Central Reformed Church Palm Sunday April 5, 2020
←
→
Page content transcription
If your browser does not render page correctly, please read the page content below
Central Reformed Church
Palm Sunday
April 5, 2020REFLECTION
Love me in my willingness to suffer
Love me in the gifts I wish to offer
Teach me how you love and have to die
And I will try
Somehow to forget myself and give
Life and joy so dead things start to live.
Let me show now an untrammelled joy,
Gold without alloy.
You know I have no cross but want to learn,
How to change and to the poor world turn.
I can almost worship stars and moon
And the sun at noon
But when I’m low I only beg you to
Ask me anything, I’ll try to do
What you need. I trust your energy.
Share it then with me.
—Elizabeth Jennings, 1926-2001,
Prayer for Holy WeekORDER OF WORSHIP
PALM SUNDAY
APRIL 5, 2020
9:30 am
(We invite you to quiet your homes as you prepare for worship.)
____________________________________________________________
GATHERING IN LOVE
Prelude “Hosanna, Loud Hosanna!” (ELLACOMBE, Mark Hayes)
“Ride On, King Jesus” (Traditional Spiritual, Larry Shackley)
“Partita on ‘All Glory, Laud and Honor’” (Michael Burkhardt)
Maestoso...Andante...Largo...Toccata
Welcome
Votum, Call to Worship (based on Psalm 124:8 and Psalm 118:26a)
Leader: Our help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
People: Amen.
Leader: Awake to the day of triumph for our Savior!
People: We give thanks for this day that leads to the cross!
Leader: Come with your branches, hosannas, and songs!
People: We fill the air with welcome to the Lord!
All: Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.
*The Salutation
Leader: May grace, mercy, and God’s peace be ours,
through God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
People: Amen.
Anthem “Hosanna to the Son of David” (Ellen Jane Lorenz)
*Invitation to Confession
*Please stand in body or in spirit.*Prayer of Confession (unison)
Holy God, sure of your faithfulness even in your dying, comforted by your com-
passion toward your people in every age, we beg your mercy for our imperfect
gratitude. We have looked to you for paltry favors, when you have given every-
thing. We have withheld from your people, our neighbors, and from your crea-
tion, our Earth, the care and tending they deserve. We have rejected the corner-
stone you sent to build a people of righteousness even here, today.
(a moment of silence)
Forgive our failings. Heal what we have broken, nurture what we have neglected,
and lead us to your vision so that we may know the peace of wholeness in you. In
Jesus’ Name, Amen.
*Assurance of Pardon
Leader: Our God has come to us, humble, in the form of a slave, to free us from the
weight of sin and death. Jesus’ obedient suffering has released us.
People: Our sins are forgiven in the name of the one who is exalted beyond
what we can comprehend: Christ, our Savior and Lord.
Hymn “Lift Up the Gates Eternal” (PROMISED ONE)
Refrain:
Lift up the gates eternal, lift up your voices;
the King of glory comes, the nation rejoices.
See, all the earth is God’s, its people and nations;
God built it on the deeps and laid its foundations.
They shall receive forgiveness, and have Gods blessing
if they will search for God, their Savior confessing.
Come, lift your heads with joy; come, lift up your tower;
the King of glory comes in full might and power.
Who is this King of glory of whom we’re singing?
our God, the Lord of Hosts, the victory is bringing.LISTENING IN EXPECTATION
First Lesson Psalm 118:19-29
Open to me the gates of righteousness,
that I may enter through them
and give thanks to the Lord.
This is the gate of the Lord;
the righteous shall enter through it.
I thank you that you have answered me
and have become my salvation.
The stone that the builders rejected
has become the chief cornerstone.
This is the Lord’s doing;
it is marvelous in our eyes.
This is the day that the Lord has made;
let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Save us, we beseech you, O Lord!
O Lord, we beseech you, give us success!
Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.
We bless you from the house of the Lord.
The Lord is God,
and he has given us light.
Bind the festal procession with branches,
up to the horns of the altar.
You are my God, and I will give thanks to you;
you are my God, I will extol you.
O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,
for his steadfast love endures forever.
Leader: The Word of the Lord.
People: Thanks be to God.
Children’s Moment “Make Way for the King” (The Beginner’s Bible)
Meditative Music “Hosanna, Loud Hosanna” (Michael Burkhardt)
Hosanna, loud hosanna the little children sang;
through pillared court and temple the lovely anthem rang.
to Jesus, who had blessed them, close folded to his breast,
the children sang their praises, the simplest and the best.
