Preacher: Revd Lisa Kerry
Regional Minister Team Leader of the Central Baptist Association
Presiding Minister: Revd George Mwaura

Gathering Music

Opening Sentences

Come, my sisters and brothers, into the house of the Lord.
Come, no matter what burden you bear.
Bring them in prayer to the throne of divine mercy,
where we are sure of receiving a favourable response.
Come, let us worship the living God together.

We are here to worship and give praise in Jesus’ name.

Amen

Greetings and Welcome

Hymn: Be thou my vision

Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart,
be all else but naught to me save that thou art;
be thou my best thought in the day and the night,
both waking and sleeping, thy presence my light.

Be thou my wisdom, be thou my true Word;
be thou ever with me, and I with thee, Lord;
be thou my great Father, a true child make me;
be thou in me dwelling, and I one with thee.

Be thou my breastplate, my sword for the fight;
be thou my whole armour, be thou my true might;
be thou my soul’s shelter, and thou my high tower:
O raise thou me heavenward, great Power of my power.

Riches I heed not, nor meaningless praise:
thou mine inheritance now and always;
be thou and thou only the first in my heart;
O Sovereign of heaven, my treasure thou art!

High King of heaven, thou heaven’s bright Sun,
O grant me its joys after vict’ry is won;
great Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
still be thou my vision, O Ruler of all.

Irish (8th century)
tr. Mary Byrne (1880–1931)
versified Eleanor Hull (1860–1935) and others
CCL31580

Prayers of Thanksgiving and Confession

God of abundance, you set the world in motion, full of richness and diversity, resources and creativity,
to be found in the soil and among those who live and breathe on its layers, and for all to enjoy.
We come to worship you out of love, out of gratitude and thankfulness,
for you are the God of all that is, and will be.
Jesus said:
‘Be on your guard against all kinds of greed;
for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions.’
But Lord, you know us and understand our weakness and so we pray for forgiveness:
For the kind of greed that consumes all our passions;
For the kind of greed that governs the way we live our lives;
For the kind of greed that destroys the wellbeing of those we love;
For the kind of greed that oppresses the poor and treats them unfairly.
We are truly sorry and repent of all our sins.

[Silence for personal confessions]

Absolution

Hear the good news:
God knows how easily we are drawn to trust in wealth, status, and the false security of possessions.
Yet, through Christ, God offers us something that money cannot buy:
mercy, forgiveness, and life that never ends.
As those who turn from self-reliance and look to God for all things, hear and trust this promise:
In Jesus Christ, our sins are forgiven.

Amen

Kyrie

Prayer of the Week

Living God, you alone are our hope and our treasure.
Turn our hearts from the things that fade away
and teach us to trust in your mercy rather than in wealth or our own strength.
Grant us wisdom, contentment, and generosity, that we may seek your kingdom above all else
and find true riches in Christ Jesus our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

Amen

Ministry of the Word

Psalm 49

Read by Adrian Boynton

¹ Hear this, all you peoples;
listen, all who live in this world,
² both low and high,
rich and poor alike:
³ My mouth will speak words of wisdom;
the meditation of my heart will give you understanding.
⁴ I will turn my ear to a proverb;
with the harp I will expound my riddle:

⁵ Why should I fear when evil days come,
when wicked deceivers surround me –
⁶ those who trust in their wealth
and boast of their great riches?
⁷ No one can redeem the life of another
or give to God a ransom for them –
⁸ the ransom for a life is costly,
no payment is ever enough –
⁹ so that they should live on for ever
and not see decay.
¹⁰ For all can see that the wise die,
that the foolish and the senseless also perish,
leaving their wealth to others.
¹¹ Their tombs will remain their houses for ever,
their dwellings for endless generations,
though they had named lands after themselves.

¹² People, despite their wealth, do not endure;
they are like the beasts that perish.

¹³ This is the fate of those who trust in themselves,
and of their followers, who approve their sayings.
¹⁴ They are like sheep and are destined to die;
death will be their shepherd
(but the upright will prevail over them in the morning).
Their forms will decay in the grave,
far from their princely mansions.
¹⁵ But God will redeem me from the realm of the dead;
he will surely take me to himself.
¹⁶ Do not be overawed when others grow rich,
when the splendour of their houses increases;
¹⁷ for they will take nothing with them when they die,
their splendour will not descend with them.
¹⁸ Though while they live they count themselves blessed –
and people praise you when you prosper –
¹⁹ they will join those who have gone before them,
who will never again see the light of life.

²⁰ People who have wealth but lack understanding
are like the beasts that perish.

NIV®

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

Hymn: All to Jesus I surrender

All to Jesus I surrender, all to him I freely give;
I will ever trust and love him, in his presence daily live.

I surrender all, I surrender all,
all to thee my blessed Saviour, I surrender all.

All to Jesus I surrender, humbly at his feet I bow;
worldly pleasures all forsaken, take me, Jesus, take me now.

I surrender all, …

All to Jesus I surrender, make me, Saviour, holy thine;
let me feel the Holy Spirit, truly know that thou art mine.

I surrender all, …

All to Jesus I surrender, Lord, I give myself to thee;
fill me with thy love and power, let they blessing fall on me.

I surrender all, …

All to Jesus I surrender, now I feel the sacred flame;
O the joy of full salvation! Glory, glory to his name.

I surrender all, …

Judson W. Van de Venter (1855–1939)
CCL31580

Luke 12: 13–21

Read by Stuart Kean

The parable of the rich fool

¹³ Someone in the crowd said to him, ‘Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.’

