Holy Saturday, 11 April 2020

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

Opening:

O God, Creator of heaven and earth: Grant that, as the crucified body of your dear Son was laid in the tomb and rested on this holy Sabbath, so we may await with him the coming of the third day, and rise with him to newness of life; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
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 Will Wait for You (Psalm 130) – Keith & Kristyn Getty

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A Reading from the Gospels: Matthew 27:57-66 (NLT)

The Burial of Jesus

As evening approached, Joseph, a rich man from Arimathea who had become a follower of Jesus, went to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body. And Pilate issued an order to release it to him. Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a long sheet of clean linen cloth. He placed it in his own new tomb, which had been carved out of the rock. Then he rolled a great stone across the entrance and left. Both Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting across from the tomb and watching.

The Guard at the Tomb

The next day, on the Sabbath, the leading priests and Pharisees went to see Pilate. They told him, “Sir, we remember what that deceiver once said while he was still alive: ‘After three days I will rise from the dead.’ So we request that you seal the tomb until the third day. This will prevent his disciples from coming and stealing his body and then telling everyone he was raised from the dead! If that happens, we’ll be worse off than we were at first.”

Pilate replied, “Take guards and secure it the best you can.” So they sealed the tomb and posted guards to protect it.
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A Reading from the Old Testament: Job 14:1-17 (NLT)

“How frail is humanity!
How short is life, how full of trouble!
We blossom like a flower and then wither.
Like a passing shadow, we quickly disappear.
Must you keep an eye on such a frail creature
and demand an accounting from me?
Who can bring purity out of an impure person?
No one!
You have decided the length of our lives.
You know how many months we will live,
and we are not given a minute longer. So leave us alone and let us rest!
We are like hired hands, so let us finish our work in peace.

“Even a tree has more hope!
If it is cut down, it will sprout again
and grow new branches.
Though its roots have grown old in the earth
and its stump decays,
at the scent of water it will bud
and sprout again like a new seedling.

“But when people die, their strength is gone.
They breathe their last, and then where are they?
As water evaporates from a lake
and a river disappears in drought,
people are laid to rest and do not rise again.
Until the heavens are no more, they will not wake up
nor be roused from their sleep.

“I wish you would hide me in the grave
and forget me there until your anger has passed.
But mark your calendar to think of me again!
Can the dead live again?
If so, this would give me hope through all my years of struggle,
and I would eagerly await the release of death.
You would call and I would answer,
and you would yearn for me, your handiwork.
For then you would guard my steps,
instead of watching for my sins.
My sins would be sealed in a pouch,
and you would cover my guilt.
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Laudi: I. Book of Job 14:1-2 – Swedish Radio Choir

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A Reading from the Epistles: 1 Pet 4:1-8 (NLT)

Living for God

So then, since Christ suffered physical pain, you must arm yourselves with the same attitude he had, and be ready to suffer, too. For if you have suffered physically for Christ, you have finished with sin. You won’t spend the rest of your lives chasing your own desires, but you will be anxious to do the will of God. You have had enough in the past of the evil things that godless people enjoy—their immorality and lust, their feasting and drunkenness and wild parties, and their terrible worship of idols.

Of course, your former friends are surprised when you no longer plunge into the flood of wild and destructive things they do. So they slander you. But remember that they will have to face God, who stands ready to judge everyone, both the living and the dead. That is why the Good News was preached to those who are now dead—so although they were destined to die like all people, they now live forever with God in the Spirit.

The end of the world is coming soon. Therefore, be earnest and disciplined in your prayers. Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins.
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O Sorrow Deep (O Traurigkeit) – Text by: Johann Rist 1641

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Closing: 1 Peter 4:7-8 (NLT)

The end of the world is coming soon. Therefore, be earnest and disciplined in your prayers.
Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins.

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