First Sunday of Advent
Prelude
Welcome & Announcements
Stewardship Moment
Blessing of the Advent Wreath
Greeting and Lighting the Advent Candle
Response UMH #211 — O Come, O Come, Emmanuel (vs.1)
Offering & Doxology
Leader: We gather to decorate the church with the tradition of the hanging of the Greens. With each decoration, a symbol of Christ is reflected, so that as we fill the space with wonderful holiday décor, we do not do so mindlessly, but with thought and care. Let us pray. >>>>> Amen.
Leader: How shall we prepare this house for the coming of the King?
People: With Branches of cedar, the tree of Royalty.
Leader: How shall we prepare this house for the coming of the Eternal Christ?
People: With garlands of pine and fir, whose leaves are ever-living, ever green.
Leader: How shall we prepare this house for the coming of a Savior?
People: With wreaths of Holly and Ivy, telling of his passion, death, and resurrection.
Leader: How shall we prepare our hearts for the Son of God?
People: By hearing again the words of the prophets who foretold the saving work of God. For God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved. Glory to God in the Highest.
1st Reader — God will send a righteous King — Jeremiah 23:5-6
“The days are coming declares the Lord, when I will raise up to David a righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely and do what is just and right in the land. In his days, Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety. This is the name by which he will be called: the Lord our Righteousness.”
In ancient times the cedar was revered as the tree of royalty. It also signified immortality and was used for purification. We place this cedar branch as a sign of Christ, who reigns as King forever, and whose coming in justice and righteousness will purify our hearts.
Hymn UMH #196 — Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus (vs.1)
2nd Reader — The Prophet declares a child will be born — Isaiah 9:2, 6-7
“The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death, a light has dawned. For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders, and he will be called wonderful counselor, Mighty God, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end.
Because the needles of the pine and fir trees appear not to die each season, the ancients saw them as signs of things that last forever. Isaiah tells us that there will be no end to the reign of the Messiah. Therefore, we hang this wreath of evergreens shaped in a circle which itself has no end to signify the eternal reign of Jesus Christ.
Hymn UMH #211 — O Come, O Come, Emmanuel (vs.5)
3rd Reader — The Fourth Servant Song, Isaiah 53:6
“All we, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid upon the Messiah, the iniquity of us all.
For Christians, this passage from Isaiah reflects the sufferings of Jesus who saved us from our sins by death on the cross and by his resurrection from the dead. In ancient times holly and ivy were considered signs of Christ’s passion. Their prickly leaves suggested the crown of thorns, the red berries the blood of the Savior, and the bitter bark, the drink offered to Jesus on the cross. As we hang the Holly and the Ivy, let us rejoice in the coming of Jesus, our Savior.
Carol UMH #203 — Hail to the Lord’s Anointed (vs.1,2)
4th Reader — The Mystery of the Incarnation, John 1 (selected verses)
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God, He was with God in the beginning. In him was life and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness but the darkness has not understood it. The True light that gives light to every child of God was coming into the world.
As we prepare for the coming of Jesus, the Light of the world, we light the Chrismon tree. During this Advent, whenever you see a lighted Christmas tree, let it call to mind the One who brings light into our Darkness, healing to our brokenness and peace to all who receive him.
History of Chrismon Symbols
Blessing of the Chrismon Tree
Hymn UMH #206 — I Want to Walk as a Child of the Light (vs.1)
Benediction
Postlude