The Parish Gathering | May 24, 2020 (Seventh Week of Eastertide)
Please participate in the following liturgy, reading aloud all the parts in bold italics.
Call to Worship
Alleluia! Christ is risen.
The Lord is risen indeed. Alleluia.
Rejoice, Oh Church, Bride of the Liberating King!
The Lord of life shines upon you!
Let this place brim with joy,
Echoing the mighty song of all God’s world:
Alleluia, Alleluia!
Praise to You, Risen Christ!
Prayers of the People
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Let us pray together as God’s people:
Living God,
You are the author and sustainer of all good things.
Day by day you gently teach, encourage, and comfort.
Awaken us to the suffering of those around us,
particularly the students, teachers, administrators, and graduates who lost formative and encouraging experiences in light of COVID-19.
Give us grace to share one another’s burdens in humble service and love.
Lift up prayers for the church and all its students, teachers, and administrators around the world.
O God, comfort those who have lost.
O God, restore hope for each new season.
Great Provider, you made the world to be safe, you made homes to be guarded, you made families to be life-bringing.
We pray that wherever your plans appear disfigured by poverty, selfishness, pain, and brokenness, the new creation in Jesus Christ may appear in justice, love and peace, to the glory of your name.
We pray for every child who depends upon school meals, whose classroom is their safest and most beneficial environment, who is known deeply by their teachers and staff.
Lift up your prayers for the welfare of the world and all its students and teachers and their homes.
O God, comfort those who hurt.
O God, heal those who are broken.
We lift up our prayers for the community of students and educators in this gathering,
Our families, friends, and all whose lives are closely linked with ours.
Jesus, we ask you:
for peace in homes,
for closure in one season and hope for the next,
for unity in the value and necessity of education,
for sympathy in knowing and loving students and their teachers.
The men and women you’ve allowed to teach and enlighten,
we ask you to bless them.
The young children who are beginning their education and developing in kindergartens,
we ask you to continue early formation.
The elementary age students who are learning to socialize and flourish,
we ask you to fill with joy and understanding.
The middle and high school students who daily engage the battle of self-worth,
we ask you to reveal their high-esteem and individual value.
The graduates of high school and colleges around us,
we ask you to affirm purpose and for a spirit of confidence.
Lift up your prayers for the community around us.
O God, nourish those in need.
O God, protect those in transition.
Lord in Your mercy,
Hear our Prayer.
Song: Christ is Risen
Let no one caught in sin remain
Inside the lie of inward shame
We fix our eyes upon the cross
And run to Him who showed great love
And bled for us
Freely You have bled for us
Christ is risen from the dead
Trampling over death by death
Come awake, come awake
Come and rise up from the grave
Christ is risen from the dead
We are one with Him again
Come awake, come awake
Come and rise up from the grave
Beneath the weight of all our sin
You bowed to none but Heaven’s will
No scheme of Hell, no scoffer’s crown
No burden great can hold You down
In strength You reign
Forever let Your church proclaim
Christ is risen from the dead
Trampling over death by death
Come awake, come awake
Come and rise up from the grave
Christ is risen from the dead
We are one with Him again
Come awake, come awake
Come and rise up from the grave
O death, where is your sting?
O hell, where is your victory?
O church, come stand in the light
The glory of God has defeated the night
O death, where is your sting?
O hell, where is your victory?
O church, come stand in the light
Our God is not dead, He’s alive, He’s alive
Christ is risen from the dead
Trampling over death by death
Come awake, come awake
Come and rise up from the grave
Christ is risen from the dead
We are one with Him again
Come awake, come awake
Come and rise up from the grave
Scripture Reading: 1 Corinthians 15
“Now I should remind you, brothers and sisters, of the good news that I proclaimed to you, which you in turn received, in which also you stand, through which also you are being saved, if you hold firmly to the message that I proclaimed to you…
For I handed on to you as of first importance what I in turn had received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures, and that he was buried, and that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures…
Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say there is no resurrection of the dead? For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised. If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins.
But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have died. For since death came through a human being, the resurrection of the dead has also come through a human being; for as all die in Adam, so all will be made alive in Christ.
