April 20, 2025

Order Of Worship

Easter Sunday

April 20, 2025

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*Call to Worship | based on 1 Peter 3:1-5

God invites and calls us into his presence to worship him.

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Pastor: Alleluia! Christ is risen.

People: He is risen indeed. Alleluia!

Pastor: Praise the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

People: He has given us new life and hope. He has raised Jesus from the dead.

Pastor: God has claimed us as his own.

People: He has brought us out of darkness. He has made us light to the world.

Pastor: Alleluia! Christ is risen.

People: He is risen indeed. Alleluia!

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*Song of Adoration | All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name!

We begin by responding with praise to God for who he is and for what he does.

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All hail the power of Jesus' name!

Let angels prostrate fall.

Bring forth the royal diadem,

And crown Him Lord of all.

Bring forth the royal diadem,

And crown Him Lord of all.

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Ye chosen seed of Israel's race,

Ye ransomed from the fall,

Hail Him Who saves you by His grace,

And crown Him Lord of all.

Hail Him Who saves you by His grace,

And crown Him Lord of all.

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Let every kindred, every tribe

On this terrestrial ball

To Him all majesty ascribe,

And crown Him Lord of all.

To Him all majesty ascribe,

And crown Him Lord of all.

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O that with yonder sacred throng

We at His feet may fall

We'll join the everlasting song,

And crown Him Lord of all.

We'll join the everlasting song,

And crown Him Lord of all.

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Music and Lyrics: Oliver Holden, Edward Perronet, John Rippon

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*Confession of Faith | Nicene Creed

With the church in history we confess a basic statement of what Christians believe.

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We believe in one God,

     the Father almighty,

     maker of heaven and earth,

     of all things visible and invisible.

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And in one Lord Jesus Christ,

     the only Son of God,

     begotten from the Father before all ages,

          God from God,

          Light from Light,

          true God from true God,

     begotten, not made;

     of the same essence as the Father.

     Through him all things were made.

     For us and for our salvation

          he came down from heaven;

          he became incarnate by the Holy Spirit and the virgin Mary,

          and was made human.

          He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate;

          he suffered and was buried.

          The third day he rose again, according to the Scriptures.

          He ascended to heaven

          and is seated at the right hand of the Father.

          He will come again with glory

          to judge the living and the dead.

          His kingdom will never end.

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And we believe in the Holy Spirit,

     the Lord, the giver of life.

     He proceeds from the Father and the Son,

     and with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified.

     He spoke through the prophets.

     We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic church.

     We affirm one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.

     We look forward to the resurrection of the dead,

     and to life in the world to come. Amen.

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*Song of Confession | Crown Him with Many Crowns

Psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs are simply prayers that are sung. We respond in repentance and praise for God’s redemptive work in Christ.

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Crown Him with many crowns, the Lamb upon His throne

Hark! How the heavenly anthem drowns all music but its own

Awake, my soul, and sing of Him who died for thee

And hail Him as thy matchless King through all eternity

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Crown Him the Lord of lords, who over all does reign

Who once on earth, the incarnate Word, for ransomed sinners slain

Now lives in realms of light, where saints with angels sing

Their songs before Him day and night, their God, Redeemer, King

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Crown Him the Lord of love, behold His hands and side

Those wounds, yet visible above, in beauty glorified

No angel in the sky can fully bear that sight

But downward bends his burning eye at mysteries so bright

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Crown Him the Lord of life, who triumphed over the grave

And rose victorious in the strife for those He came to save

His glories now we sing, who died, and rose on high

Who died eternal life to bring, and lives that death may die

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Music and Lyrics: George Job Elvey, Godfrey Thring, Matthew Bridges

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Confession of Sin

We fight the temptation to hide our sin and instead acknowledge it openly to God, but we do so in light of the grace offered in Jesus.

