Easter 2C
Easter 3C
Easter 4C
Easter 5C
Easter 6C
Easter 7C
|
Easter 2C LECTIONARY GENERATED LITURGY Easter 2C Acts 5: 27-32 ; Ps 118:14-29 or Ps 150; Rev 1:4-8; John 20:19-31. Rec text - NRSV. Hymns are from the Australian Hymn Book (AHB) or Together in Song (TIS) or unless otherwise indicated. Worship Leader - normal type. Congregational responses - bold type Permission is granted to churches to use this material in services of worship. This liturgy remains the property of Moira B Laidlaw Additional resources for Easter Two: A toy or model plane or a picture of a plane; ALL TOGETHER EVERYBODY, Lutheran Publishing House, Adelaide, 1991; AS ONE VOICE, Willow Connection P/L, Dee Why, 1992; METHODIST HYMN BOOK , Novello & Co. London, 1962; BORROWED LIGHT, Thomas H. Troeger, Oxford University Press, New York, 1994; AUSTRALIAN PRAYERS. Bruce D Prewer, Lutheran Publishing House, Adelaide,1983; BE OUR FREEDOM, LORD, ed Terry C Falla, Openbook Publisher, Adelaide, 1994. CALL TO WORSHIP: based on John 20:19 - 22. When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week ...Jesus came and stood among the disciples 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.” Let our rejoicing be heard far and wide as we witness to our belief in the risen Lord. TIS 360/AHB 276: verses 6,7,8 - “That Eastertide with joy was bright” TIS 360/AHB 303: “Thine be the glory, risen, conquering Son” PRAYER OF APPROACH We worship you, O God, aware that we are a group of people at differing stages in our journeys of faith. Our knowledge of you has been shaped by diverse experiences, teachings and relationships throughout our lives. At times, we move between faith and doubt, certainty and unbelief. So today, we rejoice in the word of the gospel where John declares that he has written his gospel to confirm and strengthen our belief that Jesus is the Christ the Son of God, and that in believing, we might have life in his name. We worship you, O God, with praise and thanksgiving for that gift of life made possible through Jesus’ costly death and victorious resurrection. Strengthen and confirm our belief in Jesus in this time of worship here today. May we know the blessings of his peace within us and the breath of his Spirit upon us. We offer this prayer and our worship in Jesus’ name and for his sake. Amen A STORY FOR THE CHILDREN/YOUNG PEOPLE Props required: a toy or model plane or picture of a plane. You could perhaps begin by asking if any of the young folk have been on a plane trip - how did it feel? Then tell the following story... Four year old Angus was going on a big trip right across Australia - from Perth to Brisbane. This would be his first time on a plane. His dad had prepared him for the trip by taking him to the airport to see planes landing and taking off, and he had explained how every plane had a pilot who knew how to get a plane off the ground, fly it in the air and land it safely. Angus was very excited as he was going to visit his nan and grandad in Queensland . The big day came and Angus and his mum and dad boarded the plane. Angus looked at everything in the plane and asked lots of questions about the buttons on the arms of his seat and the funny windows etc. As the plane’s engines began to warm up ready to take off, Angus became very quiet and he began to cry when the plane began to move. “What’s wrong, Angus?” asked his mum but Angus was too upset to answer. “Everything is all right, the pilot is looking after us and he’ll get us up in the air nice and safely.” “But I can’t see the pilot” Angus sobbed, “how do I know there’s a pilot there?” “You can’t see the pilot”, said his dad, “but we know that there is a pilot behind that door way up the front of the plane. The plane wouldn’t be moving if the pilot wasn’t there.” But Angus got more and more upset and he kept saying between sobs that he wanted to see if the pilot really was there. A very kind flight attendant heard what Angus was saying and she offered to take him up front to see the pilot for himself. And that’s what happened. Angus talked to the pilot and was shown all the dials and equipment needed to fly the plane and to get it back on the ground safely. After that, Angus was happy