Welcome to our service - 9 April - Easter Sunday
This service sheet can be used individually or with households.
We would encourage you to say (or even sing) hymns and songs out loud.
Prayers, other liturgy or readings can be said out loud or silently, corporately or individually.
Alleluia! Christ is risen!
He is risen indeed. Alleluia!
Praise the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ
He has given us new life and hope by raising Jesus from the dead
SONG: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WSs4_vc0pq0
Christ the Lord is risen today; hallelujah!
Sons of men and angels say: hallelujah!
Raise your joys and triumphs high; hallelujah!
Sing, ye heavens; thou earth, reply: hallelujah!
2. Love’s redeeming work is done, hallelujah!
Fought the fight, the battle won; hallelujah!
Lo! our sun’s eclipse is o’er, hallelujah!
Lo! He sets in blood no more hallelujah!
3. Lives again our glorious King; hallelujah!
Where O death, is now thy sting? hallelujah!
Once He died our souls to save;
hallelujah!
Where thy victory, O grave?
hallelujah!
4. Hail the Lord of earth and heaven, hallelujah!
Praise to Thee by both be given:
hallelujah!
Thee we greet, in triumph sing
hallelujah!
Hail, our resurrected King: hallelujah!
EASTER CONFESSION
Jesus Christ, risen Master and triumphant Lord,
we come to you in sorrow for our sins,
and confess to you our weakness and unbelief.
We have lived by our own strength,
and not by the power of your resurrection.
In your mercy, forgive us
Lord, hear us and help us.
We have lived by the light of our own eyes,
as faithless and not believing.
In your mercy, forgive us
Lord, hear us and help us.
We have lived for this world alone,
and doubted our home in heaven.
In your mercy, forgive us
Lord, hear us and help us.
ABSOLUTION
May the God of love and power
forgive us and free us from our sins,
heal and strengthen us by his Spirit,
and raise us to new life in Christ our Lord. Amen.
COLLECT
God of glory,
by the raising of your Son
you have broken the chains of death and hell:
fill your Church with faith and hope;
for a new day has dawned
and the way to life stands open
in our Saviour Jesus Christ.
SONG: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COQ6cni_TG8
Lord I lift Your name on high,
Lord I love to sing Your praises,
I 'm so glad You’re in my life,
I 'm so glad You came to save us.
You came from heaven to earth
to show the way,
From the earth to the cross
my debt to pay,
From the cross to the grave,
From the grave to the sky,
Lord I lift Your name on high!
Words and Music: Rick Founds
(Copyright © 1989 Maranatha!Music)
READINGS
Acts 10. 34 - 43
Then Peter replied, “I see very clearly that God shows no favouritism. In every nation he accepts those who fear him and do what is right. This is the message of Good News for the people of Israel—that there is peace with God through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all. You know what happened throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee, after John began preaching his message of baptism. And you know that God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Then Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.
“And we apostles are witnesses of all he did throughout Judea and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a cross, but God raised him to life on the third day. Then God allowed him to appear, not to the general public, but to us whom God had chosen in advance to be his witnesses. We were those who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. And he ordered us to preach everywhere and to testify that Jesus is the one appointed by God to be the judge of all—the living and the dead. He is the one all the prophets testified about, saying that everyone who believes in him will have their sins forgiven through his name.”
John 20. 1 - 18
Early on Sunday morning, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance. She ran and found Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved. She said, “They have taken the Lord’s body out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!”
Peter and the other disciple started out for the tomb. They were both running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He stooped and looked in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he didn’t go in. Then Simon Peter arrived and went inside. He also noticed the linen wrappings lying there, while the cloth that had covered Jesus’ head was folded up and lying apart from the other wrappings. Then the disciple who had reached the tomb first also went in, and he saw and believed— for until then they still hadn’t understood the Scriptures that said Jesus must rise from the dead. Then they went home.
Mary was standing outside the tomb crying, and as she wept, she stooped and looked in. She saw two white-robed angels, one sitting at the head and the other at the foot of the place where the body of Jesus had been lying. “Dear woman, why are you crying?” the angels asked her.
“Because they have taken away my Lord,” she replied, “and I don’t know where they have put him.”
She turned to leave and saw someone standing there. It was Jesus, but she didn’t recognise him. “Dear woman, why are you crying?” Jesus asked her. “Who are you looking for?”
She thought he was the gardener. “Sir,” she said, “if you have taken him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will go and get him.”
“Mary!” Jesus said.
She turned to him and cried out, “Rabboni!” (which is Hebrew for “Teacher”).
“Don’t cling to me,” Jesus said, “for I haven’t yet ascended to the Father. But go and find my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”
Mary Magdalene found the disciples and told them, “I have seen the Lord!” Then she gave them his message.
This is the word of the Lord
Thanks be to God.
TALK written by Alistair Stevenson
Our lives are filled with memorable experiences - they mould us, shape us, and make us who we are - you could say we become witnesses to them.
Take a moment to think of any experience in your life that was particularly memorable. Maybe a childhood memory from your school. Maybe your first job A particularly special moment with a parent. Maybe the birth of a child. Maybe the day you got married. Maybe a sad memory of the day someone you loved died.
