Hymn – I stand amazed in the presence of Jesus the Nazarene
- I stand amazed in the presence
of Jesus the Nazarene,
and wonder how he could love me,
a sinner, condemned, unclean.
Refrain: How marvellous! How wonderful!
And my song shall ever be:
How marvellous! How wonderful
is my Saviour’s love for me!
- For me it was in the garden
he prayed: “Not my will, but thine.”
He had no tears for his own grief’s,
but sweat-drops of blood for mine.
Refrain: How marvellous! How wonderful!
And my song shall ever be:
How marvellous! How wonderful
is my Saviour’s love for me!
- In pity angels beheld him,
and came from the world of light
to comfort him in the sorrows
he bore for my soul that night.
Refrain: How marvellous! How wonderful!
And my song shall ever be:
How marvellous! How wonderful
is my Saviour’s love for me!
- He took my sins and my sorrows,
he made them his very own;
he bore the burden to Calvary,
and suffered and died alone.
Refrain: How marvellous! How wonderful!
And my song shall ever be:
How marvellous! How wonderful
is my Saviour’s love for me!
- When with the ransomed in glory
his face I at last shall see,
’twill be my joy through the ages
to sing of his love for me.
Refrain: How marvellous! How wonderful!
And my song shall ever be:
How marvellous! How wonderful
is my Saviour’s love for me! (by Chas. H. Gabriel – 1856 to 1932)
Grace, mercy and peace from God our Father
and the Lord Jesus Christ be with you
All: And also with you
Loving Lord,
Fill us with your life-giving,
joy-giving peace-giving presence,
That we may praise you now with our lips,
and all the day long with our lives
Through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen
Cast your burden upon the Lord
All: And he will sustain you
Create in us clean hearts, O God
All: And renew a right spirit within us
Cast us not away from your Presence
All: And take not your Holy Spirit from us
Give us the joy of your saving help
All: And sustain us with your life-giving Spirit
Blessed be the Lord day by day
All: The God of our salvation, who bears our burdens.
We have a moment of quiet, to call to mind the things we
Have thought, said and done which we know grieve the God
who loves us
Come, let us return to the Lord and say:
All: Almighty God
Long-suffering and of great goodness
I confess to you.
I confess with my whole heart
My neglect and forgetfulness of your commandments
My wrong doing, thinking and speaking:
The hurts I have done to others,
And the good I have left undone.
O God, forgive me, for I have sinned against you;
And raise me to newness of life;
Through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
May the God of love and power
Forgive us and free us from our sins,
Heal and strengthen us by his Spirit,
And raise us to new life in Christ our Lord.
All: Amen.
We praise God for his love and forgiveness with:-
Hymn – Be Still for the Presence of the Lord
Our First Reading is from – Acts Chap: 2
14 Then Peter stood up with the other eleven apostles and in a loud voice began to speak to the crowd: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, listen to me and let me tell you what this means.
22 “Listen to these words, fellow Israelites! Jesus of Nazareth was a man whose divine authority was clearly proven to you by all the miracles and wonders which God performed through him. You yourselves know this, for it happened here among you.
23 In accordance with his own plan God had already decided that Jesus would be handed over to you; and you killed him by letting sinful men crucify him.
24 But God raised him from death, setting him free from its power, because it was impossible that death should hold him prisoner.
25 For David said about him, “I saw the Lord before me at all times; he is near me, and I will not be troubled.
26 And so I am filled with gladness, and my words are full of joy. And I, mortal though I am, will rest assured in hope,
27 because you will not abandon me in the world of the dead; you will not allow your faithful servant to rot in the grave.
28 You have shown me the paths that lead to life, and your presence will fill me with joy.’
29 “My friends, I must speak to you plainly about our famous ancestor King David. He died and was buried, and his grave is here with us to this very day.
30 He was a prophet, and he knew what God had promised him: God had made a vow that he would make one of David’s descendants a king, just as David was.
