Bulletin – Sunday, April 6, 2025 – Fifth Sunday in Lent

Sunday, April 6, 2025
Fifth Sunday in Lent

We Gather as People of Faith

Welcome

Announcements

Minute Person

Opening

One:   The Grace of our Lord, Jesus Christ, the Love of God and the Communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
All:      And also with you.

Call to Worship

One:   Here we are Lord.
All:      We come into your presence seeking your way, seeking your truth, seeking your peace.

One:   We call upon Your Spirit to help us walk your path these Lenten Days.
All:      Equip us in this hour to be your people, discerning and doubtless of your way.

Opening Prayer

Come, Holy One: teach us your ways, lead us in your paths, guide us on our journey. Speak to us your words of life, for you offer us direction and wholeness when we hear your voice and follow. You Bless us with your love, shower us with your grace, and help us grow in faith. We seek you, O God, with all our hearts. Be near us this day.

Hymn – “O Jesus I have Promised” (VU #120)

O Jesus, I have promised to serve you to the end,
Remain forever near me, my Saviour and my friend:
I shall not fear the journey if you are by my side,
Nor wander from the pathway if you will be my guide.

O let me feel you near me: the world is ever near;
I see the sights that dazzle, the tempting sounds I hear;
My foes are ever near me, around me and within;
But, Jesus, then draw nearer and shield my soul from sin.

O let me hear you speaking in accents clear and still,
Above the storms of passion, the murmurs of self-will;
O speak to reassure me, to hasten or control,
Now speak, and make me listen, O guardian of my soul.

O Jesus, you have promised to all who follow you,
That where you are in glory your servant shall be too.
And Jesus, I have promised to serve you to the end;
O give me grace to follow, my Saviour and my friend.

Lenten Candle Tenebrae

One:   Though we yearn for great vision, many of our visions are limited. Yet, we do not know just how limited we are spiritually.
All:      We do not know that we do not know.

One:   Content to live with illusions and self-delusions, the people of this world do not even want to know the wisdom and truth and dismiss the power of forgiveness.
All:      We fear that we are beyond redemption. We forget that our God is a loving and forgiving God.

One:   We hear that anyone in Christ is a new creation and that we are welcome into God’s fold even after turning our backs on God.
All:      We long to return fully to God’s love. Yet, we remain guarded, trusting only in ourselves.

The fifth candle is extinguished

Sung Response – “Don’t Be Afraid” (MV #90)

Don’t be afraid. My love is stronger, my love is stronger than your fear.
Don’t be afraid. My love is stronger and I have promised, promised to be always near.

One:   Let us pray:
All:    O God, we wait for you to approach us with your forgiveness.  But maybe you are always there, and we neglect to see that we are the ones who are to embrace the visions and possibilities of new life in you.  Open our spirits for us to return to you and embrace your truth.  Open our minds to return to you and receive your wisdom.  Open our hearts to love widely, generously, and deeply.  Give us the faith to return and be a forgiven people.  Amen.

Prayer of Confession

All:      God, You are our Rock and our Refuge, though You should guide us, we inform ourselves. Though You should rule us, we control ourselves. Though you should fulfill us, we fill ourselves with earthly things. We do this because we think your truth is beyond our reach. We do this because we are too impatient. We don’t want to worry mostly about earthly things. We are unsure you know what is best for us.

Silent Prayers of Confession

One:   Lord, have mercy up on.
All:      Christ, have mercy upon us.

One:   Lord, have mercy upon us.

Assurance of Forgiveness

Sung Response – “And When You Call for Me” (MV #96)

And when you call for me, I have already answered.
And when you call for me, I am already there.

We Hear God’s Word

Prayer for Understanding

Scripture Reading:         Psalm 24

¹ The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; ² for he founded it on the seas and established it on the waters.

³ Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? ⁴ The one who has clean hands and a pure heart,  who does not trust in an idol  or swear by a false god.

⁵ They will receive blessing from the Lord and vindication from God their Savior. ⁶ Such is the generation of those who seek him, who seek your face, God of Jacob.

⁷ Lift up your heads, you gates; be lifted up, you ancient doors,  that the King of glory may come in. ⁸ Who is this King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle. ⁹ Lift up your heads, you gates; lift them up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. ¹⁰ Who is he, this King of glory? The Lord Almighty—he is the King of glory.

