Thank you for joining us for our online worship service on the last Sunday of the liturgical year, Christ the King Sunday. We will share responsive readings as well as sing some hymns (with gratitude to Ken Heischman), and we’ll read a Scripture from Matthew 25:31-46. Because we will also be sharing the sacrament of communion on Christ the King Sunday, you are encouraged to have a piece of bread and a cup of some fruit of the earth (juice, wine, water) available so that at the appropriate time we may partake together.
CALL TO WORSHIP
Leader: Rejoice, the Lord is King! . . . and He is the King over all the earth (Psalm 47:7).
People: Rejoice, the Lord is King! . . . and He establishes a kingdom of justice and
righteousness (Isaiah 9:7).
Leader: Rejoice, the Lord is King! . . . and this King invites us to eat and drink at His table
in His kingdom (Luke 22:30).
People: Rejoice, the Lord is King! . . . and let us serve the One who teaches us that His
kingdom is among us (Luke 17:21).
Leader: Rejoice, the Lord is King! . . . and His kingdom belongs to children and those who
practice solidarity with the vulnerable (Mark 10:14).
People: Let us worship Jesus Christ, who is King of kings and Lord of lords (Rev. 19:16),
and let us rejoice, for the Lord is King.
HYMN — Rejoice, the Lord Is King Ken Heischman
Rejoice, the Lord is King: Your Lord and King adore!
Rejoice, give thanks and sing, And triumph evermore.
Lift up your heart, Lift up your voice!
Rejoice, again I say, rejoice!
God’s kingdom cannot fail, Christ rules o’er earth and heav’n;
The keys of death and hell Are to our Jesus giv’n:
Lift up your heart, Lift up your voice!
Rejoice, again I say, rejoice!
Rejoice in glorious hope! For Christ, the Judge, shall come
To glorify the saints For their eternal home:
Lift up your heart, Lift up your voice!
Rejoice, again I say, rejoice!
PRAYERS OF CONFESSION (unison)
God of holiness and grace,
even though You have crowned Jesus Christ as King of all creation,
we confess that we have not bowed before Him,
and we are slow to acknowledge His rule.
While we frequently give allegiance to the powers of this world,
we fail to be governed by Your justice and love.
We have been eager to pursue our personal interests,
but we have often been indifferent to our fellow human beings.
In Your mercy, O Lord, forgive us.
Inspire us to become Your faithful ambassadors,
so that our words may not only proclaim Christ as Lord of all,
but our lives will also demonstrate His lordship in everything we do,
for we ask these things in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. (Silent)
ASSURANCE OF FORGIVENESS (adapted from Colossians 1:13-14)
Leader: God has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom
of His beloved Son.
People: In Jesus Christ, we have redemption and the forgiveness of sins.
Leader: Friends, believe the good news of the gospel:
People: Through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, we are forgiven!
HYMN He Is Exalted Ken Heischman
He is exalted, the King is exalted on high
I will praise Him
He is exalted, forever exalted,
and I will praise His name
He is the Lord, forever His truth shall reign
Heaven and earth rejoice in His holy name
He is exalted, the King is exalted on high
SCRIPTURE Matthew 25:31-46
“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. Then the king will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and
you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?’ And the king will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.’ Then he will say to those at his left hand, ‘You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ Then they also will answer, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?’ Then he will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you
did not do it to me.’ And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
MEDITATION “Disguised” Tom Ulrich
PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE
HYMN I Come with Joy Ken Heischman
I come with joy to meet my Lord, Forgiven, loved, and free,
In awe and wonder to recall His life laid down for me, His life laid down for me.
I come with Christians far and near To find, as all are fed,
The new community of love In Christ’s communion bread, In Christ’s communion bread
As Christ breaks bread and bids us share, Each proud division ends.
The love that made us, makes us one, And strangers now are friends, And strangers now are friends
And thus with joy we meet our Lord. His presence, always near,
Is in such friendship better known: We see and praise him here, We see and praise him here
Together met, together bound, We’ll go our different ways,
And as His people in the world, We’ll live and speak His praise, We’ll live and speak His praise
CALL FOR THE OFFERING
SACRAMENT OF THE LORD’S SUPPER
INVITATION TO THE TABLE
PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING
WORDS OF INSTITUTION
PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION
BENEDICTION