Easter
The fullness of the resurrection requires more than a day to unpack. The Easter season is a fifty-day celebration that ends on Pentecost Sunday (the Greek word pentekoste means “fiftieth”). The Easter season is a time to let the implications of the resurrection sink in deeper, inviting us to realign our worldview and conform our living to the reality that we have been raised with Christ to new life. Easter is full of joy and the laughter of love—the grave is empty, love has won, Christ is risen! Give yourself over to the experience of that joy—take in the absolute wonder of God’s purposeful plan of salvation (from Seeking God’s Face by Philip Reinders).
- Calling -
O Lord, open our lips.
And our mouth shall proclaim Your praise.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now and will be forever. Amen. Alleluia!
Alleluia. The Lord is risen indeed:
O come, let us adore him. Alleluia.
- Constitution -
Read/Listen, Meditate, Pray, and Contemplate on God’s Word, remembering that God is with you and ready to speak to you because he loves you.
Praying the Psalms
Psalm 13
To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.
[1] How long, O LORD? Will you forget me forever?
How long will you hide your face from me?
[2] How long must I take counsel in my soul
and have sorrow in my heart all the day?
How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?
[3] Consider and answer me, O LORD my God;
light up my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death,
[4] lest my enemy say, “I have prevailed over him,”
lest my foes rejoice because I am shaken.
[5] But I have trusted in your steadfast love;
my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.
[6] I will sing to the LORD,
because he has dealt bountifully with me.
Psalm 14
To the choirmaster. Of David.
[1] The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.”
They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds;
there is none who does good.
[2] The LORD looks down from heaven on the children of man,
to see if there are any who understand,
who seek after God.
[3] They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt;
there is none who does good,
not even one.
[4] Have they no knowledge, all the evildoers
who eat up my people as they eat bread
and do not call upon the LORD?
[5] There they are in great terror,
for God is with the generation of the righteous.
[6] You would shame the plans of the poor,
but the LORD is his refuge.
[7] Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion!
When the LORD restores the fortunes of his people,
let Jacob rejoice, let Israel be glad.
Old Testament Reading
Leviticus 11
[1] And the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying to them, [2] “Speak to the people of Israel, saying, These are the living things that you may eat among all the animals that are on the earth. [3] Whatever parts the hoof and is cloven-footed and chews the cud, among the animals, you may eat. [4] Nevertheless, among those that chew the cud or part the hoof, you shall not eat these: The camel, because it chews the cud but does not part the hoof, is unclean to you. [5] And the rock badger, because it chews the cud but does not part the hoof, is unclean to you. [6] And the hare, because it chews the cud but does not part the hoof, is unclean to you. [7] And the pig, because it parts the hoof and is cloven-footed but does not chew the cud, is unclean to you. [8] You shall not eat any of their flesh, and you shall not touch their carcasses; they are unclean to you.
[9] “These you may eat, of all that are in the waters. Everything in the waters that has fins and scales, whether in the seas or in the rivers, you may eat. [10] But anything in the seas or the rivers that does not have fins and scales, of the swarming creatures in the waters and of the living creatures that are in the waters, is detestable to you. [11] You shall regard them as detestable; you shall not eat any of their flesh, and you shall detest their carcasses. [12] Everything in the waters that does not have fins and scales is detestable to you.
[13] “And these you shall detest among the birds; they shall not be eaten; they are detestable: the eagle, the bearded vulture, the black vulture, [14] the kite, the falcon of any kind, [15] every raven of any kind, [16] the ostrich, the nighthawk, the sea gull, the hawk of any kind, [17] the little owl, the cormorant, the short-eared owl, [18] the barn owl, the tawny owl, the carrion vulture, [19] the stork, the heron of any kind, the hoopoe, and the bat.
[20] “All winged insects that go on all fours are detestable to you. [21] Yet among the winged insects that go on all fours you may eat those that have jointed legs above their feet, with which to hop on the ground. [22] Of them you may eat: the locust of any kind, the bald locust of any kind, the cricket of any kind, and the grasshopper of any kind. [23] But all other winged insects that have four feet are detestable to you.
