Easter Week | Saturday 06 Apr 2024
+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Opening:
Heavenly Father, you have delivered us from the dominion of
sin and death, and brought us into the kingdom of your beloved
Son: Grant that, as by his death he has called us to life, so by his
love he may raise us to eternal joys; who lives and reigns with
you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.
Amen.
“I am the light that has come into the world
so that everyone who believes in me
will not live in the dark.”
(John 12:46)
__________
From Psalms: Psalm 133 – TEHILIM 133 (Enei Ma Tov) – lyrics Hebrew Pronunciation Tor Marquis | Levi Life Music
__________
OT Reading: Daniel 2:24-49 (GW)
2:24 Then Daniel went to Arioch, whom the king had appointed to destroy Babylon’s wise advisers. Daniel told him, “Don’t destroy Babylon’s wise advisers. Take me to the king, and I’ll explain the dream’s meaning to him.”
Arioch immediately took Daniel to the king. He told the king, “I’ve found one of the captives from Judah who can explain the dream’s meaning to you, Your Majesty.”
The king asked Daniel (who had been renamed Belteshazzar), “Can you tell me the dream I had and its meaning?”
Daniel answered the king, “No wise adviser, psychic, magician, or fortuneteller can tell the king this secret. But there is a God in heaven who reveals secrets. He will tell King Nebuchadnezzar what is going to happen in the days to come. This is your dream, the vision you had while you were asleep: Your Majesty, while you were lying in bed, thoughts about what would happen in the future came to you. The one who reveals secrets told you what is going to happen. This secret wasn’t revealed to me because I’m wiser than anyone else. It was revealed so that you could be told the meaning and so that you would know your innermost thoughts.
“Your Majesty, you had a vision. You saw a large statue. This statue was very bright. It stood in front of you, and it looked terrifying. The head of this statue was made of fine gold. Its chest and arms were made of silver. Its stomach and hips were made of bronze. Its legs were made of iron. Its feet were made partly of iron and partly of clay. While you were watching, a stone was cut out, but not by humans. It struck the statue’s iron-and-clay feet and smashed them. Then all at once, the iron, clay, bronze, silver, and gold were smashed. They became like husks on a threshing floor in summer. The wind carried them away, and not a trace of them could be found. But the stone that struck the statue became a large mountain which filled the whole world. This is the dream. Now we’ll tell you its meaning.
“Your Majesty, you are the greatest king. The God of heaven has given you a kingdom. He has given you power, strength, and honor. He has given you control over people, wild animals, and birds, wherever they live. He has made you ruler of them all. You are the head of gold. Another kingdom, inferior to yours, will rise to power after you. Then there will be a third kingdom, a kingdom of bronze, that will rule the whole world. There will also be a fourth kingdom. It will be as strong as iron. (Iron smashes and shatters everything.) As iron crushes things, this fourth kingdom will smash and crush all the other kingdoms. You also saw the feet and toes. They were partly potters’ clay and partly iron. This means that there will be a divided kingdom which has some of the firmness of iron. As you saw, iron was mixed with clay. The toes were partly iron and partly clay. Part of the kingdom will be strong, and part will be brittle. As you saw, iron was mixed with clay. So the two parts of the kingdom will mix by intermarrying, but they will not hold together any more than iron can mix with clay.
“At the time of those kings, the God of heaven will establish a kingdom that will never be destroyed. No other people will be permitted to rule it. It will smash all the other kingdoms and put an end to them. But it will be established forever. This is the stone that you saw cut out from a mountain, but not by humans. It smashed the iron, bronze, clay, silver, and gold. The great God has told you what will happen in the future, Your Majesty. The dream is true, and you can trust that this is its meaning.”
King Nebuchadnezzar immediately bowed down on the ground in front of Daniel. He ordered that gifts and offerings be given to Daniel. The king said to Daniel, “Your God is truly the greatest of gods, the Lord over kings. He can reveal secrets because you were able to reveal this secret.”
Then the king promoted Daniel and gave him many wonderful gifts. Nebuchadnezzar made Daniel governor of the whole province of Babylon and head of all Babylon’s wise advisers. With the king’s permission, Daniel appointed Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to govern the province of Babylon. But Daniel stayed at the king’s court.
__________
Pilgrims – Worship Song | Worship Songs with IMAGES
__________
NT Reading: John 12:44-50 (GW)
12:44 Then Jesus said loudly, “Whoever believes in me believes not only in me but also in the one who sent me. Whoever sees me sees the one who sent me. 
I am the light that has come into the world so that everyone who believes in me will not live in the dark. If anyone hears my words and doesn’t follow them, I don’t condemn them. I didn’t come to condemn the world but to save the world. Those who reject me by not accepting what I say have a judge appointed for them. The words that I have spoken will judge them on the last day. I have not spoken on my own. Instead, the Father who sent me told me what I should say and how I should say it. I know that what he commands is eternal life. Whatever I say is what the Father told me to say.”
__________
Light of the world – Tim Hughes | Sing A New Song To The Lord
__________
+ O God, our heavenly Father, you manifested your love by sending your only-begotten Son into the world, that all might live through him: Pour out your Spirit on your Church, that we may fulfill his command to preach the Gospel to all people. Send forth laborers into your harvest; defend them in all dangers and temptations; and hasten the time when the fullness of the Gentiles shall be gathered in, and faithful Israel shall be saved; through your Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
+ Lord of Heaven’s Armies, we pray for swift justice and total victory over all evil in the Holy Land. Deliver the hostages from captivity and restore their souls. Destroy every stronghold of the evil death cult terrorizing the Middle East. And grant your heavenly wisdom to those guiding Israel militarily, politically, diplomatically – and especially to those who will restore Israel spiritually – through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
+ O God, by whom the meek are guided in judgment, and light rises up in darkness for the godly: Grant us, in all our doubts and uncertainties, the grace to ask what you would have us do, that the Spirit of wisdom may save us from all false choices; that in your light we may see light, and in your straight path we may not stumble; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Closing: FaithandWorship.com | John Birch
May the risen Christ grant us the joys of eternal life.
+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
The Peanut Gallery 