For the week of April 7 – 2nd Sunday of Easter
Morning Prayer: Creator of the universe, You made the world in beauty, and restore all things in glory through the victory of Jesus Christ. We pray that, wherever Your image is still disfigured by poverty, sickness, selfishness, war and greed, the new creation in Jesus Christ may appear in justice, love, and peace, to the glory of Your name. Amen. (Lectionary prayers)
Opening Hymn: #98 To God Be the Glory
- To God be the glory, great things He hath done!
So loved He the world that He gave us His Son,
who yielded His life an atonement for sin, and opened the lifegate that all may go in.
Refrain: Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, let the earth hear His voice!
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, let the people rejoice!
O come to the Father thru Jesus the Son,
and give Him the glory, great things He hath done!
- O perfect redemption, the purchase of blood, to every believer the promise of God;
the vilest offender who truly believes, that moment from Jesus a pardon receives. (Refrain) - Great things He hath taught us, great things He hath done,
and great our rejoicing thru Jesus the Son;
but purer, and higher, and greater will be our wonder, our transport, when Jesus we see.
(Refrain)
Psalm 133
How very good and pleasant it is when kindred live together in unity!
It is like the precious oil on the head, running down upon the beard, on the beard of Aaron, running down over the collar of his robes.
It is like the dew of Hermon, which falls on the mountains of Zion. For there the Lord ordained His blessing, life forevermore.
Children’s Time Psalm 121
I lift up my eyes to the hills— from where will my help come?
My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
He will not let your foot be moved; He who keeps you will not slumber.
He who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.
The Lord is your keeper; the Lord is your shade at your right hand.
The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night.
The Lord will keep you from all evil; He will keep your life.
The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time on and forevermore.
Children’s Message
God’s Love is Everlasting – with no beginning or end.
What is the largest thing you have ever seen – something everybody in this room has seen? It is so big, it is not even on earth, and you see it every day. That’s right – the sun! The sun is so huge and we see it every day. But today, God is using the sun to send us a very special reminder – of how much God loves us and how God’s love is everlasting.
Monday afternoon, God is going to put the moon between the sun and where we are on earth and we are going to see this amazing ring – this ring of fire. What God is reminding us is that God’s love has no end or no beginning. As a reminder of that love, I have some fire rings here for you – careful, they’re hot – which you can keep and remember that God’s love is always present with you.
Let’s say “thank you” to God for the amazing love given to us and the knowledge that, regardless of where we are in our lives, God’s love will be ever present. And for this great gift, we say “thank you” and “amen.” (Parkside Congregational Church)
Prayers of Intercession: Thank You, Lord, for hearing our prayers for those dear to our hearts. We now pray as You have taught us: 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 sins, as we forgive those who sin against us. Lead us, not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
Offering spotlight: EOS Therapeutic Riding Center strives to give children and adults with special needs and veterans individualized therapeutic horseback riding activities. Missions funds support costs of animal care, building and grounds maintenance, and adaptive equipment.
Offering prayer: Generous God, as we gather to offer our tithes and offerings, we are reminded of the words of the apostle John about the Word of life. Just as Your Word brings light into our lives, may our giving be an act of generosity, a reflection of the abundance of Your grace and love. We thank You for the forgiveness and grace offered through Your Son, Jesus Christ, and as we give, may we also steward these gifts wisely for the betterment of Your kingdom. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen. (Discipleship Ministries)
Hymn of Preparation: #368 My Hope Is Built
- My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness.
I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus' name.
Refrain: On Christ the solid rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand;
all other ground is sinking sand.
- When Darkness veils His lovely face, I rest on His unchanging grace.
In every high and stormy gale, my anchor holds within the veil. (Refrain) - His oath, His covenant, His blood supports me in the whelming flood.
When all around my soul gives way, He then is all my hope and stay. (Refrain) - When He shall come with trumpet sound, O may I then in Him be found!
Dressed in His righteousness alone, faultless to stand before the throne! (Refrain)
Message Scripture: John 20:19-31
When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” After He said this, He showed them His hands and His side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent Me, so I send you.” When He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in His hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in His side, I will not believe.”
