April 13, 2024
Easter Season 

Lighting the Christ Candle

Welcome and Announcements 

Call to Worship
Holy God, we come to you asking that you come to as we worship.
Open our ears, that we may hear your word. 
Open our minds, that we may understand the scriptures before us.
Speak to our hearts, that our lives may be transformed by your love.
Guide our steps as we go forth, that we may be your beloved children
Open our will so that we may witness to your resurrection, and proclaim your message
throughout the earth. 

Hymn:  248 At the dawning of salvation

 

Prayer of Adoration 

Holy God, in our Lord Jesus Christ, the light of your love shines on, illuminating the places where you are present.  

As the bewildered disciples pondered the stories of your appearance, you penetrated the darkness of their fear and doubt with your word of peace. 

You opened their minds to understand why you had to die to defeat such evil and death.   

As we worship you today increase our understanding, we pray,  

and open our minds and hearts to receive you, Lord.
Speak your word of peace to us and let your love shine on any dark areas in our lives.
That our worship which we offer in your name, will be a worthy response to your love and your sacrifice for us, we pause before you in confession… saying:    

Prayer of Confession:
Caring and compassionate God, we enter this place set apart for your worship knowing that we have failed to see you.  We don’t see you in others, in your world, and not even in your Scriptures.  We don’t always rejoice in your gifts to us because we don’t see them for what they are.  Draw us closer to you.  Open our eyes to see you.  Open our ears to hear you.  Open our minds so that we may engage with you as you enlighten us regarding your will.  Amen 

Assurance of Pardon 

Almighty God, has fulfilled his plan for making us children of God, not through our own power and piety but through our baptism into the crucified and risen Lord Jesus Christ. 

Let us believe this good news and celebrate our kinship in Christ as we turn daily to God, trusting that in him we will find peace, courage and purpose. 

Let us therefore live in faith and make our whole lives a witness to the great good news of Christ’s resurrection. 

Passing the Peace 

May the peace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with you.  

Hymn:  256 Now the green blade rises

 

Scripture: 

1 John 3: 1-7   p 1901
Luke 24: 36-48 p 1644 

Sermon:  Opened minds

Today the first letter of John reminded us of this truth:  What we will be has not yet been revealed; but we do know the promise of something special.  Because of the revelation of God, we have hope and expectancy.  Therefore, we know, that when he is revealed, we will be like him, we will share in the divine experience of life in Christ Jesus. 

This is a reinforcement of the lesson we learn from Luke as he recounts a visit of Jesus with the disciples.  In that visit, Jesus opened their minds to understand Scripture, and in that process showed them that he is the revelation of all Scripture. 

What is important to remember is that when Scripture says that Jesus is the same today as he was yesterday, we can see in the life of Jesus the embodiment of that truth.   

When Jesus was on earth, walking with and teaching the disciples he taught them what the Scriptures were saying.  When Jesus was about to go to Jerusalem to die, he was teaching them what Scriptures were saying about the Messiah.  When Jesus walked with the disciples on the Emmaus Road, he was reminding them of what he had already taught them, that the Scriptures said that the Messiah had to go to Jerusalem and die, and on the third day rise again.   

The disciples had heard the message before.  They may even have thought they understood it.  They may even have proclaimed it. 

But then came the hard days.   

The hard days challenged them.  The hard days turned their world upside down.  At some point the emotional rollercoaster seemed to take all faith from them.  They tried to hold onto faith, but the evidence in front of them made it look like their faith had been in vain.  Even all the revelations from God did not survive the fear, the sense of abandonment and betrayal.  They didn’t know what, or who to believe.   

But they did one thing right.  In that time of grief and uncertainty, they stayed together.  It may have been locked in a house fearing the reprisals of those who killed Jesus, but they were together.   

In that togetherness they were able to share the snippets of faith they retained.  They were able to feel hope in the wake of the stories the women had told about the empty tomb.  They didn’t understand it all, but by pondering on it, they were able to hold onto hope. 

Yes it is important, even crucial, to know the story; but it is just as important to align ourselves with those who believe what we believe and with whom we share a life journey of mutual support and encouragement.   

