Genesis 50:20
Colossians 1:17
John 13:34

Joseph said this to his brothers: 

You intended to harm me, 
but God intended it for good, 
to accomplish the saving of many lives.


Paul wrote:

Christ is before all things, 
and in Him 
all things 
hold together.


And Jesus said,

As I have loved you, 
so you must 
love one another.

Faithful and loving God,
You are the Lord 
of every part of our lives.
You are present 
in our homes, 
in our work, 
in our friendships, 
and struggles, 
and hopes.

Your character isn’t determined 
when we assess our circumstances
You don’t abandon us 
when life is confusing, 
or painful, 
or unfair.
Even when we cannot see 
what You are doing,
You remain faithful,
and You bring life, 
and healing, 
and hope 
out of places of sorrow.

In fact, 
You have taken the place 
of our deepest evil 
and made the grave itself 
the beginning 
of new, resurrected life. 

Thank You 
for gathering us here this morning.
This church exists 
because You have united us to Christ 
and have drawn us
into the very same communion 
He shares with You. 

Thank You 
that we’re not here alone,
but as a church family
joined together in Jesus Christ, 
and by extension, 
joined in relationships 
of mutual love with one another.

Help us then 
to receive one another 
with patience, 
and kindness, 
and grace.
Teach us 
to carry one another’s burdens,
to forgive one another,
to encourage those of us who are exhausted,
and to be glad with those of us who are joyful.

Lord Jesus,
You are the One who holds all things together. 
All things!
So, hold us together today.
Where we’re hurting, 
bring healing.
Where there’s distance, 
bring reconciliation.
Where there’s fear, 
give us courage.
Where there’s pride, 
teach us humility.
Where there is confusion, 
give us wisdom.
Where there is loneliness, 
remind us that we belong to You 
and to one another.

All of these relational disorders 
You have healed in Christ 
and You have made them available to us 
in communion with each other.

We haven’t been held together 
by friendliness 
or common preferences, 
but by our unity in Christ, 
maintained through truth 
and grace 
and repentance 
and forgivness 
and your Spirit.

Shape us into a people 
who don’t hide from the world,
but who enter it with Your love.
Send us into our workplaces, 
our summer activities, 
our homes
as people of peace.

Your Spirit has brought us 
not only into Christ’s communion with You, 
but also into His mission in the world.
So help us to serve 
and to lead 
and to speak truth 
and to care for others without fear.

Give us the wisdom 
to see what is broken
and the courage 
to do what is right.
Use our gifts 
not for ourselves,
but for the good 
of our neighbors
and for the flourishing 
of the places 
where You have placed us.

Help us to restore damaged relationships 
and damaged systems 
so that Your love is unhindered 
and our lives can flourish

Keep us close to You, Lord.
Do not let success make us proud
or hardships make us bitter.
Remind us that our identity 
is not found in our achievements,
or our position, 
or the approval of others,
but in Your love for us in Jesus Christ.

We haven’t become Your children 
through achievement, 
or performance, 
or usefulness, 
but simply because Christ has come close to us—
closer than we can come to ourselves. 
And He has taken our humanity as His own 
and now holds us in His own faithful relationship with You.

As we worship,
turn our hearts toward You.
Open our ears to Your Word.
Fill us with Your Holy Spirit.
Renew our love for Jesus,
deepen our love for one another,
and prepare us to live faithfully 
in the world that You love.

Receive our worship,
and make our life together 
a witness to Your grace.

In the name of Jesus Christ,
Amen.

Psalm 133:1
Hebrews 10:19, 21–22
Romans 8:15–16

King David wrote these words:

How very good and pleasant it is
when kindred live together in unity!


The writer of the Book of Hebrews preached these words:

Since we have confidence 
to enter the sanctuary 
by the blood of Jesus,
and since we have a Great Priest 
over the house of God,
let us approach 
with a true heart 
in full assurance of faith.


And the Apostle Paul wrote these words: 

You have received a Spirit of adoption.
When we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’
it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit
that we are children of God.

Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
You have gathered us here.

We have been gathered.
And we have been united. 
And it’s not something that’s been manufactured 
through our compatibility 
or our shared preferences 
or our music and the arrangement of chairs. 
Our fellowship 
and our friendships 
begin in Your own communion 
of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, 
and are given, then, to us 
through our union with Christ. 

This past week’s church camp 
of tents and RVs, 
campfires, shared meals,
laughing and conversations, 
inconveniences and exhaustion—
it was something more 
than just a pleasant social experience. 
In all of it, 
You’ve reminded us 
that we belong to one another
because we belong to You.
Christ has gathered us into His life 
and in so doing, 
has given us to one another.

And so we’ve not come here this morning
to make ourselves worthy
or to produce perfect worship 
or perfect open-mic offerings
with the right amount of intensity 
or sincerity 
or competence. 

We’ve come through Jesus, 
our great High Priest,
who has already opened the way to You, Father —
who brings Your life and love to us —
and who is, even right now, 
carrying our prayers and our praise to You.
He brings all of our humanness— 
all our faltering and inadequate prayers, 
and confessions, 
and thanksgiving, 
and worship—
to You.

By Your Spirit, then, 
gather up everything we bring. 
We’re not bringing some edited, religious version of ourselves;
we’re bringing our joy and gratitude,
our weariness and distractions,
our hopes and our needs. 
Gather up everything we’re bringing this morning
and draw us into the worship of Your Son. 
Draw us into the Son’s communion with You. 

Make us attentive to Your Word,
open to Your grace,
and present to one another.
Correct our assumptions about You, 
about ourselves, 
about each other.
We’ll let go of the impulse to justify ourselves. 
We want Your grace to encounter us as we are,
and give us what we truly need. 

We come with confidence,
not because our faith is strong,
but because Jesus Christ is faithful.

Amen.

John 1:29
1 John 4:16,19
Romans 5:6–10
Luke 19:9–10

In the Gospel of John, we read this: 

John — that is John the Baptist — 
saw Jesus coming toward him 
and said, 
“Behold, the Lamb of God, 
who takes away 
the sin 
of the world!"


John, that same gospel writer, in one of his later letters, also wrote this:

We have come to know 
and to believe 
the love 
that God has for us. 
God is love, 
and whoever abides in love 
abides in God, 
and God 
abides in him. 
We love 
because He 
first 
loved us. 


In the Book of Romans, Paul the Apostle writes this about the incarnation: 

While we were still weak, 
at the right time, 
Christ died 
for the ungodly. 
For one will scarcely die for a righteous person — 
though perhaps for a good person, 
one would dare even to die — 
but God 
shows His love for us 
in that while we were still sinners, 
Christ died for us. 
If, while we were enemies, 
we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, 
much more, 
now that we are reconciled, 
shall we be saved 
by His life. 


And finally, Jesus said this to Zacchaeus: 

Today, 
salvation has come to this house. 
For the Son of Man came 
to seek 
and to save 
the lost.

Overwhelmingly and extravagantly loving 
God of heaven and earth, 
Your Old Testament saints, 
Your Old Testament prophets, 
they all had one expression 
on all their lips; 
and that is: 
“He is coming!” 

There was an anticipation of a coming — 
Your coming — 
that would be entirely new, 
that had never happened before, 
unlike Your presence in The Garden, 
unlike how You walked with Enoch, 
unlike Your face-to-face friendship with Abraham, 
unlike Your self-revelation to Moses, 
a complete descending 
IN PERSON 
out of Your Eternity, 
breaking into time, 
breaking into our self-alienation, 
taking on our flesh to be truly near to us, 
to live as a Man amongst men, 
to live with us, 
to talk with us, 
to bear our sins 
and take them away, 
and to restore us 
to fellowship 
with You. 

And so the last of Your prophets 
lifts up his voice and shouts, 
“He has come! 
Behold the Lamb of God.” 

