Easter Week | Monday 18 April 2022

+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Opening:

Grant, we pray, Almighty God, that we who celebrate with
reverence the Paschal feast may be made worthy to attain to
everlasting joys; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and
reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.
Amen.

Christ, our Passover Lamb,
has been sacrificed for us.
So let us celebrate the festival,
not with the old bread of wickedness and evil,
but with the new bread of sincerity and truth.
(1 Corinthians 5:7c-8)

__________

Psalms: Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24 – a reading
Zion Lutheran Church

__________

OT Reading: Joshua 10:16-27 (NLT)

Joshua Kills the Five Southern Kings

10:16 During the battle the five kings escaped and hid in a cave at Makkedah. When Joshua heard that they had been found, he issued this command: “Cover the opening of the cave with large rocks, and place guards at the entrance to keep the kings inside. The rest of you continue chasing the enemy and cut them down from the rear. Don’t give them a chance to get back to their towns, for the Lord your God has given you victory over them.”

So Joshua and the Israelite army continued the slaughter and completely crushed the enemy. They totally wiped out the five armies except for a tiny remnant that managed to reach their fortified towns. Then the Israelites returned safely to Joshua in the camp at Makkedah. After that, no one dared to speak even a word against Israel.

Then Joshua said, “Remove the rocks covering the opening of the cave, and bring the five kings to me.” So they brought the five kings out of the cave—the kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish, and Eglon. When they brought them out, Joshua told the commanders of his army, “Come and put your feet on the kings’ necks.” And they did as they were told.

“Don’t ever be afraid or discouraged,” Joshua told his men. “Be strong and courageous, for the Lord is going to do this to all of your enemies.” Then Joshua killed each of the five kings and impaled them on five sharpened poles, where they hung until evening.

As the sun was going down, Joshua gave instructions for the bodies of the kings to be taken down from the poles and thrown into the cave where they had been hiding. Then they covered the opening of the cave with a pile of large rocks, which remains to this very day.

__________

Be strong and courageous and do not be afraid. The Acapella Company

__________

NT Reading: 1 Corinthians 5:6b-8 (NLT)

5:6 Your boasting about this is terrible. Don’t you realize that this sin is like a little yeast that spreads through the whole batch of dough? Get rid of the old “yeast” by removing this wicked person from among you. Then you will be like a fresh batch of dough made without yeast, which is what you really are. Christ, our Passover Lamb, has been sacrificed for us. So let us celebrate the festival, not with the old bread of wickedness and evil, but with the new bread of sincerity and truth.

__________

Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us –
St. Augustine’s Episcopal, Wilmette

__________

Prayer: ACNA | BCP2019

+ Almighty God, to you all hearts are open, all desires known, and from you no secrets are hid: Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love you, and worthily magnify your holy Name; through Christ our Lord. Amen

+ Most merciful God, we confess that we have sinned against you in thought, word and deed, by what we have done, and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We are truly sorry and we humbly repent. For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, have mercy on us and forgive us; that we may delight in your will, and walk in your ways, to the glory of your Name. Amen.

If anyone sins,
we have an advocate with the Father,
Jesus Christ the righteous.
He is the propitiation for our sins,
and not for ours only,
but also for the sins of the whole world.
(1 John 2:1-2)

__________

Closing: faith and worship | John Birch

May the love of Christ
be active in your heart,
be heard in your words,
be seen in your actions
and inform your choices
today and all days. Amen.

+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.