Pioneer Presbyterian Church
Resurrection Day Worship
10 a.m. April
17, 2022
PRELUDE
CHOIR INTROIT
*Processional
Hymn of Glory: “Jesus
Christ is Risen Today! Glory #232
*Resurrection
Day Greeting
The light of
Christ has come into the world.
The
light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.
Christ the Lord
is risen today!
He
is risen indeed! Alleluia!
*Prayer of
Rejoicing
*Call to
Worship
Rejoice, heavenly powers! Sing, choirs of angels! All
creation worships before God’s throne! Jesus Christ our King is risen! Sound
the trumpet of salvation!
Let there be shouts of joy on earth and in heaven! Death shall have no
dominion! Jesus Christ the Living One has broken the kingdom of death!
Rejoice, O earth, in shining splendor, radiant in the
brightness of your King! Christ
Jesus has conquered! Sin’s bleak bondage is broken; you are
free! Darkness is
vanquished forever!
Let songs of triumph resound across the whole wide earth! Sing, choirs
of
angels! Jesus Christ our King is now risen from the dead!
Rejoice, people of God! Exult in glory! The risen Savior
shines upon you! He puts
death’s dark shadows to flight! Because he lives, we also
shall live!
Let the household of faith acclaim: Death has been swallowed up in
victory! For as
in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive! Thanks be to
God who
gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!
Call to
Confession
Prayer of
Confession
Gracious God, we have heard the good news: How on the third
day, you raised
Jesus from the dead, vindicating his
mission as the world’s Savior. He has
commissioned us as messengers of the
gospel of life. But we are distracted by lesser
things. We focus on our griefs and losses
instead of walking in the resurrection life
of our risen Lord. Forgive our inattention
toward the things that matter most. Day
by day, give us grace to leave the tombs
of fear and to live in glorious hope, through
Jesus the Christ, who lives and reigns
with you and the Holy Spirit, Amen.
Assurance
of Pardon
Friends, God did not send his Son into the
world to be its judge, but to be its Savior.
We rejoice in the good news: In Jesus
Christ, we are forgiven. Thanks be to God!
Passing the Peace
The peace of the Lord Jesus
Christ be with you!
And also with you!
Let us share the peace of Christ
with each other.
Glory be to the Father
Glory be to the Father, and
to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost; as it was in the
beginning, is now and ever
shall be, world without end. Amen.
Time with Children
The Easter Homily of St. John Chrysostom
Choir Anthem “Jesus
Paid It All”
arr. Jean J. Pinkston
Gospel Lesson: John 20:1-10
Message: “Running Toward Resurrection” Pastor Daryl R. Wilson
Pioneer PC Resurrection
Day
John 20:1-18 April 17, 2022
“Running Toward Resurrection”
Pastor Daryl R. Wilson
If you’re like me—and I’m
supposing you are, at least in this respect—then for you Resurrection Day is a big
deal. Not for the pretty dresses, bunnies, bonnets, breakfasts, colored eggs,
and candy—those things are fun, but they’re extraneous. No, this day matters
because as the Apostle Paul wrote, “If
Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your
sins. Then those who have died in Christ have perished. If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all people
most to be pitied” (1 Cor. 15:17-19).
So, for our own sakes and the
sake of everyone we love who has died in the faith of Jesus Christ, on this day
of days we’re hoping we haven’t bet the farm on a bad wager. Either this
crucified man was raised from the dead—in time and space, in flesh and blood,
mind you, and not merely in sacred imagination or mass hallucination—or we’ve squandered our hopes,
misdirected our faith, and wasted our lives, and our fate is sealed. We’ve
lost. Lost it all.
So, you’re here because you have
a lot at stake, and you want to believe. Perhaps you’re thinking, “I just wish
I could have the faith of the twelve disciples. If only I’d been an eyewitness,
then I could be sure.” Well, I’m here to help! Isn’t that what preachers are
for? Here’s what you need to do to have the Easter faith of the disciples: Take up running. You don’t need to run a
marathon, but you need to cover intermediate distances in a good time. A mile
would be a good distance. To help you further, I’ve researched one-mile races
you can enter around the U.S.—you know, so you can measure your progress.
Boise offers the Cupid’s Undie Run. If sunshine on your
shoulders makes you happy, aim for the Nearly Naked Mile in Iowa City. Conversely, if running makes you frown, hotfoot
it to the Grim Mile in Chicago. Need
a little dough to get by? Try your luck at the Dash for Cash in Laurinburg, NC. Better odds than lottery tickets! Forgot
to shave? Take on the Mustache Mile
in Reston, VA. New washer at home? Test it out with the Mighty Mud Mania Mile in Scottsdale. Or, have a blast at the Bust-a-Gut One Mile Fun Run in Missoula
and the Zombie Trot in Butte. Don’t
say I never did anything to help you!