And so, 
You did come. 

You came in the way of sheer, limitless love 
all the way from Your side of Eternity 
into our history. 
You invaded our history. 
You interrupted our history. 
You upset our history. 
You broke in 
and made for us a radical new beginning… 
because absolutely nothing on our side of history, 
absolutely nothing in ourselves, 
could move at all in Your direction. 

You did not wait for us to seek You. 
Nothing in us could seek You. 
Nothing in us would seek You. 
Your coming originates with You alone. 

You did not wait for us to be good. 
You did not wait for us even to try. 
Your love is not calculated 
or prompted 
or caused 
by anything in us. 
You have not loved us 
because we are of value 
or because we are worth loving 
or because we are fit for it. 

The initiative of Your love toward us 
lies totally 
and completely 
and fully 
and entirely 
and absolutely 
and only with You. 
Your love 
is not because 
of us. 

It is not responsive 
to something in us. 
If it were, 
there would be no incarnation. 
There would be no salvation. 
And You would not have had to break in. 

But we — 
we love 
because of You, 
because You first loved us — 
intensely and personally loved us, 
so much so 
that You gave all of Yourself to us in Your incarnation 
when nothing at all in us 
prompted any of it. 

And this is 
perfect love. 

And this is why 
Your perfect love 
casts out all our fear — 
fear of whether or not 
we are ever worthy enough. 

For it was when we were unworthy 
that Your love for us came free, 
and overflowing, 
and abundant, 
and luxurious — 
love such as we know Your love to be: 
absolutely unprovoked 
and entirely due to only Your sovereign initiative 
and entirely free from any obligation, 
spontaneously overflowing, 
uninhibitedly outflowing from You 
toward us 
fully 
in Your incarnation. 

Your love is an ultimate fact 
that knows no WHY. 
It is uncalculated 
and incalculable. 
It is overwhelmingly extravagant. 
It is unconditional. 

There is no answer to the question, 
“How can man come to You?” 
All other religions are crushed, 
made senseless, 
rendered valueless 
because You 
have come 
to us. 

Your love comes 
to seek sinners, 
to seek us, 
and to save us

In the name of Jesus Christ, 
whose coming was the self-bestowal of God to us, 
whose coming means that all self-centered approaches to God are set aside, 
whose coming brings us into immediate touch with God — 
into a personal relation with God — 
whose love takes hold of us 
and changes our whole world, 
and changes our whole self, 
and changes everything about how we see 
and how we live, 
whose will can become our will, 
whose affections can become our feelings, 
whose actions can become our actions, 
to whom we look 
as the Author 
and the Finisher of our faith,
Amen

Ephesians 2:1–10
2 Corinthians 4:16
Ephesians 3:16
1 Corinthians 15:20
Colossians 1:18
Romans 8:29

You were dead 
in the trespasses and sins 
in which you once walked, 
following the course of this world, 
following the prince of the power of the air, 
the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience — 
among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, 
carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, 
and were by nature children of wrath, 
like the rest of mankind. 

But God, 
being rich in mercy, 
because of the great love with which He loved us, 
even when we were dead in our trespasses, 
made us alive together with Christ 
and raised us up with Him 
and seated us with Him 
in the heavenly places 
in Christ Jesus… 

We are His workmanship, 
created in Christ Jesus for good works, 
which God prepared beforehand, 
that we should walk in them.


We do not lose heart. 
Though our outer self is wasting away, 
our inner self 
is being renewed 
day by day.


According to the riches of His glory, 
may He grant you to be strengthened with power 
through His Spirit 
in your inner being.


Christ has been raised from the dead, 
the first fruits 
of those who have fallen asleep.


He is the beginning, 
the firstborn from the dead.


Those God foreknew 
He also predestined 
to be conformed 
to the image of his Son, 
that He might be the firstborn 
among many brothers and sisters. 

Brilliantly wise, 
richly merciful, 
graciously kind, 
and unconditionally loving 
Father in heaven, 
in Christ’s resurrection, 
You have placed an unbreakable bond 
between Him and us.

In His resurrection, 
You have decreed 
and promised 
and guaranteed 
our resurrection. 
Because You have raised Jesus, 
You will raise us. 
And although this is true, 
it isn’t true in the sense 
that because You have raised Jesus — 
because of this isolated miracle from the past — 
we now have some evidence 
that You can also raise us 
sometime in the future. 

No. 

His resurrection 
is the beginning of all our resurrections, 
just like first fruits 
are the beginning 
of all that is harvested. 
In His resurrection, 
You have already begun fulfilling the promise 
that is our resurrection. 

When will we be resurrected? 
It has already begun. 

The age to come has already begun. 
The new creation has already dawned. 
The future has already started. 

And in this new creation, 
You have predestined us 
to be conformed 
to the image 
of Your resurrected Son. 
Just as we have borne the image of the earthly man Adam,
we now bear the image of the Heavenly Man, Jesus Christ.

This is not a future truth — 
or some future reality. 
It is true now. 
You have already made us alive together with Christ, 
and You have already raised us up with Him, 
and You have already seated us with Him. 

We were once dead 
in the trespasses and sins 
in which we once walked.
But, then, You, Father, 
who is rich in mercy, 
because of Your great love, 
made us alive, 
and brought us into union with Christ Himself 
and into union with His resurrection. 
And You have made us your workmanship. 
You have re-created us in Christ Jesus for good works, 
which You prepared beforehand, 
that we should instead walk in them.

We once walked 
according to the course of this world. 
And we now walk 
according to a course You have prepared for us. 

How has this transition happened? 

You have made us alive with Christ 
by union with Him in his resurrection. 
And you have united us with Him 
as He right now is — 
resurrected and ascended. 

This is why our lives are alive with obedience. 
This is why we are filled with dynamic holy living, 
because You have radically changed us. 
We are resurrected and alive in Christ.  

We do not despair! 
Even if our outer self is undergoing decay and is perishing, 
our inner self is marked by resurrected life 
and is being renewed 
day 
by day 
by day. 

We are in Christ. 
You have united us to Him. 
So at the core of our inner being, 
in the deepest recesses of who we are — 
our inner self — 
we will never be more resurrected than we already are. 

In the name of Jesus Christ, 
the firstborn from the dead, 
together with Whom we have been made alive, 
together with Whom we have been raised up, 
together with Whom we have been seated in the heavenly places,
Amen.

Genesis 39:2
Psalm 34:18
Romans 8:1
Hebrews 4:16

In the midst of all the trauma in Joseph’s life, we read these words:

The LORD was with Joseph.


In the midst of all the trauma in David’s life, he sang these words:

The LORD is close to the brokenhearted 
and saves those who are crushed in spirit.


Paul penned these words to the Roman Christians whose churches were traumatized by division, suffering, and persecution:

There is now no condemnation 
for those who are in Christ Jesus.


The writer of the Book of Hebrews preached these words to Christians who were tired, vulnerable, and in danger of losing heart.

Let us then approach God’s throne of grace 
with confidence, 
so that we may receive mercy 
and find grace to help us 
in our time of need.

Lord Jesus Christ,
You are here with us this morning.  
In fact, 
You were here before we arrived.
You haven’t asked us 
to reach some threshold of effort 
before You would be with us. 

You haven’t been waiting for us 
to welcome You here. 
You have welcomed us here.
You have gathered us as we are. 
You are with us. 

And so we’ve come with all our burdens. 

We’d much prefer an escape hatch 
from all the hard things distracting us. 
We’d prefer it 
if You could just remove 
all our difficulties. 

But here we are, 
with all the burdens we’re carrying
and all the joys, too, that we’re sharing,
and all the grace we’re needing. 

Meet us in all of these ordinary places of our lives.
Meet us at work, 
at home. 
meet us in our struggles. 
meet us in our service.

