to come, that we may hunger for righteousness,
show mercy freely, make peace boldly, and walk humbly in your presence,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen

Ministry of the Word

Micah 6: 1–8

Read by Chibby Chima-Okoro

The Lord’s case against Israel

¹ Listen to what the Lord says:

‘Stand up, plead my case before the mountains;
let the hills hear what you have to say.

² ‘Hear, you mountains, the Lord’s accusation;
listen, you everlasting foundations of the earth.
For the Lord has a case against his people;
he is lodging a charge against Israel.

³ ‘My people, what have I done to you?
How have I burdened you? Answer me.
⁴ I brought you up out of Egypt
and redeemed you from the land of slavery.
I sent Moses to lead you,
also Aaron and Miriam.
⁵ My people, remember
what Balak king of Moab plotted
and what Balaam son of Beor answered.
Remember your journey from Shittim to Gilgal,
that you may know the righteous acts of the Lord.’

⁶ With what shall I come before the Lord
and bow down before the exalted God?
Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,
with calves a year old?
⁷ Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams,
with ten thousand rivers of oil?
Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression,
the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
⁸ He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.
And what does the Lord require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God.

NIV®

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

Hymn: There’s a wideness in God’s mercy

There’s a wideness in God’s mercy
like the wideness of the sea;
there’s a kindness in his justice
which is more than liberty.

There is no place where earth’s sorrows
are more felt than up in heaven;
there is no place where earth’s failings
have such kindly judgement given.

For the love of God is broader
then the measure of man’s mind;
and the heart of the Eternal
is most wonderfully kind.

But we make his love too narrow
by false limits of our own;
and we magnify his strictness
with a zeal he will not own.

There is plentiful redemption
in the blood that has been shed;
there is joy for all the members
in the sorrows of the Head.

There is grace enough for thousands
of new worlds as great as this;
there is room for fresh creations
in that upper home of bliss.

If our love were but more simple,
we should take him at his word;
and our lives would be all gladness
in the joy of Christ our Lord.

Frederick William Faber (1814–1863)
CCL31580

Matthew 5: 1–12

Read by Adrian Boynton

¹ Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, ² and he began to teach them.

The Beatitudes

He said:

³ ‘Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
⁴ Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
⁵ Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.
⁶ Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
⁷ Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
⁸ Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
⁹ Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God.
¹⁰ Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

¹¹ ‘Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. ¹² Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

NIV®

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

Sermon

By Rt Revd Bishop Jonathan Meyrick

Musical meditation

Affirmation of Faith

We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth,
of all that is, seen and unseen.

We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God,
eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God, begotten, not made, of one Being with the Father;
through him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven,
was incarnate from the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary and was made man.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried.
On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures;
he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,
and his kingdom will have no end.

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son,
who with the Father and the Son is worshipped and glorified,
who has spoken through the prophets.

We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.
We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come.

Amen

Prayers and Intercessions

Led by Glynne Gordon-Carter

Sharing Peace

Christ blesses the peacemakers and calls them children of God.
May his peace live in our hearts and guide our steps.
May the peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you always,
And also with you.

Hymn: Let us break bread together

Let us break bread together on our knees.
Let us break bread together on our knees.
When I fall on my knees with my face to the rising sun,
Oh Lord, have mercy on me.

Let us drink wine together on our knees.
Let us drink wine together on our knees.
When I fall on my knees with my face to the rising sun,
Oh Lord, have mercy on me.

Let us praise God together on our knees.
Let us praise God together on our knees.
When I fall on my knees with my face to the rising sun,
Oh Lord, have mercy on me.

Traditional
CCL31580

The Great Thanksgiving

Rt Revd Bishop Jonathan Meyrick

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.

It is indeed right, our duty and our joy, always and everywhere to give you thanks,
Lord, holy Father, almighty and eternal God.
For in the mystery of the Word made flesh you have caused a new light to shine in our hearts,
to give the knowledge of your glory in the face of your Son Jesus Christ.
Therefore, with angels and archangels, and with all the company of heaven,
we proclaim your great and glorious name, for ever praising you and saying:
Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might, heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.

Accept our praises, heavenly Father, through your Son our Saviour Jesus Christ;
and as we follow his example and obey his command, grant that by the power of your Holy Spirit
these gifts of bread and wine may be to us his body and his blood.
Who, in the same night that he was betrayed, took bread and gave you thanks;
he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying:
‘Take, eat; this is my body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of me.’
In the same way, after supper he took the cup and gave you thanks; he gave it to them, saying:
‘Drink this, all of you; this is my blood of the new covenant,
which is shed for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins.
Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.’

Great is the mystery of faith:
Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again.

And so, Father, we remember all that Jesus did.
In him we plead with confidence his sacrifice made once for all upon the cross.
Bringing before you the bread of life and cup of salvation,
we proclaim his death and resurrection until he comes in glory.

Accept through him, our great high priest, this our sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving;
and as we eat and drink these holy gifts in the presence of your divine majesty,
renew us by your Spirit, inspire us with your love,
and unite us in the body of your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Through him, and with him, and in him, in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
all honour and glory are yours, almighty Father, for ever and ever.

Amen

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

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.

Meal is Shared

Post Communion Prayer

Holy God, we thank you for this holy mystery, in which you have given yourself to us.
Grant that we, strengthened by this sacrament, may persevere in faith,
abound in love, and bear witness to the hope we have received,
that your name may be glorified in us and we in you,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen

Notices and Offertory

Journeying with Jesus – Lent Course 2026

This Lent, step onto the road with Jesus. Join our six-week course Journeying with Jesus, based on the Diocese of Sheffield’s inspiring study through Luke’s Gospel. Together we’ll explore stories of calling, healing, gratitude and transformation, discovering what it means to walk more closely with Christ in our everyday lives.

The course runs over six weeks, starting the week commencing 23 February and finishing by 1 April 2026. Come and share in scripture, discussion, reflection and prayer, as we journey together towards Easter. All are warmly welcome; whether you’re a long-time disciple or simply curious to explore faith more deeply. 🌿✝️

Revd George

Cornerstone Church Treasurer: Monica Nzima

With great pleasure we record that at its meeting on Tuesday, 20 January 2026 Cornerstone Church Council unanimously elected Monica Nzima as our new Church Treasurer. Please give Monica every assistance as she starts her important duties for the Church.

Offertory Prayer

Gracious God, all abundance flows from your endless love.
We humbly present these offerings, both those given today and those already shared,
asking for your blessing as we build your kingdom through this church and beyond.
May these gifts serve your purpose and bring light to all corners of your world.

Amen

Hymn: Take my life, and let it be

Take my life, and let it be
consecrated, Lord, to thee;
take my moments and my days,
let them flow in ceaseless praise.

Take my hands, and let the move
at the impulse of thy love.
Take my feet, and let the be
swift and purposeful for thee.

Take my voice, and let it sing
always, only, for my King.
Take my intellect, and use
every power as thou shalt choose.

Take my will, and make it thine,
it shall be no longer mine.
Take my heart; it is thine own;
it shall be thy royal throne.

Take my love; my Lord, I pour
at thy feet its treasure-store.
Take myself, and I will be
ever, only, all for thee.

Frances Ridley Havergal (1836–1879)
CCL31580

Blessings and Sending out

Rt Revd Bishop Jonathan Meyrick

May Christ, the Son of God, be manifest in you, that your lives may be a light to the world; and the blessing of God Almighty, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, be among you and remain with you always.

Amen

Dismissal

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

Congregational Hymn

May God’s blessing surround us each day,
as we trust him and walk in his way.
May his presence within guard and keep us from sin.
Go in peace, go in joy, go in love.