The Bible reveals a connection
between resurrection and running. According to John’s Gospel, the first
response to the resurrection isn’t praise, prayer, or paralyzing fear. Those
come later. Nor is it shouts of joy, silent awe, or songs of glory. No, the
first response is running! Yes, running. A mile or so. It begins this
way: In the wee small hours of Sunday morning, before dawn, Mary Magdalene
approaches the tomb where her friends had laid the Lord’s body on Friday
afternoon. In the grace of God, a woman becomes the first witness to the
resurrection. In those days women were judged to be unreliable witnesses and
their testimony wasn’t permitted in court. You think the Early Church just made
up this tale of an empty tomb and a risen Savior? Then why make women the first
witnesses, if they wanted anyone to believe the story? Maybe because it’s true.
Throughout the Bible, God chooses women for vital roles. Don’t believe the uninformed
when they tell you women are subservient to men and have no place in
leadership. As the Brits say, “As if!” Some people need to read the
Bible without sexist lenses clouding their understanding. If Almighty God bases
the whole Jesus movement on the witness of a woman, women can preach and lead.
Yet it isn’t resurrection that Mary
Magdalene understands at first; it’s the dismaying discovery that the
tomb is empty. Someone must have stolen his body!
Alarmed, Mary sets off like Usain
Bolt bursting from the blocks. She runs with all her might to find Peter and
John and report the awful news of grave robbery. Picture it: In the pre-dawn darkness,
a frightened woman flees from the yawning mouth of an empty tomb. Ever found
that scene depicted on an Easter card? Neither have I. But there she is. Your
first eyewitness.
When Mary finds her friends, she
gasps out her startling report. Peter and John take off running like a pack of
wild dogs is at their heels. They’re both running toward something, running until their lungs are bursting, running
toward the immense mystery that awaits them at the empty tomb. But then, John
reports, they also begin to run against
each other. The adrenaline kicks in and their heart-pounding dash becomes a
race. “Last one there is a rotten Easter
egg!” Why the competition? Well, the two had been rivals for years, each
vying for center stage, each jostling for attention from Jesus. They start
running out of some mixture of rising hope and sinking fear, but along the way
the rivalry kicks in. The pace picks up—each man determined to get there before
the other.
But there’s more here than two
disciples running the first Miracle Mile. It’s not surprising that John wins,
since he’s much younger than Peter, perhaps even a teenager in the physical
prime of life. The deeper point is that they’re not merely running toward a
mysteriously empty tomb. They don’t realize it yet, but they’re also running
toward the future, toward resurrection, toward a whole new life; world remade.
When they start running, they’re followers of a dead rabbi; when they finish, they’ll
be disciples of the Risen, Conquering Christ.
So, when John reports that he “outran Peter and reached the tomb first,”
he’s not bragging; he’s making a profound theological statement. When John
reached the tomb “he bent down to look
in and saw the linen wrapping lying there, but he did not go in.” Then
Peter comes up, stumbling and puffing, and elbows John aside. Stooping down, he
enters the tomb and is astonished to see Jesus’ grave clothes neatly folded,
not flung about by robbers looking for loot. Peter doesn’t know what to think.
Then John goes in, “and he saw and
believed.”
Which means he’s not just first
in the race to the tomb; he’s also first in the way he comes to believe. The first of a vast multitude to follow.
The first to believe in the resurrection the way we do. The others will come to belief as well, but not like John.
Mary believes when she actually sees the risen Jesus and hears him call her
name. The others—including Peter, as far as we can tell—believe when Jesus
appears to them that night, says, “Peace
be with you,” and shows them his wounded hands and side (20:19-20). Thomas isn’t there for that great
occasion, and when the others tell him, “We
have seen the Lord!” he says, “I have to see for myself. I have to touch
those nail marks in his hands, that wound in his side, otherwise forget it”
(20:25). He only comes to believe when the risen Jesus steps toward him and
offers, “Put your finger here and see my
hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.”
But the beloved disciple is
different. He believes when he sees…nothing.
He doesn’t see Jesus. He can’t touch Jesus. Jesus doesn’t call
his name. John looks around the empty tomb and remembers what Jesus predicted
on the road to Jerusalem: “The Son of
Man will be condemned to death; then mocked and flogged and crucified; and on
the third day he will be raised.”