Make us faithful in all the things we’re in, 
because whatever it is You’re calling us to, 
it’s being worked out 
in our ordinary responsibilities, 
in our relationships, 
and in all the pressure we’re under. 

And in all of that,
help us to be kind 
with all our words.
Hold us steady 
in Your love.

Give us the strength 
to resist living like there’s a split 
between our “spiritual” life and our daily life. 
You’ve claimed all of who we each are;
every sphere of our creaturely existence is Yours. 

So, keep our hearts close to You.
When we’re drawn toward things that are false or harmful,
give us the courage to choose what is right.

And in all of that, 
keep us from reducing holiness 
to just some private rule-keeping.
And instead, 
give us a Christ-shaped regard for others.
Teach us to honor one another
as people made and loved by You.

Make us a people of truth.
In this little church
—really anywhere—
our image doesn’t matter more than truth does. 
So guard us from careless words and false judgments.
And give us wisdom 
to listen really well.
Give us the strength 
to protect the vulnerable.
Give us the kind of mercy 
that doesn’t turn away from what is right.

When our life gets hard 
and the way forward is really unclear,
remind us that You have not left us.
Your presence is always the deeper, truer reality of our lives—
more true, 
and more deep 
than the one we think we’re in.
Hold those of us who are hurting,
strengthen those of us who are weary,
and give each of us hope 
that Your grace is at work 
in our lives.

Father, draw us to Your Son.
Jesus, make us more like You.
Holy Spirit, unite us here in love 
and send us out in peace.
And may our lives together 
point others to the hope 
and welcome 
of Your kingdom.
Amen.

Genesis 38:26
Psalm 34:18
Romans 5:8

There is a person in scripture whose entire life was transformed by a single confession. We read about this confession in Genesis when Judah exclaims: 

She is more righteous than I.


Similarly, King David wrote these song lyrics when he was in a position of fear and humiliation. He wrote: 

The Lord is near to the brokenhearted 
and saves the crushed in spirit.


And the Apostle Paul penned these words in his letter to the Romans:

While we were still sinners, 
Christ died for us.

Gracious God, 
we’re here this morning again. 
But not because we have earned a place 
or have had some moral success in our lives.
The truth is, 
all our failures are exposed before You. 
We are only here
because You have turned toward us 
in Jesus Christ. 
He called us. 
He gathered us. 
He welcomed us. 
He brought us near.

And He turns toward us
even when all the stuff we’re hiding
is exposed. 
Before You, Father, 
are all our joys and our burdens.
Before You 
is all of our wounded humanity. 
Before You 
are all the places in our lives 
that feel strong and hopeful,
and the places that are fragile, 
or hidden, 
or broken.
Nothing is concealed from Your mercy,
and so nothing is beyond Your care.

Forgive us where we’ve failed 
to love others well.
Forgive us where we have held back kindness, 
or courage, 
or compassion.
Forgive us where we’ve been quick to judge others
and slow to recognize our own need for grace.
Help us to see ourselves truthfully.
And then turn us back again toward Jesus,
and make us honest, 
and humble, 
and new.

You don’t turn away 
from the wounded, 
the lonely, 
the overlooked, 
the ashamed.
So then, 
teach us also to see one another 
with that same mercy.
Make this little church 
a place of welcome
and healing.

Form in us the opposite realities we see in the world, 
realities of fear, evasion, injustice. 
And by Your Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Christ,
gather us together, 
and form us into a community 
where burdens are shared 
and no one is left alone.

Teach us to live out the truth of our salvation— 
that it isn’t a private forgiveness; 
it’s us being drawn 
into the Son’s communion 
with You, Father, 
and, therefore, 
into a communion with one another.

Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
receive our praise, 
our prayers, 
our lives.
You have given us life. 
You have met us in Jesus Christ.
You are present with us now.
We worship You with gratitude and joy. 
Amen.

1 Corinthians 12:12–31
John 14:16–26

In a letter the apostle Paul wrote 
to a church in the city of Corinth, he said:

Just as a body, 
though one, 
has many parts, 
but all its many parts form one body, 
so it is with Christ. 
For we were all baptized by one Spirit 
so as to form one body… 
God has placed the parts in the body, 
every one of them, 
just as He wanted them to be… 
There are many parts 
but only one body… 
God has put the body together, 
giving greater honor to the parts that lack it, 
so that there should be no division in the body, 
but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. 
If one part suffers, 
every part suffers with it; 
if one part is honored, 
every part rejoices with it.
Now you are the body of Christ, 
and each one of you is a part of it.


Jesus said this about the Holy Spirit:

I will ask the Father, 
and He will give you another advocate to help you 
and be with you forever — 
the Spirit of truth… 
And this Advocate, 
the Holy Spirit, 
whom the Father will send in My name, 
will teach you all things 
and will remind you of everything I have said to you.

Brilliantly wise,
intensely personal, 
and intimately knowing
Father in Heaven, 
You made it 
so that in the life 
and death 
and resurrection 
of Your Son,
all Your past promises to us 
became completely and fully realized.

And then 
You made a new set of promises — 
a new covenant. 
One that created 
a new people 
who had a new mainspring for life. 
A covenant that overcame everything 
that got in the way 
between You and us. 
A covenant that overcame the bondage, 
and the sin, 
and the ignorance 
that kept us all 
from a full and loving communion 
with You.
A covenant that brought 
complete forgiveness of sins. 
One that brought 
newness of life. 
One that brought 
Your coming kingdom. 

How?!
How did You do this?

You raised Jesus from the tomb, 
by which You put to death 
everything that we inherited 
from the first Adam.
And You made available 
a fresh start 
for all of humanity 
through the last Adam, 
Your much-loved son, 
Jesus Christ. 

And when You gave to us 
this incredibly good news,
it came to us, 
not as new information 
or a new story 
written in a book, 
not as a new good idea, 
not as a new vision for our lives.
It instead came to us 
with a faith 
that only Your Holy Spirit 
could inspire within us, 
out of which 
we would be recreated
into whole new beings, 
out of which 
a whole new creation 
got established — 
a creation from which 
awe-filled joy would be experienced, 
and true worship would unfold, 
and new communities of transformed people 
would be bound together. 

You gave to us this great news, 
and it came with Your Holy Spirit, 
a living instrument 
that now resides within us — 
within our very beings — 
and will reside there
until Your Son returns. 

It came with Your Holy Spirit 
who knits us together 
into particular communities
so that we can be 
the continuing earthly body 
of the crucified and risen Jesus,
who is seated at Your right hand.

It came with Your Holy Spirit 
who gives us eyes of faith 
so that we together as a community 
can see Jesus Christ,
and can be 
in an intimate 
and personal relationship 
with Jesus Christ — 
not so that we could be 
a new ethnic group 
or an association 
of like-minded individuals 
or a civic institution 
or a club, 
but so that we could be 
the body of Christ. 

On our own, 
we are prone to sin. 

On our own, 
we posses no special being, 
and no special status. 

On our own, 
our mission and work 
are disoriented and corrupted. 

But we are not on our own. 

We are animated by Your Holy Spirit, 
who is grounding our life in Christ, 
who is growing us up 
into perfection 
according to Your very own intentions, 
who is uniting us 
and upholding us 
to be the body of Christ, 
who is enabling us 
to enjoy amazing communion with You 
right now,
who is building us up,
who is maturing us,
and who is empowering us 
to bear witness 
to what awaits us 
at the end of time. 

In the name of Jesus Christ, 
in whom we are renewed, 
and grounded 
through worship,
Amen

Genesis 34
Psalm 34:18
Isaiah 53:4–5

King David wrote these lyrics for a song:

The Lord is near to the brokenhearted
and saves the crushed in spirit.


