Resurrection of the Christ
Worship
Lectionary Worship Workbook
Series II, Cycle A Gospel Texts
A Return To Good Friday For Those Who Want Life Without Death
Prepare, in advance, someone to simulate "Jesus" on an old rugged cross. This person is to take his position on the Cross about seven minutes before the beginning of worship. Two people can hold and steady the Cross, which is on eye-level with the people, and at the front or in the middle of the sanctuary. A soloist will sing the first stanza only of "Jesus Walked That Lonesome Valley." The pastor will read a brief meditation on the death of Jesus, which then leads into the pastor's repeating Jesus' "Seven Last Words from the Cross." As the pastor reads, someone offstage pounds nails into wood. "Jesus" dies and then leaves the sanctuary. Give one minute of silence. The congregation then sings stanzas 2, 3, 2 of "Lonesome Valley," as the people come forward and stand before the Cross. After the singing, one minute of silence. The people who come forward wait until after the pastor's invitation to the celebration, and then scatter throughout the sanctuary to welcome each other to worship.
A Celebration Of Resurrection
Pastoral Invitation to the Easter Celebration
I trust by now that you've heard the Good News -- Christ lives! That ought to make a difference in our lives; and it does, even if we choose not to accept its reality personally. It could make more of a difference, though, if we refused to put limits on the Risen Lord in our lives. Because when Jesus' body died, he got a new body, the church, the living, breathing body of the Risen Christ. Easter goes on, in and through us! So, with that message, I invite us to greet one another.
Choral Response
"Eightfold Alleluia." Second stanza, "He is Risen." Third stanza, "We do praise him."
Meditation
"The stone was moved, not to let Jesus out, but to let the disciples in" (G. Ashton).
Declaration of Joyful Expectations (with enthusiasm) (Pastors and Ministers)
P: God loves the world!
Right Side: Alleluia! Left side: Hurray!
P: God calls us to celebrate the Good News of Christ!
Right Side: Alleluia! Left Side: Hurray!
P: Glorious things God has done, is doing, will do for us, to us, with us, through us.
Right Side: Alleluia! Left Side: Hurray!
P: Joy is ours, because we are Christ's!
All: (three times) Alleluia! (three times) Hurray!
Hymn of Resurrection
"Jesus Christ Is Risen Today." Stanza 1: Solo and handbells and whatever musical instruments the congregation brings. Stanza 2: Quartet and musical instruments. Stanzas 3 and 4: Let all that breathes and moves praise the Lord!
Prayer of Praise
(Congregational Amen)
P: The Lord be with you, friends.
M: The Lord be with you, too, pastor.
P: Praise the Lord.
M: The Lord's Name be praised.
P: Prayer of Gratitude for the Risen Christ.
Recognizing Who We Are And Whose We Are
The Act of Recognizing Our Humanity
Peruse the previous day's newspaper. Select several items to read which cover the gamut of human behavior. Someone has suggested that we are to read the newspaper and the Bible together; the former merely updates the latter. Select Scriptures which illustrate the daily news. Perhaps some of the people would be willing to add their own, yes, even the children.
The Act of Receiving New Life
Develop the prayer around the events you have read. Ask, what kind of newspaper headlines are you writing each day that never make it into the daily newspaper? Jesus died and rose for the rest of the world and for you, too. What a relief!
P: Jesus declares a new humanity.
M: He accepts our lives, forgiving the past and opening the future.
P: He calls us to face life and to see it through with our eyes open, our ears alert, our minds active.
M: He calls us to celebrate, in and through and with and by his power. Let it be!
Response
Chorus only, popular song, "Let It Be."
The Teaching
Message with the Children of All Ages
As a symbol of new life and growth, use the various stages in the development of an avocado bush, beginning with its large pit. A biblical comparison is the mustard seed. Do more than tell the story; involve the children, even using their own birth and growth and its great mystery.
Response
"Allelu" (words and music by Ray Repp, F.E.L. Church Publishing, Ltd.; found in Folk Encounter, Hope Publishing Company. See Appendix I for address).
Reading from the Newer Covenant
Traditionally, people stood for the reading of the Gospel; so ask them to stand, not only this but every Sunday. Ask the organist or pianist to play some Easter music as background while you read.
Response
"Thanks to God Whose Word Was Written" (R. T. Brooks, 1954; alt. Peter Cutts, 1966).
Proclamation of the Good News
Incorporate these ideas: If we read and hear this passage from the outside looking in, the whole thing sounds similar to a Wizard of Oz fairy tale. We struggle with our believing the witness of the disciples and the early church. Are they reliable? Can we trust them? That's a strange question, considering the outright lies and half-truths we believe without batting an eyelid, as for example, "Jews deserve to die; blacks are inferior; Indians are savages; anyone who votes for that political candidate can't possibly be a Christian; if I can't have you I'll go crazy; blonds have more fun." If we repeat, or hear repeated, those lies and half-truths often enough, we believe them, even though they make no sense, even though they are pure baloney and banality, even though they fail the test of reality.
