A Light on the Hill

Order of Service – 4th January 2026

The Order of Service follows below.

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Brougham Place Uniting Church
Kardlayirdi Karnungga
A Light on the Hill

January 4, 2026
Preacher: Rev Linda Driver with Sharonne Price and Rev John Minchin
Christmas 2 with Communion. White.

Welcome to Brougham Place Uniting Church.

We acknowledge the Kaurna people as the traditional carers of the land on which our church is built.

As you wait for worship to begin, please turn your phone to silent.

Prelude

Welcome and Acknowledgment of Country

Naa marni? (Are you all good?)
Marni Ai! (Good I am)

Lighting of the Candles

In the beginning was the one who is called the Word.
The Word was with God and was truly God.
From the very beginning the Word was with God.
And with this Word, God created all things.
Nothing was made without the Word.
Everything that was created received its life from him,
and his life gave light to everyone.
The light keeps shining in the dark,
and darkness has never put it out.

John 1:1-4 Contemporary English Version (CEV). Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society.

As we light the candles, we are reminded with joy that the light of Christ has come into the world.

Call to Worship

Together we come to worship to:
Praise God!
who grants peace.
Praise God!
who gives strength.
Praise God!
who brings the sun.
Praise God!
who brings the rain.
Praise God!
for the Christ-child:
Praise God!
In our worship, let us:
Praise God!

We sing: Joy to the World

Together in Song 268

  1. Joy to the world! The Lord is come;
    let earth receive its king;
    let every heart prepare him room
    and heaven and nature sing,
    and heaven and nature sing,
    and heaven, and heaven and nature sing.

  2. Joy to the earth! The Saviour reigns;
    let us our songs employ;
    while fields and streams, rocks, hills and plains
    repeat the sounding joy,
    repeat the sounding joy,
    repeat, repeat the sounding joy.

  3. He rules the earth with truth and grace,
    and makes the nations prove
    the glories of his righteousness
    and wonders of his love,
    and wonders of his love,
    and wonders, and wonders of his love.

Prayer of Confession

O God, we bring our prayers to you.

Christ is light in the world.
When we have not held light out for each other,
forgive us.

Christ is the Word-made-flesh.
When we have not embodied your grace to each other,
forgive us.

Turn our lives around to follow after you, O God,
to live with the same presence and care in the world as Jesus.
We pray in Christ’s name.
Amen.

Words of Grace

Hear these words of Good News and grace:
In Christ, God has adopted you.
Through the Spirit, God marks you with promise and presence.
From the beginning of the world, God shows you how to live.
Thanks be to God for new life and grace.
In the name of Christ. Amen!

Passing of the Peace

The peace of our God be with you.
And also with you.

Community News and Notices

You can sign up to receive BP E-news by email and read past issues on our website: www.bpuc.org

Children’s Time (Exploring the Theme)

We sing: He Came Down That We May Have Love

He came down that we may have love;
he came down that we may have love;
he came down that we may have love,
hallelujah for evermore.

repeat twice

Communion

Invitation

Great Prayer of Thanksgiving

May God be with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your hearts!
We lift them up to our God.
Let us give thanks to God our Creator.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.

God of love…

…We join together with the voices
of heaven and earth
and all of creation, saying:

Holy, holy, holy God, of all creation and life,
Heaven and earth are full of your glory,
Hosanna in the highest!
Blessed is the one who comes in the name of God.
Hosanna in the highest!

Words of Institution

…that we may know Christ’s presence,
through this visible sign of your grace
and be his faithful followers,
showing your love for all of creation.
Through Christ, with Christ, in Christ,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
all honour and glory is yours,
God of Love, for ever, Amen.

The Lord’s Prayer

Let us pray together in the words that Jesus taught us:

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.

Save us from the time of trial

and deliver us from evil.

For the kingdom, the power and the glory are yours

now and forever. Amen.

The Breaking of the Bread

We break this bread
and take this cup
so that we can all share in the life of Christ.
The gifts of God for the people of God.

