Find our Christmas season calendar at
ucclife.fi/christmas
CALENDAR
Watch the morning service (10:30 AM) here.
Watch the evening service (16:00 / 4PM) here.

Order of Worship

5th of October 2025 | 10:30 (Espoo)

Blessed are those whose way is blameless, 
who walk in the law of the Lord!
Blessed are those who keep his testimonies,
who seek him with their whole heart.

Our welcome team members will pass an offering basket during this song.

For information about giving online, please visit ucclife.fi/give or follow the QR code on the screen. You can also speak to our pastors or leaders for more information about giving and generosity. You can also ask the welcome team or any of our staff team members for more info on giving online.

Praise God, from whom all blessings flow
Praise Him, all creatures here below
Praise Him above, ye heavenly host
Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost.

Amen

A warm welcome to all, and especially to any visitors joining us today – if you’d like to get connected or find out more about UCC, please see our digital visitors card or speak to us after the service!

If you have children, they are welcome to join our Sunday school classes! 

57 Now the time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son. 58 And her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her. 59 And on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child. And they would have called him Zechariah after his father, 60 but his mother answered, “No; he shall be called John.” 61 And they said to her, “None of your relatives is called by this name.” 62 And they made signs to his father, inquiring what he wanted him to be called. 63 And he asked for a writing tablet and wrote, “His name is John.” And they all wondered. 64 And immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he spoke, blessing God. 65 And fear came on all their neighbors. And all these things were talked about through all the hill country of Judea, 66 and all who heard them laid them up in their hearts, saying, “What then will this child be?” For the hand of the Lord was with him.
 
67 And his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying,
 
68 “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
for he has visited and redeemed his people
69 and has raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of his servant David,
70 as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old,
71 that we should be saved from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us;
72 to show the mercy promised to our fathers
and to remember his holy covenant,
73 the oath that he swore to our father Abraham, to grant us
74 that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies,
might serve him without fear,
75 in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.
76 And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High;
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,
77 to give knowledge of salvation to his people
in the forgiveness of their sins,
78 because of the tender mercy of our God,
whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high
79 to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the way of peace.”
 
80 And the child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness until the day of his public appearance to Israel.

The God Who Keeps His Promise

The birth of John shows that God’s mercy visits, redeems, and sends.

I. Mercy that Visits and Disrupts vv 57-66
II. Mercy that Redeems and Restores vv 67-75
III. Mercy that Calls and Commissions vv 76-80

If you believe in Jesus as your Saviour and King, you are welcome to the Table. 

Please hold the elements until all have received; we will all take them together. 

The bread is gluten free, the cup is alcohol free.

Introduction

1. When have you seen God’s mercy show up in an unexpected way that disrupted your plans but deepened your trust in Him?

2. Why do you think Luke focuses so strongly on mercy and fulfillment in the story of John’s birth? What does this reveal about how God works in history and in our lives?

Into the Text

3. Read verses 57–66. How does God’s mercy reveal itself in Elizabeth’s story? Why is it significant that Luke says, “The Lord had shown great mercy to her”? How do her neighbors respond, and what does this teach us about shared joy and community faith?

4. Read verses 68–75. How does Zechariah connect John’s birth to God’s promises to Abraham and David? What does this teach us about the reliability and continuity of God’s plan of salvation?

5. In verse 74, Zechariah says that God’s people are delivered “to serve Him without fear.” What does that kind of fearless service look like today? How does mercy free us from fear in practical ways?

6. Read verses 76-80. John is called “to prepare the way of the Lord.” What does this teach us about how mercy not only comforts but also commissions? How might this shape the way you think about your calling or daily mission?

Apply the Text

7. Where in your life do you need to remember that God’s mercy is both personal and powerful, that He sees you, redeems you, and sends you?

8. How does the “tender mercy of our God” in verse 78 change the way you view people around you, especially those who may seem far from Him?

9. Spend time praying through the passage. Thank God for His faithfulness and mercy, and ask Him to help you respond with a life of praise and service, like Zechariah.

Song lyrics (Espoo)

Order of Worship

5th of October 2025 | 16:00 (Helsinki)

Blessed are those whose way is blameless, 
who walk in the law of the Lord!
Blessed are those who keep his testimonies,
who seek him with their whole heart.

