The day started out early for some of us at the Long’s for the 7am Sunrise service. Unfortunately, while the son came up briefly it was soon hidden by the advancing cloud cover.
St. Peter’s was well represented in scripture and song. Nancy and Helmut performed twice on "Because He Lives" and "Victory in Jesus." Catherine provided the opening prayer and Gospel reading. Both Memorial Baptist and Shiloh were represented. Rev Joe Dobbin of Shiloh presented the sermon on "First 7 Words After Resurrection."
A short gallery is here. The Longs offered a wonderful reception with various egg, sausage casseroles, doughnut, hash browns.
At 11am, we had 54 for Easter on an increasingly cloudy and by service time some light rain. Most of all it was just cold and damp. Not Easter like! A photogallery is here. The bulletin is here. The readings are here.
Some additions to the service this year – a set of wind chimes Catherine carried in procession. These are for preparation and meditation.
Also, with abundant children we had a children’s sermon before the main one. The metaphor of a flower bulb that rises is a wonderful metaphor for the risen Christ.
We continued singing the psalm but this time with the A and B parts sung in harmony by Paige, Catherine, Eunice and Helmut. As with last year we lit the paschal fire, symbolizing the new light from Christ this Easter.
The sermon drew a parallel between Adam (the first adam) and Jesus (the second). "On this day from a tomb in the middle of a garden, a first fruit has been harvested, this time by God Almighty, the Creator of heaven and earth. God has raised his cherished Son, Jesus Christ, the apple of his eye, from the dead. And in resurrecting Jesus, God strikes a mighty blow against the cosmic forces of sin and evil that were unleashed in the world so long ago when Adam and Eve bit into the fruit that hung from the tree in the center of the Garden of Eden. "
It was a miracle beyond miracles with differing descriptions from the Gospel writers. No one is clear on who was there or what they were wearing. In Luke there are two men, John two Angels, and Mark one young man
And we are part of the story. "Here’s the Good News for us. Paul tells us that we will ALL be part of God’s eventual harvest of fruit—“For as ALL die in Adam, so ALL will be made alive in Christ"
In the meantime – "Let’s turn to today’s Psalm for guidance here—about how we are to live as we wait for God’s ultimate victory. “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, his mercy endures forever.”
In the first creation story God drove Eve and Adam out of the garden. But in this new creation Jesus sends Mary out of the garden rejoicing. More than the other discriples she has it right. She is sent out to tell everyone the darkness has not overcome the Word made flesh who had lived among us. She had seen her Rabbi, and she now understood that she has seen "the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth." (John 1:14) "I have seen the Lord." (John 20:18) Her message declares to us the new beginning that God has prepared for all of us.