¹⁴ Jesus replied, ‘Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?’ ¹⁵ Then he said to them, ‘Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.’

¹⁶ And he told them this parable: ‘The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. ¹⁷ He thought to himself, “What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.”

¹⁸ ‘Then he said, “This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. ¹⁹ And I’ll say to myself, ‘You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.’”

²⁰ ‘But God said to him, “You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?”

²¹ ‘This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich towards God.’

NIV®

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

Sermon

By Revd Lisa Kerry,
Regional Minister Team Leader of the Central Baptist Association

[Silence]

Musical Meditation

Affirmation of Faith

We believe in God, who is our true security and our eternal hope;
whose love cannot be measured by wealth or possessions.
We believe that life does not consist in the abundance of things,
but in belonging to God and to one another.
We believe in Jesus Christ, who warned against storing up treasures for ourselves
and called us to be rich toward God, who frees us from anxiety and greed,
offering us abundant life through grace.
We believe in the Holy Spirit, who turns our hearts from fleeting riches to what truly lasts,
who empowers us to live generously, to trust God’s provision, and to seek God’s kingdom above all.
This is our faith. We trust in God, who alone gives life that endures for ever.

Amen, Amen

Intercessory Prayers

Led by Joy Enenche

Hymn: Seek ye first the Kingdom of God

Seek ye first the Kingdom of God,
and his righteousness,
and all these things shall be added unto you;
allelu, alleluia.

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia,
allelu, alleluia.

Ask and it shall be given unto you,
seek and ye shall find.;
knock and itshall be opened unto you;
allelu, alleluia.

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia,
allelu, alleluia.

We shall not live by bread alone,
but by every word
that proceeds from the mouth of God;
allelu, alleluia.

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia,
allelu, alleluia.

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia,
allelu, alleluia.

Karen Lafferty (1948–2013)
CCL31580

Sharing Peace

Jesus teaches us that life is not found in the abundance of our possessions,
but in being rich toward God and one another.
The peace we share is not something we can buy or earn; it is a gift.

May the peace of Christ, which frees us from anxiety
about what we have or do not have, be with you all.
And also with you.

Let us share with one another the peace that comes from trusting in God alone.

Invitation to the Table

Come to this table, not because you have earned it, but because Christ calls you.
Come not with the riches of the world,
but with open hands and open hearts, ready to receive God’s gifts.

We long for the food that gives eternal life.

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 right and good to give you thanks and praise, loving God.
You created all things and called them good.
You give us life and breath,
yet we confess we have often looked to other things for meaning and security.
Still, you do not abandon us.
You sent your Son Jesus, who taught us that life does not consist in the abundance of possessions,
but in being rich toward God.
And so, with all who trust in you, with the company of heaven and the saints on earth,
we praise your name and join their unending hymn:

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.

On the night in which he was betrayed, our Lord Jesus took bread, gave thanks, broke it,
and gave it to his disciples, saying,
‘Take and eat; this is my body, given for you. Do this for the remembrance of me.’
Again, after supper, he took the cup, gave thanks, and gave it for all to drink, saying,
‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood, shed for you and for all people for the forgiveness of sin.
Do this for the remembrance of me.’
So, Lord, 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.

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

Lord of all life, help us to work together for that day when your kingdom comes,
and justice and mercy will be seen in all the earth.
Look with favour on your people, gather us in your loving arms
and bring us with all the saints to feast at your table in heaven.

Through Christ, and with Christ, and in Christ, in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
all honour and glory are yours, O loving God, For ever and ever.

The Lord’s Prayer

And as our Saviour taught us, we pray together:

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

Invitation to Communion

These are the gifts of God for the people of God. Come, for all is ready.

[Meal is shared]

Prayer after Communion

Generous God, you have fed us at this table with a meal which is a foretaste of the banquet in heaven.
Inspired and strengthened, may we go out to preach the message of love, peace and hope
in Jesus’ name.

Amen

Notices

Cornerstone Prayer Network

Prayer is central to our Christian fellowship. The Cornerstone Prayer Network is here for people who have asked us to pray for them. Please send your prayer requests to cornerstonechurch.prayernetwork@gmail.com and the details will be passed on to the members of the Prayer Network. If your prayer request is for someone else, please check with them before sending details to the Cornerstone Prayer Network.

If you would like to become a member of the Cornerstone Prayer Network, please send your details by email to cornerstonechurch.prayernetwork@gmail.com, or speak to June Halstead after a Service in the church.

Card Reader / Payment of offerings by card

The card reader for donations will now be in the Reception Area for easier use. Please note that registering for gift aid on the card reader once increases your donations by 25% at no cost to you.

Thank you so much to everyone who gives to us regularly, whether it be by card payment, cash in the collection basket, our envelope scheme, by direct debit or our Parish Giving Scheme. Your generosity is much appreciated. All these gifts are blessed in our weekly services.

Join the Big Butterfly Count!

The Big Butterfly Count has started and continues until Sunday, 10 August 2025. All you have to do is choose a place to spot butterflies and moths and watch for fifteen minutes! Details of what’s involved can be found here: https://butterfly-conservation.org/events/the-big-butterfly-count-2025. Please do take part.

Eco Church Core Group

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

Words of Mission and Blessings

Living God, send us out to love; and in loving, show us how to serve;
and in serving, teach us how to act; for we are yours.

And the blessings of God Almighty:
Father, Son and Holy Spirit always accompany us on this journey

Amen

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

Amen

Benediction

May God’s blessing surround you each day,
as you trust him and walk in his way.
May his presence within guard and keep you from sin.
Go in peace, go in joy, go in love. [×2]