Rattled by Resurrection
Children's sermon
Illustration
Preaching
Sermon
Worship
For April 5, 2026:
Rattled by Resurrection
by Chris Keating
Matthew 28:1-10
Matthew’s account of Easter burst forth with seismic energy. Just before daylight, the earth moves, an angel descends, and the stone covering the tomb is moved. All of that proves to be more than those war-tested Roman guards can withstand. They fall fear struck, overwhelmed by all that has happened.
It’s all too much — if the dead don’t remain dead, then what will happen next?
Even Jesus’ friends are shaken by these events. They arrive as all of this rocking and rolling is happening, perhaps wondering if they should have stopped at Waffle House for coffee before heading for the cemetery. But the empty tomb also rattles their hearts — a reminder that resurrection power brings both joy and fear.
Other accounts of Jesus’ resurrection center on reunion, confusion, and wonder. As Matthew Skinner notes, only Matthew describes resurrection as a triumph of God’s power.
Instead of two disciples running breathlessly toward the tomb, Matthew offers glimpses into the earth-moving force that accompanies resurrection. When the two Mary’s look inside the tomb, the aftershocks continue. The lightening-bright angel proclaims the Easter message, sending the women back to the other disciples. Every movement of Matthew’s Easter drama telegraphs the message of God’s power, reversing the claims of the world.
Matthew has no use timidly singing “Jesus Christ is Risen Today.” Instead, his Easter playlist begins with Bill Haley and the Comets singing “Shake Rattle, and Roll.”
In the News
Jesus’ resurrection rattles the world, which is precisely the message of good news our world longs to hear this Easter. Grim realities scroll across our news feeds: ranging from waves of churches closing, to rising spreading cases of vaccine-preventable disease, and from escalating gasoline prices to overall geopolitical instability. Even planned vacations and visits home have been impacted by political disruptions. Our world feels more vulnerable than ever, leading some to describe the United States as having ceded its status as the leader of the free world.
With the psalmist, we trust in God’s power even as the earth shakes and the seas roar (Psalm 46). But that certainty has been tested by the forces of war and economic policy recently. The greedy, self-interest driven sword rattling have reminded us that with great power comes great responsibility, as Spiderman once said.
Signs of the world’s grasping and gasping for power abound. Analysts point out that “whenever and however America’s war with Iran ends, it has both exposed and exacerbated the dangers of our new, multi-polar reality” by creating divisions among allies, accelerating economic chaos, and leaving the United States more isolated and weaker than anytime since the 1930s. Robert Kagan observes that “even success against Iran will be hollow if it hastens the collapse of the alliance system that for eight decades has been the true source of America’s power, influence, and security.”
Others note how the Trump administration’s policies point to our nation’s declining world influence. “Rather than leading the world,” writes Carlos Lozada, “the United States is striding across the globe seemingly free of restraint, forethought, or strategy, exerting its power because it can.” Evidence supporting Lozada’s claim rang from overthrowing the elected leader of Venezuela to executing Iran’s supreme leader. “Trump in his second term is like Michael Corleone in The Godfather, settling all the family business.”
Like earthquakes, these disturbances rank would be on the high end of the famous Richter scale. Instead of scales and monitors, economists note just how broadly the current way has disrupted the world. On Monday, the International Monetary Fund issued warnings pointing to slower global economic growth and higher inflation as the result of the war in Iran. The IMF cited the closure of the Strait of Hormuz as the “largest disruption to the global oil market in history.”
Aftershocks are being felt close to home, as well. More than half of Americans agree that gas prices have caused a negative impact on their household finances. Some 87% believe that gas prices will continue to rise, and that it is likely the US will deploy ground troops. Few support that idea, but many can feel the gradual shift to a prolonged ground war.
Great power brings great responsibility, indeed. For Donald Trump, apparently, that may include “the honor of taking Cuba.” Americans uneasy with this approach took to the streets last weekend to repudiate the administration’s power moves. Millions participated in protests against Trump’s actions. An estimated eight million people participated in more than 3,000 “No Kings” rallies across the United States.
Included were thousands who stood on the lawn of the Minneapolis capitol in St. Paul, Minnesota. Motivated by the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti earlier this year, they listened to Bruce Springsteen sing “Streets of Minneapolis.” Some held upside down US flags, a historical sign of distress.
The earth changes, the mountains shake, but as Matthew reminds us, nothing can be equated to the seismic power of Easter.
In the Scripture
Matthew underscores the triumph of God against the power of the world, reversing what Warren Carter describes as “every normal expectation” indicating Jesus’ defeat. “It seems that his opponents, the allied religious and political elite, have triumphed. They have removed this threat who proclaimed and enacted God’s empire and coming triumph, and who claimed his own pivotal role in God’s purposes. They have exposed him to be a very fallible fraud.” (Carter, Matthew and the Margins.)
Yet Matthew’s story does not end at the crucifixion. Instead, Carter points out that a sixth narrative block that describes a world that was not thought of as being possible. This world begins as a moment of new creation, as signaled by Matthew’s use of the word “seismos,” in 28:2. It is the same word Matthew uses to describe the turmoil of Jerusalem following Jesus’ triumphant entry, as well as the moment of Jesus’ death and in 8:24, where the boat carrying Jesus and the disciples is overwhelmed by water.
As the rumbling earth calms, the women are greeted by an angel — a stylistic nod to the gospel’s beginning. The message is the same: “Do not be afraid.” As someone has said, when an angel shows up and says, “Do not be afraid,” it’s a sign that you’re about to hear something disturbing. The angel invites the women to “come and see the place where he lay.” It’s a reminder that only those with the eyes of faith can see and understand the works of God (cf. Matthew 13:17).
It’s not only the women who report what they have seen. The guards, too, will rise from their fear-induced syncope episode. They report what they saw to the religious authorities. Yet they do not see with faith, nor do they comprehend the power of God. Instead, they bribe the guards into remaining silent, directing them to lie about what happened (28:13). “You must say this,” those who condemned Jesus say.
The power of the Resurrection, like the power of earthquakes, means nothing is certain. As Skinner says, “Nothing is stable. Everything totters.” It’s not a surprise that the women are filled with both joy and fear. The same is true later in the chapter as Jesus commissions the disciples for ministry. He sends them into the world, assuring them of his presence. Even there his presence evokes both worship and doubt.
Matthew reminds us that the earth will change. The mountains will shake and the seas will roar. Yet the promise of God remains: “I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
In the Sermon
It’s hard to not let our Easter proclamation become lost in a sea of lilies. Preacher fatigue is real, especially at the tail end of a long weekend and an even longer season. All of that is coupled with itchy new outfits and the anticipation of brunch, not to mention waning attention spans fed by marshmallow Peeps.
But Easter sermons do not need to be lengthy to be memorable. Many in our congregations are indeed longing for promises of power. They’ve become weary by the world’s displays of power, or the inept ways of politics that do not provide for the common good. We are wearied as well by the nonstop proclamation of bad news that arrives unfiltered even as sermons are being preached.