Response
Adult choir and youth or children's echo choir singing an anthem of gratitude, or a resurrection anthem.
Stewardship Challenge
"To withhold help is to participate in the authorship of misery that Jesus came to change. Violence slays thousands; but supine (passive) negligence slays millions" (Bishop Fulton Sheen). One life, your life, matters, to many more than you will ever know.
Charge to the Congregation
A church school teacher one day asked her students, "What do you think Jesus said when he first came out of the tomb?" "I know, I know," shouted a second grader. "He said, 'Tah-dah!' " (This, of course, makes a great sermon title.) (Story taken from The Joyful Noiseletter, published by The Fellowship of Merry Christians, Cal and Rose Samra, P.O. Box 895, Portage, MI 49081-0895.)
Hymn of Commitment
"The Strife is O'er, the Battle Done." The choirs sing the fanfare before and after this hymn.
Benediction
With power. Ask the people to look at each other, for whom Jesus rose. His act puts us all in the same boat, which Martin Luther called the church.
Response
"Every Morning Is Easter Morning" (Avery and Marsh, Hope Publishing Company. See Appendix I for address).
Meditation
"The world is not done with the Cross -- but it is done without it" (author unknown).
Music Possibilities In Addition To Those Already Suggested
Music for Preparation: Medley of Good Friday hymns.
Choral Introit: An enthusiastic "Hosanna" piece.
Hymn of Praise: "The Day of Resurrection," John of Damascus (675?-749? A.D.), John Mason Neale, trans., 1862; alt.
Response to the Proclamation: (Choir) "It Is a Great Day of Joy" (Alleluia Fugue), from "Jesus -- the Life of Jesus in Twelve Contemporary Songs," music by Claude Henri Vic; texts by Jacques Hourdeaux, produced by Avant Garde Records, Inc., 250 West 57th Street, New York, N.Y. 10010.
Offertory: "Rejoice Ye Christians," Bach.
Hymn of Dedication: "Good News Is Ours To Tell," Jane Parker Huber, 1978, from Joy In Singing. (See Appendix I for address.)
Choral Response to the Benediction: "Amen Chorus," from "Lilies of the Field." Ask the people to sing as they leave.
Music for Dismissal: Medley of Easter hymns, or "Carillon for a Joyful Day," McKay.
Prepare, in advance, someone to simulate "Jesus" on an old rugged cross. This person is to take his position on the Cross about seven minutes before the beginning of worship. Two people can hold and steady the Cross, which is on eye-level with the people, and at the front or in the middle of the sanctuary. A soloist will sing the first stanza only of "Jesus Walked That Lonesome Valley." The pastor will read a brief meditation on the death of Jesus, which then leads into the pastor's repeating Jesus' "Seven Last Words from the Cross." As the pastor reads, someone offstage pounds nails into wood. "Jesus" dies and then leaves the sanctuary. Give one minute of silence. The congregation then sings stanzas 2, 3, 2 of "Lonesome Valley," as the people come forward and stand before the Cross. After the singing, one minute of silence. The people who come forward wait until after the pastor's invitation to the celebration, and then scatter throughout the sanctuary to welcome each other to worship.
A Celebration Of Resurrection
Pastoral Invitation to the Easter Celebration
I trust by now that you've heard the Good News -- Christ lives! That ought to make a difference in our lives; and it does, even if we choose not to accept its reality personally. It could make more of a difference, though, if we refused to put limits on the Risen Lord in our lives. Because when Jesus' body died, he got a new body, the church, the living, breathing body of the Risen Christ. Easter goes on, in and through us! So, with that message, I invite us to greet one another.
Choral Response
"Eightfold Alleluia." Second stanza, "He is Risen." Third stanza, "We do praise him."
Meditation
"The stone was moved, not to let Jesus out, but to let the disciples in" (G. Ashton).
Declaration of Joyful Expectations (with enthusiasm) (Pastors and Ministers)
P: God loves the world!
Right Side: Alleluia! Left side: Hurray!
P: God calls us to celebrate the Good News of Christ!
Right Side: Alleluia! Left Side: Hurray!
P: Glorious things God has done, is doing, will do for us, to us, with us, through us.
Right Side: Alleluia! Left Side: Hurray!
P: Joy is ours, because we are Christ's!
All: (three times) Alleluia! (three times) Hurray!
Hymn of Resurrection
"Jesus Christ Is Risen Today." Stanza 1: Solo and handbells and whatever musical instruments the congregation brings. Stanza 2: Quartet and musical instruments. Stanzas 3 and 4: Let all that breathes and moves praise the Lord!