All of us who have walked the faith journey know that when things are difficult, it is a very real temptation to not come to worship.  It can be a temptation not to speak with friends who will help you find your way again.  When that happens, we are not as likely to hold onto hope. 

In the middle of the storms of life, it is okay to have doubts, to feel lonely, and to feel like everyone, including God, has abandoned us.   

At those times all we really need is for someone to open our eyes and help us to see what God is doing and to hear what God is saying. 

When our eyes are opened, we see that God is still there loving us.  We can hear God saying, come to me and hear the good news of my love for you in Jesus. 

We find all that in the Scriptures, and in the community of believers as we come together for worship.  It is the word of God that we hear that resonates with the word of God that is already in our hearts.  And together  that brings light and hope into the dark days of our lives. 

More than that they bring purpose.  God always needs us, and he always calls us. 

As we have looked at the various accounts of Jesus appearing to the disciples, we see that the revelation of Scripture and the calling of the disciples are the means through which Jesus fills them with hope and renews their faith. 

At the end of today’s reading from Luke we are reminded that the revelation of God is all that we need to have our eyes opened.   

In Ministry Matters the various commentators repeated that in our times of discouragement all we needed to do was look up, to see what God was doing and to hear what he was saying.  They point out that the places where we look up are found  in Worship, in Scripture, in Prayer and Sacraments.   

In none of those things are we doing it all alone.  We share with a community who sing alongside us.  We listen to one another presenting the Scriptures.  We hear the prayers that include our needs and the needs of the whole world.  And we come together, and we break bread and share it with one another. 

Many of the commentators spoke of this as a key part of that process of renewing hope.  Jesus was hungry and asked for food.  They gave him fish and he ate it.  They gave and shared what they had with Jesus.  Without knowing it, they entered back into the calling of serving Jesus. 

There in the group of other believers they recognized and took the opportunity to serve, and then Jesus spoke to them.  “This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms.” 

45 Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. Luke 24:  44-45 NIV 

Sometimes we need to act in order for faith to come.  Sometimes we need to be persistent.   

I am reminded of a story I heard many years ago of a priest in training who went to the Abbot and said he no longer felt called, because he couldn’t believe the words of the Apostle’s Creed.   

The abbot’s advice.  Keep saying it.  A week later the young priest still didn’t believe the creed.  The abbot said keep saying it.  This went on for a while until one day the young priest believed. 

That story could be about any of us.  I know it relates to me.  When I am struggling in the storm, I stop singing.  When I notice that I start singing… and keep singing, even when my heart isn’t in it, until it once again spontaneously comes forth in me.  When I wake up and am singing again the songs of faith, I know that I am in a better place emotionally and spiritually. 

And when I am in that better place, it seems like my mind and my heart are far more open to what God is trying to teach me. 

The truth we learn from Luke is that the illumination of God makes it possible for us to live triumphantly amid the meanness, madness and misery of life.   

If we can be triumphant in the storms by singing when our heart isn’t in it, or reciting our faith when we don’t think we believe it, or just merely by hanging onto Scripture daily without it seeming to speak to us—then we will also have our minds opened and our hearts will hear the revelation of God.   

It is all about having the grace of Jesus available to us in all circumstances.  Hebrews 12 reminds us that Jesus is the author and perfecter of our faith.  Our faith does not have to be perfect.  We don’t have to believe with all of our hearts   When we struggle to hold onto faith, and speak the words of faith even though they are hard to say; then we are ready to have our minds and hearts opened.   

Harmon says that in the resurrection accounts we have a pattern.  Jesus explains the Scriptures and at first the disciples are unable to hear its truth.   

He explains it to the to Mary and the disciples.
He explains it on the Emmaus Road.
He explains it to Thomas 

Before you say, Hold on, we heard all this last week, may I remind you that the disciples heard it all many times as well.  Repetition is what gets it into our hearts.  That is the difference between memorizing something and learning it by heart.  When we learn it by heart it becomes a part of us, and it can spring forth from within us whenever we need to hear the voice of grace.   