[24] “And by these you shall become unclean. Whoever touches their carcass shall be unclean until the evening, [25] and whoever carries any part of their carcass shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening. [26] Every animal that parts the hoof but is not cloven-footed or does not chew the cud is unclean to you. Everyone who touches them shall be unclean. [27] And all that walk on their paws, among the animals that go on all fours, are unclean to you. Whoever touches their carcass shall be unclean until the evening, [28] and he who carries their carcass shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening; they are unclean to you.
[29] “And these are unclean to you among the swarming things that swarm on the ground: the mole rat, the mouse, the great lizard of any kind, [30] the gecko, the monitor lizard, the lizard, the sand lizard, and the chameleon. [31] These are unclean to you among all that swarm. Whoever touches them when they are dead shall be unclean until the evening. [32] And anything on which any of them falls when they are dead shall be unclean, whether it is an article of wood or a garment or a skin or a sack, any article that is used for any purpose. It must be put into water, and it shall be unclean until the evening; then it shall be clean. [33] And if any of them falls into any earthenware vessel, all that is in it shall be unclean, and you shall break it. [34] Any food in it that could be eaten, on which water comes, shall be unclean. And all drink that could be drunk from every such vessel shall be unclean. [35] And everything on which any part of their carcass falls shall be unclean. Whether oven or stove, it shall be broken in pieces. They are unclean and shall remain unclean for you. [36] Nevertheless, a spring or a cistern holding water shall be clean, but whoever touches a carcass in them shall be unclean. [37] And if any part of their carcass falls upon any seed grain that is to be sown, it is clean, [38] but if water is put on the seed and any part of their carcass falls on it, it is unclean to you.
[39] “And if any animal which you may eat dies, whoever touches its carcass shall be unclean until the evening, [40] and whoever eats of its carcass shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening. And whoever carries the carcass shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening.
[41] “Every swarming thing that swarms on the ground is detestable; it shall not be eaten. [42] Whatever goes on its belly, and whatever goes on all fours, or whatever has many feet, any swarming thing that swarms on the ground, you shall not eat, for they are detestable. [43] You shall not make yourselves detestable with any swarming thing that swarms, and you shall not defile yourselves with them, and become unclean through them. [44] For I am the LORD your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy. You shall not defile yourselves with any swarming thing that crawls on the ground. [45] For I am the LORD who brought you up out of the land of Egypt to be your God. You shall therefore be holy, for I am holy.”
[46] This is the law about beast and bird and every living creature that moves through the waters and every creature that swarms on the ground, [47] to make a distinction between the unclean and the clean and between the living creature that may be eaten and the living creature that may not be eaten.
Leviticus 12
[1] The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, [2] “Speak to the people of Israel, saying, If a woman conceives and bears a male child, then she shall be unclean seven days. As at the time of her menstruation, she shall be unclean. [3] And on the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised. [4] Then she shall continue for thirty-three days in the blood of her purifying. She shall not touch anything holy, nor come into the sanctuary, until the days of her purifying are completed. [5] But if she bears a female child, then she shall be unclean two weeks, as in her menstruation. And she shall continue in the blood of her purifying for sixty-six days.
[6] “And when the days of her purifying are completed, whether for a son or for a daughter, she shall bring to the priest at the entrance of the tent of meeting a lamb a year old for a burnt offering, and a pigeon or a turtledove for a sin offering, [7] and he shall offer it before the LORD and make atonement for her. Then she shall be clean from the flow of her blood. This is the law for her who bears a child, either male or female. [8] And if she cannot afford a lamb, then she shall take two turtledoves or two pigeons, one for a burnt offering and the other for a sin offering. And the priest shall make atonement for her, and she shall be clean.”
- Communion -
Pray for yourself, others, our church, our neighbors, and the world.
Pray the Lord’s Prayer & the collect of the week:
Our Father who art in heaven...
Almighty and everlasting God, who in the Paschal mystery established the new covenant of reconciliation: Grant that all who have been reborn into the fellowship of Christ's Body may show forth in their lives what they profess by their faith; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
- Commission -
May the God of peace, who raised to life the great shepherd of the sheep, make us ready to do his will in every good thing, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever.
(Based on Hebrews 13:20-21)
Let us go forth in the name of Christ.