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By Tim Runtsch. Children’s sermons by Megan Barone. Art and design by Lindsay Galvin. ©2013 by Creative Communications for the Parish, 1564 Fencorp Dr., Fenton, MO 63026. 800-325-9414. www.creativecommunications.com. All rights reserved. Printed in the USA.

Index

About the Series ........................................................................ 4-5

Service One: Star of Creation .................................................. 6-38

Service Two: Star of Hope ..................................................... 39-69

Service Three: Star of Unity ................................................. 70-100

Service Four: Star of Joy .................................................... 101-131

Music Guide ..................................................................... 132-179

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4 BRG

About the Series

See the birthplace of Christ in a whole new way this Advent season with The Bright Star of Bethlehem weekly Advent series for traditional worship. Each week in this series written by Rev. Tim Runtsch, a recent visitor to Bethlehem, parishioners will learn more about the little town where Jesus was born so long ago, and what Jesus, who is the Bright Star of Bethlehem, reveals to us even today. Hymns in the series include “O Little Town of Bethlehem,” “Hark the Glad Sound,” “Let the Earth Now Praise The Lord” and “Joy to the World.”

• Week 1: Jesus comes to Bethlehem to be born a star—the Star of Creation, and the ruler over heaven and earth. His presence brings light to the world, which is his creation. We were created in his image to shine forth with his love into the dark streets of our own cities and towns. • Week 2: Jesus comes to Bethlehem to be the Star of Hope to a people long forsaken. The fears of all the years are washed away by the sure hope of his salvation, which we are blessed to share with the lonely and the least among us.• Week 3: Jesus comes to Bethlehem to shine as the Star of Unity, bringing together a land and people long divided. Through his birth, walls of hostility, both physical and figurative, can be torn down and people can live in harmony with one another again. • Week 4: Jesus comes to Bethlehem to enlighten the world as the Star of Joy. The great glad tidings he has to tell bring a smile to our faces as we radiate to others his good gifts of forgiveness, freedom from death and everlasting life.

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BRG 11

Service One: Star of Creation

Complete Script For Worship Leaders• The Call to Worship is spoken responsively by the pastor and the congregation:

P In the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.C Amen.P Jesus, Bright Star of Bethlehem, light of creation,C Shine now and enlighten the whole world!P Jesus, Bright Star of Bethlehem, light of hope,C Shine now and heal hopeless hearts!P Jesus, Bright Star of Bethlehem, light of unity,C Shine now and gather us all as one!P Jesus, Bright Star of Bethlehem, light of joy,C Shine now and bring your gladness!P Shine now, Bright Star of Bethlehem, and bring your light and your life to us!C Amen.

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• The Opening Hymn is sung by the congregation to the tune Dix 77 77 77:

For the beauty of the earth, for the glory of the skies, For the love which from our birth over and around us lies:

Advent Lord, to thee we raise this our hymn of grateful praise.

For the wonder of each hour of the day and of the night, Hill and vale and tree and flow’r, sun and moon and stars of light:

Advent Lord, to thee we raise this our hymn of grateful praise.

For thyself, best Gift Divine! To the world so freely giv’n, For that great, great love of thine, peace on earth and joy in heav’n.

Advent Lord, to thee we raise this our hymn of grateful praise!

• The Confession and Forgiveness is spoken responsively by the pastor and the congregation:

P Advent Lord,C Forgive us for our sinfulness and the spiritual blindness that prevents us from

appreciating the wonder of the world you have made. Forgive us for taking without giving and for reaping without sowing. Shine your light upon us, O Lord, and open our eyes to see, our lips to praise and our hands to share. Guide us along the pathways of life on this earth until you bring forth a new heaven and a new earth when your Son comes again in glory. Amen.

P Hear the Good News: Jesus Christ is the light of the world. He is the Bright Star of Bethlehem. When he was born to save us he shattered the darkness of our sin, bringing forgiveness, love and grace. In him, you are a new creation!

C Amen. Alleluia!

• The Hymn of Praise is sung by the congregation to the tune Kings of Orient 88 446 and refrain:

Come, we, now to worship the Lord,Heavenly King by all adored,Humble offspring of a virgin,

Star of the ancient skies.O star of wonder, star of night,Star with royal beauty bright,

Westward leading, still proceeding,Guide us to thy perfect light.

