Christmas Eve December 24, 2022

Close of Day (Compline) on Christmas Eve

Opening Hymn 340 Away In a Manger

1 Away in a manger, no crib for a bed,
the little Lord Jesus laid down his sweet head.
The stars in the bright sky looked down where he lay,
the little Lord Jesus asleep on the hay.

2 The cattle are lowing, the baby awakes,
but little Lord Jesus, no crying he makes.
I love you, Lord Jesus; look down from the sky,
and stay by my side until morning is nigh.

3 Be near me, Lord Jesus; I ask you to stay
close by me forever and love me, I pray.
Bless all the dear children in your tender care,
and take us to heaven to live with you there.

Text (sts. 1–2): The Myrtle, Boston, 1884; (st. 3): Vineyard Songs, Louisville, 1892, alt.
Text: Public domain

P: The Lord Almighty grant us a quiet night and peace at the last.

C: Amen.

P: It is good to give thanks to the Lord,

C: To sing praise to your name, O Most High;

P: To herald your love in the morning,

C: Your truth at the close of day.

First Reading Genesis 3:8-15

⁸They heard the voice of the Lord God, who was walking around in the garden during the cooler part of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden.

⁹The Lord God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?”

¹⁰The man said, “I heard your voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, so I hid myself.”

¹¹God said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree from which I commanded you not to eat?”

¹²The man said, “The woman you gave to be with me—she gave me fruit from the tree, and I ate it.”

¹³The Lord God said to the woman, “What have you done?”

The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”

¹⁴The Lord God said to the serpent:

Because you have done this,

you are cursed more than all the livestock,

and more than every wild animal.

You shall crawl on your belly,

and you shall eat dust all the days of your life.

¹⁵I will put hostility between you and the woman,

and between your seed and her seed.

He will crush your head,

and you will crush his heel.

Confession of Sins

P: Almighty God, our heavenly Father,

C: we have sinned against you

    in our thoughts, in our words, in our deeds,

    and in all that we have not done.

    Forgive us in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

    Deliver and restore us, that we may rest in peace.

P: By the mercy of God we are redeemed by Jesus Christ, and in him we are forgiven. Let us rest in his peace until the rising of the sun, when we shall serve him in newness of life.

C: Amen.

Second Reading Isaiah 9:2

²The people walking in darkness have seen a great light.

For those living in the land of the shadow of death, the light has dawned. 

⁶For to us a child is born.

To us a son is given.

The authority to rule will rest on his shoulders.

He will be named:

Wonderful Counselor,

Mighty God,

Everlasting Father,

Prince of Peace.

Adult Choir Long Time Ago

Third Reading Micah 5:2-4

²But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,

though you are small among the clans of Judah,

from you, will go out the one who will be the ruler for me in Israel.

His goings forth are from the beginning, from the days of eternity.

³Therefore the Lord will give them up,

until the time when the woman who is in labor bears a child.

Then the remaining survivors from his brothers will return to the people of Israel.

⁴He will stand and shepherd with the strength of the Lord,

in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.

They will dwell securely, for at that time he will be great to the ends of the earth.

Hymn 333 O Little Town of Bethlehem

1 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.

2 For Christ is born of Mary,
    and, gathered all above
while mortals sleep, the angels keep
    their watch of wond’ring love.
O morning stars, together
    proclaim the holy birth,
and praises sing to God the King
    and peace to all the earth.

3 How silently, how silently
    the wondrous gift is giv’n!
So God imparts to human hearts
    the blessings of his heav’n.
No ear may hear his coming,
    but in this world of sin,
where meek souls will receive him, still
    the dear Christ enters in.

4 O holy Child of Bethlehem,
    descend to us, we pray;
cast out our sin and enter in,
    be born in us today.
We hear the Christmas angels
    the great glad tidings tell;
O come to us, abide with us,
    our Lord Immanuel!

Fourth Reading Luke 1:30-35

³⁰The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, because you have found favor with God. ³¹Listen, you will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to name him Jesus. ³²He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David. ³³He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and his kingdom will never end.”

³⁴Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?”

³⁵The angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.

Hymn 301 vv. 1-2 Savior of the Nations, Come

1 Savior of the nations, come;

Virgin’s Son, make here your home.
Marvel now, O heav’n and earth,
that the Lord chose such a birth.

2 Not by human flesh and blood,
by the Spirit of our God
was the Word of God made flesh,
woman’s offspring, pure and fresh.

Text: tr. William M. Reynolds, 1812–1876, alt.; German version, Martin Luther, 1483–1546, abr.; Ambrose of Milan, 340–397, abr.
Text: Public domain

Fifth Reading Luke 2:1-14

¹In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. ²This was the first census taken while Quirinius was governing Syria. ³And everyone went to register, each to his own town. ⁴And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the town of Nazareth, into Judea, to the town of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was from the house and family line of David. ⁵He went to be registered with Mary, his wife, who was pledged to him in marriage and was expecting a child.

