Sunday Worship March 29, 2020

CALL TO WORSHIP

Psalm 67:1-5

May God be gracious to us and bless us
 and make his face to shine upon us, Selah
that your way may be known on earth,
 your saving power among all nations.

Let the peoples praise you, O God;
 let all the peoples praise you!

Let the nations be glad and sing for joy,
 for you judge the peoples with equity
 and guide the nations upon earth. Selah

Let the peoples praise you, O God;
 let all the peoples praise you!

A Mighty Fortress Is Our God

How Sweet and Aweful is the Place

READING OF GOD'S WORD

Matthew 26

When Jesus had finished all these sayings, he said to his disciples, 2 “You know that after two days the
Passover is coming, and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified.”
3 Then the chief priests and the elders of the people gathered in the palace of the high priest, whose name
was Caiaphas, 4 and plotted together in order to arrest Jesus by stealth and kill him. 5 But they said, “Not
during the feast, lest there be an uproar among the people.” 6 Now when Jesus was at Bethany in the house
of Simon the leper, 7 a woman came up to him with an alabaster flask of very expensive ointment, and she
poured it on his head as he reclined at table. 8 And when the disciples saw it, they were indignant, saying,
“Why this waste? 9 For this could have been sold for a large sum and given to the poor.” 10 But Jesus,
aware of this, said to them, “Why do you trouble the woman? For she has done a beautiful thing to me.
11 For you always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me. 12 In pouring this ointment on
my body, she has done it to prepare me for burial. 13 Truly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is proclaimed
in the whole world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.” 14 Then one of the twelve,
whose name was Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests 15 and said, “What will you give me if I deliver
him over to you?” And they paid him thirty pieces of silver. 16 And from that moment he sought an
opportunity to betray him.

17 Now on the first day of Unleavened Bread the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Where will you have us
prepare for you to eat the Passover?” 18 He said, “Go into the city to a certain man and say to him, ‘The
Teacher says, My time is at hand. I will keep the Passover at your house with my disciples.’” 19 And the
disciples did as Jesus had directed them, and they prepared the Passover.
20 When it was evening, he reclined at table with the twelve. 21 And as they were eating, he said, “Truly, I
say to you, one of you will betray me.” 22 And they were very sorrowful and began to say to him one after
another, “Is it I, Lord?” 23 He answered, “He who has dipped his hand in the dish with me will betray me.
24 The Son of Man goes as it is written of him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed!
It would have been better for that man if he had not been born.” 25 Judas, who would betray him,
answered, “Is it I, Rabbi?” He said to him, “You have said so.”

26 Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and
said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” 27 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them,
saying, “Drink of it, all of you, 28 for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for
the forgiveness of sins. 29 I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink
it new with you in my Father's kingdom.”

30 And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives. 31 Then Jesus said to them,
“You will all fall away because of me this night. For it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep
of the flock will be scattered.’ 32 But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.” 33 Peter
answered him, “Though they all fall away because of you, I will never fall away.” 34 Jesus said to him,
“Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” 35 Peter said to
him, “Even if I must die with you, I will not deny you!” And all the disciples said the same.

36 Then Jesus went with them to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to his disciples, “Sit here, while I
go over there and pray.” 37 And taking with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, he began to be
sorrowful and troubled. 38 Then he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here,
and watch with me.” 39 And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.” 40 And he came to the
disciples and found them sleeping. And he said to Peter, “So, could you not watch with me one hour?
41 Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is
weak.” 42 Again, for the second time, he went away and prayed, “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I
drink it, your will be done.” 43 And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy.
44 So, leaving them again, he went away and prayed for the third time, saying the same words again.
45 Then he came to the disciples and said to them, “Sleep and take your rest later on. See, the hour is at
hand, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 46 Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is
at hand.” 47 While he was still speaking, Judas came, one of the twelve, and with him a great crowd with
swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the elders of the people. 48 Now the betrayer had given them a
sign, saying, “The one I will kiss is the man; seize him.” 49 And he came up to Jesus at once and said,
“Greetings, Rabbi!” And he kissed him. 50 Jesus said to him, “Friend, do what you came to do.” Then they
came up and laid hands on Jesus and seized him. 51 And behold, one of those who were with Jesus
stretched out his hand and drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his ear.
52 Then Jesus said to him, “Put your sword back into its place. For all who take the sword will perish by
the sword. 53 Do you think that I cannot appeal to my Father, and he will at once send me more than twelve
legions of angels? 54 But how then should the Scriptures be fulfilled, that it must be so?” 55 At that hour
Jesus said to the crowds, “Have you come out as against a robber, with swords and clubs to capture me?
Day after day I sat in the temple teaching, and you did not seize me. 56 But all this has taken place that the
Scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled.” Then all the disciples left him and fled.
57 Then those who had seized Jesus led him to Caiaphas the high priest, where the scribes and the elders
had gathered. 58 And Peter was following him at a distance, as far as the courtyard of the high priest, and
going inside he sat with the guards to see the end. 59 Now the chief priests and the whole council were
seeking false testimony against Jesus that they might put him to death, 60 but they found none, though
many false witnesses came forward. At last two came forward 61 and said, “This man said, ‘I am able to
destroy the temple of God, and to rebuild it in three days.’” 62 And the high priest stood up and said, “Have
you no answer to make? What is it that these men testify against you?” 63 But Jesus remained silent. And
the high priest said to him, “I adjure you by the living God, tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.”
64 Jesus said to him, “You have said so. But I tell you, from now on you will see the Son of Man seated at
the right hand of Power and coming on the clouds of heaven.” 65 Then the high priest tore his robes and
said, “He has uttered blasphemy. What further witnesses do we need? You have now heard his blasphemy.
66 What is your judgment?” They answered, “He deserves death.” 67 Then they spit in his face and struck
him. And some slapped him, 68 saying, “Prophesy to us, you Christ! Who is it that struck you?”
69 Now Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard. And a servant girl came up to him and said, “You also
were with Jesus the Galilean.” 70 But he denied it before them all, saying, “I do not know what you mean.”
71 And when he went out to the entrance, another servant girl saw him, and she said to the bystanders,
“This man was with Jesus of Nazareth.” 72 And again he denied it with an oath: “I do not know the man.”
73 After a little while the bystanders came up and said to Peter, “Certainly you too are one of them, for
your accent betrays you.” 74 Then he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, “I do not know the
man.” And immediately the rooster crowed. 75 And Peter remembered the saying of Jesus, “Before the
rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly.

