Saturday morning April 28
Preparation
Opening response
Lord, open our lips
and our mouth will proclaim your praise.
In your resurrection, O Christ,
let heaven and earth rejoice.
Prayer of thanksgiving
Blessed are you, Lord God of our salvation,
to you be praise and glory forever.
As once you ransomed your people from Egypt
and led them to freedom in the promised land,
so now you have delivered us from the dominion of darkness
and brought us into the kingdom of your risen Son.
May we, the first fruits of your new creation,
rejoice in this new day you have made,
and praise you for your mighty acts.
Blessed be God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Blessed be God forever.
The night has passed, and the day lies open before us;
let us pray with one heart and mind.
Silence is kept.
As we rejoice in the gift of this new day,
so may the light of your presence, O God,
set our hearts on fire with love for you;
now and forever.
Amen.
Hymn
All Praise to Our Redeeming Lord
Charles Wesley
All praise to our redeeming Lord,
Who joins us by his grace
And bids us, each to each restored,
Together seek his face.
He bids us build each other up;
And gathered into one,
To our high calling’s glorious hope,
We hand in hand go on.
The gift which he on one bestows,
We all delight to prove;
The grace through every vessel flows,
In purest streams of love.
We all partake the joy of one;
The common peace we feel;
A peace to sensual minds unknown,
A joy unspeakable.
And if our fellowship below
In Jesus be so sweet,
What greater blessings shall we know
When round his throne we meet?
Confession of sin
O King enthroned on high,
filling the earth with your glory:
holy is your name,
Lord God almighty.
A time of silence and self-examination may be kept.
In our sinfulness we cry to you
to take our guilt away,
and to cleanse our lips to speak your word,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
May the God of all healing and forgiveness
draw us to himself,
and cleanse us from all our sins
that we may behold the glory of his Son,
the Word made flesh,
Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
The Word of God
Psalm 34
Refrain:
Taste and see how good the Lord is!
I will bless the Lord at all times;
his praise will always be in my mouth.
I praise the Lord—
let the suffering listen and rejoice.
Magnify the Lord with me!
Together let us lift his name up high!
I sought the Lord and he answered me.
He delivered me from all my fears.
Those who look to God will shine;
their faces are never ashamed.
This suffering person cried out:
the Lord listened and saved him from every trouble.
On every side, the Lord’s messenger protects those who honor God; and he delivers them.
Taste and see how good the Lord is!
The one who takes refuge in him is truly happy!
You who are the Lord’s holy ones, honor him,
because those who honor him don’t lack a thing.
Even strong young lions go without and get hungry,
but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.
Come, children, listen to me.
Let me teach you how to honor the Lord:
Do you love life;
do you relish the chance to enjoy good things?
Then you must keep your tongue from evil
and keep your lips from speaking lies!
Turn away from evil! Do good!
Seek peace and go after it!
The Lord’s eyes watch the righteous,
his ears listen to their cries for help.
But the Lord’s face is set against those who do evil,
to eliminate even the memory of them from the earth.
When the righteous cry out, the Lord listens;
he delivers them from all their troubles.
The Lord is close to the brokenhearted;
he saves those whose spirits are crushed.
The righteous have many problems,
but the Lord delivers them from every one.
He protects all their bones;
not even one will be broken.
But just one problem will kill the wicked,
and those who hate the righteous will be held responsible.
The Lord saves his servants’ lives;
all those who take refuge in him
won’t be held responsible for anything.
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.
Refrain:
Taste and see how good the Lord is!