⁶And so it was that while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. ⁷And she gave birth to her firstborn son, wrapped him in swaddling cloths, and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

⁸There were in the same country shepherds staying out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock at night. ⁹An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified! ¹⁰But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. For behold, I bring you good news of great joy, which will be for all people: ¹¹Today in the town of David, a Savior was born for you. He is Christ the Lord. ¹²And this will be a sign for you: You will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” ¹³Suddenly, there was with the angel a multitude from the heavenly army, praising God and saying, ¹⁴“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward mankind.”

Hymn 345 Where Shepherds Lately Knelt

1 Where shepherds lately knelt and kept the angel’s word,
I come in half-belief, a pilgrim strangely stirred;
    but there is room and welcome there for me,
    but there is room and welcome there for me. 

2 In that unlikely place I find him as they said:
sweet newborn babe, how frail! And in a manger bed:
    a still, small voice to cry one day for me,
    a still, small voice to cry one day for me.

3 How should I not have known Isaiah would be there,
his prophecies fulfilled? With pounding heart I stare:
    a child, a son, the Prince of Peace for me,
    a child, a son, the Prince of Peace for me.

4 Can I, will I forget how Love was born, and burned
its way into my heart—unasked, unforced, unearned,
    to die, to live, and not alone for me,
    to die, to live, and not alone for me?

Text: Jaroslav J. Vajda, 1919–2008
Text: © 1986 Concordia Publishing House. Used by permission: OneLicense no. 703297

Offering

You can give your offerings from your smartphone with the new Vanco Mobile app, which can be downloaded for free at Google Play or the App Store.  You can also give at holytrinitylutheranwyoming.com by clicking the Offerings link at the top of the page. If you have any questions about any of these options, please contact Dave Vogel at financialsecretary@holytrinity-wels.netThe Sacrament

Prayer

P: Hear my prayer, O Lord;

C: listen to my cry.

 P: Keep me as the apple of your eye;

C: hide me in the shadow of your wings.

P: In righteousness I shall see you;

C: when I awake, your presence will give me joy.

 P: Be present, O merciful God, and protect us through the silent hours of this night, so that we who are wearied by the changes and chances of this fleeting world may rest in your eternal changelessness; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

C: Amen.

Lord’s Prayer

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 forever. Amen.

Special Music A Son, Emmanuel

Sixth Reading Luke 2:15-20

¹⁵When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Now let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.” ¹⁶So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. ¹⁷When they had seen him, they told others the message they had been told about this child. ¹⁸And all who heard it were amazed by what the shepherds said to them. ¹⁹But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart. ²⁰And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

Hymn 343 Once in Royal David’s City

1 Once in royal David’s city
    stood a lowly cattle shed,
where a mother laid her baby
    in a manger for his bed:
Mary was that mother mild,
Jesus Christ her little child.

2 He came down to earth from heaven
    who is God and Lord of all,
and his shelter was a stable,
    and his cradle was a stall;
with the poor and mean and lowly
lived on earth our Savior holy.

3 And our eyes at last shall see him
    through his own redeeming love,
for that child, so dear and gentle,
    is our Lord in heav’n above,
and he leads his children on
to the place where he is gone.

4 Not in that poor, lowly stable
    with the oxen standing by
shall we see him, but in heaven,
    set at God’s right hand on high.
Then like stars his children crowned,
all in white, his praise will sound.

Text: Cecil F. Alexander, 1818–1895, abr., alt.
Text: Public domain

Seventh Reading John 1:1-14

¹In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ²He was with God in the beginning. ³Through him everything was made, and without him not one thing was made that has been made. ⁴In him was life, and the life was the light of mankind. ⁵The light is shining in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

⁶There was a man, sent from God, whose name was John. ⁷He came as an eyewitness to testify about the light so that everyone would believe through him. ⁸He was not the light, but he came to testify about the light.

⁹The real light that shines on everyone was coming into the world. ¹⁰He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not recognize him. ¹¹He came to what was his own, yet his own people did not accept him. ¹²But to all who did receive him, to those who believe in his name, he gave the right to become children of God. ¹³They were born, not of blood, or of the desire of the flesh, or of a husband’s will, but born of God.

¹⁴The Word became flesh and dwelled among us. We have seen his glory, the glory he has as the only-begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Blessing
P: The almighty and merciful Lord-the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit - bless us and keep us.

C: Amen.

Hymn 337 Silent Night, Holy Night

1 Silent night, holy night!
All is calm, all is bright
round yon virgin mother and child.
Holy Infant, so tender and mild,
    sleep in heavenly peace,
    sleep in heavenly peace.

2 Silent night, holy night!
Shepherds quake at the sight.
Glories stream from heaven afar,
heav’nly hosts sing, Alleluia!
    Christ, the Savior, is born!
    Christ, the Savior, is born!

3 Silent night, holy night!
Son of God, love’s pure light
radiant beams from thy holy face
with the dawn of redeeming grace,
    Jesus, Lord, at thy birth,
    Jesus, Lord, at thy birth.

Text: tr. John F. Young, 1820–1885; Franz Joseph Mohr, 1792–1848
Text: Public domain

Please join us tomorrow for

Christmas Day Worship at 9:00am.

Merry Christmas!

Pastor Schamber, Mr. Scherschel, the Faculty and Staff at Holy Trinity

would like to wish you a Merry Christmas

and a Blessed New Year filled with the light of Jesus!