THE FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH AT CALDWELL
CHRISTMAS EVE
December 24, 2014
8:00 p.m.
PRELUDE
“Noël Français”
arr. Valerie Stephenson
Traditional French Carols
“Once In Royal David’s City ”
arr. Kevin McChesney
GREETING AND CALL TO WORSHIP
Leader: Joy to the world,
People: The Lord is come!
Leader: Sing it. Say it. Tell
the world.
People: Go, tell it on the
mountain,
Leader: Over the hills and
everywhere.
People: Go, tell it on the
mountain, that Jesus Christ is born!
Leader: Sing it. Say it. Spread
the news!
People: Joy to the world,
the Lord is come!
Leader: O come, let us adore
him.
People: O come, let us adore
him.
ALL: O come let us adore
him, Christ the Lord!
**PROCESSIONAL CAROL NO. 133
“O Come, All Ye Faithful”
Adeste fideles
O come, all ye faithful,
Joyful and triumphant, O come ye, O come ye to Bethlehem!
Come and behold Him, Born
the King of angels! O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him, O
come, let us adore Him, Christ, the Lord!
Yea, Lord, we greet Thee,
Born this happy morning, Jesus, to Thee be all glory given;
Word of the Father, Now in
flesh appearing. O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him, O
come, let us adore Him, Christ, the Lord!
Sing, choirs of angels, Sing
in exultation! Sing, all ye citizens of heaven above!
Glory to God, all Glory in the
highest! O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him, O
come, let us adore Him, Christ, the Lord!
LIGHTING OF THE ADVENT AND
CHRIST CANDLES
The Pace Family
PRAYER OF ILLUMINATION
FIRST LESSON
God promises that, through
Abraham, all the peoples of the world will be blessed.
ANTHEM “O Come, O Come,
Emmanuel”
Thomas W. Jefferson
Jake Mulick
and Lydia Nathans, Soloists
SECOND LESSON
The people who walk in darkness
receive the promise of the Messiah.
*CAROL NO. 82
“Come, Thou Long-Expected
Jesus”
Hyfrydol
Come, thou long-expected
Jesus, born to set thy people free;
from our fears and sins release us; let us find our rest
in thee.
Israel’s strength and
consolation, hope of all the earth thou art;
dear desire of every nation, joy of every longing heart.
Born thy people to deliver,
born a child and yet a king,
born to reign in us forever, now thy gracious kingdom
bring.
By thine own eternal Spirit
rule in all our hearts alone;
by thine all-sufficient merit raise us to thy glorious
throne.
THIRD LESSON
The prophet Micah foretells the
glory of little Bethlehem.
*CAROL
“The First Nowell”
The First Nowell
The first Nowell the angel did say Was to
certain poor shepherds in fields as they lay;
In fields where they lay
keeping their sheep, On a cold winter’s night that was
so deep.
Refrain: Nowell, Nowell, Nowell, Nowell, Born is the King
of Israel.
They lookéd
up and saw a star Shining in the east beyond them far,
And to the earth it gave
great light, And so it continued both day and night. Refrain
Then let us all with one
accord Sing praises to our heav’nly Lord;
That hath made heaven and
earth of naught, And with his blood our life hath
bought. Refrain
FOURTH LESSON
Jesus is born in a stable,
because there is no room in the inn.
ANTHEM
“South African Gloria”
arr. William Bradley Roberts
Traditional Xhosa song from
South Africa
FIFTH LESSON
The angels bring good news to
the shepherds, who go to the manger.
*CAROL NO. 113
“Angels We Have Heard on
High”
Gloria
Angels we have heard on
high, Sweetly singing o'er the plains,
And the mountains in reply Echoing their joyous strains.
Gloria in excelsis Deo! Gloria in excelsis Deo.
Shepherds, why this jubilee?
Why your joyous strains prolong? What the gladsome tidings be which inspire
your heavenly song? Gloria in excelsis Deo! Gloria in excelsis Deo!
Come to Bethlehem and see
Him whose birth the angels sing;
Come, adore on bended knee
Christ, the Lord, the newborn King.
Gloria in excelsis Deo! Gloria in excelsis Deo.
SIXTH LESSON
The writer of the fourth gospel
unfolds the mystery of the incarnation.
*CAROL NO. 119
“Hark! The Herald Angels
Sing!”
Hark! The herald angels
sing, "Glory to the newborn King.
Peace on earth, and mercy
mild, God and sinners reconciled!"
Joyful, all ye nations,
rise, Join the triumph of the skies;
With th’
angelic host proclaim, "Christ is born in Bethlehem!"
Hark! The herald angels
sing, "Glory to the newborn King!"
Christ, by highest heaven
adored, Christ, the everlasting Lord!
Late in time behold Him
come, Offspring of the virgin's womb.
Veiled in flesh the Godhead
see; Hail the incarnate Deity,
Pleased in flesh with us to
dwell, Jesus, our Emmanuel.
Hark! The herald angels
sing, "Glory to the newborn King!"
Hail the heaven-born Prince
of Peace! Hail the sun of righteousness!
Light and life to all He
brings, Risen with healing in His wings.
Mild He lays His glory by,
Born that we no more may die,
Born to raise us from the
earth, Born to give us second birth .