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Almighty Father, the tomb calls forth our adoring wonder, for it is empty and Christ is risen! Help us to reckon ourselves crucified with Christ. It is no longer we who live, but Christ who lives in us. And the life we now live in the flesh we live by faith in the Son of God, who loved us and gave himself for us. We want to be dead and buried to sin, to selfishness, to worldliness, that we might not give into temptation and our old way of living. Show us our sin and show us our Savior.

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Assurance of Pardon | John 11:25-26  | Rev. Blake Arnoult

The good news of the gospel is that we are forgiven in Jesus Christ. This assurance is based on God’s words of promise and it is therefore certain.

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²⁵ Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, ²⁶ and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die.”

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*Song of Response | Grace and Peace

We respond in repentance and praise for God’s redemptive work in Christ.

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Grace and peace, oh how can this be

For lawbreakers and thieves, for the worthless, the least

You have said that our judgment is death

For all eternity without hope, without rest

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Oh, what an amazing mystery, what an amazing mystery

That Your grace has come to me

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Grace and peace, oh how can this be?

The matchless King of all paid the blood price for me

Slaughtered lamb, what atonement You bring!

The vilest sinner's heart can be cleansed, can be free

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Chorus

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Grace and peace, oh how can this be?

Let songs of gratefulness ever rise, never cease

Loved by God and called as a saint

My heart is satisfied in the riches of Christ

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Oh, what an amazing mystery, what an amazing mystery

That Your grace has come to me

Oh, what an amazing love I see, what an amazing love I see

That Your grace has come to me

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Music and Lyrics: Joel Sczebel

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Prayer of Thanksgiving

We offer our gratitude to God in prayer in response to his gifts and blessings to his people and ask that he make us faithful managers of these gifts.

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Song of Thanks | Man of Sorrows

As we offer our prayers so we also offer up our thanks in song.

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Man of sorrows Lamb of God by His own betrayed

The sin of man and wrath of God has been on Jesus laid

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Silent as He stood accused beaten mocked and scorned

Bowing to the Father's will He took a crown of thorns

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Oh that rugged cross my salvation

Where Your love poured out over me

Now my soul cries out

Hallelujah

Praise and honor unto Thee

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Sent of heaven God's own Son to purchase and redeem

And reconcile the very ones who nailed Him to that tree

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Chorus

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/Now my debt is paid, it is paid in full

By the precious blood that my Jesus spilled

Now the curse of sin has no hold on me

Whom the Son sets free oh is free indeed/

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Chorus

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See the stone is rolled away

Behold the empty tomb

Hallelujah God be praised

He's risen from the grave

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Chorus

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Music and Lyrics: Brooke Ligertwood, Matt Crocker

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Prayer for Christ’s Church

We lift up our requests to God knowing that he hears us when we pray.

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*Reading of Scripture | Ephesians 4:17-32  | Rev. Blake Arnoult

God reveals himself and his work and speaks to us his people through his Word.

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¹⁷ Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. ¹⁸ They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. ¹⁹ They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. ²⁰ But that is not the way you learned Christ!— ²¹ assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, ²² to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, ²³ and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, ²⁴ and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.

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²⁵ Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another. ²⁶ Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, ²⁷ and give no opportunity to the devil. ²⁸ Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need. ²⁹ Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. ³⁰ And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. ³¹ Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. ³² Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.

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Pastor: The Word of the Lord

People: Thanks be to God

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The Preaching of the Word | Rev. Blake Arnoult

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“Resurrection Life”

Ephesians: The Gospel of the Church

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Pastoral Prayer

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Sacrament of Communion

Sacraments are visible signs of the invisible grace of God - what Christ does by his Holy Spirit within us. Communion (also called the Lord’s Supper or the Eucharist), as the distribution of the elements of bread and wine, symbolizes a meal. Communion is a sign of fellowship. That sign signifies more than just the future heavenly fellowship that is to come. The outward sign signifies the inner reality that sinners already experience fellowship with God in the Spirit because of Jesus. Communion is not a meal for good people. It functions as a renewing seal to desperate sinners of that fellowship we have with our holy and gracious God.