Psalm prayer
Send your holy angels
to watch over us, O God,
that on our lips will be found your truth
and in our hearts your love;
so we may ever taste your goodness
in the land of the living;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Old Testament reading
Exodus 40:17-38
In the first month in the second year, on the first day of the month, the dwelling was set up. Moses set up the dwelling. He laid out its bases. He set up its boards, inserted its bars, and raised up its posts. He spread the tent out over the dwelling, and he put the covering of the tent over it, just as the Lord had commanded Moses. He took the covenant document and placed it inside the chest. He put the poles on the chest, and he set the cover on top of the chest. He brought the chest into the dwelling. He set up the veil as a screen to hide from view the chest containing the covenant, just as the Lord had commanded Moses. He placed the table in the meeting tent, on the north side of the dwelling, outside the veil. He set the bread in its proper place on the table in the Lord’s presence, just as the Lord had commanded Moses. He put the lampstand in the meeting tent, opposite the table on the south side of the dwelling. He set up the lamps in the Lord’s presence, just as the Lord had commanded Moses. He put the gold altar in the meeting tent in front of the veil. He burned sweet-smelling incense on it, just as the Lord had commanded Moses. He also set up the screen at the entrance to the dwelling. He placed the altar for entirely burned offerings at the entrance to the meeting tent dwelling. He offered the entirely burned offering and the grain offering on it, just as the Lord had commanded Moses. He put the washbasin between the meeting tent and the altar, and put water in it for washing. Moses, Aaron, and his sons used it to wash their hands and their feet. Whenever they went into the meeting tent and whenever they approached the altar, they washed themselves, just as the Lord had commanded Moses. He set up the courtyard around the dwelling and the altar, and he hung up the screen at the courtyard’s gate.
When Moses had finished all the work, the cloud covered the meeting tent and the Lord’s glorious presence filled the dwelling. Moses couldn’t enter the meeting tent because the cloud had settled on it, and the Lord’s glorious presence filled the dwelling. Whenever the cloud rose from the dwelling, the Israelites would set out on their journeys. But if the cloud didn’t rise, then they didn’t set out until the day it rose. The Lord’s cloud stayed over the dwelling during the day, with lightning in it at night, clearly visible to the whole household of Israel at every stage of their journey.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
Luke 4:31-37
Jesus went down to the city of Capernaum in Galilee and taught the people each Sabbath. They were amazed by his teaching because he delivered his message with authority.
A man in the synagogue had the spirit of an unclean demon. He screamed, “Hey! What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are. You are the holy one from God.”
“Silence!” Jesus said, speaking harshly to the demon. “Come out of him!” The demon threw the man down before them, then came out of him without harming him.
They were all shaken and said to each other, “What kind of word is this, that he can command unclean spirits with authority and power, and they leave?” Reports about him spread everywhere in the surrounding region.
Silence may be kept.
Gospel canticle
The Benedictus (The Song of Zechariah)
Refrain:
The Lord is risen from the tomb, who for our sakes hung upon the tree.
Bless the Lord God of Israel
because he has come to help and has delivered his people.
He has raised up a mighty savior for us in his servant David’s house,
just as he said through the mouths of his holy prophets long ago.
He has brought salvation from our enemies
and from the power of all those who hate us.
He has shown the mercy promised to our ancestors,
and remembered his holy covenant,
the solemn pledge he made to our ancestor Abraham.
He has granted that we would be rescued
from the power of our enemies
so that we could serve him without fear,
in holiness and righteousness in God’s eyes,
for as long as we live.
You, child, will be called a prophet of the Most High,
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way.
You will tell his people how to be saved
through the forgiveness of their sins.
Because of our God’s deep compassion,
the dawn from heaven will break upon us,
to give light to those who are sitting in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
to guide us on the path of peace.”
Luke 1:68-79
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.
Refrain:
The Lord is risen from the tomb, who for our sakes hung upon the tree.
Brief silence.
The Apostle’s Creed
Let us unite in this historic confession of the Christian faith:
I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and will come again to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.
Prayers
Intercession and thanksgiving
Prayers may be offered for:
the day and its tasks
the world and its needs
the church and her life
Prayers may include the following concerns:
The people of God, that they may proclaim the risen Lord
God’s creation, that the peoples of the earth may meet their responsibility to care
Those in despair and darkness, that they may find the hope and light of Christ
Those in fear of death, that they may find faith through the resurrection
Prisoners and captives
Other intercessions and supplications may be offered as the Holy Spirit leads.
Response
Father, by your Spirit
Bring in your kingdom.
Silence may be kept.
Collect of the day
Almighty God,
whose Son Jesus Christ is the resurrection and the life:
raise us, who trust in him,
from the death of sin to the life of righteousness,
that we may seek those things which are above,
where he reigns with you
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever.
Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer
Rejoicing in God’s new creation, as our Savior taught us, so we pray
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours
now and forever.
Amen.
Conclusion
May the risen Christ grant us the joys of eternal life.
Amen.