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Praise we now our glorious King.Alleluias let us sing,

To our Savior, reigning ever,Born for us all to save.

O star of wonder, star of night,Star with royal beauty bright,

Westward leading, still proceeding,Guide us to thy perfect light.

• The Lighting of the Advent Wreath is read responsively by the pastor and the congregation:

P Today we light the first candle of our Advent wreath. We begin this season of anticipation and expectation as we remember God’s creative power and light.

(The first candle of the wreath is lit.)P At the dawn of creation, God said, “Let there be light!”C Advent Lord, shine your light on us! Alleluia!

• The Prayer of the Day is read by the pastor:

P Jesus, Bright Star of Bethlehem, as we gather in worship this day, give us joy in knowing that you created all that exists and, by the light of your grace, you have recreated us and made us your own. Lead us to rejoice in your creative work all of our days. Amen.

• The Old Testament Reading, Psalm 19:1-6, is read by the pastor or other worship leader:

P The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge. There is no speech, nor are there words, whose voice is not heard. Their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them he has set a tent for the sun, which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber, and, like a strong man, runs its course with joy. Its rising is from the end of the heavens, and its circuit to the end of them, and there is nothing hidden from its heat.

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• The New Testament Reading, Colossians 1:15-20, is read by the pastor or other worship leader:

P He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.

• The Gospel Reading, John 1:1-14, is read by the pastor or other worship leader:

P In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light. The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

• The Children’s Sermon is delivered by the pastor or other worship leader:

P Hello, boys and girls! I’m happy to see you. It will be Christmas—Jesus’ birthday—soon! To get ready for Jesus’ birthday, we come to church to talk about Him and His Father, God. Each week of Advent, we will have an action of the day that will teach us something about Jesus and God the Father.

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Our first action of the day is Creation Hands (cup your hands back and forth like you are shaping a snowball, like the picture below). Let’s pretend we have play-dough in our hands. We can roll it (pretend to roll play-dough around in your hands), squish and squeeze it, build it up, and flatten it. What do you like to create out of play-dough? (Allow the children to respond.)

You know who else likes to create things? God does! He loves to make things. What things has God made? (Allow the children to respond). Yes! He made the Earth, mountains, sky, the Sun and stars, oceans, fish and all the animals. His favorite thing to make is people! God made you and He made me. Our BIG God created everything but He cares about little you and little me too. He even knows the number of hairs on top of my head (some of us have more than others!)!

Everything God has made points to His Son, Jesus. God’s Creation glorifies Jesus. Jesus is the Star of God’s Creation! Everything God made listens to Jesus, even the wind and waves listen to Jesus! When Jesus comes back to Earth, He will be the king of all God’s creation.

Take some time this week to go on a walk to interact with God’s creation. Mom and Dad, talk about how creation tells us about Jesus. Do the action of the week, Creation Hands, to remind us that everything God has made points us to Jesus.

Let’s pray: Dear Father God, thank you for creating the world. Thank you for creating me too. Most of all, thank you for sending Your Star of Creation, Jesus. I love you. Amen.

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• The Hymn is sung by the congregation to the tune St. Louis 86 86 76 86:

O little town of Bethlehem, how still we see thee lie!Above thy deep and dreamless sleep, the silent stars go by.

Yet in thy dark streets shineth the everlasting Light.The hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight.

• The Drama is performed by a woman:

In these monologues the woman speaks to her “departed” grandma as if she were present right there in the room with her. The woman enters with the top portion of the artificial tree in her hands. She stops and

surveys the scene and the tree. She looks at the base of the artificial tree and wonders…

The scene is the living room of the home of a woman. An artificial Christmas tree is partially assembled.

1 I can’t believe that I am using an artificial tree. My Grandma would be absolutely appalled. She would have never stood for such a thing.

[She fights with the top portion of the tree…trying to get it into place, but fails. And then she pauses, a bit choked up…]

1 Grandma … you always had the most beautiful Christmas trees! I remember how we used to go with Grandpa and cut down a tree each year. It was always the Sunday afternoon after Thanksgiving. We’d drive to that small forest out west of town. It was owned by Grandpa’s friend. We would drive in the pickup back into the woods. We would then trudge through the snow on foot….looking for just the right tree. What an adventure! It was always so quiet, so beautiful, so serene.