The propet Isaiah wrote:

Surely He has borne our griefs
and carried our sorrows…
upon Him was the chastisement that brought us peace,
and with His wounds we are healed.

Tenderly attentive,
patiently redemptive
Father in heaven, 
we’re here this morning 
exactly as we are; 
not as all-cleaned-up versions of ourselves.

Some of us are here, 
and we’re wounded, 
tired, 
ashamed,
silenced, 
afraid. 

And some of us, 
because we are those things,
are here,
and we’re calculating, 
desiring,
managing, 
maybe defending. 

It doesn’t matter, though. 
Because You are still the God who comes near. 
You move into our abyss—
our abyss of sin, 
and violence, 
and shame, 
and cowardice, 
and brokenness.
And You come alongside us— 
the brokenhearted 
and the stiff-necked.

In Jesus Christ,
You have carried our griefs,
You have borne our sorrows.
And by His wounds, 
You have healed us.

And we are rather glad 
that You are indeed like that —
that Your covenant with us is grounded 
in Your own unconditional love toward us,
and not 
in us.

Otherwise, 
we’d always be asking, 
“Where are the good people 
that You’re working through, 
and are we them?” 

But instead we ask
“Where are You going after sinners?”

And that’s where we see You. 
You are moving 
through our sin.
You are refusing 
to let Your covenant be destroyed 
by any of our foolishness. 

We see you in Jesus; 
who is the faithful Son, 
the true Brother, 
the righteous Avenger 
who doesn’t massacre the guilty 
but bears our guilt; 
who is the Bridegroom 
who doesn’t seize His bride 
but gives Himself for her; 
who is the Judge 
who exposes our sin 
by condemning it in His own flesh.

So now, as You heal us, 
Keep us honest before others
Make us people who tell the truth,
who protect the vulnerable,
who confess our sins,
who refuse to repay evil with evil,
and who welcome one another
with the mercy of Christ.

Show us Your presence, 
here with us now, Lord.
Bring us into Your peace.
Teach us to worship You
in spirit and in truth.
Amen.

Genesis 33

Jacob looked up and there was Esau, 
coming with his four hundred men…

But Esau ran to meet Jacob 
and embraced him; 
he threw his arms around his neck 
and kissed him. 
And they wept…

Jacob said, 
“If I have found favor in your eyes, 
accept this gift from me. 
For to see your face 
is like seeing the face of God, 
now that you have received me favorably.”

God of Jacob,
You meet us in our night, 
when we’re alone, 
and afraid, 
exhausted; 
when we have no control 
over what’s unfolding. 

And in just such moments,
we get to see who we really are. 
You wound our pride,
You break through our illusions
that we can somehow secure our own future.

And there, 
in that place, 
in the real conditions of our life, 
You heal us.

And You bring us into a new day
where Your grace has gone way out ahead of us,
where Your mercy is just waiting for us, 
where all of our expectations are blown away. 

This morning, Father,
turn Your face toward us, 
the only face You have, 
the one revealed in Jesus Christ. 
It’s not a face we have to guess at 
from our circumstances 
or our emotions 
or our fears. 
It’s the face that blesses sinners, 
and welcomes the weary, 
and forgives enemies.

So enable us now to recognize Your face
in the faces of one another.
Where we might expect judgment in someone’s face, 
give us peace.
When we are afraid of someone’s face, 
give us courage.
And if we have wounded somebody 
or have been wounded,
turn us into people who can embrace each other again.

Help us now, Holy Spirit,
as we limp our way forward in hope,
to worship the Father
expressed perfectly in the face of the Son,
Amen.

John 14:16–20, 26
Galatians 4:6
Romans 8:23–26, 34–39
Hebrews 4:14–16
Hebrews 7:25–26

Jesus siad:

I will ask the Father, 
and He will give you an advocate 
to help you 
and be with you forever—
the Spirit of Truth. 
He will live with you 
and will be in you. 

Jesus went on to say:

Because I live, 
you also will live. 
On that day 
you will realize 
that I am in My Father, 
and you are in Me, 
and I am in you.

The Advocate, 
the Holy Spirit, 
whom the Father will send in My name, 
will teach you all things.


The apostle Paul wrote:

Because you are His sons, 
God sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, 
the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.”

We groan inwardly 
as we wait eagerly 
for our adoption to sonship, 
as we wait eagerly 
for the redemption of our bodies. 
The Spirit helps us in our weakness. 
We do not know what we ought to pray for, 
but the Spirit himself intercedes for us 
through wordless groans.

Christ Jesus who died—
more than that, who was raised to life—
is at the right hand of God 
and is interceding for us. 
So, who shall separate us 
from the love of Christ? 
Shall trouble 
or hardship 
or persecution 
or famine 
or nakedness 
or danger 
or sword? 
No, 
in all these things 
we are more than conquerors 
through Him who loved us. 
Neither death nor life, 
neither angels nor demons, 
neither the present nor the future, 
nor any powers, 
neither height nor depth, 
nor anything else in all creation, 
will be able to separate us 
from the love of God 
that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.


The writer of the Book of Hebrews wrote:

Since we have a Great High Priest 
who has ascended into heaven, 
Jesus the Son of God, 
let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. 
For we do not have a high priest 
who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, 
but we have one who has been tempted in every way, 
just as we are. 
Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, 
so that we may receive mercy 
and find grace to help us 
in our time of need.

Jesus lives to intercede 
for those who come to God through Him. 
Such a high priest 
truly meets our need

Father, 
we’re here this morning with all that is in us. 
We’ve left nothing of ourselves behind. 
And we’re also here with all that is not in us right now.
Things maybe like:
spiritual strength,
the sense of Your presence,
even a desire to worship,
even hope.

We come with faith—we do—
even if there is hardly any left, 
and we come with all the places in us
where our faith has been worn thin—
the places of waiting and disappointment,
the places of unanswered prayer, 
the places where it sure does seem like You are absent .

We come with songs, too, Lord,
but… but also with silence, 
because there’s stuff happening that makes it hard for singing.

We come with our prayers,
and also with all the ache we feel 
when our prayers have turned to just… breathing. 

Lord, we confess that we long for a spoken word from You 
that we can actually hear,
a sign that we can see,
a promise from You that’s fitted exactly for what we’re carrying.
We want to know 
not just that You are good,
but that You are good right here —
in this grief,
in this waiting,
in this unanswered thing.

The truth is, 
You haven’t given us something less than the promise we long for.
You have given us something more—
something more and something else entirely. 
You have given us Your Son.
You have not merely spoken from heaven.
You have spoken to us in flesh and blood.
You have not loved us from a distance, 
from somewhere out there beyond our suffering. 
You have come all the way down, 
and have gone all the way into 
our pain, 
and our troubles, 
and our loss. 

You have entered our weaknesses,
our sorrow,
our silences.
You took our humanity as Your very own
and You carried it into the very life of God.

You have gone into the very places 
where we think we are alone.
You have cried the cry of the abandoned:
“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

When we feel forsaken,
we are not in a place You never were.

When there is nothing but silence,
we are not outside Your knowing and Your caring.

When we have no more words to pray,
we are not beyond the prayers prayed for us by Your very Son. 

There is no pit so deep
that His cross has not gone deeper still.

So receive us, then,
not according to the strength of our faith,
but according to the faithfulness of Jesus Christ.

Receive us, then,
not according to the clarity of our prayers,
but according to His living intercession 
that is happening for us in this very moment. 

Receive us, then,
not according to the steadiness of our hope,
but according to His risen life.
He is our prayer when we cannot pray.
Christ is our trust when we cannot trust.
He is our worship when we come empty.
He is our Amen before You, Father.