Prayer of Praise
(Congregational Amen)
P: The Lord be with you, friends.
M: The Lord be with you, too, pastor.
P: Praise the Lord.
M: The Lord's Name be praised.
P: Prayer of Gratitude for the Risen Christ.
Recognizing Who We Are And Whose We Are
The Act of Recognizing Our Humanity
Peruse the previous day's newspaper. Select several items to read which cover the gamut of human behavior. Someone has suggested that we are to read the newspaper and the Bible together; the former merely updates the latter. Select Scriptures which illustrate the daily news. Perhaps some of the people would be willing to add their own, yes, even the children.
The Act of Receiving New Life
Develop the prayer around the events you have read. Ask, what kind of newspaper headlines are you writing each day that never make it into the daily newspaper? Jesus died and rose for the rest of the world and for you, too. What a relief!
P: Jesus declares a new humanity.
M: He accepts our lives, forgiving the past and opening the future.
P: He calls us to face life and to see it through with our eyes open, our ears alert, our minds active.
M: He calls us to celebrate, in and through and with and by his power. Let it be!
Response
Chorus only, popular song, "Let It Be."
The Teaching
Message with the Children of All Ages
As a symbol of new life and growth, use the various stages in the development of an avocado bush, beginning with its large pit. A biblical comparison is the mustard seed. Do more than tell the story; involve the children, even using their own birth and growth and its great mystery.
Response
"Allelu" (words and music by Ray Repp, F.E.L. Church Publishing, Ltd.; found in Folk Encounter, Hope Publishing Company. See Appendix I for address).
Reading from the Newer Covenant
Traditionally, people stood for the reading of the Gospel; so ask them to stand, not only this but every Sunday. Ask the organist or pianist to play some Easter music as background while you read.
Response
"Thanks to God Whose Word Was Written" (R. T. Brooks, 1954; alt. Peter Cutts, 1966).
Proclamation of the Good News
Incorporate these ideas: If we read and hear this passage from the outside looking in, the whole thing sounds similar to a Wizard of Oz fairy tale. We struggle with our believing the witness of the disciples and the early church. Are they reliable? Can we trust them? That's a strange question, considering the outright lies and half-truths we believe without batting an eyelid, as for example, "Jews deserve to die; blacks are inferior; Indians are savages; anyone who votes for that political candidate can't possibly be a Christian; if I can't have you I'll go crazy; blonds have more fun." If we repeat, or hear repeated, those lies and half-truths often enough, we believe them, even though they make no sense, even though they are pure baloney and banality, even though they fail the test of reality.
Response
Adult choir and youth or children's echo choir singing an anthem of gratitude, or a resurrection anthem.
Stewardship Challenge
"To withhold help is to participate in the authorship of misery that Jesus came to change. Violence slays thousands; but supine (passive) negligence slays millions" (Bishop Fulton Sheen). One life, your life, matters, to many more than you will ever know.
Charge to the Congregation
A church school teacher one day asked her students, "What do you think Jesus said when he first came out of the tomb?" "I know, I know," shouted a second grader. "He said, 'Tah-dah!' " (This, of course, makes a great sermon title.) (Story taken from The Joyful Noiseletter, published by The Fellowship of Merry Christians, Cal and Rose Samra, P.O. Box 895, Portage, MI 49081-0895.)
Hymn of Commitment
"The Strife is O'er, the Battle Done." The choirs sing the fanfare before and after this hymn.
Benediction
With power. Ask the people to look at each other, for whom Jesus rose. His act puts us all in the same boat, which Martin Luther called the church.
Response
"Every Morning Is Easter Morning" (Avery and Marsh, Hope Publishing Company. See Appendix I for address).
Meditation
"The world is not done with the Cross -- but it is done without it" (author unknown).
Music Possibilities In Addition To Those Already Suggested
Music for Preparation: Medley of Good Friday hymns.
Choral Introit: An enthusiastic "Hosanna" piece.
Hymn of Praise: "The Day of Resurrection," John of Damascus (675?-749? A.D.), John Mason Neale, trans., 1862; alt.
Response to the Proclamation: (Choir) "It Is a Great Day of Joy" (Alleluia Fugue), from "Jesus -- the Life of Jesus in Twelve Contemporary Songs," music by Claude Henri Vic; texts by Jacques Hourdeaux, produced by Avant Garde Records, Inc., 250 West 57th Street, New York, N.Y. 10010.
Offertory: "Rejoice Ye Christians," Bach.
Hymn of Dedication: "Good News Is Ours To Tell," Jane Parker Huber, 1978, from Joy In Singing. (See Appendix I for address.)
Choral Response to the Benediction: "Amen Chorus," from "Lilies of the Field." Ask the people to sing as they leave.
Music for Dismissal: Medley of Easter hymns, or "Carillon for a Joyful Day," McKay.