A week later His disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” Then He said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see My hands. Reach out your hand and put it in My side. Do not doubt but believe.” Thomas answered Him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen Me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.” Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in His name.
Message: Pastor Becky
When our kids were toddlers, I loved a lockable door. They kept the kids out of where they didn’t need to be and in the places they should be. To be honest, the lock on the bathroom door was a blessing, especially when I just needed two minutes to myself. Locked doors give us a sense of safety. We lock our car doors, we lock our homes mostly because we desire to feel safe inside. The lock gives us the security that no one is coming in to hurt us, rob us, or destroy our property. The problem is, it is only a perception, because the reality is locks can be breached or worked around if someone wants to get in badly enough. The disciples found out, Jesus can and will get in.
The disciples have had a rough and confusing day. It’s still the same day as the resurrection, a continuation of the celebration of Easter. It is the center of all we believe about Jesus and his relationship to God.
Mary has reported seeing the LORD Jesus. Peter and John can only confirm an empty tomb. Fear abounds and the disciples aren’t sure what has happened or what could still happen. So they do what makes sense to them, they gather behind a locked door. They are looking for safety and solidarity. They place their hope in safety in numbers and at this point their trust is only in each other.
Then Jesus shows up in the midst. Jesus doesn’t knock on the door and politely wait to be invited in. He appears in the rooms, He shows up to offer peace, proof, and purpose to the disciples.
“Peace be with you”. It is the first thing He says to them. It should remind them and us of the conversation He had with them shortly before His crucifixion. That conversation is recorded in John 14 and the offering of peace harkens to it. Jesus says beginning in verse 27, “Peace I leave with you; peace I give to us. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid. You have heard Me say to you, ‘I am going away, and I am coming you.’” This is the moment Jesus was speaking of, that precise moment when He would come back. This harkening is to remind them of what He has already taught them. He doesn’t not want them to let the world frame the Kingdom’s limits, because Jesus will have His way. Locked doors and barred hearts are not an obstacle to the furthering of the Kingdom. Jesus will appear in the midst of the gathered. And He has.
Jesus brings proof of His identity and of God’s resurrecting work, just in case His words fall on deaf ears. The proof is the wounds of His hands and His side. Look, see if it takes seeing to believe. He offers it to the first gathering and He extends it later to Thomas. Jesus still carries the wounds of the crucifixion 3 days later, He still carries the wounds to today, and will carry them until all of creation is healed in the final coming of His Kingdom. He carries the marks as a sign of creation’s longing to be restored; He carries a bit of each of our brokenness in His divinity and He will not be restored until we are.
Jesus showing up in the locked room was to remind the disciples of their purpose. Jesus releases the Holy Spirit upon them and now they are to go and tell. Tell of the good news of Jesus Christ. This also is a review of the conversation between Jesus and His disciples in John 14. This encouragement begins at verse 25, “I have said these things while I am still with you. But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, will teach you everything, and remind you of all that I have said to you.”
Peace, proof, and purpose – this is what the risen Christ offered His disciples on that first evening and it is what Jesus offers us. And no locked door or barred heart will keep Him out, so be ready when Jesus shows up in our midst.
Closing Hymn: #310 He Lives
- I serve a risen Savior, He’s in the world today;
I know that He is living, whatever foes may say.
I see His hand of mercy, I hear His voice of cheer,
And just the time I need Him, He’s always near.
Refrain: He lives, He lives, Christ Jesus lives today!
He walks with me and talks with me along life’s narrow way.
He lives, He lives, salvation to impart!
You ask me how I know He lives? He lives within my heart.
- In all the world around me I see His loving care,
And though my heart grows weary, I never will despair.
I know that He is leading through all the stormy blast;
The day of His appearing will come at last. Refrain:
- Rejoice, rejoice, O Christian, lift up your voice and sing
Eternal hallelujahs to Jesus Christ the King!
The hope of all who seek Him, the help of all who find;
None other is so loving, so good and kind. Refrain:
Go into your week with the blessings of The Father, The Son, The Holy Spirit.