Open our eyes to Your Holy Spirit, 
to Your Comforter, 
who is in us, 
with us, 
alongside us. 
Whose groan in us is deeper than words.
Who cries in us, “Abba, Father,”
when our own voice fails.
Who bears witness in us
that we are Your children,
held in Your Son,
beloved by You, Father,
not abandoned in the dark.

Silence the accusing voice
that tells us our sorrow is rejection.
Silence the fear
that unanswered prayer means we’re forgotten.
Silence the lie
that we are placed outside Your mercy.

In Jesus Christ, You have spoken to us. 
There is now no condemnation.
He has borne all our judgment.
He has carried all our sin.
He has taken the curse into Himself and broken its claim.
So enable us to read Your heart 
through Your pierced and risen Son, 
because there we learn who You are. 
There we learn that You are not against us. 
There we learn that He has become 
our Brother, 
our Priest, 
our Advocate, 
our Life.

And now, Father, 
in spite of our open wounds. 
in spite of our questions. 
in spite of the darkness. 
in spite of our emptiness, 
gather us into His worship.
Enable us to participate in His praise.
Receive us into His prayers. 
Uphold us in His faithfulness

For Christ has died.
Christ is risen.
Christ has ascended.
Christ intercedes.
Christ sends the Spirit.
Christ holds us before the Father.
So we worship You, Triune God —
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit —
the God who has come all the way down
and who will carry us all the way home.
Amen.

Genesis 31:3
2 Corinthians 1:20

In the story of Jacob, we read that the Lord says to Jacob: 

Return to the land of your fathers 
and to your kindred, 
and I will be with you.


And in his second letter to the Corinthians, Paul wrote: 

All the promises of God 
find their Yes in Him.

Your faithfulness, God—
Your faithfulness—
carries us through 
and carries us beyond
the tangled mess of our sin, 
and our fears, 
and our conflicts. 

It doesn’t matter our mixed motives
our wounds, 
our idols, 
our anxieties, 
our maneuvering. 

Through it all, 
You remain the Living Lord. 

You do not abandon us. 
You judge. 
You protect. 
You separate. 
You lead. 

And at the center of it all 
is not our cleverness. 
Or our hostilities. 
Or our theiving. 
At the center 
is Your steadfast action 
to never let Your promise fail. 

Your grace is deeper 
than the messes we are in. 

You never wait for our lives to get better before you act. 
You enter our lives as they are 
and order them toward Your redemptive purposes. 

Even when our lives are confused, 
compromised, 
and filled with tension, 
You do not let go. 
You are faithful to lead us 
out of bondage. 
You are faithful to lead us 
away from false securities. 
You are faithful to lead us 
into the future You have prepared. 

You are more faithful than we are confused.

We are not pictures of spiritual strength. 
We are pictures of Your mercy. 
In the middle of our fears, 
in the middle of our dishonesties, 
in the middle of our conflicts, 
You remain true. 

You protect us. 
Your break our unhealthy ties. 
You lead us on. 

We have no hope 
in how well we manage our lives. 
Our hope is in You, 
becaue You keep your promises 
and You refuse to abandon us. 

In the name of Jesus 
Who in all of that, 
is not ashamed to be our Redeemer, 
Who bound Himself to us in grace, 
and Who brings us home to You, Father, 
Amen.

Genesis 31:3
Psalm 139:1
Exodus 3:7–8
John 10:11-15

God spoke these words to Jacob: 

Go back to the land of your fathers and to your relatives, 
and I will be with you.


David penned these words in a song he wrote: 

You have searched me, Lord,
and You know me.


In the book of Exodus, we read these words that the Lord spoke: 

I have indeed seen the misery of My people…
I have heard them crying out…
and I am concerned about their suffering.
So I have come down to rescue them…


John recorded these words of Jesus in his gospel: 

I am the Good Shepherd. 
The Good Shepherd lays down His life for the sheep…
I know My sheep and My sheep know Me—
just as the Father knows Me and I know the Father.


And the Apostle Paul wrote these words to the Romans: 

And we know that in all things 
God works for the good of those who love Him, 
who have been called according to His purpose.
If God is for us, who can be against us? 
He who did not spare His own Son, 
but gave Him up for us all—
how will He not also, 
along with Him, 
graciously give us all things?
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? 
Shall trouble 
or hardship 
or persecution 
or famine 
or nakedness 
or danger 
or sword?
No, in all these things 
we are more than conquerors 
through Him who loved us.
For I am convinced that neither death nor life, 
neither angels nor demons,
neither the present nor the future, 
nor any powers,
neither height nor depth, 
nor anything else in all creation, 
will be able to separate us 
from the love of God 
that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Triune God,
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
You are the Living God Who speaks,
and Who acts,
and Who judges,
and Who saves.

You are the Living Lord 
Who gives Himself to be known.

And so we’ve come here this morning,
not for religious atmosphere
or emotional support
or inspiration.
We’re here seeking You.
We’re expecting You—
the Living God.

You are not hovering above
our tangled lives,
our broken stories,
our disordered loves.
You’ve entered them.
You’ve redeemed us from within them.

All the stuff that is hidden from others 
isn’t hidden from You:
our fears, 
our fatigue, 
our resentment, 
our manipulation, 
our wounds.
There is no place too tangled 
or too complex 
or too wrong 
for Your mercy 
to already be in it 
and at work.

Lord God,
we’re here,
and it is not because 
we’re all cleaned up
or that we’ve mastered our own hearts 
and we’re spiritually competent.
We’re here because 
we need Your grace to find us, 
and heal us.

We haven’t made ourselves fit to be here.
Jesus has taken our unfitness into Himself 
and made it His own burden,
and that’s why we’re here.
That’s why we have communion with You.

Now as we sing and pray and study scripture together,
teach us again 
that Your faithfulness goes way deeper than our disorder.
Teach us again 
that Your promises aren’t fragile.
Your promises don’t depend on 
the stability of our emotions,
or the clarity of our motives,
or the success of our strategies.
You have bound yourself to us 
way more deeply than we are bound to all our own crap.

Your grace is way more real 
than whatever chaos we’re in.

So set us free this morning 
from every false lordship in our lives—
from everything that we call “Mine!” 
My career. 
My future. 
My plans. 
My house project. 
My story. 
All the things we fiercely protect.
For all things belong to You, Father, 
through the Son 
in the Spirit.

Draw us into all the freedom 
that is just right there for us in Your promise.

Help us to hear You this morning.
And when we do, 
help us to repent 
from whatever it is 
we want to then tell ourselves about it.

We’re not free because we’re becoming more self-grounded 
or more financially secure, 
or more educated, 
or more professionally experienced.
We are free 
because we are participating 
in the Son’s own communion with You, Father.
You haven’t liberated us into emptiness. 
You have liberated us into communion.

So, turn our eyes away from introspection 
and turn them to Jesus Christ,
the faithful Son,
the true Shepherd,
the One who does not manipulate us,
but gives Himself for us.

In Him, gather our scattered lives.
In Him, judge and heal what is crooked in us.
In Him, lead us from all our bondage 
and into communion with You.

In Christ, You haven’t come 
to help us find whatever self we’re searching for or making. 
You’ve come to put it to death 
and raise us into true humanity.

Come, Lord, and speak to us.
Don’t give us information.
We want to hear the Word that creates, 
and exposes,
and reconciles, 
and commands, 
and sends, 
and comforts, 
and reorders our realities.

We worship You 
in the name of the Father,
and of the Son,
and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.

He is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead.
— Colossians 1:18

God… made us alive together with Christ… and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.
— Ephesians 2:4–6

Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep… For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.
— 1 Corinthians 15:20–22

Just as Christ was raised from the dead… we too might walk in newness of life… consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.
— Romans 6:4–11

One has died for all; therefore all have died… if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation.
— 2 Corinthians 5:14–17

Isaiah 55:1–3
Psalm 113:5–8
Matthew 11:28–30
1 Corinthians 1:27–30

The prophet Isaiah wrote: 

Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters;
and he who has no money, come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
without money and without price.
Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,
and your labor for that which does not satisfy?
Listen diligently to Me, and eat what is good,
and delight yourselves in rich food.
Incline your ear, and come to Me;
hear, that your soul may live.


