top of page

The Presentation of Jesus in the Temple

What follows is a worship service which, I pray, you can participate in at a time(s) that are convenient to you. This 'service' will take about forty five (45) minutes.

I pray that you will feel called to ACTIVELY PARTICIPATE in this service.

The text that is in regular typeface (that is what you are reading at the moment) is to be read quietly, while the text that is in
bold face (like you are reading right now) is meant to be read aloud.

Opening Hymn:

Let us continue by watching, and please do feel free to sing or read aloud the lyrics, as we commence our praise and thanksgiving.

When you are ready - click the "play" button on the video window, below:

A Call To Worship:

We meet in the name of God,

Creator of the universe,

source of true humanity,

mother and father of all. Amen.

An Assurance of Forgiveness:

(click the 'play' button below to listen)

The Absolution
00:00 / 00:18

The Sentence For Today (let us say aloud):

Happy are they who dwell in your house! they will always be praising you.

The Special Prayer For Today (let us pray aloud):

Almighty and everliving God, we humbly pray that, as your only-begotten Son was this day presented in the temple, so we may be presented to you with pure and clean hearts by Jesus Christ our Lord; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Our first reading for today:

(click the 'play' button below to listen)

Malachi 3:1-4
00:00 / 01:38

Our second reading for today:

(click the 'play' button below to listen)

Hebrews 2:14-18
00:00 / 00:52

Gradual Hymn:

Let us continue by watching, and please do feel free to sing or read aloud the lyrics, as we raise out voices in praise and thanksgiving.

When you are ready - click the "play" button on the video window, below:

A reading from the holy gospel according to Saint Luke.

Luke 2:22-40
00:00 / 03:18

Listen to David speak to this gospel.

The Bucket List
00:00 / 09:40

or, if you prefer, you can read the sermon, below:

Sermon for Presentation of Christ Sunday 2025

MAY the words of my mouth and the meditations in our hearts be acceptable in your sight O Lord, our strength and our Redeemer. <Amen>

“One day your life will flash before your eyes. Make sure it’s worth watching.”

That’s a quote from Gerard Way, the American singer-songwriter, that was used in the Jack Nicholson/Morgan Freeman film “The Bucket List”.

A “Bucket List” is a list of things you want to do before you die. It’s a slightly crude way of looking at our inevitable demise, but it does call us to focus on living rather than dying.

Today, our gospel takes us to meet Simeon. Simeon had a sort-of “Bucket List”, a very unusual Bucket List. He Simeon was waiting and watching to see the Lord’s Messiah before he died. It was just that one thing on Simeon’s Bucket List, No trip to Hawaii or climb up Mount Kilimanjaro; no moonlit French dinner cruise in Paris or an afternoon with Meryl Streep? Just one thing — see the Lord’s Messiah!

Mind you - that’s a pretty big “one thing” and, as it turns out, it was even bigger than Simeon imagined.

So, let’s look again at what happened. The Holy Spirit reveals to Simeon (we’re not told how) that he would see the Lord’s Messiah before he died. Every day Simeon would look for a child, The Messiah. Every day, as parents brought their children to the Temple for the rites of purification, Simeon would look to see if maybe this one was the Christ.

When Mary and Joseph appeared in the Temple with Jesus, Simeon knew, he just knew, this WAS the one!

He took the child in his arms and that’s when something happened that no one anticipated, not even Simeon.

Simeon gazed into the baby Jesus’ eyes and declared that this child was not only Israel’s salvation, but the salvation of the Gentiles as well!

“Lord, …. you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, “AND” for glory to your people Israel.”

I want you to catch the SHEER MAGNITUDE of these words. You see, we are steeped in the Christian tradition that believes the truth that Jesus Christ came for the salvation of ALL people:

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life.” (John. 3:16) <PAUSE>

However, 2025 years ago, to say the Messiah, the Christ, had come for the salvation of Israel was one thing, but to say the Messiah, the Christ, had come for ALL people — well that was something else, that was something radically new!

So to hear, early in Luke’s gospel, that the salvation Jesus brings is for ALL people is REALLY STRIKING. This really is “Good News”!

Now, during the presentation of a child at the temple, the usual sacrifice offered after the rite of purification was a one-year old lamb along with a pigeon or a turtle dove (Lev. 12:6, 8).

If the family could not afford a lamb, two turtledoves or two pigeons could be offered.

I have heard it said on a number of occasions that the fact that Luke’s text mentions a pair of turtledoves or “two young pigeons” tells us that Jesus’ family was too poor to bring a lamb.

BUT PONDER THIS … what if the family DID INDEED bring a lamb? What if we read this symbolically and see the lamb to be ULTIMATELY offered as Jesus himself.

“BEHOLD THE LAMB OF GOD WHO TAKES AWAY THE SIN OF THE WORLD”. Remember John The Baptiser ?

As Simeon speaks to us, here and now, his Bucket List was fulfilled:

“Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, AND for glory to your people Israel.”

Simeon’s “bucket list” was fulfilled beyond his wildest imagination. God revealed to him the striking good news that Jesus came to save the ENTIRE world.

So - one day our lives will flash before our eyes. Will it have been lived for Christ? Like Simeon, are we looking for Jesus every day? Is Jesus on our Bucket List?

