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 107
[1] Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good,
for his steadfast love endures forever!
[2] Let the redeemed of the LORD say so,
whom he has redeemed from trouble
[3] and gathered in from the lands,
from the east and from the west,
from the north and from the south.
[4] Some wandered in desert wastes,
finding no way to a city to dwell in;
[5] hungry and thirsty,
their soul fainted within them.
[6] Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble,
and he delivered them from their distress.
[7] He led them by a straight way
till they reached a city to dwell in.
[8] Let them thank the LORD for his steadfast love,
for his wondrous works to the children of man!
[9] For he satisfies the longing soul,
and the hungry soul he fills with good things.
[10] Some sat in darkness and in the shadow of death,
prisoners in affliction and in irons,
[11] for they had rebelled against the words of God,
and spurned the counsel of the Most High.
[12] So he bowed their hearts down with hard labor;
they fell down, with none to help.
[13] Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble,
and he delivered them from their distress.
[14] He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death,
and burst their bonds apart.
[15] Let them thank the LORD for his steadfast love,
for his wondrous works to the children of man!
[16] For he shatters the doors of bronze
and cuts in two the bars of iron.
[17] Some were fools through their sinful ways,
and because of their iniquities suffered affliction;
[18] they loathed any kind of food,
and they drew near to the gates of death.
[19] Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble,
and he delivered them from their distress.
[20] He sent out his word and healed them,
and delivered them from their destruction.
[21] Let them thank the LORD for his steadfast love,
for his wondrous works to the children of man!
[22] And let them offer sacrifices of thanksgiving,
and tell of his deeds in songs of joy!
[23] Some went down to the sea in ships,
doing business on the great waters;
[24] they saw the deeds of the LORD,
his wondrous works in the deep.
[25] For he commanded and raised the stormy wind,
which lifted up the waves of the sea.
[26] They mounted up to heaven; they went down to the depths;
their courage melted away in their evil plight;
[27] they reeled and staggered like drunken men
and were at their wits’ end.
[28] Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble,
and he delivered them from their distress.
[29] He made the storm be still,
and the waves of the sea were hushed.
[30] Then they were glad that the waters were quiet,
and he brought them to their desired haven.
[31] Let them thank the LORD for his steadfast love,
for his wondrous works to the children of man!
[32] Let them extol him in the congregation of the people,
and praise him in the assembly of the elders.
[33] He turns rivers into a desert,
springs of water into thirsty ground,
[34] a fruitful land into a salty waste,
because of the evil of its inhabitants.
[35] He turns a desert into pools of water,
a parched land into springs of water.
[36] And there he lets the hungry dwell,
and they establish a city to live in;
[37] they sow fields and plant vineyards
and get a fruitful yield.
[38] By his blessing they multiply greatly,
and he does not let their livestock diminish.
[39] When they are diminished and brought low
through oppression, evil, and sorrow,
[40] he pours contempt on princes
and makes them wander in trackless wastes;
[41] but he raises up the needy out of affliction
and makes their families like flocks.
[42] The upright see it and are glad,
and all wickedness shuts its mouth.
[43] Whoever is wise, let him attend to these things;
let them consider the steadfast love of the LORD.
Psalm 108
A Song. A Psalm of David.
[1] My heart is steadfast, O God!
I will sing and make melody with all my being!
[2] Awake, O harp and lyre!
I will awake the dawn!
[3] I will give thanks to you, O LORD, among the peoples;
I will sing praises to you among the nations.
[4] For your steadfast love is great above the heavens;
your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.
[5] Be exalted, O God, above the heavens!
Let your glory be over all the earth!
[6] That your beloved ones may be delivered,
give salvation by your right hand and answer me!
[7] God has promised in his holiness:
“With exultation I will divide up Shechem
and portion out the Valley of Succoth.
[8] Gilead is mine; Manasseh is mine;
Ephraim is my helmet,
Judah my scepter.
[9] Moab is my washbasin;
upon Edom I cast my shoe;
over Philistia I shout in triumph.”
[10] Who will bring me to the fortified city?
Who will lead me to Edom?
[11] Have you not rejected us, O God?
You do not go out, O God, with our armies.
[12] Oh grant us help against the foe,
for vain is the salvation of man!
[13] With God we shall do valiantly;
it is he who will tread down our foes.
Old Testament Reading
Song of Solomon 4
He
[1] Behold, you are beautiful, my love,
behold, you are beautiful!
Your eyes are doves
behind your veil.
Your hair is like a flock of goats
leaping down the slopes of Gilead.
[2] Your teeth are like a flock of shorn ewes
that have come up from the washing,
all of which bear twins,
and not one among them has lost its young.
[3] Your lips are like a scarlet thread,
and your mouth is lovely.
Your cheeks are like halves of a pomegranate
behind your veil.
[4] Your neck is like the tower of David,
built in rows of stone;
on it hang a thousand shields,
all of them shields of warriors.
[5] Your two breasts are like two fawns,
twins of a gazelle,
that graze among the lilies.
[6] Until the day breathes
and the shadows flee,
I will go away to the mountain of myrrh
and the hill of frankincense.
[7] You are altogether beautiful, my love;
there is no flaw in you.
[8] Come with me from Lebanon, my bride;
come with me from Lebanon.
Depart from the peak of Amana,
from the peak of Senir and Hermon,
from the dens of lions,
from the mountains of leopards.
[9] You have captivated my heart, my sister, my bride;
you have captivated my heart with one glance of your eyes,
with one jewel of your necklace.
[10] How beautiful is your love, my sister, my bride!
How much better is your love than wine,
and the fragrance of your oils than any spice!
[11] Your lips drip nectar, my bride;
honey and milk are under your tongue;
the fragrance of your garments is like the fragrance of Lebanon.
[12] A garden locked is my sister, my bride,
a spring locked, a fountain sealed.
[13] Your shoots are an orchard of pomegranates
with all choicest fruits,
henna with nard,
[14] nard and saffron, calamus and cinnamon,
with all trees of frankincense,
myrrh and aloes,
with all choice spices—
[15] a garden fountain, a well of living water,
and flowing streams from Lebanon.
[16] Awake, O north wind,
and come, O south wind!
Blow upon my garden,
let its spices flow.
She
Let my beloved come to his garden,
and eat its choicest fruits.
New Testament Reading
Hebrews 4
[1] Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us fear lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it. [2] For good news came to us just as to them, but the message they heard did not benefit them, because they were not united by faith with those who listened. [3] For we who have believed enter that rest, as he has said,
“As I swore in my wrath,
‘They shall not enter my rest,’”
although his works were finished from the foundation of the world. [4] For he has somewhere spoken of the seventh day in this way: “And God rested on the seventh day from all his works.” [5] And again in this passage he said,
“They shall not enter my rest.”
[6] Since therefore it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly received the good news failed to enter because of disobedience, [7] again he appoints a certain day, “Today,” saying through David so long afterward, in the words already quoted,
“Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts.”
[8] For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken of another day later on. [9] So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, [10] for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his.
[11] Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience. [12] For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. [13] And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.
[14] Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. [15] For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. [16] Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
- 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)
Go in peace to love and serve the Lord and our neighbors.