Our most memorable experiences stay with us for lots of different reasons but probably the biggest reason is that the experience has shaped us into who we are today.
I think I will always remember the first time I personally experienced the love of Jesus. I was at a Christian festival called Spring Harvest – probably 10 years old. I was at my group for children my age and the leader asked us if we would like to experience the love of Jesus through his Holy Spirit. I raised my hand in response and God poured out his Spirit on me. I was deeply moved as I experience the love of Jesus. I remember being in floods of tears and couldn’t stop crying. It was incredible. I went back to see my parents and said to them: “I’ve been filled with the Holy Spirit”!
Peter, in our passage from Acts says:
“And we apostles are witnesses of all he did throughout Judea and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a cross, but God raised him to life on the third day. Then God allowed him to appear, not to the general public, but to us whom God had chosen in advance to be his witnesses.“
Today is Easter Sunday and after 2000 years we are continuing to celebrate the death and resurrection of Jesus made possible through the testimony and witness of the early apostles and early church – they had seen the Lord.
Death has been defeated - Jesus is alive
Here in our reading from John, we read about the first person to witness the risen Christ. Mary encounters Jesus in a way she never imaged and never thought possible. Mary was the first witness to the most amazing truth in human history. Death has been defeated - Jesus is alive.
And so, Mary runs back to the disciples with the most amazing news: “I have seen the Lord!”. Less than 48 hours earlier she had seen her saviour, humiliated, mutilated, tortured, and left to die on a cross. All hope had been lost. Death had won. Everything she had lived for was in vain. BUT now, with tears pouring down her face she comes to the empty tomb and she meets the risen Lord who calls her by name.
She is the first witness to the most amazing act in history.
Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 15 that “if Christ was not raised, our preaching is in vain and our faith is in vain”. If Christ was not raised our faith would be meaningless. If Jesus is dead - then the disciples disband and disappear in shame - the followers mourn, and everything comes to an end. Faith in Jesus stops.
BUT - Jesus’ resurrection did happen and it changes everything! We do not believe in a dead God - we believe in God who has defeated death and who makes it possible to have a living relationship with him.
Death has been defeated - Jesus is alive.
Peter continues in our passage from Acts:
“We were those who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. And he ordered us to preach everywhere and to testify that Jesus is the one appointed by God to be the judge of all—the living and the dead.”
St Paul wrote that Jesus appeared to over 500 people after he was raised from the dead. God always intended for the resurrection to be known and believed through human witnesses. There were no tape recordings, no video cameras, no photographs - no live streams to be a part of.
It was critical that Jesus’ resurrection was witnessed by people - this is the way that people would hear and know. And through this proclamation, this testimony, the church of Jesus Christ grew massively. This band of misfits, mere fishermen and tax collectors who had turned and fled when Jesus was captured – they were now transformed by their encounter with the risen Christ. Through eating and drinking with the living Jesus. It is through the testimony of God’s people that He chooses to spread the word about Jesus’ resurrection. This has always been God’s intention and how he chooses to spread his message of love, hope, transformation and renewal – through the testimony of his people – transformed through their encounter with the resurrected Jesus.
The brilliant professor of philosophy at London University, C.E.M. Joad, for many years of his life was not a Christian. Before he came to faith he was asked on a radio programme, ‘If you could meet any person from the past and ask them just one question, whom would you meet and what question would you ask?’
Professor Joad answered without hesitation: ‘I would meet Jesus Christ and ask him the most important question in the world – “Did you or did you not rise from the dead?”’
Later in life Professor Joad’s took time to assess the evidence and he encountered Jesus himself and wrote a book called, Recovery of Belief. If Jesus Christ is risen from the dead, this changes everything.
Death has been defeated - Jesus is alive.
Jesus’ act on the cross and his resurrection has brought us a renewed relationship with God. Jesus’ death and resurrection make it possible for us to have an intimate relationship with the living God.
Our faith is not grounded on words written on a page. It is not founded on smart teachings, on religious settings, images or idols. Our faith is founded on a relationship with the living God who we can now call “Abba, Father”.
And so, 2000 years later, each one of us is called to be a witness to this amazing reality - a witness to something we know to be true in every aspect of our being.
Jesus’ death and resurrection, while not only being the greatest act of history, also acts as an analogy of our own faith journey and our lives with Christ.
With faith in God, we enter into the resurrection of Jesus. We need our own resurrection to take places that makes possible a relationship with God! A resurrection brings new life – transformation – freedom - renewal.
The risen Jesus spoke to Mary by name. And he speaks to each one of us by name. The risen Jesus is not far off, ephemeral, and detached. He is not hard to come close to or hard to reach. He is a personal God who walks with us. As with the disciples, eating and drinking, Jesus is in the midst of our everyday.
Like Mary – those who have faith, hold this amazing truth in their hands. And we can sometimes feel like Mary as we share it. Let us remember - in lots of ways, Mary was the least likely person to be recorded as the first to encounter the risen Jesus.
And today – however we may feel – if we think we have messed up so many times, if we think we have so much stuff dragging us down, if we might feel so far from God – we can be encouraged. This is whom Jesus chooses to be his witnesses.