The Communion

Prayer After Communion

We thank you for this meal, God of love,
and for welcoming us to this table.
May our lives be strengthened to follow the example of Jesus,
who called us to share love and to serve others.
May God’s Spirit draw us closer
so that we may be found
centred in God’s grace,
enfolded in God’s love,
and reflecting God’s light into the world.
Amen

Children and Young People may go downstairs for Sunday School and Youth. Parents, you are welcome to join your child in Sunday School if you feel your child may need your assistance. Alternatively, you may wish for your child to remain with you for the duration of worship. Activity packs are available at the entrances.

We sing: He Came Down That We May Have Love

He came down that we may have love;
he came down that we may have love;
he came down that we may have love,
hallelujah for evermore.

repeat once

Scripture Reading: John 1:1-18

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 came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overtake it.

There was a man sent from God whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light. The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.

He was in the world, and the world came into being through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God.

And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth. (John testified to him and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks ahead of me because he was before me.’”) From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. The law indeed was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God. It is the only Son, himself God, who is close to the Father’s heart, who has made him known.

The Gospel of Christ, Light of the world.
Thanks be to God.

Message: What Sustains Your Faith?

We sing: Jesus Calls Us Hear To Meet Him

Together in Song 477

  1. Jesus calls us here to meet him
    as, through word and song and prayer,
    we affirm God’s promised presence
    where his people live and care.
    Praise the God who keeps his promise;
    praise the Son who calls us friends;
    praise the Spirit who, among us,
    to our hopes and fears attends.

  2. Jesus calls us to confess him
    Word of Life and Lord of All,
    sharer of our flesh and frailness
    saving all who fail or fall.
    Tell his holy human story;
    tell his tales that all may hear;
    tell the world that Christ in glory
    came to earth to meet us here.

  3. Jesus calls us to each other:
    found in him are no divides.
    Race and class and sex and language
    such are barriers he derides.
    Join the hand of friend and stranger;
    join the hands of age and youth;
    join the faithful and the doubter
    in their common search for truth.

Prayers of the People

Offering

To give electronically please go to bpuc.org/give

Alternatively, there is an offering bowl near the lectern on the left-hand side as you exit the church.

Offering Prayer

Light for the world, may these gifts and our lives reflect your gift of life and work for justice in the world. For the sake of all who are close to your heart. Amen.

Sending Forth and Benediction

Christ makes God known to you,
in vulnerability,
in action,
in love.
Go and follow after Christ
with the help of God’s spirit,
this day and every day. Amen.

We sing: May The Feet of God Walk With You

May the feet of God walk with you,
and his hand hold you tight.
May the eye of God rest on you,
and his ear hear your cry.
May the smile of God be for you,
and his breath give you life.
May the Child of God grow in you,
and his love bring you home.

Extroit

Come and share morning tea together, in the basement. There are stairs behind the organ and a ramp between the church and the car park. All are welcome!

Thank you for joining us for worship!
If you would like to get in touch or request a prayer, please make use of the Contact Cards in the pews and next to the Offering Bowl. Alternately, you can email our Minister, Rev Linda Driver: lindad@bpuc.org

This service has been prepared with assistance from

Liturgy, Learning, & (Purposeful) Life (L3)
Rev. Dr Bec Lindsay
© 2025, Uniting Church in Australia, Synod of South Australia

The Bible Reading is from the New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition (NRSVUE). Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Congregation Hymns:

Joy to the World
Together in Song 268
Isaac Watts, 1674-1748 alt Based on Psalm 98. Public Domain

He Came Down That We May Have Love
Text: Cameroon traditional; Spanish tr. by María Eugenia Cornou, b.1969, © 2019, GIA Publications, Inc. Tune: Cameroon traditional; transcr. and arr. by John L. Bell, b. 1949, © 1990, Iona Community, GIA Publications, Inc., agent

Jesus Calls Us Here to Meet Him
Together in Song 477
John L. Bell and Graham Maule © 1989, WGRG, Iona Community.
Administered in Australia and New Zealand by Willow Publishing Pty Ltd. All rights reserved.

May The Feet Of God Walk With You
Words © A.W Podlich 1946-. All rights reserved.

www.bpuc.org