Take time this week to consider the riveting power of the Gospel. Consider how the earth-shattering news provides renewed hope, and how its promised triumph over the world’s saber rattling cursing reassures. Our hearts are steadied by that good news and it deserves to be proclaimed.
Another option for preaching would be to highlight the inseparable link between resurrection and creation. Jesus’ triumph over the grave results in all creation shaking — a reminder that our failed stewardship of earth has theological significance.
God’s triumph refuses to go unnoticed. It calls us to be captive to these rattling words of the resurrected Lord: “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers and sisters to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”
* * * * *
SECOND THOUGHTS
Turn Around
by Tom Willadsen
John 20:1-18
Turn around
Every now and then I get a little bit lonely
And you're never coming round
Turn around
Every now and then I get a little bit tired
Of listening to the sound of my tears
Turn around
Every now and then I get a little bit nervous
That the best of all the years have gone by
Turn around
Every now and then I get a little bit terrified
And then I see the look in your eyes
Turn around
Every now and then I get a little bit restless
And I dream of something wild
Turn around
Every now and then I get a little bit helpless
And you're lying like a child in my arms
Turn around
Every now and then I get a little bit angry
And I know I have to get out and cry
Turn around
Every now and then I get a little bit terrified
And then I see the look in your eyes
Turn around, bright eyes
Every now and then I fall apart
Turn around, bright eyes
Every now and then I fall apart
“Total Eclipse of the Heart” by Jim Stenman
Welsh singer Bonnie Tyler had the biggest hit of her career in 1983 when her recording of Jim Steinman’s “Total Eclipse of the Heart” spent four weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100 chart. It is a haunting, over-the-top power ballad that walks the pathos/bathos line. Whether it’s “overwrought” or “powerfully evocative” is a debate that has been raging in my head since my college days, depends on my daily serotonin level, I suppose.
Imagine Mary Magdalene standing beside the tomb whose stone had been rolled away singing this song. Lonely, tired, nervous, terrified, restless, wild, helpless, angry, “every now and then I fall apart….”
Then I see the look in your eyes….
Preachers, if you’re looking for a new angle on the resurrection story, and I know I am, examine all the turns in John 20:1-18.
Mary goes to the tomb, then turns from it to tell Simon Peter and someone else that Jesus’ body had been taken away.
The two disciples run to the tomb, the one who isn’t Peter looks in, then enters, then turns and believes.
Peter looked in and returns to his home.
Mary, alone at the tomb, turns and looks in, the angels ask why she’s weeping. After answering the angels, Mary turns and sees Jesus but thinks he’s the gardener. She’s clinging to the idea that the body has been taken away.
Jesus calls her by name, and Mary turns to Jesus, addresses him as “Rabbouni,” and finally turns ’round right!
The only other place in John’s gospel the Greek verb “στρέφω” appears is when two of John the Baptizer’s disciples turn to follow Jesus (1:38).
Στρέφω is truly a turning point frequently in the gospels. In Matthew 5:39, Jesus tells us to turn the other cheek. In Matthew 7:9, one should not cast pearls before swine because they (the swine) could turn and trample you. In Matthew 16:23, Jesus turned to Peter as he said, “Get behind me, Satan!”
In Luke’s gospel, στρέφω most often appears when Jesus turns to address someone else. The one time Jesus turns and does not speak in Luke’s gospel is when he faces Peter after Peter’s third denial.
The resurrection is the greatest turning point of all time. Mary Magdalene has the front row seat and she has to turn, turn, and turn (cue the Byrds’ 1965 hit of the same name!) before she sees, believes, and understands.
Some of your members rolled out of bed this morning crowing “Christ is risen!” Most of them will need some time to ease into that reality. And they’ll turn from it, and return to it. Perhaps we all do. The Lord delights when we take turns.
ILLUSTRATIONS
From team member Mary Austin:
John 20:1-18
The Most Beautiful Sound
In the hubbub of the first Easter morning, we can imagine the level of commotion, as people are running everywhere and yelling, not to mention the fiery glory of the angels at the tomb. Then, Jesus makes his appearance when things get quiet.
Julian Treasure shares that “Silence is a very important sound. Like nature sounds, we’ve rather lost contact with it in our noisy city environments. Many people who go to the country feel uncomfortable with the silence. If that’s you, try to challenge that because it’s very important to have a good relationship with silence. It’s your baseline. It’s the sound that makes all other sounds make sense. Without silence, everything becomes cacophony. There are different qualities of silence. It’s not a universal sound. The silence of a high mountain above the tree line on a windless day is very different from the silence of a deep cave, which can be cloaking and almost overpowering. It can be a powerful sound in conversation or when giving a presentation pause.”
He urges us, “If you’ve lost contact with silence, rediscover it. Give yourself a couple of minutes of silence a few times a day. You might have to go into a broom cupboard or a bathroom to get it. It’s important to reestablish your connection with that baseline. Refresh your ears because it will help you to listen afresh. There’s a reason that silence is at the heart of every spiritual tradition: in silence, you encounter yourself and your connection with whatever is important to you. Rediscover silence and you will discover many benefits.”
In the silence, we get to meet up with the risen Christ.
* * *
John 20:1-18
Resurrection or Living Forever?
All the millionaires who want to live forever must be so jealous of Jesus and his ability to return to life. In Joyspan: The Art and Science of Thriving in Life's Second Half, Dr. Kerry Burnight tells about Bryan Johnson, a tech entrepreneur “who spends more than $2 million a year on his antiaging protocol. He eats dinner at 11:30 a.m., goes to bed at 8:30 p.m., takes no vacations in the sun, eats meticulously crafted diets, works out for hours per day, receives plasma infusions, undergoes high-tech medical tests, and takes in excess of one hundred supplements every day. According to Johnson, “Most people assume death is inevitable. Not anymore.” While Johnson’s commitment and resources are extreme, he is not alone in his zealous pursuit of youth. In 2024, he hosted the Don’t Die Summit, which attracted over ten thousand attendees, in ten cities, at $170–$599 per ticket. Featured discussions and activities included cryotherapy, intravenous nutrient drips, genetic testing, sleep optimization, and microdosing psychedelics.”
This focus on living a long time loses the authenticity and the joy that Jesus models for us, as he greets his friends on this bright morning.
* * *
Colossians 3:1-4
Easter Time
The letter to the Colossians reminds us of the urgent quality of our faith. “Set your minds on the things that are above, not on the things that are on earth, for you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”
You have already died — that’s a searing way to organize our thoughts, as Anne Lamott realized. She remembers, “When I was 38, my best friend, Pammy, died, and we went shopping about two weeks before she died, and she was in a wig and a wheelchair. I was buying a dress for this boyfriend I was trying to impress, and I bought a tighter, shorter dress than I was used to. And I said to her, ‘Do you think this makes my hips look big?’ and she said to me, so calmly, ‘Anne, you don't have that kind of time.’ And I think Easter has been about the resonance of that simple statement; and that when I stop, when I go into contemplation and meditation, when I breathe again and do the sacred action of plopping and hanging my head and being done with my own agenda, I hear that, ‘You don't have that kind of time,’ you have time only to cultivate presence and authenticity and service, praying against all odds to get your sense of humor back.”