“It all fits,” he thinks. “Everything
has happened the way Jesus predicted. Here we are on the third day. This isn’t
a crime scene! This isn’t a scam! Jesus is alive!” Thus, John is the first person to arrive at resurrection; the first to believe that a
risen Savior is on the loose; the first person on earth to wake up and glimpse
the dawn of God’s new creation. Not because of Jesus’ presence, but because of
his absence. All he has to go on is Jesus’
word and an empty tomb.
Do you understand now why John
thought it was so important to let us know who won that race to the graveyard?
He wants us to know that the first believer in the Resurrection came to believe
the same way you and I must—not
seeing the risen Jesus. He has no video evidence, no DNA samples to match, and
neither do we. He doesn’t even yet understand how the Jewish Bible points to
belief in a Suffering Messiah, so that gives us a leg up on him. But like John,
the risen Jesus hasn’t come to us in a graveyard and gently called our name.
The risen Jesus hasn’t found us and offered his wounded hands for us to touch.
You see, the message of the angels isn’t only, “He is risen!” but also, “He isn’t here.”
“Have you believed because you have seen me?” Jesus asks Thomas in
v. 29. “Blessed are those who have not
seen and yet have come to believe.” By this he means us, and John, our
forerunner in the faith. John believes in the resurrection because he knows and
trusts Jesus. Though Jesus is nowhere to be seen, he doesn’t fear abandonment.
Jesus’ love becomes a light shining in the darkness and so John bets his life
that the Lord’s absence means that now he’ll be present everywhere. He bets everything on the impossible hope that
Jesus has been raised from the dead. Now we know two truths about John: He’s
crazy—a fool for Christ—and he has won. For Jesus has indeed been raised from
the dead.
And so we believe today, too. Not
because of proofs or evidence, but because John knew and trusted Jesus, and we
do, too. John told the story of the empty tomb and the risen Jesus to others,
and they believed it, too. They told the story to still others, and those
others passed this great wonder along, down a vast line of believers, all the
way to us. And so we, too, bet everything on this one hope, that “Jesus Christ
is Risen today!”
Therefore, run…
Don’t wait. Run as fast as you
can. Run with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength. Run because
the grave is empty. Run toward resurrection. “He is not here; for he has been raised, just as he said.” Run
because the story is true. Run and tell your brothers and sisters that Jesus is
alive. On Friday afternoon God assaults death and hell. An all-out war for
supremacy. Everything, everything, is at stake. Early Sunday
morning, God wins! By the grace of his Son, and by grace alone, so do we!
*Hymn of Response: “Thine is
the Glory” Glory #238
Prayers of the People and the Lord’s Prayer
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed by
thy name. Thy Kingdom come, thy will
be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give
us this day our daily bread, and forgive us
our debts as we forgive our debtors. And
lead us not into temptation, but deliver us
from evil. For thine is the Kingdom and
the power and the glory forever. Amen.
Call to the Offering
Sharing Our Gifts With God
*Grateful Response:
Praise God from whom all blessings flow; Praise God all creatures here below;
Praise God above, ye heavenly host; Praise
Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.
*Prayer of Dedication
*Closing Hymn:
“Christ
is Risen! Shout Hosanna!” Glory #248
*Charge and Benediction
Go forth in the
resurrection power of Jesus Christ!
Thanks be to God! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.
Pastor: Daryl R. Wilson Liturgist: Jack
Bauer
Church Musician:
Linda Greenfield Music
Director: Carol Sawyer
Coffee
Hour: JoAnne
& Joanie
LOOKING AHEAD
4/17 Prayer
Shawl @ 1:00
4/17 Congregational pictures following the
service – Smile!
4/18
PNC meets at 8:00 a.m.
4/19 Women’s Spirituality at 10:30
Great
Figures of the New Testament meets at 7:00 p.m.
4/24
Deacon’s meet following the morning
service
4/30 Jennifer Schirm’s Memorial Service @ 12:00
PRAYER CARE:
For the people of Ukraine; Ralph Sawyer who
continues to improve at home; Larry Koskela with Shingles; Somer Bauer undergoing cancer treatments;
Darlene Wingfield, Mary and Ray Swarthout, George and Joyce Sahlberg, and
Margaret Dunbar dealing with declining health issues. Our thoughts and prayers
are with our friends and family near and far.
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LECTIONARY For 4/24/22:
Acts 5:27-32 and Ps. 118:14-29 or Ps. 150 or
2 Kgs. 7:1-16 and Ps. 2; Rev. 1:4-8; John 20:19--31
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