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You will be invited to come forward. If you are not a Christian we encourage you to spend this time in reflection on what you’ve seen and heard in the worship. Children who have not received their first communion are welcome and encouraged to come forward with their families to witness their partaking. We invite children who are ready to make a public profession of faith in Christ to arrange a meeting with the elders, and thus become “communicants” at the Lord’s Table.

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Pastor: The Lord be with you.

People: And also with you.

Pastor: Lift up your hearts!

People: We lift them up to the Lord.

Pastor: Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.

People: It is right to give him thanks and praise.

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Prayer of Thanksgiving and Words of Institution

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Pastor: Let us proclaim the mystery of the faith:

People: Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again. Hallelujah!

Pastor: Christ, our Passover, has been sacrificed for us. Hallelujah!

People: Therefore, let us keep the feast.

Pastor: The gifts of God for the people of God.

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Please let an usher know if it is difficult for you to come forward. We would be happy to serve you at your seat. All communion bread is gluten-free. All communion wine is made from  grape juice.

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A communion prayer for those searching for the truth:

Lord Jesus, you claim to be the way, the truth and the life. If what you claim is true, please guide me, teach me, and open to me the reality of who you are. Give me the ability to follow you no matter what it might cost me. Give me an understanding for you that is coherent, convincing, and leads to the life that you promise. Amen.

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Communion Song | Worthy is The Lamb

We celebrate our communion in faith and song.

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Thank you for the cross Lord

Thank you for the price You paid

Bearing all my sin and shame

In love You came

And gave amazing grace

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Thank you for this love Lord

Thank you for the nail pierced hands

Washed me in Your cleansing flow

Now all I know

Your forgiveness and embrace

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Worthy is the Lamb

Seated on the throne

Crown You now with many crowns

You reign victorious

High and lifted up

Jesus Son of God

The Treasure of Heaven crucified

Worthy is the Lamb

Worthy is the Lamb

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Worthy is the Lamb

Worthy is the Lamb

Lyrics and Music: Darlene Joyce Zschech

Departing Song | The Church’s One Foundation

We begin to end in faith and song.

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The church’s one foundation

Is Jesus Christ her Lord,

She is His new creation

By water and the Word.

From heaven He came and sought her

To be His holy bride;

With His own blood He bought her,

And for her life He died.

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Elect from every nation,

Yet one over all the earth;

Her charter of salvation,

One Lord, one faith, one birth;

One holy Name she blesses,

Partakes one holy food,

And to one hope she presses,

With every grace endued.

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Though with a scornful wonder

Men see her sore oppressed,

By schisms rent asunder,

By heresies distressed,

Yet saints their watch are keeping;

Their cry goes up, "How long?"

And soon the night of weeping

Shall be the morn of song.

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The church shall never perish,

Her dear Lord to defend

To guide, sustain and cherish,

Is with her to the end

Though there be those that hate her,

And false sons in her pale

Against a foe or traitor,

She ever shall prevail

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Mid toil and tribulation,

And tumult of her war,

She waits the consummation

Of peace forevermore;

’Til, with the vision glorious,

Her longing eyes are blessed,

And the great church victorious

Shall be the church at rest.

Yet she on earth hath union

With God the Three in One,

And mystic sweet communion

With those whose rest is won.

O happy ones and holy!

Lord, give us grace that we

Like them, the meek and lowly,

On high may dwell with Thee.

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Music and Lyrics: Brian Moss, Samuel John Stone

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*Benediction | Revelation 22:20-21 | Rev. Blake Arnoult

God sends us out with his blessing. A benediction is not a prayer. We don’t bow our heads. We lift them up and even lift up our hands to receive his blessing as we are sent out as participants in his mission to the city of man.

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²⁰ He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!

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²¹ The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen.

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