“That's how it has changed for me,” Lamott continues. “That was the day my life changed, when she said that to me.” (from Hallelujah Anyway)
* * *
Colossians 3:1-4
Made Into the Image of Christ
Colossians offers us a gorgeous view of the people we could be, if we shape ourselves into the image of the risen Christ. But how? How do we get there?
Oliver Burkeman, ever practical, says, “The capacity to tolerate minor discomfort is a superpower. It’s shocking to realize how readily we set aside even our greatest ambitions in life, merely to avoid easily tolerable levels of unpleasantness. You already know it won’t kill you to endure the mild agitation of getting back to work on an important creative project; initiating a difficult conversation with a colleague; asking someone out; or checking your bank balance — but you can waste years in avoidance nonetheless. (This is how social media platforms flourish: by providing an instantly available, compelling place to go at the first hint of unease.)”
If we hope to be more like Christ, Burkeman has advice on how to change our impatience, selfishness, and focus. He says “It’s possible, instead, to make a game of gradually increasing your capacity for discomfort, like weight training at the gym. When you expect that an action will be accompanied by feelings of irritability, anxiety, or boredom, it’s usually possible to let that feeling arise and fade, while doing the action anyway. The rewards come so quickly, in terms of what you’ll accomplish, that it soon becomes the more appealing way to live.”
* * * * * *
From team member Katy Stenta:
John 20:1-18
Jesus is mistaken for a gardener, perhaps because he was kneeling and tending to the garden. The tomb in the cave would have been located in a garden site. We all know that God was the original gardener plotting out Eden, and so it makes sense that not only was the resurrection site a garden, but that Jesus was on his knees, tending to a plant, previous to or while he was directly in conversation with Mary. It was not only grief that made it hard to recognize Jesus, but the gardening work he was engaged in. Was not God and Jesus the original gardener?
* * *
Matthew 28:1-10
To be in an earthquake is to have your very core shaken. What a masterful illustration for the Resurrection. Things might shift and fall down and then you have a choice, to pick right back up and pretend it never happened or examine what was shaken and see if things have changed. An earthquake is an opportunity to look through the same world through new eyes — the Resurrection offers the same opportunity.
* * *
Acts 10:34-43
There is no longer a chosen notion. Peter is talking about the opposite of individualistic faith. He says that the point of having witnessed the death and Resurrection of Jesus is to share it with one another and not to keep it to oneself. Jesus’s forgiveness is meant to be shared. This admittance that God shows no partiality calls into question how we do evangelism. How are we called to be witnesses? It is certainly not by any force. Peter says it is by preaching and testifying — back to the good news we are called to.
* * *
Jeremiah 31:1-6
The Lord of the Sabbath appears again, promising dancing, food, and fruit. The land promised in the Old Testament is less about ownership in the modern sense of the word, and more about sanctuary and security. It is probably more akin to our idea of home. God is promising a safe haven for the people of Israel. In the end, all humans want a safe place to rest their heads at night. Perhaps this is why we insist on building space for God. We want to ensure our safety by hemming God in — God who needs no such structures. We keep thinking that security lies in things — buildings, money, investment. When, instead, sanctuary lies in intangibles that are named here: trust, steadfast love, grace. Our God offers us a home filled these things as we can rely upon God’s authority and authenticity.
* * * * * *
From team member Nazish Naseem:
We once walked with the crowd, holding palms and following Jesus toward the cross. Today we take the next step in that journey and arrive at the empty tomb, where God turns loss into life and silence into resurrection hope. This is our Easter story “From the cross to the empty tomb.”
Matthew 28:1-10
When the Ground Moves Under Your Feet
Matthew tells us there was an earthquake when the angel rolled the stone away. I’ve always found that detail meaningful. Resurrection didn’t arrive quietly that morning. The ground itself shifted. The women came to the tomb expecting things to be exactly as they had left them on Friday. They expected sorrow. They expected silence. They expected an ending. Instead, the earth shook.
Sometimes life feels that way for us, too. We assume certain losses are final; certain doors are closed for good; certain situations can’t change. And then something unexpected happens. Something moves. Something opens. Easter reminds us that God still has the power to move what feels stuck and settled in our lives.
The early church said it this way:
“Christ is risen, and not one dead remains in the grave.” — John Chrysostom, Paschal Homily
That’s what the women began to discover that morning. The story wasn’t over after all.
* * *
Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24
The Stone No One Wanted
Psalm 118 says, “The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.”
If you’ve ever watched someone build something, you know they sort through materials first. They keep what looks strong and useful and set aside what doesn’t seem to fit. On Good Friday, Jesus looked like one of those rejected stones. Arrested, mocked, crucified — everything about that moment looked like failure.
But Easter tells a different story.
The very one people turned away from became the center of what God was building. What looked like defeat became the beginning of hope. Sometimes the parts of our lives we would rather hide or forget are the very places where God quietly starts something new.
* * *
Matthew 28:1-10
Running Without Having All the Answers
Matthew says the women left the tomb with fear and great joy — and they ran. I like that detail because it feels honest. They didn’t stop to figure everything out. They didn’t wait until everything made sense. They just started moving. Most of us don’t come to faith with certainty either. We come with questions, mixed emotions, and sometimes even hesitation. But something inside us still wants to move toward hope.
That’s what those women did. They ran with what little understanding they had — and it was enough. Sometimes faith simply means taking the next step, even when we don’t yet see the whole path.
* * *
Acts 10:34-43
A Changed Voice
Later in Acts, Peter stands up and speaks openly about the Resurrection. What makes that moment so powerful is remembering who Peter used to be. Not long before, he had denied even knowing Jesus. He stayed quiet when things became risky. He stepped back when fear took over. But something changed in him.
The Resurrection didn’t just change what happened to Jesus — it changed Peter himself. The one who had been afraid now found his voice again. And that’s one of the ways Easter still shows up in people’s lives. It gives courage where there used to be hesitation. It gives hope where there used to be uncertainty.
Resurrection doesn’t just change the story of Jesus. It changes ours too.
* * * * * *
WORSHIP
by George Reed
Call to Worship
One: Alleluia! The Lord is Risen!
All: The Lord is risen, indeed! Alleluia!
One: O give thanks to the LORD, for God is good.
All: God’s steadfast love endures forever!
One: Open to us the gates of righteousness,
All: that we may enter and give thanks to the LORD.
One: We thank you that you have answered us and saved us.
All: You are our God, and we will give thanks to you!
OR
One: Alleluia! Christ is Risen!
All: Christ is risen, indeed! Alleluia!
One: The power of sin and death cannot defeat God.
All: The love of God is more powerful than death.
One: Let us sing of God’s wondrous grace and power.
