All Saints Day
Today is All Saints Day, the day in the Christian calendar when we are encouraged the celebrate all those past and present have been called into God’s service. Through it, we recognise how God calls all kinds of people to serve Him in the world, people like you and me, ordinary people made special through the extraordinary love of God. Together, we are God’s people, the church, seeking to live in the way of Jesus.Call to worship for All Saints Day, from Micah 6.8
With what shall I come before the Lord and bow down before the exalted God?He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?
Song
Or read or sing a well-known hymn such as ‘For all the saints’ (Hymns and Psalms 814, Singing the Faith 745) – some verses are included here:
For all the saints, who from their labours rest,
Who Thee by faith before the world confessed,
Thy name, O Jesus, be forever blest.
Alleluia, Alleluia!
O blest communion, fellowship divine!
We feebly struggle, they in glory shine;
Yet all are one in Thee, for all are Thine.
The golden evening brightens in the west;
Soon, soon to all the faithful cometh rest;
Sweet is the calm of paradise the blest.
But lo! there breaks a yet more glorious day;
The saints triumphant rise in bright array;
The King of glory passes on His way.
From earth’s wide bounds, from ocean’s farthest coast,
Through gates of pearl streams in the countless host,
Singing to Father, Son and Holy Ghost.
William Walsham How (1823-97)
Prayers
Let us pray
Jesus, remembered on the mountainside,
teaching the people near you as you looked beyond to a world of need,
help us to hear your call today.
Turn us outwards, beyond ourselves,
Help us to see as clearly as you do the needs that we could meet.
Stir in us a hunger and thirst for justice to be done,
and a readiness to live simply that others may simply live.
Grant us courage to face the bitterness, resentment and misunderstanding
that can come with following you.
Inspire us to be heralds of your kingdom
and the instruments of your love,
for the sake of the God who accepts us and grants us life in its fullness. Amen.
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 for ever. Amen.
teaching the people near you as you looked beyond to a world of need,
help us to hear your call today.
Turn us outwards, beyond ourselves,
Help us to see as clearly as you do the needs that we could meet.
Stir in us a hunger and thirst for justice to be done,
and a readiness to live simply that others may simply live.
Grant us courage to face the bitterness, resentment and misunderstanding
that can come with following you.
Inspire us to be heralds of your kingdom
and the instruments of your love,
for the sake of the God who accepts us and grants us life in its fullness. Amen.
The 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.
Save us from the time of trial and deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power and the glory are yours, now and for ever. Amen.
Song
Readings for All Saints:
Psalm 34.1-9:
1 I will bless the Lord at all times;his praise shall continually be in my mouth.
2 My soul makes its boast in the Lord;
let the humble hear and be glad.
3 O magnify the Lord with me,
and let us exalt his name together.
4 I sought the Lord, and he answered me,
and delivered me from all my fears.
5 Look to him, and be radiant;
so your[a] faces shall never be ashamed.
6 This poor soul cried, and was heard by the Lord,
and was saved from every trouble.
7 The angel of the Lord encamps
around those who fear him, and delivers them.
8 O taste and see that the Lord is good;
happy are those who take refuge in him.
9 O fear the Lord, you his holy ones,
for those who fear him have no want.
Matthew 5.1-12
1 When Jesus[a] saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him.2 Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:
3 ‘Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 ‘Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
5 ‘Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
6 ‘Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
7 ‘Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.
8 ‘Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
9 ‘Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
10 ‘Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 ‘Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely[b] on my account. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
God is the source of all blessings. For those of you who grew up saying a grace before mealtimes, you may remember singing “Praise God from whom all blessings flow” for that purpose. When we ask God to bless us, we ask God to share with us something of his generosity and goodness; as Methodist writer, Stephen Dawes, tells us, asking God to give us something that would otherwise be lacking in our lives.
Such blessing may not always be immediately apparent. In a world where we are so used to things happening instantly, there may be a call upon us to wait for God’s blessing to be revealed in its fulness, but in the waiting, the promise of God to bless holds good. So it is with the beatitudes of Jesus. In them is expressed such longing and yearning for the blessing of God.
These sayings of Jesus challenge conventional ways of thinking and doing, asking us to reconsider who and what is important in our world today – that power and status and wealth may well stand at odds with the values of the Kingdom that Jesus proclaimed. These beatitudes are a reminder to us of the value of the undervalued, and of the significance of the overlooked. It is through such values, and those who embody them, that the love and grace of God is being made known, in small but significant ways; in those unassuming qualities of meekness, humility and the desire to do what is right; and in those people who not only recognise the limitations of life but also delight and revel in the living of it.
So let us continue to seek God’s blessing and to trust ourselves to all that has been promised us through Christ. In his name we pray. Amen.
