Greetings Redeemer family,

I’m writing the e-mail on Good Friday, the most sober of Christian holidays. It is a time to stop and reflect on the death of Christ; to remember His sufferings, His betrayal, His silence before the mockers, and His death.

In all of this, Christ proves Himself to truly be Emmanuel – God with us. He is not removed or distant from the hardship of the world. He entered into the brokenness and took it upon Himself. When we experience grief, hardship, disappointment, and sorrow, we can know that God is with us in the midst of this pain. It’s real. It’s hard. It can last a long time.

But it is not the end.

This Sunday we celebrate the vindicated victory of our God – as Christ rose from the grave. Christ took all of our shame and sin upon Himself, and paid its full debt. He died, and yet He lives again. As His people, we share in His resurrection life, knowing that same power that lifted Him from the grave is at work in us – bringing restoration, healing, and all the blessings of His eternal kingdom.

It’s been the tradition of the church for many years to celebrate the resurrection with a simple call and response. When someone says “He is risen,” you need to respond with a loud, hearty, “He is risen indeed.” Our call to worship incorporates this refrain, with words adapted from Romans 6:9-10.

Christ our Savior was raised from the dead, Death has no power over him! The death he died, he died to sin once for all; But the resurrection life he lives, he lives to God! He is Risen! He is risen indeed! He is Risen! He is risen indeed! He is risen! He is risen indeed!

Across the world, churches will begin their services this week with a hymn of joyful celebration, that Christ is risen, and we shout “Hallelujah!”

Christ, the Lord, is risen today, Alleluia! Sons of men and angels say, Alleluia! Raise your joys and triumphs high, Alleluia! Sing, ye heavens, and earth, reply, Alleluia!

Lives again our glorious King, Alleluia! Where, O death, is now thy sting? Alleluia! Once He died our souls to save, Alleluia! Where thy victory, O grave? Alleluia!

We continue in worship by singing of His Kingdom, and our desire that His fame and glory would spread through the entire world.

Jesus shall reign where’er the sun

Does his successive journeys run; His kingdom stretch from shore to shore, Till moons shall wax and wane no more.

Let every creature rise and bring Peculiar honors to our King; Angels descend with songs again, And earth repeat the loud amen!

We will both speak and sing our faith in Christ, using the words of the Apostle’s Creed, and the modern hymn, “In Christ Alone.” I love the text of this hymn, as it re-tells the story of Christ’s life, death, and resurrection, then applies that hope to our daily lives with hope and thanksgiving.

In Christ alone my hope is found He is my light, my strength, my song This Cornerstone, this solid ground Firm through the fiercest drought and storm What heights of love, what depths of peace When fears are stilled, when strivings cease My Comforter, my All in All Here in the love of Christ I stand

In Christ alone, who took on flesh Fullness of God in helpless babe This gift of love and righteousness Scorned by the ones He came to save ‘Til on that cross as Jesus died The wrath of God was satisfied For every sin on Him was laid Here in the death of Christ I live

There in the ground His body lay Light of the world by darkness slain Then bursting forth in glorious Day Up from the grave He rose again And as He stands in victory Sin’s curse has lost its grip on me For I am His and He is mine Bought with the precious blood of Christ

No guilt in life, no fear in death This is the power of Christ in me From life’s first cry to final breath Jesus commands my destiny No power of hell, no scheme of man Can ever pluck me from His hand ‘til He returns or calls me home

Here in the power of Christ I’ll stand

For many of us, we know that Easter is supposed to be a big deal. The problem is that we’ve heard it so many times. Like a movie where someone already told you the ending, we can become uninterested and disengaged. Our prayer of confession looks at this tendency in our hearts, and asks God to restore the joy of our salvation.

O dear Father, forgive us for losing our sense of wonder over Easter – for getting bored with Christ’s resurrection; for treating it as stale or uninteresting news. We are often cold and bitter, or worse still, just disinterested. Restore to us the joy of our salvation, our surprise and delight in Jesus’ resurrection, and our own rising together with him. Forgive us and give us living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. Amen.

During our offering, we will sing of the power of Chirst to rescue and save. The lyric of “Mighty to Save” has an interesting progression to it as well. It begins with a general scope of the world’s brokenness and need for a savior. The second verse is personal, receiving and responding to Christ’s grace. The bridge then encourages us to take the life-changing news of Christ which we have experienced and share that joy with the world – that Christ’s glory might fill the whole world.

Everyone needs compassion, Love that’s never failing; Let mercy fall on me. Everyone needs forgiveness, The kindness of a Saviour; The Hope of nations.

Savior, He can move the mountains, My God is Mighty to save, He is Mighty to save. Forever, Author of salvation, He rose and conquered the grave, Jesus conquered the grave.

So take me as You find me, All my fears and failures, Fill my life again. I give my life to follow Everything I believe in, Now I surrender.

Shine your light and let the whole world see, We’re singing for the glory of the risen King Jesus (x2)

This week, Mike will be teaching about the first person to be raised from the dead in the book of John. The story in John 11 is not of Jesus’ resurrection, but of Jesus calling Lazarus to come out of the tomb. This story foreshadowed not only Christ’s resurrection, but also how that same power is available to us as we trust in Him. I’d encourage you to take some time this weekend as we move towards Sunday to read this short story, and reflect on the compassion of Christ.

As we close our service, we anticipate Christ’s second coming. When Jesus ascended, He promised to return and bring His kingdom in its fullness. We live now with the joyful expectation of that great day, living every moment the praise of the Lion of Judah, the Lamb who was slain – the King of all Kings and the Lord of all Lords.

You’re the Lion of Judah, the Lamb who was slain You ascended to heaven and ever more will reign At the end of the age, when the earth You reclaim You will gather the nations before You

And the eyes of all men will be fixed on the Lamb Who was crucified With wisdom and mercy and justice You’ll reign At Your Father’s side

And the angels will cry hail the Lamb Who was slain for the world rule in pow’r And the earth will reply You shall reign As the King of all kings And the Lord of all lords

There’s a shield in our hand and a sword at our side There’s a fire in our spirits that cannot be denied ‘Cause the Father has told us tor these You have died For the nations who gather before You And the ears of all men need to hear of the Lamb Who was crucified Who descended to hell yet was raised up to reign At His Father’s side

Rejoicing in the power of His resurrection,

Tim Sharpe Worship Director Redeemer Presbyterian Chruch, Lynchburg, VA