I runga e te Ingoa o te Atua, te Matua, te Tama me te Wairua Tapu. AMINE.

Pause and Reflect

Just take a moment now to pause. Bow your head, close your eyes.
 

Allow these words of Holy Scripture and this interpretation of them today to speak to you.

An Affirmation of Our Faith

Let us affirm our faith by saying aloud, and together, "The Apostles Creed":

apostles_creed_pic02.jpg
Image by Allef Vinicius

... and now let us pray for the Church, the World, and Ourselves, giving thanks for God's goodness.

​Let us pray aloud, and together:

In response to the call today “Lord, in Your mercy” Our plea is, “hear our prayer”

(Short Silence) Lord, in Your mercy : Hear our prayer.

Faithful God, we thank you for the example of Simeon and Anna, and their faithful service and witness, for their patient waiting for Christ to be revealed. Help us to serve You faithfully and patiently, watching for You to be revealed in our own lives. AMEN.

<Longer pause for personal reflection>

In response to the call today “Lord, in Your mercy” Our response is, “hear our prayer!”

(Short Silence) Lord, in Your mercy: hear our prayer

Holy God, as we remember older and retired people, we give You thanks for all that they do in our faith fellowships and in our communities. Send Your Holy Spirit to inspire them to use and share their life experiences with wisdom, humility and gladness.

<Short silence> Lord, in your Mercy: Hear our Prayer

Creator, God of every land and nation You spoke Your word and revealed Your good news in Jesus Christ. We pray for our troubled world its peoples and their leaders. We pray for those caught up in war and violence, especially the innocent victims of evil and destructive act of terrorism. May peace be found and good sense flourish so that we may see injustice and wrong vanquished.

<Short silence> Lord, in your Mercy: Hear our Prayer

Lord God, we pray for all who work for peace and unity, and for all world leaders that they will continue to seek an end to the suffering caused by war and violence, injustice and inequality, disease and prejudice, poverty and hopelessness and bring healing to the world.  We pray especially for those fighting terrorism throughout the world and for peace in the Ukraine and Holy Land.

<Short silence> Lord, in your Mercy: Hear our Prayer

Father God, we pray for our faith communities, that each of us might make use of our individual talents enabling each faith group to flourish as a witness to the “One Body” of Christ.  Help us to spread the warmth of Your love to everyone we meet.

<Short silence> Lord, in your Mercy: Hear our Prayer

Gracious God, we pray for the work and service of all care homes and day centres for elderly and sick people, and for the charity organisations and shops who raise money to help. We pray for all finding their life painful, lonely or uncertain, especially those who are ill or vulnerable.  Help them to sense your comfort in times of need and bless their families and carers.

Give the song of joy to all who are now on the road to recovery and recuperation and the song of thanks to all who helped them on that road.

We especially raise before You now all those who have asked for our prayers from around the world … those we know in New Zealand, in Singapore, in Argentina, in France, in Australia, in the US, in Canada, in Austria, in Ukraine, in China and any others we now name aloud, or in the silence of our hearts, and those who are known only by You.

<Short silence> Lord, in your Mercy: Hear our Prayer

Merciful Lord, your love reaches beyond the grave. At the end of our days on earth be with us and with those we love. May those who have gone before us rest in your eternal peace.  We remember before you those who have died and we pray for all whose life is saddened by the death of a loved one, be with them in their loneliness.

<Short silence> Lord, in your Mercy: Hear our Prayer

In a moment of silence we pray for ourselves, our families, friends, for all whom we love and for our personal ministries. Make the things that we choose to do worthy of the life, death, and rising again of Your Son.

(Short Silence) Lord, in Your mercy: hear our prayer

Everlasting God, as we go from this time of prayer to journey into the days ahead, we ask that in all we do, we may we walk more closely with You at our side, safe in the knowledge that your fatherly love and care knows no bounds.

(Short Silence) Lord, in Your mercy: hear our prayer

Forth in the peace of Christ we go; Christ to the world with joy we bring; Christ in our minds, Christ on our lips, Christ in our hearts, the world’s true King.

Merciful father: accept these prayers for the sake of Your Son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ.  AMEN.

lord's_prayer_pic01_edited.jpg

Remembering that we are confident to pray this day, and every day, because Jesus Christ continues to teach 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 for ever.   Amen.

Let us conclude our prayers by praying together and aloud:

 

God of mercy,
you have given us grace to pray with one heart and one voice,
and have promised to hear the prayers
of two or three who agree in your name,
fulfil now, we pray,
the prayers and longings of your people
as may be best for us and for your kingdom.
Grant us in this world to know your truth,
and in the world to come to see your glory. Amen.

The Blessing

May The Risen Lord Christ turn His face towards each and every one of you.

May He cause His light to shine upon you, and

may He grant you His peace, and

 

The blessing of Almighty God who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit,

be with you and all of those whom you love,

on this day and forever more.

A Closing Hymn:

Let us conclude our worship today by watching, and please do feel free to sing or read aloud the lyrics, as we unite in another hymn our praise and thanksgiving.

When you are ready - click the "play" button on the video window, below:

The Dismissal

Go now, go out into the world

to love and serve The Lord.

 

Go in peace.

AMEN, we go in the name of Christ.

bottom of page