All: Let us rise to new life in Christ our Lord.
Hymns and Songs
Christ the Lord Is Risen Today
UMH: 302
H82: 188/189
PH: 113
GTG: 245
AAHH: 282
NNBH: 121
NCH: 233
LBW: 130
ELW: 369/373
W&P: 288
AMEC: 156
STLT: 268
Now the Green Blade Riseth
UMH: 311
H82: 204
GTG: 247
NCH: 238
CH: 230
LBW: 148
ELW: 379
W&P: 311
STLT: 266
O Sons and Daughters, Let Us Sing
UMH: 317
PH: 116/117
GTG: 235/255
NCH: 244
CH: 220
ELW: 386/387
W&P: 313
Christ Is Alive
UMH: 318
H82: 182
PH: 108
GTG: 246
LBW: 363
ELW: 389
W&P: 312
Renew: 300
In the Garden (If you are using the John Gospel text)
UMH: 314
AAHH: 494
NNBH: 116
NCH: 237
CH: 227
W&P: 300
AMEC: 452
Come, Ye Faithful, Raise the Strain
UMH: 315
H82: 199/200
PH: 114/115
NCH: 230
CH: 215
LBW: 132
ELW: 363
Thine Be the Glory
UMH: 308
PH: 122
GTG: 238
NCH: 253
CH: 218
LBW: 145
ELW: 376
W&P: 310
AMEC: 157
The Day of Resurrection
UMH: 303
H82: 210
PH: 118
GTG: 233
NNBH: 124
NCH: 245
CH: 228
LBW: 141
ELW: 361
W&P: 298
AMEC: 159/160
Music Resources Key
UMH: United Methodist Hymnal
H82: The Hymnal 1982
PH: Presbyterian Hymnal
GTG: Glory to God, The Presbyterian Hymnal
AAHH: African American Heritage Hymnal
NNBH: The New National Baptist Hymnal
NCH: The New Century Hymnal
CH: Chalice Hymnal
LBW: Lutheran Book of Worship
ELW: Evangelical Lutheran Worship
W&P: Worship & Praise
AMEC: African Methodist Episcopal Church Hymnal
STLT: Singing the Living Tradition
CCB: Cokesbury Chorus Book
Renew: Renew! Songs & Hymns for Blended Worship
Prayer for the Day/Collect
O God who is all powerful through loving kindness:
Help us to celebrate the resurrection of our Lord
by following his loving, caring path;
through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
OR
We praise you, O God, because you are the one who wields all power through love. In Jesus we saw you loving presence made manifest. As we celebrate the resurrection of our Lord help us to not forsake the path of love he calls us to follow. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
One: Let us confess to God and before one another our sins and especially our following after the ways of the world.
All: We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We have strayed from the path of Jesus who came to heal, feed, and free your children. We speak of the power of your love as we gather on Sunday but during the week we resort to the power, creed, and cruelty of the world. Shake us as you shook the earth at Jesus’ resurrection. Grant us life anew that we may follow him fully. Amen.
One: God is love and God is life. God is pleased to give us new life that we may truly be God’s children.
Prayers of the People
Alleluia! We praise your Name, O God, because the powers of this world and the power of death cannot stop your love. We praise you for raising Jesus and for bringing us to new life.
(The following paragraph may be used if a separate prayer of confession has not been used.)
We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We have strayed from the path of Jesus who came to heal, feed, and free your children. We speak of the power of your love as we gather on Sunday but during the week we resort to the power, creed, and cruelty of the world. Shake us as you shook the earth at Jesus' resurrection. Grant us life anew that we may follow him fully.
We give you thanks for your constant presence in creation. We thank you for the ways you continually call us to new life. As we watch the seasons change we are aware that you have built new life into all of your creation, including us. We thank you for your Spirit that comes to revive us. (Other thanksgivings may be offered.)
We pray for your creation and your children. We lift up those who struggle with death because of illness or injury and those who are caught in places of violence and war. We pray for those find it hard to believe that they could ever have new life. We offer into your loving presence those who are caught in webs of addiction and fear.
(Other intercessions may be offered.)
Hear us as we pray for others: (Time for silent or spoken prayer.)
All these things we ask in the Name of our Savior Jesus Christ who taught us to pray saying:
Our Father....Amen.
(Or if the Our Father is not used at this point in the service.)
All this we ask in the name of the blessed and Holy Trinity. Amen.
* * * * * *
CHILDREN’S SERMON
Alarming Beauty
by Dean Feldmeyer
You will need: An Easter (Trumpet) Lily and a large picture of a long fanfare trumpet.
When the children have gathered, have everyone sit down, hold up the lily where all can see it and say:
Good morning. Do you know what this is? That’s right! It’s an Easter Lily — also called a Trumpet Lily because it’s shaped like a trumpet. (Hold up picture of a fanfare trumpet.)
(Depending on the ages of the children, this first part, here, may be of more interest to the adults than the children. Feel free to edit accordingly.)
The Easter lily first grew wild in Japan and some places in China where they were nearly 6 feet tall. Swedish naturalist Carl Peter Thunberg discovered it in 1777 and brought it to Europe in 1819 and later to the island of Bermuda in 1880 and from there to the United States. In about 1890, a blight or disease hit the lily crop and killed almost every lily on the island of Bermuda, but Dr. Thunberg managed to save a few and, from them, he cultivated a smaller, heartier, disease resistant variety like the one we have here.
He brought them to the United States and found that they grew marvelously in the area around the California and Oregon state line, where 95% of all potted lilies are grown today. Lilies naturally bloom in the summer. Potted Easter Lilies are all grown in greenhouses where growers trick them into thinking it’s summer in early Spring.
Here’s a story I heard about the Easter Lily:
A long time ago, when Easter lilies grew wild, people noticed that they were shaped like a trumpet. (Show picture of a fanfare trumpet.) Trumpets were known for how loud they were when people blew on them so they were used to announce special and important things.
But the trumpet lily, even though it looks like a trumpet, doesn’t make any sound at all. (Hold it to your ear.) Nope. Nothing. People wondered: “Why would God make a flower shaped like a trumpet if it can’t make a sound?
They thought and thought about it and finally, they realized that this flower does announce something — not with noise, but with beauty.
Every year, right around Easter morning, the lily opens up and seems to say: “Jesus is alive. Hope and joy and new life are right here, right now!”
Every time we see the Easter Lily it tells us that message, not with sound, but with its beauty. And it reminds us to tell that message to the world: “Praise the Lord, Christ is Risen! He is risen, indeed!”
End with a prayer thanking God for the gift of Easter and the resurrection of Jesus.
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
The Immediate Word, April 5, 2026 issue.
Copyright 2026 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to The Immediate Word service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons and in worship and classroom settings only. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 5450 N. Dixie Highway, Lima, Ohio 45807.
- Rattled by Resurrection by Chris Keating. Jesus’ resurrection becomes the earth-shattering good news which reshapes our understandings of power, inequity, and hope. For Matthew, it is a story that begins with shaking, rattling, and rolling.