Scripture Reading:         Mark 12:13-17

¹³ Later they sent some of the Pharisees and Herodians to Jesus to catch him in his words. ¹⁴ They came to him and said, “Teacher, we know that you are a man of integrity. You aren’t swayed by others, because you pay no attention to who they are; but you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. Is it right to pay the imperial tax to Caesar or not? ¹⁵ Should we pay or shouldn’t we?”

But Jesus knew their hypocrisy. “Why are you trying to trap me?” he asked. “Bring me a denarius and let me look at it.” ¹⁶ They brought the coin, and he asked them, “Whose image is this? And whose inscription?”

“Caesar’s,” they replied.

¹⁷ Then Jesus said to them, “Give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s.”

And they were amazed at him.

May God speak to us through these readings of scripture.
Thanks be to God!

Hymn – “If You Will Trust in God to Guide You” (VU #286)

If you will trust in God to guide you,
And hope in God through all your ways,
God will give strength, whatever betide you,
And bear you through the evil days.
Who trust in God’s unchanging love
Builds on the rock that will not move.

God will embrace your pain and weeping,
Your helpless anger and distress.
If you are in God’s care and keeping,
In sorrow will God love you less?
For Christ, who took for you a cross,
Will bring you safe through every loss.

Sing, pray, and keep God’s ways unswerving;
So do your own part faithfully,
And trust God’s word; though underserving,
You’ll find God’s promise true to be.
God never will forsake in need
The soul that trusts in God indeed.

Sermon – “ Truth is Sometimes Too Bright for Us to See it Directly, All at Once”

(quote from Emily Dickenson)

Anthem – “Knowing You”

All I once held dear, built my life upon,
All this world reveres and wars to own,
All I once thought gain I have counted loss,
Spent and worthless now compared to this.

Knowing You, Jesus,
Knowing You—
There is no greater thing.
You’re my all, You’re the best,
You’re my joy, my righteousness,
And I love You, Lord.

Now my heart’s desire is to know You more,
To be found in You and known as Yours,
To possess by faith what I could not earn,
All surpassing gift of righteousness.

Knowing You, Jesus,
Knowing You—
There is no greater thing.
You’re my all, You’re the best,
You’re my joy, my righteousness,
And I love You, Lord.

Oh, to know the power of Your risen life
And to know You in Your sufferings
To become life You in Your death, my Lord
So with You to live and never die.

Knowing You, Jesus,
Knowing You—
There is no greater thing.
You’re my all, You’re the best,
You’re my joy, my righteousness,
And I love You, Lord.

We Respond to God’s Word

An Invitation to Share

Offering Sung Response – “These Lenten Gifts We Bring”

These Lenten gifts we bring, our living faith expressed,
We offer them most lovingly, and thus our hearts are blessed.

O loving God receive these gifts we gladly give,
That show our faith and hope and trust; your way we seek to live

Prayer of Dedication

Gracious and Generous God, we pray that the gifts we offer in worship and throughout the week might be used in Your name. Help us to be generous with our money, but also with our talents and time. Strengthen us to recognize Your blessings, to be grateful, and to respond accordingly. Amen.

Prayers of the People

Prayer Jesus Taught Us

All:      Our Father, who are in heaven, hallowed by thy name, thy kingdom come, they will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: for thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, forever and ever. Amen.

We Go Into God’s World

Hymn – “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross” (VU #149)

When I survey the wondrous cross on which the Prince of glory died,
My richest gain I count but loss, and pour contempt on all my pride.

Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast save in the death of Christ, my God:
All the vain things that charm me most, I sacrifice them to his blood.

See from his head, his hands, his feet, sorrow and love flow mingled down!
Did e’er such love and sorrow meet, or thorns compose so rich a crown?

Were the whole realm of nature mine, that were a present far too small:
Love so amazing, so divine, demands my soul, my life, my all.

Benediction

Sung Response – “May the Christ who Walks on Wounded Feet”

May the Christ who walks on wounded feet travel with you all your journey through.
May you see Christ’s face in all you meet and may all you meet see Christ’s face in you.