The Psalmist wrote:

Who is like the Lord our God,
who is seated on high,
who looks far down
on the heavens and the earth?
He raises the poor from the dust
and lifts the needy from the ash heap,
to make them sit with princes,
with the princes of His people.


Jesus said, 

Come to Me, 
all who labor and are heavy laden, 
and I will give you rest.
Take My yoke upon you, 
and learn from Me, 
for I am gentle and lowly in heart,
and you will find rest for your souls.
For My yoke is easy, 
and My burden is light.


Paul wrote:

You are in Christ Jesus, 
who has become for us wisdom from God
who has become for us our righteousness, 
who has become for us our sanctification,
who has become for us redemption.

Lord God,
there are many things that draw us toward people. 
And You are not drawn to us by any of these things. 
You are not drawn to us
by our beauty,
our strength,
or our success;
not our sincerity, 
our usefulness, 
our spiritual intensity; 
not even our faithfulness, 
or our obedience, 
or devotion,
or even our brokenness.

You are gracious in Your very being, 
freely desiring communion with us.
Nothing in us compels You to love us;
You simply love us, unimaginatively so, 
from the freedom of Your own being.
You are drawn to us by Your own love.
And You have determined not to be God without us. 

And, in light of that unimaginable love, why are we restless? 
We confess any restlessness this morning.
We attach our hopes to things that are small, and silly, and shortlived.
We ask created things to save us, to fill us, to occupy us. 
We seek life in human approval.
We seek security in things that can be taken away.
We seek fullness in things that cannot satisfy us.

And You, Father, 
You are the God who sees.
You see us. Truly see us. 
You see what is hidden and what is displayed.
You see our grief and our vanity,
our longing and our rebellion,
our exhaustion and our self-importance.
You see our wounds, our evasions, and our false loves.
You see the soul striving to be loved
and the soul pretending it needs no love at all.
And You still come near.

Turn us from hungry striving
to the abundance of Your grace.

Free us from all our disordered desire.

Teach us to seek in Christ
what cannot be found anywhere but in Him.

Lift our eyes from ourselves,
from our wounds,
from our comparisons,
from our failed loves and anxious labors,
and gather us into the awesome joy of Your presence.

As we all meet together with You this morning, 
enable us to experience again 
Your mercy and Your love.

Enable us to experience, Father, 
that Christ has not refused 
our brokenness,
our distortions,
but has taken them all up into Himself, 
healed them,
bent them back;
and we now share completely in His wholeness. 

Order our loves.
Quiet our fears.
Awaken our praise, now.
And let Your living kindness draw us
into the rest, 
the fullness, 
and the communion
for which we were made 
and in Christ we have.
Through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory…
— John 1:14.
God does not save from a safe distance, but comes near in the incarnate Son. Revelation and reconciliation in one movement. God’s glory is not elsewhere than in the enfleshed life of Jesus. Palm Sunday is not decorative pageantry but the visible form of divine nearness.

…in Christ God was reconciling the world to Himself…
— 2 Corinthians 5:19.
God himself is at work in Christ, and the work is reconciliation. There is no distant deity standing behind Jesus while Jesus does something merely external on God’s behalf. The reconciling act is God’s own act, and it happens in Christ.

For in Him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things…
— Colossians 1:19–20.
Incarnation ( all the fullness… dwell ) is joined together with atonement and reconciliation ( through him to reconcile ). Palm Sunday is cosmic. Christ’s entry into Jerusalem is not a local religious event, but part of the divine act by which all things are gathered back to God.

He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of His nature…
— Hebrews 1:3.
Christ is the exact imprint of God’s being; who God is and what God does are disclosed in Him. 

...He humbled Himself… becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
— Philippians 2:6–8.
Divine majesty is revealed in humility, obedience, and self-giving love. The triumphal entry is the movement of the obedient Son toward the cross. The kingship on display is not spectacle, but humble lordship.

Behold, your King is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is He, humble and mounted on a donkey…
— Zechariah 9:9. 
The king comes in humility, yet he comes as the bearer of salvation.

Genesis 28:10–22,
John 1:43–51
Ephesians 2:13–22

In Genesis, we read this story about God’s initiative—about God opening access from his side:  

Taking one of the stones of the place, 
Jacob put it under his head 
and lay down in that place to sleep. 
And he dreamed, 
and behold, 
there was a ladder set up on the earth, 
and the top of it reached to heaven. 
And behold, 
the angels of God 
were ascending and descending on it! 
And behold, 
the Lord stood above it and said, 
“I am with you … 
I will keep you … 
I will not leave you…” 
Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, 
“Surely the Lord is in this place, 
and I did not know it.” 
Then Jacob made a vow, saying, 
“If God will be with me 
and if He will keep me, 
and if He will give me bread to eat… 
then the Lord shall be my God…”


In John’s gospel, Jesus echoes Jacob's story. What was given to Jacob in a dream is fulfilled in Jesus Christ. Christ alone connects heaven and earth. There we read this: 

Philip found Nathanael and said to him, 
“We have found Him 
of whom Moses in the Law 
and also the prophets wrote, 
Jesus of Nazareth, 
the son of Joseph.” 
Nathanael said to him, 
“Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” 
Philip said to him, 
“Come and see.” 
Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him 
and said of him, 
“Behold, an Israelite indeed, 
in whom there is no deceit!”… 
Nathanael answered him, 
“Rabbi, You are the Son of God! 
You are the King of Israel!” 
Jesus answered him… 
“Truly, truly, I say to you, 
you will see heaven opened, 
and the angels of God ascending and descending 
on the Son of Man.”


And finally, Paul wrote about us being brought near in Christ. In a letter to the Ephesians, Paul wrote:

In Christ Jesus, 
you who once were far off, 
have been brought near 
by the blood of Christ. 
For he himself is our peace… 
He came and preached peace 
to you who were far off…
Through him, 
we have access 
in one Spirit 
to the Father. 
So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, 
but you are fellow citizens 
with the saints and members 
of the household of God, 
built on the foundation 
of the apostles and prophets, 
Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone…
In him you are being built together 
into a dwelling place 
for God 
by the Spirit. 

Living God,
God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,
we’re here now, 
together, 
with friends, 
before You,
because You have first come to us.

We can’t claim we’re here 
because we have somehow 
climbed our way to You.

We’re not here because we are strong, 
or pure, 
or ready in ourselves to be here.

We’re very much like Jacob—
we're needy, 
restless, 
burdened, 
and unaware 
of just how near 
You are to us.

Some of us are pretty tired.
Some of us are rightfully distracted.
Some of us are here with grief, 
or fear, 
or shame, 
or confusion.
Some of us have come rejoicing.
And some of us are barely able to pray.

But You, Father, 
are the God who meets us on the road, 
in the wilderness, 
in the night, 
and in our need.

So, awaken us right now.
Open our eyes to Your presence.
Keep us from treating 
this next hour and a half 
as ordinary.

Save us from casual worship.

Teach us to say, like Jacob said, 
“Surely the Lord is in this place,” 
and make it 
so that we do not leave unchanged.

Thank You for Your promise:
“I am with you.”
You have never abandoned us. 
You have never left us alone in our fears. 
You have never put distance between us 
when we’ve collapsed in weakness. 

You are with us, 
and You keep us, 
and You never let go.

In Jesus Christ, 
heaven has been opened.

In Him, 
You have come near 
once and for all.