31 David saw what God was going to do in the future, and so he spoke about the resurrection of the Messiah when he said, “He was not abandoned in the world of the dead; his body did not rot in the grave.’
32 God has raised this very Jesus from death, and we are all witnesses to this fact.
This is the word of the Christ
All: Praise to you oh Christ
Our Second Reading is From – John Chap: 20
19 It was late that Sunday evening, and the disciples were gathered together behind locked doors, because they were afraid of the Jewish authorities. Then Jesus came and stood among them. “Peace be with you,” he said.
20 After saying this, he showed them his hands and his side. The disciples were filled with joy at seeing the Lord.
21 Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father sent me, so I send you.”
22 Then he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.
23 If you forgive people’s sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.”
24 One of the twelve disciples, Thomas (called the Twin), was not with them when Jesus came.
25 So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!” Thomas said to them, “Unless I see the scars of the nails in his hands and put my finger on those scars and my hand in his side, I will not believe.”
26 A week later the disciples were together again indoors, and Thomas was with them. The doors were locked, but Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.”
27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and look at my hands; then reach out your hand and put it in my side. Stop your doubting, and believe!”
28 Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!”
29 Jesus said to him, “Do you believe because you see me? How happy are those who believe without seeing me!”
30 In his disciples’ presence Jesus performed many other miracles which are not written down in this book.
31 But these have been written in order that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through your faith in him you may have life
This is the word of the Christ
All: Praise to you oh Christ
Sermon
Darkest Before the Dawn
Darkest before the dawn that is what it must have felt like for the disciples.
They had a week of first celebrations and triumphant entire into Jerusalem, then the questions and trial of Jesus and his death on the cross, a punishment given to criminals.
They were afraid that they may be arrested for following Jesus.
In the first reading we heard that Peter spoke to the people reminding them of the thing Jesus had done and it was them who handed him over for trial.
He talked about their ancestor King David he reminded them had died and was buried and his grave were there for them to see.
King David was a prophet and God had promised him that a descendant of his would be a king in the future, he spoke of the Messiah and that he would die and the resurrection
That Jesus would live.
The disciples would meet in locked rooms to talk about Jesus and what he had done but they still did not understand ail he had taught them.
Would we have understood what we had seen and heard, would all be put aside because of fear and being arrested, imprisoned or killed.
So every time they meet it was behind locked doors. But locked doors were no barrier to Jesus he appeared among them and said
“Peace be with you”
I would imagine they were afraid at Jesus appearing in that locked room.
He showed them his hands and side and they were overjoyed at seeing him.
Jesus told them that God had sent him so he was sending them out to preach the word of God.
He breathed on them and said receive the Holy Spirit.
Thomas was not with them that day and when the others told him he said he needed to see Jesus to believe it was true.
How often do we do the same not believe until we have proof.
Sometime later they were all gather in a locked room and Thomas was with them when Jesus appeared in the room with them.
He said to Thomas
“put your hand in my side and look at my hands, do you believe now you have seen”.
Thomas replied my Lord and God.
Jesus said
“you believe because you have seen me but happy are those who believe without seeing me”.
Through a week of darkness to the morning of a New Dawn and a new day, a new belief of Love and Forgiveness’ that could only happen because of the darkness of death and the resurrection into the light of Jesus.
Giving us the hope of an eternal life with the Lord into a never ending Dawn for we believe without seeing.
Amen
Hymn – Morning Has Broken
Let us declare our faith in God.
All: We believe in God the Father,
From whom every family
In heaven and on earth is named.
We believe in God the Son
Who lives in our hearts through faith,
And fills us with his love.
We believe in God the Holy Spirit
Who strengthens us
With power from on high.
We believe in one God,
Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Prayers and Intercessions
We pray for God to fill us with his Spirit.
Generous God,
we thank you for the power of your Holy Spirit.
We ask that we may be strengthened to serve you better.
Lord, come to bless us
All: and fill us with your Spirit.