- Second Thoughts: Turn Around by Tom Willadsen based on John 20:1-18.
- Sermon illustrations by Nazish Naseem, Mary Austin, Katy Stenta.
- Worship resources by George Reed.
- Children’s sermon: Alarming Beauty by Dean Feldmeyer.
Rattled by Resurrectionby Chris Keating
Matthew 28:1-10
Matthew’s account of Easter burst forth with seismic energy. Just before daylight, the earth moves, an angel descends, and the stone covering the tomb is moved. All of that proves to be more than those war-tested Roman guards can withstand. They fall fear struck, overwhelmed by all that has happened.
It’s all too much — if the dead don’t remain dead, then what will happen next?
Even Jesus’ friends are shaken by these events. They arrive as all of this rocking and rolling is happening, perhaps wondering if they should have stopped at Waffle House for coffee before heading for the cemetery. But the empty tomb also rattles their hearts — a reminder that resurrection power brings both joy and fear.
Other accounts of Jesus’ resurrection center on reunion, confusion, and wonder. As Matthew Skinner notes, only Matthew describes resurrection as a triumph of God’s power.
Instead of two disciples running breathlessly toward the tomb, Matthew offers glimpses into the earth-moving force that accompanies resurrection. When the two Mary’s look inside the tomb, the aftershocks continue. The lightening-bright angel proclaims the Easter message, sending the women back to the other disciples. Every movement of Matthew’s Easter drama telegraphs the message of God’s power, reversing the claims of the world.
Matthew has no use timidly singing “Jesus Christ is Risen Today.” Instead, his Easter playlist begins with Bill Haley and the Comets singing “Shake Rattle, and Roll.”
In the News
Jesus’ resurrection rattles the world, which is precisely the message of good news our world longs to hear this Easter. Grim realities scroll across our news feeds: ranging from waves of churches closing, to rising spreading cases of vaccine-preventable disease, and from escalating gasoline prices to overall geopolitical instability. Even planned vacations and visits home have been impacted by political disruptions. Our world feels more vulnerable than ever, leading some to describe the United States as having ceded its status as the leader of the free world.
With the psalmist, we trust in God’s power even as the earth shakes and the seas roar (Psalm 46). But that certainty has been tested by the forces of war and economic policy recently. The greedy, self-interest driven sword rattling have reminded us that with great power comes great responsibility, as Spiderman once said.
Signs of the world’s grasping and gasping for power abound. Analysts point out that “whenever and however America’s war with Iran ends, it has both exposed and exacerbated the dangers of our new, multi-polar reality” by creating divisions among allies, accelerating economic chaos, and leaving the United States more isolated and weaker than anytime since the 1930s. Robert Kagan observes that “even success against Iran will be hollow if it hastens the collapse of the alliance system that for eight decades has been the true source of America’s power, influence, and security.”
Others note how the Trump administration’s policies point to our nation’s declining world influence. “Rather than leading the world,” writes Carlos Lozada, “the United States is striding across the globe seemingly free of restraint, forethought, or strategy, exerting its power because it can.” Evidence supporting Lozada’s claim rang from overthrowing the elected leader of Venezuela to executing Iran’s supreme leader. “Trump in his second term is like Michael Corleone in The Godfather, settling all the family business.”
Like earthquakes, these disturbances rank would be on the high end of the famous Richter scale. Instead of scales and monitors, economists note just how broadly the current way has disrupted the world. On Monday, the International Monetary Fund issued warnings pointing to slower global economic growth and higher inflation as the result of the war in Iran. The IMF cited the closure of the Strait of Hormuz as the “largest disruption to the global oil market in history.”
Aftershocks are being felt close to home, as well. More than half of Americans agree that gas prices have caused a negative impact on their household finances. Some 87% believe that gas prices will continue to rise, and that it is likely the US will deploy ground troops. Few support that idea, but many can feel the gradual shift to a prolonged ground war.
Great power brings great responsibility, indeed. For Donald Trump, apparently, that may include “the honor of taking Cuba.” Americans uneasy with this approach took to the streets last weekend to repudiate the administration’s power moves. Millions participated in protests against Trump’s actions. An estimated eight million people participated in more than 3,000 “No Kings” rallies across the United States.
Included were thousands who stood on the lawn of the Minneapolis capitol in St. Paul, Minnesota. Motivated by the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti earlier this year, they listened to Bruce Springsteen sing “Streets of Minneapolis.” Some held upside down US flags, a historical sign of distress.
The earth changes, the mountains shake, but as Matthew reminds us, nothing can be equated to the seismic power of Easter.
In the Scripture
Matthew underscores the triumph of God against the power of the world, reversing what Warren Carter describes as “every normal expectation” indicating Jesus’ defeat. “It seems that his opponents, the allied religious and political elite, have triumphed. They have removed this threat who proclaimed and enacted God’s empire and coming triumph, and who claimed his own pivotal role in God’s purposes. They have exposed him to be a very fallible fraud.” (Carter, Matthew and the Margins.)
Yet Matthew’s story does not end at the crucifixion. Instead, Carter points out that a sixth narrative block that describes a world that was not thought of as being possible. This world begins as a moment of new creation, as signaled by Matthew’s use of the word “seismos,” in 28:2. It is the same word Matthew uses to describe the turmoil of Jerusalem following Jesus’ triumphant entry, as well as the moment of Jesus’ death and in 8:24, where the boat carrying Jesus and the disciples is overwhelmed by water.
As the rumbling earth calms, the women are greeted by an angel — a stylistic nod to the gospel’s beginning. The message is the same: “Do not be afraid.” As someone has said, when an angel shows up and says, “Do not be afraid,” it’s a sign that you’re about to hear something disturbing. The angel invites the women to “come and see the place where he lay.” It’s a reminder that only those with the eyes of faith can see and understand the works of God (cf. Matthew 13:17).
It’s not only the women who report what they have seen. The guards, too, will rise from their fear-induced syncope episode. They report what they saw to the religious authorities. Yet they do not see with faith, nor do they comprehend the power of God. Instead, they bribe the guards into remaining silent, directing them to lie about what happened (28:13). “You must say this,” those who condemned Jesus say.
The power of the Resurrection, like the power of earthquakes, means nothing is certain. As Skinner says, “Nothing is stable. Everything totters.” It’s not a surprise that the women are filled with both joy and fear. The same is true later in the chapter as Jesus commissions the disciples for ministry. He sends them into the world, assuring them of his presence. Even there his presence evokes both worship and doubt.
Matthew reminds us that the earth will change. The mountains will shake and the seas will roar. Yet the promise of God remains: “I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
In the Sermon
It’s hard to not let our Easter proclamation become lost in a sea of lilies. Preacher fatigue is real, especially at the tail end of a long weekend and an even longer season. All of that is coupled with itchy new outfits and the anticipation of brunch, not to mention waning attention spans fed by marshmallow Peeps.