[Pausing for a moment]

1 And Grandpa, he was picky … with a capital P. I’d point to trees. You would point to trees. He would take a quick look and say… “Nah, not that one!” And we would keep on looking. Then, when we he finally found THE one, he would cut it down with his old saw. We’d pile it into the pickup and head back to town. You would make us up some hot chocolate to get ourselves warm, while Grandpa wrestled with the tree and got it into a stand. Once it was all set up, Grandpa would stand back and say … “Now isn’t that a pretty piece of God’s creation right here in our living room.”

[Then the woman smiles and giggles a bit]

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1 But do you remember that one year, Grandma? The tree Grandpa picked out wasn’t so great. Lopsided, that’s what it was. In fact, it was SO lopsided, he finally had to take some wire and attach it to the tree trunk and then nail the wire to the wall just to hold it up.

[She giggles some more.]

1 But even though that tree was not so great he still looked at and said… “Now isn’t that a pretty piece of God’s creation right here in our living room.” Grandma … I guess we are all a bit lopsided.

[She looks at the artificial tree and puts the top portion on the tree]

1 Maybe there is a lesson somewhere in all of that?

[She she stands back and looks at the tree and then exits]

• The Sermon is delivered by the pastor:

P The very first words in the Scriptures are these, “In the beginning God created the heavens and earth“ (Genesis 1:1).

In the beginning, there was just God … and God alone. He is the one that brought everything else into being. The Creator brought forth creation. God spoke it and it was so. Hebrews chapter 11 brings forth that very same truth: “By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.“ (Hebrews 11:3).

It is interesting to note that the first thing that God brought forth was light. Genesis 1 says: “And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. God called the light ‘day,’ and the darkness he called ‘night.’ And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day” (Genesis 1:3-5).

In the beginning light shattered darkness…and that light was good. It was very good!

As we know, humans were brought forth as the pinnacle of God’s creation. They were to care for it and tend to it. It was theirs, if you will, as God’s gift to them.

In John chapter 1 we read that Jesus was right there at the very beginning of creation: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He

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was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind” (John 1:1-4).

Yes, the Son of God was right there in the beginning. “Through him all things were made.” And, “in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible… He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” (Colossians 1:16-17).

But then, not all that long into the life of God’s creation, darkness entered the world in a whole new way. When our first parents fell into sin, the curse of the darkness entered our existence. The darkness seemed to win out when sin entered our world. And human beings came to be comfortably at home in this darkness. As the Gospel of John declares: “People loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil” (John 3:19).

Now if I was God, I guess I would have looked at my creation and been utterly disappointed. And, in my utter disappointment, I probably would have wiped that creation away.

But not God.

He was not going to let the darkness hold sway. He was not going to let the darkness win the day. And so he launched a plan. His plan was to once again shatter the darkness with his glorious light. Darkness was not going to win out. God would make sure of that.

It was into the darkness of the earth’s night that a new light dawned and people took notice. It must have been a brilliant light, indeed. Sages, Magi, Wise Men saw this star from afar and followed where it led.

And where it led them was to a place called Bethlehem. That star was the star of creation.

What does that old favorite hymn say?

O little town of Bethlehem how still we see thee lie. Above thy deep and dreamless sleep the silent stars go by.

Yet in thy dark streets shineth the everlasting Light. The hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight.

But when they finally arrived in Bethlehem after their long journey, the Wise Men found

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Tune ..........................................................Antioch CM and refrain

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Antioch CM

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BRG 179

• The Closing Hymn is sung by the congregation to the tune Antioch CM and refrain:

Joy to the world, the Lord is come! Let earth receive her King;Let every heart prepare him room, and heaven and nature sing,

And heaven and nature sing, and heaven, and heaven and nature sing.

Joy to the earth, the Savior reigns! Let men their songs employ;While fields and floods, rocks, hills and plains repeat the sounding joy,

Repeat the sounding joy, repeat, repeat the sounding joy.

No more let sins and sorrows grow, nor thorns infest the ground;He comes to make his blessings flow far as the curse is found,

Far as the curse is found, far as, far as the curse is found.

He rules the world with truth and grace, and makes the nations proveThe glories of his righteousness, and wonders of his love,

And wonders of his love, and wonders, wonders of his love.

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