In Him, 
You have joined Yourself to our humanity—
joined Yourself to the darkest places of our greatest shame—
not to condemn us, 
but to heal us 
and to save us 
from inside of our lost and broken condition.

In Him, 
You have made a way 
where there was no way.

In Him, 
we are welcomed 
into Your presence.

In Him, 
we are no longer fugitives, 
but children received by grace.

In this moment, Father,
gather our scattered thoughts,
our divided hearts,
our weak faith, 
our wandering minds, 
our reluctant wills, 
and draw them toward Yourself.

When we sing here in just a minute, 
let us sing unto You.
When we pray a few minutes later, 
let us truly pray in the Spirit.
And then, 
as we hear Your Word, 
let us hear more than human speech. 
Enable us to hear You—
the voice of the living God.

Make this ordinary room a place of holiness.
Let this moment—this place—be, 
by Your grace, 
a place like Bethel for us.
Not a place we control,
but a place where You meet us, 
and humble us, 
and assure us, 
and turn our hearts again toward You.

And all the places in us where we are like Jacob—
alone,
overwhelmed,
exposed,
uncertain,
spiritually inperceptive, 
fearful,
guarded,
bargaining—
be patient with us.

Your faithfulness 
is greater than our wavering.
Your promise 
is deeper than our uncertainty.
Your grace 
is stronger than anything we may have done.

Do not leave us as we are.
By Your Spirit, 
over the next 90 minutes,
conform us more and more to Jesus Christ. 
Make our worship true. 
Make our repentance sincere, 
Make our faith strong 
Make our hope new again.

Lift our eyes above ourselves.
Set our minds upon Christ.
Fill us with wonder, 
and gratitude, 
and joy
in the name of Jesus.
For You are here.
And You are faithful.
And You are worthy.

In the name of the Father, 
and of the Son, 
and of the Holy Spirit,
Amen.

Acts 1:3–8, 21–22
Acts 2:31–32
Acts 4:1–2
Acts 5:30–32
Acts 17:18

In the opening verses of the Book of Acts we read: 

After Jesus’ suffering, 
He presented Himself to them 
and He gave many convincing proofs 
that He was alive. 
He appeared to them 
over a period of forty days 
and spoke about 
the kingdom of God. 
On one occasion, 
while He was eating with them 
(because He was alive and embodied), 
He told them this:
“You will receive power 
when the Holy Spirit comes on you; 
and you will be My witnesses.”


Shortly after Jesus’ ascension, Peter reminded the early believers about Judas, who had betrayed Jesus, and Peter said:

It is necessary 
to choose one of the men 
who have been with us the whole time 
the Lord Jesus was living among us. 
For one of these 
must become 
a witness 
with us 
of His resurrection.


In the very next chapter, a crowd gathered, and Peter stood and proclaimed:

Seeing what was to come, 
Jesus spoke 
of the resurrection 
of the Messiah. 
He was not abandoned 
to the realm 
of the dead, 
nor did His body see decay. 
God has raised 
this Jesus 
to life, 
and we are all witnesses of it.


And then, in Acts Chapter 3 and 4, Peter preached to the onlookers after healing the lame man. He proclaimed:

You killed the Author of Life, 
but God 
raised Him 
from the dead. 
We are witnesses of this.

The priests 
and the captain of the temple guard 
and the Sadducees 
came up to Peter and John 
while they were speaking to the people. 
They were greatly disturbed 
because the apostles 
were teaching the people, 
proclaiming in Jesus 
the resurrection 
of the dead. 


And then, again, in the very next chapter, before the full assembly of the elders of Israel, Peter and the apostles told the Sanhedrin:

The God of our ancestors 
raised Jesus from the dead — 
whom you killed 
by hanging Him 
on a cross. 
God exalted Him 
to his own right hand 
as Prince and Savior. 
We are witnesses 
of these things, 
and so is the Holy Spirit, 
whom God has given 
to those 
who obey Him.


And finally, later on in Acts, Paul is in Athens, Greece, and this happened:

A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers 
began to debate with Paul. 
Some of them asked, 
“What is this babbler trying to say?” 
Others remarked, 
“He seems to be advocating foreign gods.” 
They said this 
because Paul was preaching 
the good news 
about Jesus and the resurrection. 

Father, 
you have made us witnesses 
to the resurrection — 
to the reality 
that Jesus is alive 
and has an embodied existence 
beyond the grave — 
that He was not simply 
a resuscitated corpse, 
that He was not simply 
an immortal soul 
finally freed 
from bodily existence. 
You have made us witnesses 
to the reality 
that between the humiliated, crucified Jesus of Nazareth 
and the resurrected exalted Messiah and Lord, 
there is 
a radical 
consistency.  

And it is because 
you have given to us 
your Holy Spirit, 
and He 
is a witness 
to this resurrection. 

You raised to life the One 
who was utterly rejected 
by Jewish leaders — 
the very leaders 
whose status 
and power 
and prestige 
and legitimacy 
came from the fact 
that they were the ones 
who knew the scripture 
and could interpret Your will.

You raised to life the One 
who was utterly rejected 
by Roman leaders — 
leaders whose social and political positions 
were maintained 
by their careful attention 
to status, 
and to title, 
and to honor. 
And Jesus — 
the one You exalted 
and to whom You gave the highest place — 
He was the very One 
Who suffered in a way 
that, to the Romans, 
would have been 
the ultimate humiliation — 
publicly executed 
naked 
on a cross. 

What a profound irony. 
It calls into question 
every power, 
every authority, 
every world order 
practiced by the elite. 
It did then. 
And it still does now. 

Your Spirit transformed the first believers — 
the incapable, 
the inept, 
the untrained, 
the disgraced, 
the low-status first believers — 
transformed into bold, 
unbridled, 
fearless witnesses 
who stood before kings, 
rulers, 
leaders, 
scholars, 
philosophers, 
and gave testimony 
to the resurrection. 
This same Spirit 
is in us — 
the same spirit 
that is witness 
to the same resurrection. 

Father, 
help us to understand 
that our own discipleship — 
and our mission as assembled people — 
is based on 
and determined by 
the resurrection of Jesus Christ. 
Not on our abilities. 
Not on our talent 
or eloquence 
or intelligence. 

Your power — 
the power 
that was visible 
in Jesus’ ministry 
and on full display 
in His resurrection — 
that power — 
has been folded into 
each one of our daily lives 
and into the daily life 
of this church community. 

And now 
our existence 
is to be an existence that matches the story of Jesus — 
a story of suffering 
and resurrection, 
a story of rejection 
and glory. 

So, 
establish each one of us, 
Father, 
wherever we are, 
in whatever place we spend most of our time — 
our homes, 
our places of employment, 
our schools — 
establish us as witnesses 
of the resurrection. 
Let it be known 
that we derive our identity 
from the ongoing life and reality 
of the One who lived 
and died 
and was raised. 
Make that same power 
glaringly evident 
in our lives. 
Make that same power 
unambiguously palpable 
through the mission 
of this little church. 

Enable us 
to give testimony 
to the resurrection 
of Jesus Christ. 

In the name of Jesus Christ, 
Whom You raised from the dead, 
Whom You exalted to Your own right hand as Prince and Savior, 
through Whom we have received the promise of our own resurrection,
Amen

1 Corinthians 15:35–49
2 Corinthians 3:17–18
Romans 8:9–11

Paul used a lot of ink helping new believers understand the resurrection. It was a central theme in all his preaching. And so it makes sense that he’d write about it often in his letters. 


In his letters to the Corinthians, he wrote this:

Someone will ask, 
“How are the dead raised? 
With what kind of body do they come?” 

What you sow does not come to life unless it dies. 

So is it with the resurrection of the dead. 
What is sown is perishable; 
what is raised is imperishable. 
It is sown in dishonor; 
it is raised in glory. 
It is sown in weakness; 
it is raised in power. 
It is sown a natural body; 
it is raised a spiritual body. 