to sit back in his seat and he even fell aleep and slept nearly all the way to Brisbane. In the story from the Bible today, one of Jesus’ disciples, Thomas, didn’t believe the other disciples when they said that they had seen Jesus, that he was no longer dead, but alive again. Thomas wasn’t prepared to take their word for that and he said he would only believe that Jesus was alive if he could actually see Jesus - a bit like Angus and the pilot! When Jesus appeared again, Thomas knew that he should have believed his friends when they told him that Jesus really was alive. And Jesus asked Thomas if he had believed only because he had seen him with his own eyes. And then Jesus said something very special - words addressed to us. He said that if we believed that he was alive even when we couldn’t actually see him - we would be extraordinarily happy - our lives would be truly blessed. And that is what we celebrate not only on Sundays in church, but every day - that Jesus lives on in a very special way with us and in us, helping us to see people with his eyes and to treat them with his love. AHB 304: “Very early in the morning” TIS 256/ALL TOGETHER EVERYBODY 261: “The Servant King” AS ONE VOICE 63 vol.1 : “We walk by faith” PRAYER OF CONFESSION When we acknowledge Jesus Christ as our Lord and God, true christian fellowship exists. One of the major marks of this fellowship is the sense of joy we experience as we gather to worship God , to give thanks for Jesus Christ and to witness to the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Yet, we confess that there are times when we feel afraid, abandoned, and lonely; when our lives seem bereft of God’s presence; desolate times when faith leads to doubt and questions, rather than a sense of joy or peace of mind . Lord Jesus Christ, unlike those first disciples, we cannot touch you or see you, and so it is all too easy to become downcast and given to despair. Forgive us when, like the disciples, we find the truth of Easter hard to believe. (silent reflection) Come to us, risen Christ. Come through the closed doors of our hearts and minds and take away our fears and doubts. Come to us, risen Christ. Breathe on us and fill us with the joy and peace of your presence. Bless us all as people who have not seen you but who want to believe that you are truly the risen Christ, Son of God. Amen ASSURANCE OF FORGIVENESS : Hear the good news: “Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and ruler of the kings on earth...loves us and freed us from our sins by his blood....To him be the glory and dominion for ever and ever.”(Revelation 1:5,6 ) TIS 407/AHB 320: “Breathe on me, breath of God” Use the set tune or the perhaps more familiar “Trentham” - Methodist Hymn Book: Additional Tune 3 TIS 155: “How great thou art” EPISTLE: Revelation 1:4-8 GOSPEL: John 20:19-31 SERMON TIS 363/AHB 281: “ My daughters and my sons hear tell” If the set tune is unfamiliar this sings well to TIS 376/AHB 299 Church Triumphant singing Alleluia! twice . TIS 649/Borrowed Light 119: “These things did Thomas count as real” sings well to TIS 59/AHB 10 :Old 100th TIS 208: “Jesus has come, and brings joy as our Saviour” SUGGESTIONS FOR PRAYERS OF THANKSGIVING AND INTERCESSION As this is the Sunday closest to Anzac Day, it would be appropriate to include prayers relating to this event. “The Right-hand Man” -Page 58 - Australian Prayers and “A Tough but Beautiful Truth” - Page 340 - Be our Freedom, Lord THE LORD’S PRAYER OFFERING OFFERTORY PRAYER Gracious and loving God, you raised Jesus from the dead, disclosing forever your love for the world. Such a generous act not only showers us with grace, it begs a response. We respond with these gifts and our lives - praying your blessing on them. As you sent Jesus, so send us in the power of your Spirit to reveal your love in all we do and say. We pray in the name of our risen Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen TIS 409/AHB 322: “O breath of life come sweeping through us” TIS 228/AHB 163: Crown him with many crowns” BENEDICTION Go with the love of God enfolding you, the peace of Jesus Christ within you, and the breath of the Holy Spirit inspiring you. THREEFOLD AMEN |