Our welcome team members will pass an offering basket during this song.

For information about giving online, please visit ucclife.fi/give or follow the QR code on the screen. You can also speak to our pastors or leaders for more information about giving and generosity. You can also ask the welcome team or any of our staff team members for more info on giving online.

Praise God, from whom all blessings flow
Praise Him, all creatures here below
Praise Him above, ye heavenly host
Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost.

Amen

Confession of Sin
Holy God,
We confess that we all have sinned and have fallen short of your glory.
Gracious God,
our sins are too heavy to carry, too real to hide, and too deep to undo.
Merciful God,
Forgive us, renew us, and set us free from the weight of our sins
and grant us grace to grow more and more in your likeness and image;
through Jesus Christ, the light of the world.
Amen.

Assurance of Forgiveness

Romans 1:8: “There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” 

A warm welcome to all, and especially to any visitors joining us today – if you’d like to get connected or find out more about UCC, please see our digital visitors card or speak to us after the service!

If you have children aged 3 or older, they are welcome to join our Sunday school classes downstairs. There is a nursery room on the balcony for parents of small children.

57 Now the time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son. 58 And her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her. 59 And on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child. And they would have called him Zechariah after his father, 60 but his mother answered, “No; he shall be called John.” 61 And they said to her, “None of your relatives is called by this name.” 62 And they made signs to his father, inquiring what he wanted him to be called. 63 And he asked for a writing tablet and wrote, “His name is John.” And they all wondered. 64 And immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he spoke, blessing God. 65 And fear came on all their neighbors. And all these things were talked about through all the hill country of Judea, 66 and all who heard them laid them up in their hearts, saying, “What then will this child be?” For the hand of the Lord was with him.
 
67 And his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying,
 
68 “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
for he has visited and redeemed his people
69 and has raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of his servant David,
70 as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old,
71 that we should be saved from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us;
72 to show the mercy promised to our fathers
and to remember his holy covenant,
73 the oath that he swore to our father Abraham, to grant us
74 that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies,
might serve him without fear,
75 in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.
76 And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High;
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,
77 to give knowledge of salvation to his people
in the forgiveness of their sins,
78 because of the tender mercy of our God,
whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high
79 to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the way of peace.”
 
80 And the child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness until the day of his public appearance to Israel.

The God Who Keeps His Promise

The birth of John shows that God’s mercy visits, redeems, and sends.

I. Mercy that Visits and Disrupts vv 57-66
II. Mercy that Redeems and Restores vv 67-75
III. Mercy that Calls and Commissions vv 76-80

If you believe in Jesus as your Saviour and King, you are welcome to the Table. 

Please hold the elements until all have received; we will all take them together. 

The bread is gluten free, the cup is alcohol free.

Introduction

1. When have you seen God’s mercy show up in an unexpected way that disrupted your plans but deepened your trust in Him?

2. Why do you think Luke focuses so strongly on mercy and fulfillment in the story of John’s birth? What does this reveal about how God works in history and in our lives?

Into the Text

3. Read verses 57–66. How does God’s mercy reveal itself in Elizabeth’s story? Why is it significant that Luke says, “The Lord had shown great mercy to her”? How do her neighbors respond, and what does this teach us about shared joy and community faith?

4. Read verses 68–75. How does Zechariah connect John’s birth to God’s promises to Abraham and David? What does this teach us about the reliability and continuity of God’s plan of salvation?

5. In verse 74, Zechariah says that God’s people are delivered “to serve Him without fear.” What does that kind of fearless service look like today? How does mercy free us from fear in practical ways?

6. Read verses 76-80. John is called “to prepare the way of the Lord.” What does this teach us about how mercy not only comforts but also commissions? How might this shape the way you think about your calling or daily mission?

Apply the Text

7. Where in your life do you need to remember that God’s mercy is both personal and powerful, that He sees you, redeems you, and sends you?

8. How does the “tender mercy of our God” in verse 78 change the way you view people around you, especially those who may seem far from Him?

9. Spend time praying through the passage. Thank God for His faithfulness and mercy, and ask Him to help you respond with a life of praise and service, like Zechariah.

Song lyrics (Helsinki)
Previous Sermons