Second Lesson Matthew 21:1-17
When they had come near Jerusalem and had reached Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus
sent two disciples, saying to them, “Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately you will
find a donkey tied, and a colt with her; untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says any-
thing to you, just say this, ‘The Lord needs them.’ And he will send them immediately.”
This took place to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet, saying,“Tell the daughter of Zion,
Look, your king is coming to you,
humble, and mounted on a donkey,
and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”
The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them; they brought the donkey and the colt,
and put their cloaks on them, and he sat on them. A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the
road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. The crowds that
went ahead of him and that followed were shouting,
“Hosanna to the Son of David!
Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!
Hosanna in the highest heaven!”
When he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was in turmoil, asking, “Who is this?” The crowds
were saying, “This is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth in Galilee.”
Then Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who were selling and buying in the temple, and
he overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves. He said
to them, “It is written,
‘My house shall be called a house of prayer’;
but you are making it a den of robbers.”
The blind and the lame came to him in the temple, and he cured them. But when the chief
priests and the scribes saw the amazing things that he did, and heard the children crying out in
the temple, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” they became angry and said to him, “Do you hear
what these are saying?” Jesus said to them, “Yes; have you never read,
‘Out of the mouths of infants and nursing babies
you have prepared praise for yourself’?”
He left them, went out of the city to Bethany, and spent the night there.
Leader: The Word of the Lord.
People: Thanks be to God.
Sermon “What Do You Mean When You Say ‘Hosanna’?”
Jeff Chu
Prayer for a Blessing on the WordHymn “My Song Is Love Unknown” (RHOSYMEDRE)
My song is love unknown, my Savior’s love to me.
Love to the loveless shown, that they might lovely be.
Oh, who am I that for my sake, oh who am I that for my sake
my Lord should take frail flesh and die?
He came from heaven’s throne salvation to bestow;
but they refused, and now the longed for Christ would know.
This is my friend, my friend indeed, this is my friend, my friend indeed,
who at my need, his life did spend.
Sometimes they crowd his way and his sweet praises sing,
resounding all the day, hosannas to their King.
Then, “Crucify!” is all their breath, then, “Crucify!” is all their breath,
and for his death they thirst and cry.
Why, what has my Lord done to cause this rage and spite?
He made the lame to run and gave the blind their sight.
What injuries, yet these are why, what injuries, yet these are why
the Lord Most High so cruelly dies.
RESPONDING IN FAITH
Apostles Creed (unison)
I believe in God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth; And in Jesus
Christ, his only Son, our Lord; who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the
Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried. He
descended into hell. The third day he rose again from the dead. He ascended into
heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father almighty. From thence he
shall come to judge the quick and the dead. I believe in the Holy Ghost, the holy
catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection
of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.
Announcements
Prayers of the People
During the prayers each week, we remember our neighboring faith communities and their leaders. Today we are praying for the
staff and congregation of Messiah Missionary Baptist Church.
Leader: The Lord be with you.
People: And also with you.
During the prayer:
Leader: Lord, in your mercy,
People: Hear our prayer.The Lord’s Prayer (unison)
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will
be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us
our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver
us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever.
Amen.
DEPARTING IN JOY
*Benediction and Blessing
Leader: Whoever you are, wherever you go in God’s wide world,
Whatever happens to you of good or ill, always remember that . . .
People: Jesus is Lord!
Leader: And as you’ve come to worship, go now to serve.
Go in hope. Go in love. Go in peace.
People: Amen.
*Postlude “The Agincourt Hymn” (John Dunstable, arr. Frederick L. Swann)
Ride on, ride on in majesty! In lowly pomp ride on to die.
Christ, your triumphs now begin o’er captive death and conquered sin.