But Easter sermons do not need to be lengthy to be memorable. Many in our congregations are indeed longing for promises of power. They’ve become weary by the world’s displays of power, or the inept ways of politics that do not provide for the common good. We are wearied as well by the nonstop proclamation of bad news that arrives unfiltered even as sermons are being preached.
Take time this week to consider the riveting power of the Gospel. Consider how the earth-shattering news provides renewed hope, and how its promised triumph over the world’s saber rattling cursing reassures. Our hearts are steadied by that good news and it deserves to be proclaimed.
Another option for preaching would be to highlight the inseparable link between resurrection and creation. Jesus’ triumph over the grave results in all creation shaking — a reminder that our failed stewardship of earth has theological significance.
God’s triumph refuses to go unnoticed. It calls us to be captive to these rattling words of the resurrected Lord: “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers and sisters to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”
* * * * *
SECOND THOUGHTSTurn Around
by Tom Willadsen
John 20:1-18
Turn around
Every now and then I get a little bit lonely
And you're never coming round
Turn around
Every now and then I get a little bit tired
Of listening to the sound of my tears
Turn around
Every now and then I get a little bit nervous
That the best of all the years have gone by
Turn around
Every now and then I get a little bit terrified
And then I see the look in your eyes
Turn around
Every now and then I get a little bit restless
And I dream of something wild
Turn around
Every now and then I get a little bit helpless
And you're lying like a child in my arms
Turn around
Every now and then I get a little bit angry
And I know I have to get out and cry
Turn around
Every now and then I get a little bit terrified
And then I see the look in your eyes
Turn around, bright eyes
Every now and then I fall apart
Turn around, bright eyes
Every now and then I fall apart
“Total Eclipse of the Heart” by Jim Stenman
Welsh singer Bonnie Tyler had the biggest hit of her career in 1983 when her recording of Jim Steinman’s “Total Eclipse of the Heart” spent four weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100 chart. It is a haunting, over-the-top power ballad that walks the pathos/bathos line. Whether it’s “overwrought” or “powerfully evocative” is a debate that has been raging in my head since my college days, depends on my daily serotonin level, I suppose.
Imagine Mary Magdalene standing beside the tomb whose stone had been rolled away singing this song. Lonely, tired, nervous, terrified, restless, wild, helpless, angry, “every now and then I fall apart….”
Then I see the look in your eyes….
Preachers, if you’re looking for a new angle on the resurrection story, and I know I am, examine all the turns in John 20:1-18.
Mary goes to the tomb, then turns from it to tell Simon Peter and someone else that Jesus’ body had been taken away.
The two disciples run to the tomb, the one who isn’t Peter looks in, then enters, then turns and believes.
Peter looked in and returns to his home.
Mary, alone at the tomb, turns and looks in, the angels ask why she’s weeping. After answering the angels, Mary turns and sees Jesus but thinks he’s the gardener. She’s clinging to the idea that the body has been taken away.
Jesus calls her by name, and Mary turns to Jesus, addresses him as “Rabbouni,” and finally turns ’round right!
The only other place in John’s gospel the Greek verb “στρέφω” appears is when two of John the Baptizer’s disciples turn to follow Jesus (1:38).
Στρέφω is truly a turning point frequently in the gospels. In Matthew 5:39, Jesus tells us to turn the other cheek. In Matthew 7:9, one should not cast pearls before swine because they (the swine) could turn and trample you. In Matthew 16:23, Jesus turned to Peter as he said, “Get behind me, Satan!”
In Luke’s gospel, στρέφω most often appears when Jesus turns to address someone else. The one time Jesus turns and does not speak in Luke’s gospel is when he faces Peter after Peter’s third denial.
The resurrection is the greatest turning point of all time. Mary Magdalene has the front row seat and she has to turn, turn, and turn (cue the Byrds’ 1965 hit of the same name!) before she sees, believes, and understands.
Some of your members rolled out of bed this morning crowing “Christ is risen!” Most of them will need some time to ease into that reality. And they’ll turn from it, and return to it. Perhaps we all do. The Lord delights when we take turns.
ILLUSTRATIONS
From team member Mary Austin:John 20:1-18
The Most Beautiful Sound
In the hubbub of the first Easter morning, we can imagine the level of commotion, as people are running everywhere and yelling, not to mention the fiery glory of the angels at the tomb. Then, Jesus makes his appearance when things get quiet.
Julian Treasure shares that “Silence is a very important sound. Like nature sounds, we’ve rather lost contact with it in our noisy city environments. Many people who go to the country feel uncomfortable with the silence. If that’s you, try to challenge that because it’s very important to have a good relationship with silence. It’s your baseline. It’s the sound that makes all other sounds make sense. Without silence, everything becomes cacophony. There are different qualities of silence. It’s not a universal sound. The silence of a high mountain above the tree line on a windless day is very different from the silence of a deep cave, which can be cloaking and almost overpowering. It can be a powerful sound in conversation or when giving a presentation pause.”
He urges us, “If you’ve lost contact with silence, rediscover it. Give yourself a couple of minutes of silence a few times a day. You might have to go into a broom cupboard or a bathroom to get it. It’s important to reestablish your connection with that baseline. Refresh your ears because it will help you to listen afresh. There’s a reason that silence is at the heart of every spiritual tradition: in silence, you encounter yourself and your connection with whatever is important to you. Rediscover silence and you will discover many benefits.”
In the silence, we get to meet up with the risen Christ.
* * *
John 20:1-18
Resurrection or Living Forever?
All the millionaires who want to live forever must be so jealous of Jesus and his ability to return to life. In Joyspan: The Art and Science of Thriving in Life's Second Half, Dr. Kerry Burnight tells about Bryan Johnson, a tech entrepreneur “who spends more than $2 million a year on his antiaging protocol. He eats dinner at 11:30 a.m., goes to bed at 8:30 p.m., takes no vacations in the sun, eats meticulously crafted diets, works out for hours per day, receives plasma infusions, undergoes high-tech medical tests, and takes in excess of one hundred supplements every day. According to Johnson, “Most people assume death is inevitable. Not anymore.” While Johnson’s commitment and resources are extreme, he is not alone in his zealous pursuit of youth. In 2024, he hosted the Don’t Die Summit, which attracted over ten thousand attendees, in ten cities, at $170–$599 per ticket. Featured discussions and activities included cryotherapy, intravenous nutrient drips, genetic testing, sleep optimization, and microdosing psychedelics.”
This focus on living a long time loses the authenticity and the joy that Jesus models for us, as he greets his friends on this bright morning.