But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ. Then comes the end, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father, after he has destroyed every ruler and every authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death.
When this perishable body puts on imperishability, and this mortal body puts on immortality, then the saying that is written will be fulfilled:
‘Death has been swallowed up in victory.’
‘Where, O death, is your victory?
Where, O death, is your sting?’
The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
The Word of the Lord
Thanks be to God
What God Did for His Child… He Will Do for His Children…
Song: Living Hope
Who could imagine so great a mercy?
What heart could fathom such boundless grace?
The God of ages stepped down from glory
To wear my sin and bear my shame
The cross has spoken, I am forgiven
The King of kings calls me His own
Beautiful Savior, I’m Yours forever
Jesus Christ, my living hope
Hallelujah, praise the One who set me free
Hallelujah, death has lost its grip on me
You have broken every chain
There’s salvation in Your name
Jesus Christ, my living hope
Then came the morning that sealed the promise
Your buried body began to breathe
Out of the silence, the Roaring Lion
Declared the grave has no claim on me
Jesus, Yours is the victory!
Hallelujah, praise the One who set me free
Hallelujah, death has lost its grip on me
You have broken every chain
There’s salvation in Your name
Jesus Christ, my living hope
Scripture Reading: Acts 1: 3-11
“After his suffering he presented himself alive to them by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over the course of forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God. While staying with them, he ordered them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait there for the promise of the Father. ‘This’, he said, ‘is what you have heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.’
So when they had come together, they asked him, ‘Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?’ He replied, ‘It is not for you to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.’ When he had said this, as they were watching, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. While he was going and they were gazing up towards heaven, suddenly two men in white robes stood by them.
They said, ‘Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up towards heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.’”
The Word of the Lord
Thanks be to God
…And You Will Be My Witnesses
The Great Thanksgiving
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your hearts!
We lift them up to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
Is the Father with us?
He is.
Is Christ among us?
He is.
Is the Spirit here?
He is.
This is our God.
Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
We are his people.
We are redeemed.
Therefore we proclaim the mystery of our faith:
Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again.
Sacrament of Desire
Now, in union, O Lord with the faithful at every altar of Your Church,
I present to You my soul and body
with the earnest prayer that I will remain united to you.
And since I cannot now receive You sacramentally,
I pray that you would come to me spiritually.
I unite myself to you, and embrace you with my soul’s affection.
Let nothing separate me from you,
that I may live and die in Your love.
Amen.
Song: Not in a Hurry
Lord I don’t want to rush on ahead
In my own strength
When You’re right here
I’m not in a hurry
When it comes to Your spirit
When it comes to Your presence
When it comes to Your voice
I’m learning to listen
Just to rest in Your nearness
I’m starting to notice
You are speaking
Lord I want to love like You
I want to feel what You feel
I want to see what You see
I’m not in a hurry
When it comes to Your spirit
When it comes to Your presence
When it comes to Your voice
I’m learning to listen
Just to rest in Your nearness
I’m starting to notice
You are speaking
Open my eyes I want to see You
Open my ears I want to hear You speak
Tell me your thoughts, what’s on your mind
I’ll be your friend, I want to see through your eyes
I want to see through your eyes
I’m not in a hurry
When it comes to Your spirit
When it comes to Your presence
When it comes to Your voice
I’m learning to listen
Just to rest in Your nearness
I’m starting to notice
You are speaking
Community Life
The Cross of Christ
All our problems,
We send to the cross of Christ!
All our difficulties,
We send to the cross of Christ!
All the devil’s works,
We send to the cross of Christ!
And all our hopes,
We set on the Risen Christ!
Blessing & Sending
May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you,
wherever he may send you.
May he guide you in the wilderness,
protect you in the storm.
May he bring you home rejoicing,
at the wonders he has shown you.
May he bring you home rejoicing,
once again into our doors.
In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
Amen.
Alleluia, Alleluia! Let us go forth into the world, rejoicing in the power of the Holy Spirit!
Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!
Alleluia, Alleluia!
3 Good Minutes
Where do you need to experience God coming to you this week?