So Jesus reminds the disciples of what he had previously said to them.  Then he reminds then that what he had told them was spoken of in Scripture; and he reminded them that Scripture had always revealed the Messiah.  Then Jesus reinforces how the resurrection and the calling of the disciples is also revealed in Scripture.   

Jesus makes this revelation and explains it again and again in order to help the disciples to connect the dots and to discover (and remember) that all of Scripture finds its meaning in Jesus.   

When we look at Scripture we see his person and his ministry and his resurrected presence in every story, every promise, every prophecy.  It seems that all roads lead us back to Jesus.   

I am reminded that what I try to apply to Scripture is the knowledge that the only true interpreter of Scripture is Scripture.  I think that principle is behind the truth of what Paul is proclaiming when he says, “all that I know is Christ, and Christ crucified.”   

What Jesus opened the disciple’s minds to reveal, is that everything that they needed to be shown and taught had already been revealed in Scripture.  That is why Hoezee says that Jesus is the meaning in the past, the hope for the present and the content of the future.    

When our minds are opened, then we as the saints of our age, are charged to grasp how all things come together in Jesus.   

The story is huge:  Jesus is Lord and King.
The calling is simple:  tell others that Jesus is the Lord and King 

Even in the darkest days, if we remember those things we can recapture the enthusiasm to learn more about God.  We will again have a greater desire to be witnesses to the resurrection. Then, our hope and faith will flow. 

Hoezee points out that there is no substitute for the genuine discipline of reading, studying, pondering, and understanding Scripture, to know how it all comes together in Jesus.   

It all comes together in Jesus who comes to us in the storm, and opens our minds and hearts, renews our hope and leads us into peace, wisdom and understanding.   

Glory be to God.  Amen 

Hymn:  500 Open my mind that I may see

 

 

  

Offering and Doxology 830
Offertory Prayer 

May these gifts we present before you bring light to those who walk in darkness, hope to those who live in despair, and justice to those who are oppressed.  As we give you our lives and our wealth we ask you to give us a sense of what is important in all that we do—sharing your love with the world.  In that hope we pray dedicate our lives and our offerings.  Amen 

Gathering Prayer Requests
Prayer of Thanksgiving and Intercession 

Almighty God, 

we praise and thank you for making us children of God, 

not through our own power and piety 

but through our baptism into crucified and risen Lord Jesus Christ. 

 

We turn daily to you, 

and in that turning we find peace, courage and purpose. 

Make your whole church a witness 

to the great good news of Christ’s resurrection. 

 

God of the risen Jesus, hear our prayers for your people and your world. 

Thanksgiving 

Those among us 

Don Cann and his family following the death of Maye 

The world that it may be healed 

China’s plan to “reunite” with Taiwan
Continued war in Ukraine
Conflict in Palestine, Israel expanding its actions
Conflict in Sudan affecting the other countries in their region.  We remember especially the Gambala Synod in Ethiopia and the Anyak people. 

 

Today you have called us to be illuminated through your Word to find the faith to believe the story of Easter as a gift to us.   

Show us how to accept it; kneeling with humility and awe as we carry your Word in our hearts.  For then, we are your witnesses. 

How do we understand the mystery of the death and life, Jesus? How do we explain it?  Remind us again that we can’t explain, but only live allowing your grace to flood our being.  May every thought, every priority, every act and every interaction, be illuminated in your Word, for then we are your witnesses, and you deserve nothing less from us. 

Hear us now as we pray as Jesus taught us: 

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, for ever.  Amen 

 

Hymn:  671 I heard the voice of Jesus say

Benediction
May the light of God’s face shine upon us.
May the beauty of Christ’s love shine through us.
May the power of God’s Spirit flow within us.
May we go forth as God’s beloved children,
revealing the risen Christ in all that we say,
and in all that we do. 

Blessing Song:  422

 
Sing a new song unto the Lord
Let your song be sung from mountain’s height
Sing a new song unto the Lord
Singing hallelujah 

Schutte, New Dawn Mills, 1979