The first man Adam became a living being; 
the last Adam became a life-giving spirit. 
But it is not the spiritual that is first but the natural, 
and then the spiritual. 
The first man was from the earth, 
a man of dust; 
the second man is from heaven. 
As was the man of dust, 
so also are those who are of the dust, 
and as is the man of heaven, 
so also are those who are of heaven. 
Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, 
we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven.


Now, the Lord is the Spirit, 
and where the Spirit of the Lord is, 
there is freedom. 
And we all, 
with unveiled face, 
beholding the glory of the Lord, 
are being transformed into the same image 
from one degree of glory to another. 
For this comes from the Lord 
who is the Spirit.


And in his book to the Romans, Paul wrote:

You, however, 
are not in the flesh 
but in the Spirit, 
if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. 
Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ 
does not belong to Him. 
But if Christ is in you, 
although the body is dead because of sin, 
the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 
If the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, 
He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead 
will also give life to your mortal bodies 
through His Spirit 
who dwells in you.

Father in heaven, 
we so look forward to a future 
when we will have resurrected bodies!
When these bodies, 
weighed down by the curse of sin, 
will be sown like seeds in the ground 
and buried. 
But they will not stay buried. 
They will be raised. 
Not as copies of our old bodies. 
And not as ghosts. 
But as bodies so completely transformed by Your Spirit, 
so thoroughly filled with Your Spirit, 
so made new by Your Spirit 
that they will shine with incorruptible life. 
Your Spirit will make them imperishable. 
They will radiate glory instead of dishonor. 
They will pulse with power instead of weakness.

You will renew our bodies so completely; 
they will become perfectly suited 
to a whole new and flawless kind of physical existence. 
Not vague. 
Not ghostly. 
But living. 
Breathing. 
Fully human. 
And You will surround us 
with a world beautifully and perfectly crafted 
for these new bodies— 
a world where we will finally 
truly 
live.

This story is far from finished. 
But it will reach its climax 
in a place of perfection. 
There, we will fully bear the image 
of the Heavenly One— 
Jesus Christ— 
in our very bodies. 
He is the first instance of this Spiritual body. 
He is the first to have this upgrade. 
The first to be transformed. 

What happened to Him in resurrection— 
what He became, 
what He experienced, 
the unprecedented possession of the Spirit, 
the unprecedented transformation by the Spirit… 
so complete, 
so profound in His own humanity— 
what happened to Him 
will happen to us. 
His story 
is our promise.

He is the life-giving Spirit. 
That same Spirit that is among us now. 
Even now, 
transforming us into His own image. 
Moving us from one degree of glory to the next.

The age to come has already begun. 
The new creation we so look forward to  
has started with the resurrection of Your Son, 
Jesus Christ. 
The future You have promised 
has broken into the present.

Your Spirit’s work in us 
is joined to what began 
when You sent Your Son. 
And You will finish it when He returns. 
All that Your Spirit is doing in us now 
is the down payment on our future inheritance, 
and we are blessed 
to taste that future 
even now.

In the name of Jesus Christ, 
the Second Man, 
the Man of Heaven, 
the life-giving Spirit, 
Amen

Genesis 27
James 4:13–17
Proverbs 3:5–8
Romans 8:28

The old and blind Isaac asked, 
“Who are you, my son?”

And Jacob answered, 
“I am Esau, your firstborn.”

…and he deceived his father further and said, 
“Because the Lord your God granted me success.”

And after a six-fold deception, Isaac blessed him:
“See, the smell of my son 
is as the smell of a field 
that the Lord has blessed...
Let peoples serve you, 
and nations bow down to you.”

When Isaac and Esau discovered the deception, the story reads:
Then Isaac trembled very violently.
And when Esau heard the words of his father, 
he cried out with an exceedingly great and bitter cry.


James wrote: 

Come now, you who say, 
“Today or tomorrow, 
we will go into such and such a town 
and spend a year there 
and trade and make a profit”—
yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. 
What is your life? 
For you are a mist 
that appears for a little time 
and then vanishes.


In the Book of Proverbs, we read: 

Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
and do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge Him,
and He will make straight your paths.
Be not wise in your own eyes;
fear the Lord, and turn away from evil.
It will be healing to your flesh
and refreshment to your bones.


And to the Romans, Paul wrote: 

And we know that for those who love God 
all things work together for good, 
for those who are called 
according to His purpose.

O Lord our God,
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
we’ve come here this morning,
gathered before You in worship, 
because You are faithful, 
and because Your mercy 
does not rise or fall 
with our worthiness.

Your way of things — 
Your purposes — 
are not governed 
by our human customs 
or categories, 
or our ways of seeing the world,
or our natural strengths, 
or our family order of things, 
or our schemes,
but by Your own perfect love 
and by the freedom of Your perfect grace.

We are grateful that Your purpose stands 
even where our lives 
are confused, 
and fractured, 
and selfish, 
and controlling, 
and burdened by sin.

We thank You 
that Your faithfulness 
is greater than our failures,
and that Your mercy 
is not exhausted in any way
by the contradictions 
and the confusion
of our broken human hearts.

Merciful God,
we confess 
that we are more like Your people 
that we read about in the Old Testament 
than we wish to admit.

We, too, 
try to secure things 
through our anxiety— 
the things that can only be given by You, 
and received by faith.

We, too, 
try to manage, 
and grasp, 
and control 
what belongs only to Your freedom.

We, like them, are not heroes.
We, too, 
are sinners 
in need of grace.

Forgive us 
for the ways we manipulate, 
and compare, 
and resent, 
and fear, 
and strive for blessing on our own terms,
instead of resting—fully resting—in Your goodness 
and obeying Your Word.

Holy Spirit,
school our minds and our hearts 
as we come to Your Scriptures today.
Deliver us 
from shallow judgments, 
from moralism, 
from pride, 
and from the illusion 
that we somehow stand over Your Word 
and that our conclusions about it 
is what gives it its meaning.

Give us 
humility, 
and repentance, 
and attentiveness.

Teach us to hear You 
as You address us—
to be corrected, 
and renewed by You.

Enable Your Word to do more than just inform us. 
Grant that it would gather us again 
under Your truth 
and completely shape our understanding.

Lord of mercy,
we bring before You 
all of our brokenness.
You are not absent 
from our wounded histories, 
from our divided households, 
from our strained relationships, 
from our hearts that are troubled by regret and bitterness.

So, please bring healing 
where there is estrangement,
bring truth 
where there has been deceit,
bring peace 
where there is resentment,
bring humility 
where there is self-assertion.

Meet us 
in all the places 
where life is tangled and painful,
and show Yourself 
to be the God 
who works even in the midst 
of all our human brokenness.

God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,
as we hear Your word today, 
keep us mindful 
that this is not just a story 
or a mere record of human striving,
but part of a long holy history 
by which You have made ready 
the way for Jesus Christ—
by which You have prepared us 
to recognize You 
in the coming of Your Son.

So, lead us 
through the witness of these stories 
into the fullness of Your self-revelation,
so that we may see more clearly 
all the glory,
all the grace,
all the love, 
in Your incarnate Son.

And Lord, 
deliver us from treating any of Your blessings 
as our possession 
or our privilege.

Teach us 
that Your calling 
is holy, 
and weighty, 
and yet full of mercy.

Where You call us, 
make us ready to serve.
Where You wound us, 
heal us.
Where You humble us, 
restore us.
And where You summon us into Your purpose, 
make us willing to follow.

We ask all this in the name of Jesus Christ,
Your beloved Son,
the true Elect One,
in whom Your judgment and mercy meet,
and in whom all Your covenant faithfulness is fulfilled 
for the life of the world.
Amen.