* * *
Colossians 3:1-4
Easter Time
The letter to the Colossians reminds us of the urgent quality of our faith. “Set your minds on the things that are above, not on the things that are on earth, for you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”
You have already died — that’s a searing way to organize our thoughts, as Anne Lamott realized. She remembers, “When I was 38, my best friend, Pammy, died, and we went shopping about two weeks before she died, and she was in a wig and a wheelchair. I was buying a dress for this boyfriend I was trying to impress, and I bought a tighter, shorter dress than I was used to. And I said to her, ‘Do you think this makes my hips look big?’ and she said to me, so calmly, ‘Anne, you don't have that kind of time.’ And I think Easter has been about the resonance of that simple statement; and that when I stop, when I go into contemplation and meditation, when I breathe again and do the sacred action of plopping and hanging my head and being done with my own agenda, I hear that, ‘You don't have that kind of time,’ you have time only to cultivate presence and authenticity and service, praying against all odds to get your sense of humor back.”
“That's how it has changed for me,” Lamott continues. “That was the day my life changed, when she said that to me.” (from Hallelujah Anyway)
* * *
Colossians 3:1-4
Made Into the Image of Christ
Colossians offers us a gorgeous view of the people we could be, if we shape ourselves into the image of the risen Christ. But how? How do we get there?
Oliver Burkeman, ever practical, says, “The capacity to tolerate minor discomfort is a superpower. It’s shocking to realize how readily we set aside even our greatest ambitions in life, merely to avoid easily tolerable levels of unpleasantness. You already know it won’t kill you to endure the mild agitation of getting back to work on an important creative project; initiating a difficult conversation with a colleague; asking someone out; or checking your bank balance — but you can waste years in avoidance nonetheless. (This is how social media platforms flourish: by providing an instantly available, compelling place to go at the first hint of unease.)”
If we hope to be more like Christ, Burkeman has advice on how to change our impatience, selfishness, and focus. He says “It’s possible, instead, to make a game of gradually increasing your capacity for discomfort, like weight training at the gym. When you expect that an action will be accompanied by feelings of irritability, anxiety, or boredom, it’s usually possible to let that feeling arise and fade, while doing the action anyway. The rewards come so quickly, in terms of what you’ll accomplish, that it soon becomes the more appealing way to live.”
* * * * * *
From team member Katy Stenta:John 20:1-18
Jesus is mistaken for a gardener, perhaps because he was kneeling and tending to the garden. The tomb in the cave would have been located in a garden site. We all know that God was the original gardener plotting out Eden, and so it makes sense that not only was the resurrection site a garden, but that Jesus was on his knees, tending to a plant, previous to or while he was directly in conversation with Mary. It was not only grief that made it hard to recognize Jesus, but the gardening work he was engaged in. Was not God and Jesus the original gardener?
* * *
Matthew 28:1-10
To be in an earthquake is to have your very core shaken. What a masterful illustration for the Resurrection. Things might shift and fall down and then you have a choice, to pick right back up and pretend it never happened or examine what was shaken and see if things have changed. An earthquake is an opportunity to look through the same world through new eyes — the Resurrection offers the same opportunity.
* * *
Acts 10:34-43
There is no longer a chosen notion. Peter is talking about the opposite of individualistic faith. He says that the point of having witnessed the death and Resurrection of Jesus is to share it with one another and not to keep it to oneself. Jesus’s forgiveness is meant to be shared. This admittance that God shows no partiality calls into question how we do evangelism. How are we called to be witnesses? It is certainly not by any force. Peter says it is by preaching and testifying — back to the good news we are called to.
* * *
Jeremiah 31:1-6
The Lord of the Sabbath appears again, promising dancing, food, and fruit. The land promised in the Old Testament is less about ownership in the modern sense of the word, and more about sanctuary and security. It is probably more akin to our idea of home. God is promising a safe haven for the people of Israel. In the end, all humans want a safe place to rest their heads at night. Perhaps this is why we insist on building space for God. We want to ensure our safety by hemming God in — God who needs no such structures. We keep thinking that security lies in things — buildings, money, investment. When, instead, sanctuary lies in intangibles that are named here: trust, steadfast love, grace. Our God offers us a home filled these things as we can rely upon God’s authority and authenticity.
* * * * * *
From team member Nazish Naseem:We once walked with the crowd, holding palms and following Jesus toward the cross. Today we take the next step in that journey and arrive at the empty tomb, where God turns loss into life and silence into resurrection hope. This is our Easter story “From the cross to the empty tomb.”
Matthew 28:1-10
When the Ground Moves Under Your Feet
Matthew tells us there was an earthquake when the angel rolled the stone away. I’ve always found that detail meaningful. Resurrection didn’t arrive quietly that morning. The ground itself shifted. The women came to the tomb expecting things to be exactly as they had left them on Friday. They expected sorrow. They expected silence. They expected an ending. Instead, the earth shook.
Sometimes life feels that way for us, too. We assume certain losses are final; certain doors are closed for good; certain situations can’t change. And then something unexpected happens. Something moves. Something opens. Easter reminds us that God still has the power to move what feels stuck and settled in our lives.
The early church said it this way:
“Christ is risen, and not one dead remains in the grave.” — John Chrysostom, Paschal Homily
That’s what the women began to discover that morning. The story wasn’t over after all.
* * *
Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24
The Stone No One Wanted
Psalm 118 says, “The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.”
If you’ve ever watched someone build something, you know they sort through materials first. They keep what looks strong and useful and set aside what doesn’t seem to fit. On Good Friday, Jesus looked like one of those rejected stones. Arrested, mocked, crucified — everything about that moment looked like failure.
But Easter tells a different story.
The very one people turned away from became the center of what God was building. What looked like defeat became the beginning of hope. Sometimes the parts of our lives we would rather hide or forget are the very places where God quietly starts something new.
* * *
Matthew 28:1-10
Running Without Having All the Answers
Matthew says the women left the tomb with fear and great joy — and they ran. I like that detail because it feels honest. They didn’t stop to figure everything out. They didn’t wait until everything made sense. They just started moving. Most of us don’t come to faith with certainty either. We come with questions, mixed emotions, and sometimes even hesitation. But something inside us still wants to move toward hope.
That’s what those women did. They ran with what little understanding they had — and it was enough. Sometimes faith simply means taking the next step, even when we don’t yet see the whole path.
* * *
Acts 10:34-43
A Changed Voice
Later in Acts, Peter stands up and speaks openly about the Resurrection. What makes that moment so powerful is remembering who Peter used to be. Not long before, he had denied even knowing Jesus. He stayed quiet when things became risky. He stepped back when fear took over. But something changed in him.
The Resurrection didn’t just change what happened to Jesus — it changed Peter himself. The one who had been afraid now found his voice again. And that’s one of the ways Easter still shows up in people’s lives. It gives courage where there used to be hesitation. It gives hope where there used to be uncertainty.
Resurrection doesn’t just change the story of Jesus. It changes ours too.
* * * * * *
WORSHIPby George Reed
Call to Worship
One: Alleluia! The Lord is Risen!
All: The Lord is risen, indeed! Alleluia!
One: O give thanks to the LORD, for God is good.
All: God’s steadfast love endures forever!
One: Open to us the gates of righteousness,
All: that we may enter and give thanks to the LORD.
One: We thank you that you have answered us and saved us.
All: You are our God, and we will give thanks to you!
OR
One: Alleluia! Christ is Risen!