We thank you for the wisdom of your Holy Spirit.
We ask you to make us wise to understand your will.
Lord, come to bless us
All: and fill us with your Spirit.
We thank you for the peace of your Holy Spirit.
We ask you to keep us confident of your love wherever you call us.
Lord, come to bless us
All: and fill us with your Spirit.
We thank you for the healing of your Holy Spirit.
We ask you to bring reconciliation and wholeness
where there is division, sickness and sorrow.
Lord, come to bless us
All: and fill us with your Spirit.
We thank you for the gifts of your Holy Spirit.
We ask you to equip us for the work which you have given us.
Lord, come to bless us
All: and fill us with your Spirit.
We thank you for the fruit of your Holy Spirit.
We ask you to reveal in our lives the love of Jesus.
Lord, come to bless us
All: and fill us with your Spirit.
We thank you for the breath of your Holy Spirit,
given us by the risen Lord.
We ask you to keep the whole Church, living and departed,
in the joy of eternal life.
Lord, come to bless us
All: and fill us with your Spirit.
All: Generous God,
hear our prayer,
and make us one in heart and mind
to serve you with joy for ever.
Amen.
We gather our thoughts and prayers in the words our Saviour gave us.
All: Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed by 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 for ever.
Amen.
Hymn – Hallelujah! Sing to Jesus,)
- Hallelujah! Sing to Jesus!
His the sceptre, his the throne;
Alleluia! His the triumph,
His the victory alone.
Hark! The songs of peaceful Zion
Thunder like a mighty flood.
Jesus, out of every nation,
Has redeemed us by his blood.
- Hallelujah! Not as orphans
Are we left in sorrow now;
Hallelujah! He is near us;
Faith believes nor questions how.
Though the cloud from sight received him
When the forty days were o’er,
Shall our hearts forget his promise,
“I am with you evermore”?
Hallelujah! Heavenly High Priest,
Here on earth our help, our stay;
- Hallelujah! Hear the sinful
Cry to you from day to day.
Intercessor, friend of sinners,
Earth’s Redeemer, hear our plea,
Where the songs of all the sinless
Sweep across the crystal sea.
Hallelujah! King eternal,
You the Lord of lords we own:
- Hallelujah! born of Mary,
Earth your footstool, heaven your throne:
You within the veil, have entered,
Robed in flesh, our great High Priest:
By your Spirit, left us heavenward,
In the Eucharistic feast!
Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
To the triune Majesty ( William Chatterton – 1837 to 1889)
The Blessing
Praise God who loves us.
All Praise God who cares.
May God, who gave birth to all creation, bless you:
may God, who became incarnate by an earthly mother, bless you:
may God, who broods as a mother over her children, bless you.
May almighty God bless you, Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
now and for ever
All: Amen.
Hymn – Thine be the Glory, Risen, Conquering Son
- Thine be the glory, risen, conquering Son;
endless is the victory, thou o’er death hast won;
angels in bright raiment rolled the stone away,
kept the folded grave clothes where thy body lay.
Refrain:
Thine be the glory, risen conquering Son,
Endless is the vict’ry, thou o’er death hast won.
- Lo! Jesus meets us, risen from the tomb;
Lovingly he greets us, scatters fear and gloom;
let the Church with gladness, hymns of triumph sing;
for her Lord now liveth, death hath lost its sting.
Refrain:
Thine be the glory, risen conquering Son,
Endless is the vict’ry, thou o’er death hast won
- No more we doubt thee, glorious Prince of life;
life is naught without thee; aid us in our strife;
make us more than conquerors, through thy deathless love:
bring us safe through Jordan to thy home above.
Refrain:
Thine be the glory, risen conquering Son,
Endless is the vict’ry, thou o’er death hast won.(by Edmond Budry – 1854 to 1932)
The Lord bless us, and preserve us from all evil
And keep us in eternal life.
All: Amen
© 702211.