Hark! The herald angels
sing, "Glory to the newborn King!"
THE OFFERING
OFFERTORY
“Personent
Hodie!”
arr. Mark Hayes
*CAROL OF DEDICATION NO. 136
“Go Tell It On The Mountain”
Mueller
Refrain: Go, tell it on the
mountain, over the hills and everywhere;
Go, tell it on the mountain
that Jesus Christ is born!
While shepherds kept their
watching o’er silent flocks by night,
Behold, through
out the heavens there shone a holy light. Refrain:
The shepherds feared and
trembled when lo! above the earth
Rang out the angel chorus
that hailed our Savior’s birth. Refrain:
Down in a lowly manger the
humble Christ was born,
And God sent us salvation
that blessed Christmas morn. Refrain: 2x
PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING AND
LORD’S PRAYER
Our Father who art in
heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as
it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our debts, as
we forgive our debtors; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from
evil. For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever. Amen.
ANTHEM
“Bring a Torch”
arr. David L. Shove
LIGHTING OF INDIVIDUAL CANDLES
During the singing of
“Silent Night,” the candles will be lit. Please follow appropriate safety
procedures. Hold lighted candles upright and tip the unlighted candles toward
the lighted ones. Parents, please give your children adequate supervision if
they are participating in the candle-lighting.
CAROL NO.122
“Silent Night, Holy Night”
Stille Nacht
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.
Silent night, holy night!
Shepherds quake at the sight;
Glories stream from heaven
afar, Heavenly host sing, Alleluia!
Christ the Savior is born!
Christ the Savior is born!
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.
*CAROL NO. 134
“Joy to the World!”
Antioch
As we begin to sing the LAST
STANZA, please RAISE your candle as a
symbol of Jesus Christ, the Light which darkness will never
overcome!
Joy to the world! The Lord
is come: Let earth receive her King;
Let every heart prepare Him
room, And heaven and nature sing. . .
Joy to the earth, The Savior
reigns! Let all their songs employ;
While fields and floods,
rocks, hills, and plains Repeat the sounding joy. . .
He rules the world with
truth and grace, And makes the nations prove
The glories of His
righteousness, And wonders of his love. . .
At the conclusion of the
blessing, please extinguish your candle
and deposit it with the ushers as you exit.
*BLESSING
*POSTLUDE
“Forest Green”
Charles
E. Peery
*Please rise in body or
in spirit.
†A warm welcome to all who are worshiping with us on
this Christmas Eve! On this sacred evening, remember in prayer all those who
are near and dear to you, and all others in need. The Pastoral Families and
Staff Members of The First Presbyterian Church at Caldwell join in wishing you
a blessed Christmas and a Happy New Year.
†Please sign the Red Friendship Pad located in each pew
and pass it to the person next to you. Please put a check in the appropriate
box if you would like a Pastor to call or are interested in joining our
congregation. You may call the church office Monday through Friday at
973-228-0310 with any questions or pastoral concerns.
†Our cradle room is open tonight to serve children up
to 24 months old. Restrooms are located through the door to the left of the
pulpit, then left to the end of the hallway.
†An usher will be glad to assist you and provide you
with more information about this congregation. Worship is every Sunday at
8:30AM in our Chapel (except Dec. 28th and the first Sunday of each month) and
10:00AM in the Sanctuary with Sunday School for children and youth also at
10:00AM.. The first Sunday of each month is Church
Family Sunday and we unite in worship and celebrate Communion at 10:00AM.
Excellent infant care for children up to 24 months is available at the 10:00AM
service. We hope you will come again. Opportunities abound for all ages!
CHRISTMAS BREAK CABIN FEVER
DAY
All children in 1st-5th grade
are invited to join us for a fun day at church on Monday, December 29th from
9am-3pm! We’ll be playing games, watching a great Christmas movie, doing some
fun crafts, and having yummy snacks. The cost for the day is $5. Kids should
bring their own sack lunch. Teens are invited to join us as helpers for the
day.
WORSHIP LEADERS
Dr. Richard N. Sommers
Pastor/Head of Staff
Rev. Don Brown Associate Pastor
Rev. Barbara Jo Piercy Minister
of Music
Noel Piercy Associate Director
of Music
James De La Garza Trumpet 1,
Leader
Dan Egan Trumpet 2
Tim Sessions Trombone 1
Rob Fournier Trombone 2
John Lenis Bass
Erik Lynch Percussion and
Timpani
Ray Liptak
Sound Technician
Elizabeth Resch Candle
Preparation
The Westminster Choir
The Pilgrim Choir
The First Church Ringers
Westminster Choir Friends and
Alumni
May your Christmas be filled with
Hope, Peace, Joy and Love.
The Church Staff
And the Grinch, with his grinch-feet ice cold in the snow,
Stood puzzling and
puzzling, “How could it be so?”
“It came without ribbons!
It came without tags!
It came without packages,
boxes, or bags!”
And he puzzled three hours,
til his puzzler was sore.
Then the Grinch thought of
something he hadn’t before!
“Maybe Christmas,” he
thought,
“doesn’t
come from a store.”
“Maybe Christmas…
perhaps…
means a
little bit more!”
—Dr.
Seuss