PASTORAL PRAYER

Our Father, we come to You as unworthy sinners, with no merit of our own to approach Your throne of grace. Were it not for Your mercy, we would be completely undone in Your presence. And yet in Christ, You have welcomed us into Your throne room. Through His mediatorial work, we bring these requests to You, and You hear us. What an amazing privilege we have in prayer. Lord we pray that we would never take that for granted.

Lord we come to You in great need. We see the effects of this virus in the world around us, and we are grieved. We are grieved to see the scenes from the emergency rooms. Our hearts are burdened when we think of the many who are sick and dying, even in our very city. We groan with creation as we see the sin-cursed world that we live in, a world of disease and sorrow and death.

And so Lord, we call out to You, with the psalmist, “Rise up; come to our help! Redeem us for the sake of Your steadfast love!” We pray that You would act in a mighty way in our current crisis and reveal Your glory. We see in the Scriptures how You stopped plagues, how You healed the sick, how You cured uncurable diseases, how You are the LORD Our Healer. And so Lord we pray that this coronavirus pandemic would come to a quick end. We pray against its further spread, and we pray for the quick and full healing and recovery of those who are sick. We pray that You would act for the glory of Your name.

Lord we continue to pray for our appointed leaders. Even as we are always commanded to pray for those who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way, we especially cry out to You to grant them wisdom in this time. We pray for President Trump, for Governor Cuomo, for Mayor DeBlasio, and for all of our elected officials. We thank You that there is no authority except those that have been instituted by You, and we pray that You would be with them as they lead us through this situation.

We pray for the first responders in our city, everybody from the doctors and nurses and those working in the hospitals to those who serve us in the police department, fire department, and other emergency workers. Lord we thank You for their bravery in continuing to serve us, and we pray for Your hand of protection upon them. We pray especially for the members of this congregation who serve in these capacities, that You would indeed keep them safe and allow them to lean more fully upon You.

Lord we pray for our church specifically, that You would protect her members from sickness. Lord we pray that You would allow us to strengthen our bonds with each other, even while we are physically apart. We pray that You, in Your divine providence and wisdom, would give us gospel opportunities as we speak to our loved ones and friends and speak to them of the reason for the hope that is in us – a hope not rooted in this world, but a hope that looks ahead to a better country, a hope that sees this life as but a mist or a vapor compared to the eternity that we have with You. We pray that in this current season You would be conforming us more and more to the image of Your Son Jesus.

Lord we pray now for our time of worship on this Lord’s Day. We pray that even in our homes, in front of our computers and screens, that we would be able to tune out any distractions and worship You in spirit and in truth. For You indeed are great and greatly to be praised.

Amen.

Man of Sorrows

The Power of the Cross

TIME OF INDIVIDUAL PRAYER

Please take a few moments to pray to prepare your heart to receive the word of God.

THE MINISTRY OF THE WORD

Philippians 3:2-11

2 Look out for the dogs, look out for the evildoers, look out for those who mutilate the
flesh. 3 For we are the circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in
Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh— 4 though I myself have reason for
confidence in the flesh also. If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the
flesh, I have more: 5 circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of
Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; 6 as to zeal, a persecutor of
the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless. 7 But whatever gain I had, I
counted as loss for the sake of Christ. 8 Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the
surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss
of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in
him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which
comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith—
10 that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings,
becoming like him in his death, 11 that by any means possible I may attain the
resurrection from the dead.

I Want to Know You

WORSHIP THROUGH GIVING

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Great Is Thy Faithfulness

CHILDREN’S CHURCH

• Continue to memorize Philippians 4:4-7
• Read about the Last Supper (Luke 22:7-23). Emphasize that Jesus used the Passover meal with His disciples to teach them that He would die as the true passover lamb in order to save His people. Remind your children of the gospel, that Jesus died in our place for our sins in order to make us right before God.
• Discuss:
  • Why did Jesus choose to use the Passover meal to teach His disciples?
  • Why does Jesus have to die for our sin? What does this tell us about the seriousness of sin?
• Activity: Have a simplified Passover meal
  • Supplies needed: red grape juice (for the wine), vegetables (e.g. lettuce or cucumber pieces), small bowl of salt water, roast lamb, unleavened bread (matzah or pita), bitter herbs (e.g. parsley)
  • Show children the different items and ask them what they represent
    • Vegetables dipped in salt water: Tears of the Israelites while they were slaves
    • Lamb: Passover lamb which protected them from death
    • Unleavened bread: Reminder that the Israelites had to leave Egypt hastily
    • Bitter herbs: Reminder of their bitter time in slavery
    • Bread and Wine: Jesus’s body and blood
  • Remind them that just as God saved the Israelites from Egypt through the sacrifice of a lamb, He has provided a lamb for us - Jesus died in order to free us from eternal death
• Coloring sheet craft: Download Here