All: Christ is risen, indeed! Alleluia!
One: The power of sin and death cannot defeat God.
All: The love of God is more powerful than death.
One: Let us sing of God’s wondrous grace and power.
All: Let us rise to new life in Christ our Lord.
Hymns and Songs
Christ the Lord Is Risen Today
UMH: 302
H82: 188/189
PH: 113
GTG: 245
AAHH: 282
NNBH: 121
NCH: 233
LBW: 130
ELW: 369/373
W&P: 288
AMEC: 156
STLT: 268
Now the Green Blade Riseth
UMH: 311
H82: 204
GTG: 247
NCH: 238
CH: 230
LBW: 148
ELW: 379
W&P: 311
STLT: 266
O Sons and Daughters, Let Us Sing
UMH: 317
PH: 116/117
GTG: 235/255
NCH: 244
CH: 220
ELW: 386/387
W&P: 313
Christ Is Alive
UMH: 318
H82: 182
PH: 108
GTG: 246
LBW: 363
ELW: 389
W&P: 312
Renew: 300
In the Garden (If you are using the John Gospel text)
UMH: 314
AAHH: 494
NNBH: 116
NCH: 237
CH: 227
W&P: 300
AMEC: 452
Come, Ye Faithful, Raise the Strain
UMH: 315
H82: 199/200
PH: 114/115
NCH: 230
CH: 215
LBW: 132
ELW: 363
Thine Be the Glory
UMH: 308
PH: 122
GTG: 238
NCH: 253
CH: 218
LBW: 145
ELW: 376
W&P: 310
AMEC: 157
The Day of Resurrection
UMH: 303
H82: 210
PH: 118
GTG: 233
NNBH: 124
NCH: 245
CH: 228
LBW: 141
ELW: 361
W&P: 298
AMEC: 159/160
Music Resources Key
UMH: United Methodist Hymnal
H82: The Hymnal 1982
PH: Presbyterian Hymnal
GTG: Glory to God, The Presbyterian Hymnal
AAHH: African American Heritage Hymnal
NNBH: The New National Baptist Hymnal
NCH: The New Century Hymnal
CH: Chalice Hymnal
LBW: Lutheran Book of Worship
ELW: Evangelical Lutheran Worship
W&P: Worship & Praise
AMEC: African Methodist Episcopal Church Hymnal
STLT: Singing the Living Tradition
CCB: Cokesbury Chorus Book
Renew: Renew! Songs & Hymns for Blended Worship
Prayer for the Day/Collect
O God who is all powerful through loving kindness:
Help us to celebrate the resurrection of our Lord
by following his loving, caring path;
through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
OR
We praise you, O God, because you are the one who wields all power through love. In Jesus we saw you loving presence made manifest. As we celebrate the resurrection of our Lord help us to not forsake the path of love he calls us to follow. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
One: Let us confess to God and before one another our sins and especially our following after the ways of the world.
All: We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We have strayed from the path of Jesus who came to heal, feed, and free your children. We speak of the power of your love as we gather on Sunday but during the week we resort to the power, creed, and cruelty of the world. Shake us as you shook the earth at Jesus’ resurrection. Grant us life anew that we may follow him fully. Amen.
One: God is love and God is life. God is pleased to give us new life that we may truly be God’s children.
Prayers of the People
Alleluia! We praise your Name, O God, because the powers of this world and the power of death cannot stop your love. We praise you for raising Jesus and for bringing us to new life.
(The following paragraph may be used if a separate prayer of confession has not been used.)
We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We have strayed from the path of Jesus who came to heal, feed, and free your children. We speak of the power of your love as we gather on Sunday but during the week we resort to the power, creed, and cruelty of the world. Shake us as you shook the earth at Jesus' resurrection. Grant us life anew that we may follow him fully.
We give you thanks for your constant presence in creation. We thank you for the ways you continually call us to new life. As we watch the seasons change we are aware that you have built new life into all of your creation, including us. We thank you for your Spirit that comes to revive us. (Other thanksgivings may be offered.)
We pray for your creation and your children. We lift up those who struggle with death because of illness or injury and those who are caught in places of violence and war. We pray for those find it hard to believe that they could ever have new life. We offer into your loving presence those who are caught in webs of addiction and fear.
(Other intercessions may be offered.)
Hear us as we pray for others: (Time for silent or spoken prayer.)
All these things we ask in the Name of our Savior Jesus Christ who taught us to pray saying:
Our Father....Amen.
(Or if the Our Father is not used at this point in the service.)
All this we ask in the name of the blessed and Holy Trinity. Amen.
* * * * * *
CHILDREN’S SERMONAlarming Beauty
by Dean Feldmeyer
You will need: An Easter (Trumpet) Lily and a large picture of a long fanfare trumpet.
When the children have gathered, have everyone sit down, hold up the lily where all can see it and say:
Good morning. Do you know what this is? That’s right! It’s an Easter Lily — also called a Trumpet Lily because it’s shaped like a trumpet. (Hold up picture of a fanfare trumpet.)
(Depending on the ages of the children, this first part, here, may be of more interest to the adults than the children. Feel free to edit accordingly.)
The Easter lily first grew wild in Japan and some places in China where they were nearly 6 feet tall. Swedish naturalist Carl Peter Thunberg discovered it in 1777 and brought it to Europe in 1819 and later to the island of Bermuda in 1880 and from there to the United States. In about 1890, a blight or disease hit the lily crop and killed almost every lily on the island of Bermuda, but Dr. Thunberg managed to save a few and, from them, he cultivated a smaller, heartier, disease resistant variety like the one we have here.
He brought them to the United States and found that they grew marvelously in the area around the California and Oregon state line, where 95% of all potted lilies are grown today. Lilies naturally bloom in the summer. Potted Easter Lilies are all grown in greenhouses where growers trick them into thinking it’s summer in early Spring.
Here’s a story I heard about the Easter Lily:
A long time ago, when Easter lilies grew wild, people noticed that they were shaped like a trumpet. (Show picture of a fanfare trumpet.) Trumpets were known for how loud they were when people blew on them so they were used to announce special and important things.
But the trumpet lily, even though it looks like a trumpet, doesn’t make any sound at all. (Hold it to your ear.) Nope. Nothing. People wondered: “Why would God make a flower shaped like a trumpet if it can’t make a sound?
They thought and thought about it and finally, they realized that this flower does announce something — not with noise, but with beauty.
Every year, right around Easter morning, the lily opens up and seems to say: “Jesus is alive. Hope and joy and new life are right here, right now!”
Every time we see the Easter Lily it tells us that message, not with sound, but with its beauty. And it reminds us to tell that message to the world: “Praise the Lord, Christ is Risen! He is risen, indeed!”
End with a prayer thanking God for the gift of Easter and the resurrection of Jesus.
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
The Immediate Word, April 5, 2026 issue.
Copyright 2026 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to The Immediate Word service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons and in worship and classroom settings only. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 5450 N. Dixie Highway, Lima, Ohio 45807.