____________________________________________________________
WORSHIP LEADERS
Preacher: Jeff Chu
Liturgist: Rev. Steven D. Pierce
Director of Music Ministries: Taemin Han
Principal Organist: Norma de Waal Malefyt
First Lesson Reader: David Hooker
Vocalist: Carlos Lemagne
Video Tech: Alex Grigoriev
Sound Tech: Nick Loubert
Cover Art: Jesus’ Entry Into Jerusalem | The Golden Bible for Children, New Testament, 1953
“Lift Up the Gates Eternal” words: Arlo D. Duba, Willard F. Jabusch; music: Israeli folk melody; arr. John Ferguson
“My Song Is Love Unknown” words: Samuel Crossman; music: John D. Edwards , arr. Albert Chung
Permission via One License #729524A.WORSHIP NOTES Second Hour: This morning after the service Brian Andrew will host a conversation via Zoom. We'll spend some time reflecting together on Jeff’s sermon and the scripture readings of Palm Sunday. Pour yourself a cup of coffee and join us at 11:00 am at https://zoom.us/j/228045679? pwd=TkpKejMwTmFkS1RYS0VFODBjclMvUT09 About Palm Sunday: In ancient times, palm branches symbolized goodness and victory. They were often depicted on coins and important buildings. Solomon had palm branches carved into the walls and doors of the temple (1 Kings 6:29). Again at the end of the Bible, people from every nation raise palm branches to honor Jesus (Revelation 7:9). Palm Sunday commemorates the triumphal entrance of Jesus into Jerusalem when palm branches were placed in his path. The event takes place only days before his arrest on Holy Thursday and his crucifixion on Good Friday. The story is found in all four gospels— Matthew 21:1-17, Mark 11:1-11, Luke 19:29-40, John 12:12-19. It marks the beginning of Holy Week, the final week of Lent. The story of Jesus’ triumphal entry is one of contrasts, and those contrasts contain applications for Christians. It is the story of the King who came as a lowly servant on a donkey (Zechariah 9:9), not a prancing steed, not in royal robes, but on the clothes of the poor and humble. Jesus Christ comes not to conquer by force as earthly kings but by love, grace, mercy, and his own sacrifice for his people. His is not a kingdom of armies and splendor but of lowliness and servanthood. He conquers not nations but hearts and minds. His message is one of peace with God, not of temporal peace. If Jesus has made a tri- umphal entry into our hearts, he reigns there in peace and love. As his followers, we exhibit those same qualities, and the world sees the true King living and reigning in triumph in us. About the Apostles Creed: Reformed churches have always esteemed the ancient creeds of the church. Creeds—from the Latin credo (“I believe”)—serve as a yardstick of correct belief. They are ortho- dox (or approved) statements of belief that “emerged during major turning points in the history of the church, particularly when it was necessary for the church to differentiate itself from others in its envi- ronment” (Ecumenical Creeds and Reformed Confessions, 5). The Apostles Creed addressed the chal- lenge of Gnosticism, a school of belief that denied Jesus was fully human. The creed was not written by any one person or even by the apostles themselves. It dates no later than the fourth century and summa- rizes the apostles’ teachings as a statement of faith. Who We Are Praying for Today: Patrick Fitzgerald; Mike Bennett; George Boerigter; Janet Van- Dyke; Tom Tabor; for those facing cancer; for all who have contracted COVID-19, are awaiting test re- sults, or are anxious about their health or the health of loved ones; for all of our brothers and sisters across the globe who mourn the loss of loved ones and grapple with a strange, new life lived in isolation from one another; for all those ministering to and caring for the sick and grieving. Good Friday: Although the community Good Friday worship service has been cancelled, we will offer a live streamed Good Friday service at noon on Friday, April 10, with meditative music beginning at 11:50 am. Easter Sunday, April 12: Join us for our live stream worship service at 9:30 am. Inspirational music will begin at 9:15 am. Pastor Steve will be preaching on the subject “God’s Not Dead,” based on John 20:1-18. Please help us by spreading the word and inviting others to join you online. Media Connections: Please visit Central’s YouTube channel, where morning devotions are available, along with other resources. You can access it with the following link: https://www.youtube.com/ channel/UC3FOD-Tc5g5v8kZV35rqGGQ. Today’s service will be available via live stream through our website at centralreformedchurch.org. Audio of past sermons is also available. Follow us on Facebook or Instagram: @centralreformed.
Giving: Though we are not meeting on site for a while, you have several options to continue your giving
during this time. As always, you are welcome to mail your check to the church office. (Staff check the
mailbox a couple of times a week.) Online donations are also gratefully received, and we now have a new
platform—Tithely—that will make the process even easier, enabling you to give a one-time or recurring
gift either via credit card or via your bank account. To give to Central via Tithely, please visit
www.centralreformedchurch.org/give and click on the purple “Give Now” button, which will take you to
Central’s Tithely site.
Central Reformed Church
10 College Avenue NE
Grand Rapids, Michigan 49503
616.456.1773
centralreformedchurch.org
Connecting all people to God and to one another through scripture, sacrament, song, and service.You can also read