Show us, Jesus, what it is to be poor in spirit,
and so to proclaim God's kingdom.
In the steps of the saints,
bless us, we pray.
Help us, Jesus, to mourn for our sin,
and the brokenness our neighbours suffer.
In the steps of the saints,
bless us, we pray.
Open our eyes to our weakness, good teacher,
that in humility we may serve your troubled world.
In the steps of the saints,
bless us, we pray.
May God's righteousness be our burning desire,
God's justice our deepest longing.
In the steps of the saints,
bless us, we pray.
Grant us the will to forgive and be merciful,
and so to receive your mercy.
In the steps of the saints,
bless us, we pray.
Guide our steps, that our hearts may be pure,
and let us draw close to the living God.
In the steps of the saints,
bless us, we pray.
Teach us how to be the makers of peace,
worthy to be called the children of God.
In the steps of the saints,
bless us, we pray.
Strengthen us when persecuted in the name of right,
and for the sake of justice,
that the kingdom of heaven may be ours.
In the steps of the saints,
bless us, we pray.
Jesus, our teacher and our friend,
give us the will to be your servants,
and to follow the example of the saints of old,
that the name of God may be glorified,
and the kingdom proclaimed on earth. Amen.
3 ‘Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 ‘Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
5 ‘Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
6 ‘Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
7 ‘Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.
8 ‘Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
9 ‘Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
10 ‘Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 ‘Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely[b] on my account. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
To think about:
These verses from Matthew’s Gospel are usually referred to as the beatitudes of Jesus. Beatitude is really a word for ‘blessing’. Blessings come from God. God’s people have always invoked God’s blessing – it’s certainly there in the Old Testament: ‘The Lord bless you and keep you’, words often used in services of baptism, are taken from the Book of Numbers, and we shall be using them as part of the blessing at the end of our worship today.God is the source of all blessings. For those of you who grew up saying a grace before mealtimes, you may remember singing “Praise God from whom all blessings flow” for that purpose. When we ask God to bless us, we ask God to share with us something of his generosity and goodness; as Methodist writer, Stephen Dawes, tells us, asking God to give us something that would otherwise be lacking in our lives.
Such blessing may not always be immediately apparent. In a world where we are so used to things happening instantly, there may be a call upon us to wait for God’s blessing to be revealed in its fulness, but in the waiting, the promise of God to bless holds good. So it is with the beatitudes of Jesus. In them is expressed such longing and yearning for the blessing of God.
These sayings of Jesus challenge conventional ways of thinking and doing, asking us to reconsider who and what is important in our world today – that power and status and wealth may well stand at odds with the values of the Kingdom that Jesus proclaimed. These beatitudes are a reminder to us of the value of the undervalued, and of the significance of the overlooked. It is through such values, and those who embody them, that the love and grace of God is being made known, in small but significant ways; in those unassuming qualities of meekness, humility and the desire to do what is right; and in those people who not only recognise the limitations of life but also delight and revel in the living of it.
So let us continue to seek God’s blessing and to trust ourselves to all that has been promised us through Christ. In his name we pray. Amen.
Prayers in the steps of the saints
and so to proclaim God's kingdom.
In the steps of the saints,
bless us, we pray.
Help us, Jesus, to mourn for our sin,
and the brokenness our neighbours suffer.
In the steps of the saints,
bless us, we pray.
Open our eyes to our weakness, good teacher,
that in humility we may serve your troubled world.
In the steps of the saints,
bless us, we pray.
May God's righteousness be our burning desire,
God's justice our deepest longing.
In the steps of the saints,
bless us, we pray.
Grant us the will to forgive and be merciful,
and so to receive your mercy.
In the steps of the saints,
bless us, we pray.
Guide our steps, that our hearts may be pure,
and let us draw close to the living God.
In the steps of the saints,
bless us, we pray.
Teach us how to be the makers of peace,
worthy to be called the children of God.
In the steps of the saints,
bless us, we pray.
Strengthen us when persecuted in the name of right,
and for the sake of justice,
that the kingdom of heaven may be ours.
In the steps of the saints,
bless us, we pray.
Jesus, our teacher and our friend,
give us the will to be your servants,
and to follow the example of the saints of old,
that the name of God may be glorified,
and the kingdom proclaimed on earth. Amen.
Song
Or read or sing one of these songs: ‘Will you come and follow me’ (Singing the Faith 673) or ‘May the mind of Christ my Saviour’ (Hymns and Psalms 739, Singing the Faith 504)
The Blessing:
The Lord bless you and keep you.The Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you.
The Lord look on you with kindness and give you peace. Amen
Acknowledgments: Prayers: Copyright Roots for Churches Ltd, used with permission. Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Edition, copyright © 1989, 1995 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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