Death has been defeated - Jesus is alive.
TODAY WE CELEBRATE, we REJOICE because of that amazing truth!!!
Today will you be a witness to that AWESOME TRUTH? Amen
SONG: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9f2FXxDVO6w
How great the chasm that lay between us
How high the mountain I could not climb,
In desperation I turned to heaven
And spoke Your name into the night.
Then through the darkness,
Your loving kindness
Tore through the shadows of my soul.
The work is finished the end is written
Jesus Christ my living hope.
2. 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 Saviour 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!
3. 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.
[repeat verse]
Jesus Yours is the victory!
Hallelujah praise the One…
Jesus Christ my living hope!
Words & Music: Phil Wickham & Brian Johnson
Copyright © Phil Wickham Music (2017)
Let us affirm our faith in Jesus Christ the Son of God:
Though he was divine,
he did not cling to equality with God,
but made himself nothing.
Taking the form of a slave,
he was born in human likeness.
He humbled himself
and was obedient to death,
even the death of the cross.
Therefore God has raised him on high,
and given him the name above every name:
that at the name of Jesus
every knee should bow,
and every voice proclaim that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father Amen.
PRAYERS written by Liz Cannell
As we celebrate Easter today we give thanks for new life and new hope through the Resurrection of our Saviour Jesus Christ. May the Spirit of the living Christ come upon us in the glory of your risen power. May all who know God's love share it with others, bringing hope, compassion and support to communities and individuals, and may we each respond to God's grace through our own lives.
We pray for the church, both for the fellowship and friendship here at St. Gabriels, and world-wide, as we share worship and the joy of Easter.
We give thanks for glimpses of Spring, longer days, new growth and blossom. May we not only care for our environment, but appreciate it in all its variety and changing seasons. We pray for those on holiday, and for those spending time with family and friends.
We pray for peace in our troubled world. Guide all those in positions of leadership and responsibility in difficult situations and in the decisions they must make. In our own country the impact of industrial action and strikes is of concern to many, and we pray for a willingness on all sides to talk and resolve the disputes. In areas of conflict and tensions we pray for justice and reconciliation both within nations and between nations.
Lord, in your mercy, accept these prayers for the sake of your son,
our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen
LORD’S PRAYER
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.
Lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours
now and for ever.
Amen
SONG: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-LgE_E7yaz4
See, what a morning,
gloriously bright,
with the dawning of hope in Jerusalem;
folded the grave-clothes,
tomb filled with light,
as the angels announce ‘Christ is risen!’
See God's salvation plan,
wrought in love,
borne in pain, paid in sacrifice,
fulfilled in Christ, the Man,
for He lives:
Christ is risen from the dead!
2. See Mary weeping,
'Where is He laid?'
as in sorrow she turns
from the empty tomb;
Hears a voice speaking, calling her name;
it's the Master, the Lord,
raised to life again!
The voice that spans the years,
speaking life, stirring hope,
bringing peace to us,
will sound ‘til He appears,
for He lives, Christ is risen from the dead!
3. One with the Father,
Ancient of Days,
through the Spirit
who clothes faith with certainty,
honour and blessing, glory and praise,
to the King crowned with power
and authority!
And we are raised with Him,
death is dead, love has won,
Christ has conquered;
and we shall reign with Him,
for He lives, Christ is risen from the dead!
Stuart Townend & Keith Getty
(Copyright © 2003 Thankyou Music)
OFFERTORY - Take a moment to consider how you are going to continue to give to the life of the church and support other aid agencies and mission organisations.
SAY:
Yours, Lord, is the greatness, the power,
the glory, the splendour, and the majesty;
for everything in heaven and on earth is yours.
All things come from you,
and of your own do we give you.
HYMN : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tjz4yXUJrgU
Thine be the glory,
risen, conquering Son,
Endless is the vict’ry
Thou o'er death hast won;
angels in bright raiment
rolled the stone away,
kept the folded grave-clothes,
where Thy body lay.
Thine be the glory,
risen, conquering Son,
Endless is the vict’ry
Thou o'er death hast won.
2. Lo! Jesus meets us,
risen from the tomb;
lovingly He greets us,
scatters fear and gloom;
let the Church with gladness
hymns of triumph sing,
for her Lord now liveth;
death hath lost its sting.
Thine be the glory...
3. No more we doubt Thee,
glorious Prince of life;
life is nought without Thee:
aid us in our strife;
make us more than conquerors,
through Thy deathless love:
bring us safe through Jordan
to Thy home above.
Thine be the glory...
Words: Edmond Louis Budry (1854-1932)
Tr. Richard Birch Hoyle (1875-1939)
Music: G F Handel (1685-1759)
FINAL ACCLAMATION
Alleluia! Christ is risen!
He is risen indeed! Alleluia!
Praise the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
He has given us new life and hope
by raising Jesus from the dead.
God has claimed us as his own.
He has brought us out of darkness.
He has made us light to the world.
Alleluia! Christ is risen!
He is risen indeed! Alleluia!
Go in the peace of Christ. Alleluia!
Thanks be to God. Alleluia!
We wish you a very happy & blessed Easter!