A service of Holy Communion on 16 May | Windmill United Benefice

Welcome to this week’s Windmill United Benefice online service of Holy Communion for the Seventh Sunday of Easter, led and celebrated by the Revd Nicholas Calver with a talk by the Revd Dr Tony Rich. The hymns were recorded at previous services in the benefice.

If you would like to follow the service in one go, click on the bar below. The words can be found as you scroll down:

If you would like to follow the service in sections, click on the bars below one by one:

The hymn ‘Crown him with many crowns’ is sung

Crown him with many crowns,
the Lamb upon his throne;
Hark, how the heav’nly anthem drowns
all music but its own:
Awake, my soul, and sing
of him who died for thee,
And hail him as thy matchless King
through all eternity.

Crown him the Virgin’s Son,
the God incarnate born,
Whose arm those crimson trophies won
which now his brow adorn;
Fruit of the mystic Rose,
as of that Rose the Stem,
The Root, whence mercy ever flows,
the Babe of Bethlehem.

Crown him the Lord of love;
behold his hands and side,
Rich wounds, yet visible above,
in beauty glorified:
No angel in the sky
can fully bear that sight,
But downward bends each burning eye
at mysteries so bright.

Crown him the Lord of peace,
whose pow’r a sceptre sways
From pole to pole, that wars may cease,
absorbed in prayer and praise:
His reign shall know no end,
and round his piercèd feet
Fair flow’rs of paradise extend
their fragrance ever sweet.

Crown him the Lord of years,
the Potentate of time,
Creator of the rolling spheres,
ineffably sublime.
All hail, Redeemer, hail!
For thou hast died for me;
Thy praise shall never, never fail
throughout eternity.

The Greeting, Confession and Gloria

Alleluia! Christ is risen.
He is risen indeed, Alleluia!

Christ our Passover lamb has been sacrificed for us.
Let us therefore rejoice by putting away all malice and evil
and confessing our sins with a sincere and true heart.

Most merciful God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
we confess that we have sinned
in thought, word and deed.
We have not loved you with our whole heart.
We have not loved our neighbours as ourselves.
In your mercy forgive what we have been,
help us to amend what we are, and direct what we shall be;
that we may do justly, love mercy,
and walk humbly with you, our God.
Amen.

Almighty God, who forgives all who truly repent, have mercy upon us, pardon and deliver us from all our sins, confirm and strengthen us in all goodness, and keep us in life eternal; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Gloria is sung
Glory in the highest to the God of heaven!
Peace to all your people through the earth be given:
Mighty God and Father, thanks and praise we bring,
Singing alleluia to our heavenly king.

Jesus Christ is risen, God the Father’s Son:
Seated now and reigning from your Father’s throne,
Lamb of God the Saviour, all our sin to bear,
Show us now your mercy, now receive our prayer.

Christ the world’s true Saviour, high and holy One,
With the Holy Spirit, you are Lord alone!
Lord and God, we praise you; Highest heaven adores:
In the Father’s glory, all the praise be yours!

The Collect and readings

Let us pray

Collect for the seventh Sunday of Easter
O God the King of glory,
you have exalted your only Son Jesus Christ
with great triumph to your kingdom in heaven:
we beseech you, leave us not comfortless,
but send your Holy Spirit to strengthen us
and exalt us to the place where our Saviour Christ is gone before,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen

A reading from Acts 1: 15-17 and 21 to the end
by David Spruce

This is the word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John.
Glory to you, O Lord.

The Gospel reading from John 17: 6-19
by Gill Culshaw

This is the Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to you, O Christ.

Talk
by the Rev Dr Tony Rich

The Creed, intercessions and peace

Let us declare our faith in God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures;
he was buried;
he was raised to life on the third day
in accordance with the Scriptures;
afterwards he appeared to his followers,
and to all the apostles:
this we have received, this we believe.
Amen.

Let us pray for the Church and for the world and for all people according to their needs.

The Intercessions
led by Kay Hammond

The responses to the intercessions are:

Lord, in your mercy:
Hear our prayer

and

Merciful Father,
accept these prayers for the sake of your Son,
our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.

The Peace

God has made us one in Christ.
He has set his seal upon us and, as a pledge of what is to come, has given the Spirit to dwell in our hearts.
The Peace of the Lord be always with you:

And also with you.

The Eucharistic Prayer begins

The Lord is here.
His Spirit is with us.

Lift up your hearts.
We lift them to the Lord.

Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give thanks and praise.

The priest continues the Eucharistic Prayer, until:

Therefore with angels and archangels, and with all the company of heaven, we proclaim your great and glorious name, for ever praising you and singing:

Holy, holy, holy is the Lord,
holy is the Lord God almighty.
Holy, holy, holy is the Lord,
holy is the Lord God almighty.
Who was, and is, and is to come.
Holy, holy, holy is the Lord.

The Eucharistic Prayer continues until:

Great is the mystery of faith:

Christ has died:
Christ is risen:
Christ will come again.

The Eucharistic Prayer concludes:

As our Saviour taught us, so we pray:

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 trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power and the glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.

We break this bread to share in the body of Christ.

Though we are many, we are one body,
because we all share in one bread.

All sing:
Let us break bread together on our knees,
Let us break bread together on our knees.
When I fall on my knees
With my face to the rising sun,
O Lord, have mercy on me.

Alleluia! Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us

Therefore let us keep the feast, Alleluia!

After Nicholas receives Communion, he invites you to make your spiritual communion by using the following prayer:

Lord Jesus Christ,
since I cannot now receive you sacramentally
I ask you to come spiritually into my heart.
O most merciful redeemer, friend and brother,
may I know you more clearly,
love you more dearly,
and follow you more nearly, day by day.
Amen

The anthem is ‘King of glory, king of peace’
(Words by George Herbert, 1593-1633, from ‘The Temple’, written in 1633; music by J S Bach, 1685-1750)
Recorded remotely by members of the Windmill United Benefice choirs and mixed together by Peter Nye

King of glory, King of peace, I will love thee;
and that love may never cease, I will move thee.
Thou hast granted my request, thou hast heard me;
thou didst note my working breast, thou hast spared me.

Wherefore with my utmost art I will sing thee,
and the cream of all my heart I will bring thee.
Though my sins against me cried, thou didst clear me;
and alone, when they replied, thou didst hear me.

Seven whole days, not one in seven, I will praise thee;
in my heart, though not in heaven, I can raise thee.
Small it is, in this poor sort to enroll thee:
e’en eternity’s too short to extol thee.

Closing prayers and blessing

Let us pray.

Eternal God,
whose Son Jesus Christ is the way,
the truth, and the life:
grant us to walk in his way,
to rejoice in his truth,
and to share his risen life;
who is alive and reigns, now and for ever.
Amen

Lord Jesus, give us your light in our eyes,
your word on our lips,
and your love in our hearts.
Send us out in the power of your Spirit
to live and work to your praise and glory.
Amen.

God the Father, by whose glory Christ was raised from the dead, strengthen you to walk with him in his risen life; and the blessing of God Almighty, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, be among you and remain with you always. Amen.

Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.
Alleluia! Alleluia!

In the name of Christ.
Alleluia! Alleluia!

The hymn ‘Christ triumphant, ever reigning’ is sung

Christ triumphant, ever reigning,
Saviour, Master, King,
Lord of heav’n, our lives sustaining,
hear us as we sing: