Koonung Heights – Surrey Hills Uniting Church
Service of Worship at Home
Easter Day – 20 April 2025 – 10am or whenever possible
You may like to light a candle during your time of worship.
Feel free to text the Peace to other members of the congregation.
During the service we will share Communion so you might like to have the elements ready.
Introit: “Easter Song” – (TiS 389)
Here the bells ringing, they’re singing that we can be born again.
Here the bells ringing, they’re singing, ‘Christ is risen from the dead.’
The angels upon the tomb stone said, ‘He is risen, just as he said.
Quickly now, go tell his disciples that Jesus Christ is no longer dead!’
Joy to the world, he is risen, alleluia, he’s risen, alleluia,
he’s risen, alleluia!, alleluia!, alleluia!
Candle Lighting:
Today is a day of celebration
for new life is released.
Christ is risen!
He is risen indeed!
Death has not won.
The grave has lost its sting.
Christ is risen.
Christ is risen indeed! Alleluia!
Acknowledgement of Country:
As we joyfully gather today,
we acknowledge that this is God’s land
and God’s Spirit dwells here.
I acknowledge the Wurundjeri WoiWurrung
People of the Kulin nations,
traditional custodians of this land under God.
I pay my respects to elders past and present,
and to all people who have guided us.
Call to Worship:
My dear friends,
we have known grief.
We have known loss.
We have known the long road, tired and winding.
We have whispered prayers on bended knees.
We have stared at the sky, empty of stars.
But today –
today we know hope.
Today we know life.
Today we know the sound of Alleluias.
Today we know that death does not have the last word.
Today we know that nothing can separate us from the love of God.
It is Easter.
May hope find you,
and may you know, deep in your bones,
that today is a new day.
Alleluia!
Amen.
Opening Prayer:
Resurrection God,
Christ the Lord is Risen today! Alleluia!
Our hopes and dreams have come true.
We do not have to fear death,
for Christ goes before us,
and we praise you
for the new life we have been given.
Open our hearts to receive your words of love
and prepare us for the opportunities to serve you
by serving others.
In Christ’s name we pray,
Amen.
We Sing: “At the dawning of salvation” – (TiS 392)
At the dawning of salvation; in the morning of the world,
Christ is raised, a living banner by the love of God unfurled.
Through the daylight, through the darkness, Christ leads on his great array:
all the saints and all the sinners he has gathered on his way.
He is risen in the morning, he is risen from the dead;
he is laughter after sadness, he is light when night has fled.
He has suffered, he has triumphed, life is his alone to give:
as he gave it once he gives it evermore, that we may live.
For the glory of salvation in the dawn of Easter day
we will praise you, loving Father; we rejoice to sing and pray
with the Son and with the Spirit. Lead us on, your great array,
saints and sinners celebrating your triumphant love today.
Call to Confession:
Faithful friends, today is a joyful day!
If I were to ask you what parts of today’s service feel joyful,
you’d probably say the music, the passing of the peace, the flowers in the sanctuary.
You might say the time for all, or the crowded room.
But it’s unlikely that any of you would name the prayer of confession,
because the prayer of confession has a reputation for being somber and serious.
But perhaps the prayer of confession can feel like a fresh page.
Maybe the prayer of confession can allow us to start again.
When we move closer to God,
we are always met with grace, mercy, and abundant love.
And my friends, that is joyful. That feels like Easter, doesn’t it?
So join me in the prayer of confession.
It’s a joyful day,
and that joy doesn’t stop here.
Prayer of Confession:
The Gospel of Luke says:
‘It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women with them who told the apostles [of the resurrection]. But these words seemed to the disciples an idle tale, and they did not believe them. But Peter got up and ran to the tomb.’ (Luke 24:10-12)
Forgive us, God,
when good news lands in our lap and we refuse to believe it.
Forgive us, God,
when grief and fear crowd out any room in our hearts for hope.
Forgive us, God,
when we dismiss the stories of others
and minimise the voices of our neighbours.
In a world that teeters between grief and hope,
show us how to be like Peter.
Show us how to hold onto hope.
Show us how to run toward you.
Amen.
Words of Assurance:
Family of Faith,
at first, the disciples didn’t believe that Jesus had risen.
They stayed locked in an upper room, shaking and afraid.
Peter was the only exception.
Fortunately, Jesus loves us on our best days and our worst days.
God’s grace exists for us when we are hopeful and when we are grieving,
when we’re shouting and when we’re silent,
when we’re full of faith and when we’re full of fear.
God’s grace exists for us on the best days,
the worst days, and every day in between.
Thanks be to God for this good news!
Alleluia! Amen.
We Sing: Jesus Christ is risen today – (TiS 362)
Jesus Christ is risen today, alleluia!
our triumphant holy day, alleluia!
who so lately on the cross, alleluia!
suffered to redeem our loss, alleluia!
Hymns of praise then let us sing, unto Christ, our heavenly king,
who endured the cross and grave, people to redeem and save.
But the pain that he endured our salvation has procured;
now exalted he is king, and the angels ever sing: alleluia!
Time for All:
There can be many things that remind us of Easter. These might be flowers, bunny rabbits, chocolate, Easter egg hunts and pretty Easter baskets. Some people might also think of a cross or a stone! I wonder what things you can think of? What reminds you of Easter?
When I was a little girl I lived in Sydney so one of the things that reminded me that Easter was coming up was the Easter Show. We always had a fantastic day there! There were sample bags to purchase, and baby animals to hold, District Food and craft displays, as well as the Grand Parade of animals and fireworks at the end of each day. It was magical – a bit like the Melbourne Show but, in my opinion, so much better.
At the Easter Show I used to love watching the mother hen’s sitting on their eggs. If you were really lucky sometimes you got to see one begin to crack open and, if you were patient, you might see a baby chick come out.
An egg means new life. An egg reminds us that there is new life inside which can come out. When we celebrate Easter we remember that it is the day that Jesus came out of the grave and that he was alive!
This morning I have brought an egg with me … an egg that helps remind us of what happened on Easter Sunday. When we crack it open we will see that this egg is empty on the inside. This reminds me that when Jesus followers went to his tomb on Easter morning, the tomb was empty. An angel told Jesus’ friends that he wasn’t there, that he was alive! Because Jesus is alive we can celebrate new life too.
Let us pray …
Loving God,
today we celebrate that Jesus rose again.
We thank you for this, and the new life that we can have in Jesus.
Amen.
Bible Reading: Acts 10:34-43
– Gentiles Hear the Good News
34 Then Peter began to speak to them: “I truly understand that God shows no partiality, 35 but in every people anyone who fears him and practices righteousness is acceptable to him. 36 You know the message he sent to the people of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ – he is Lord of all. 37 That message spread throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John announced: 38 how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power; how he went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. 39 We are witnesses to all that he did both in Judea and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a tree, 40 but God raised him on the third day and allowed him to appear, 41 not to all the people but to us who were chosen by God as witnesses and who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead.
42 He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one ordained by God as judge of the living and the dead. 43 All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”
Bible Reading: Luke 24:1-12
– The Resurrection of Jesus
1 But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices that they had prepared. 2 They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, 3 but when they went in they did not find the body. 4 While they were perplexed about this, suddenly two men in dazzling clothes stood beside them. 5 The women were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here but has risen. 6 Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, 7 that the Son of Man must be handed over to the hands of sinners and be crucified and on the third day rise again.” 8 Then they remembered his words, 9 and returning from the tomb they told all this to the eleven and to all the rest. 10 Now it was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women with them who told this to the apostles. 11 But these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them. 12 But Peter got up and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he saw the linen cloths by themselves; then he went home, amazed at what had happened.
Reflection:
Grief is a healthy response to Jesus’ death and it’s a valid way to be in this dark space before the dawn of the new day. This is the space where the women find themselves as they come to the empty tomb. Yet, amidst their mourning, they are given hope. Most of the other disciples don’t believe their message, yet Peter, living in the in-between of grief and hope, runs to the tomb to see for himself. Grief doesn’t have to leave us without hope. In fact, when we find hope it can compel us to take action, even when we are deep in grief.
Of course we can all have moments of grief, and there is nothing wrong with sitting in grief. It is the posture that we hold on Holy Saturday, because our grief is a bittersweet memento of love. We need to grieve, but we also need to make room for that which is better, so that our grief doesn’t become our everything. Grief is liminal, not terminal, and it should never crowd out the truth that we have loved and been loved. As the saying says – While there’s life there’s hope!
‘He is not here but has risen!’ These seven words hold so much for the women who hear them as they arrive at the tomb and find it empty. Seven words of hope that hold wonder, faith, fulfillment, possibility and promise. These words are, in the midst of their grief, an invitation to memory for the women, ‘remember what he told you …’. They are words that need to be shared and believed.
After Jesus was crucified, and died, according to the gospel of Luke, Joseph from Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. He took it down, wrapped it in a linen cloth and laid it in a rock-hewn tomb where no one had ever been laid. The author of Luke’s gospel goes on to tell us that … ‘the women who had come with him from Galilee followed, and they saw the tomb and how his body was laid. Then they returned, and prepared spices and ointments. On the Sabbath they rested according to the commandment. But on the first day of the week, at early dawn’. This is where we meet them today. Making their way to the tomb.
If we can sit this story to one side for a minute, let’s have a brief look at the reading from Acts. Here we have Peter, the same disciple who runs to the tomb, speaking to a crowd gathered at the house of Cornelius. Cornelius is a Gentile, an Italian Centurian and a devoted man. Cornelius had summoned Peter because of a vision he has had, and is amazed that Peter, a Jew, would come at his request. We come into this story when Peter is explaining to Cornelius, and the gathered crowd, how he understands God. God shows no partiality, and anyone who believes in God and seeks to live in God’s way is forgiven and welcomed to the family of God. Peter then summarises Jesus’ story – his life, death and resurrection – as well as the mission that they have been given. Peter truly understands that God doesn’t show any favouritism, and I wonder whether part of that understanding came from the scene unfolding with the women at the tomb? While the other disciples were sceptical of the story the women told, the hope it gave Peter was enough for him to move into action and run to the tomb.
Now back to the women. They come to the tomb bearing spices ready to anoint Jesus’ body, and they are perplexed because the stone is rolled away and the tomb is empty. They are then moved to fear when they meet the dazzlingly clothed men (the angels) and they lower their faces to the ground as the angels ask, ‘Why do you look for the living among the dead?’ With their eyes cast earthwards, the women have forgotten the promises of heaven and can’t see more than their own grief. Encountering emptiness, they have forgotten the promises of fullness of life, even in grief and death. As they remember Jesus’ words, they make their way back to the disciples and share their story.
The disciples don’t believe their story and dismiss it as an idle tale. In fact, one rendering of the Greek reads ‘but these words seemed like nonsense to them’. I wonder why the words seemed like nonsense? Was it because the story came from the mouths of women? Was it because the cold cloak of grief was hanging too thickly for anything else to break through? In the context of our contemporary lives, the response of the disciples doesn’t seem that surprising. In a world which seems beset by sorrow, suffering and heartbreak, a glimmer of good news can have a hard time breaking through the gloom. A glimpse of beauty can feel like foolishness amidst so much bad news.
However foolish the women sounded, their words gave Peter enough hope to go to the tomb and look for himself, and he comes back amazed. Is he amazed that the women were speaking the truth? Is he amazed that the women were the first to know of Jesus’ resurrection? Is he amazed because of the emptiness of the tomb, and does he remember the promises and what resurrection means? Maybe it’s part of all of the above. We will never really know, but I like to think that in this moment, Peter realised that God does not show partiality, but reveals the truth to those who come with care and compassion.
Maybe, too, he discovered that we should look for Jesus among the living, amongst those who have encountered the holy, regardless of gender, race, age, ability, or any of those other descriptors that threaten to divide and diminish us.
Do we remember Jesus’ words from John 10:10 – ‘I have come that they may have life, and have it abundantly’? Surely if we believe in the resurrection and are participating in this abundant life, then we should want to share Jesus’ story with others. In the same way that the women’s words brought hope to Peter, and Peter’s words brought hope to Cornelius, the story of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection can surely bring hope and life to others.
May we tell our stories with conviction and courage, and hold the stories of others with respect and gentleness, remember that Jesus’ came so that we might have life! May it be so.
Amen.
We Sing: “Alleluia, alleluia” – (TiS 390)
Alleluia, alleluia, give thanks to the risen Lord,
alleluia, alleluia, give praise to his name.
Jesus is Lord of all the earth; he is the king of creation.
Alleluia …
Spread the good news o’er all the earth: Jesus has died and has risen.
Alleluia …
God has proclaimed his gracious gift: new life for all! Alleluia!
Alleluia …
Prayer for Others (prepared by Peta Lowe):
When you hear the words, “Lead us, Lord”,
you are invited to respond,
“Lead us into your new life”.
God of the Resurrection,
We praise and thank you for your supreme power, by which you raised Jesus Christ from death to life.
We bring you our prayers for the world you love.
Inspire, guide, strengthen and empower your servants in this world today, who are working for peace, for justice and equity, for responsible climate action and for the welfare of all your creation.
Lead us, Lord. Lead us into your new life.
God of new life,
We praise and thank you for the new life you offer us through the resurrection of Christ.
We pray that, through your grace, new life will emerge in war ravaged places, in refugee camps and in places stricken by famine and climate disasters.
Lead us, Lord. Lead us into your new life.
God of hope,
We praise and thank you for the hope you offer us through Easter.
We pray for all who are struggling to find hope.
People who feel trapped by their circumstances,
By illness or disability,
By grief, by guilt or by despair.
We pray that your liberating love will reach them and set them free.
Lead us, Lord. Lead us into your new life.
God of the Church worldwide,
We praise and thank you for the momentous events of Easter, reverberating through the ages.
Reinvigorate our faith, strengthen our focus on you and our commitment to following Jesus.
Lead us, Lord. Lead us into your new life.
God of love,
We praise and thank you for the love, support, affirmation and fellowship we can enjoy here.
We pray for Rev. Heather and her family.
Bless, guide and strengthen Heather in her ministry with us and with our Presbytery.
We pray for the new life on which we are embarking as an amalgamated congregation.
Bless and guide our Interim Church Council who will meet later this month, and all who serve here.
We hold before you members of this congregation who are facing special challenges.
Lead us, Lord. Lead us into your new life.
God of Easter,
We praise and thank you for the Good News you have given us to share.
Help us to live as Easter people, always thanking and praising you, and reaching out to those around us in love.
Appreciating how generous you have been with us, help us to be generous with others.
We hold before you those we love, our families, friends and people we know to be in need.
Lead us, Lord. Lead us into your new life.
We bring our prayers in the name of Jesus Christ, whose resurrection from death to life we celebrate today,
Amen.
Communion:
The Peace
The Peace of the risen Christ be with you
and also with you.
Invitation to the Table
On that first Easter morning when the women discovered the empty tomb,
they told the disciples what they’d found.
When Peter heard the news, he ran to the garden.
He left the grief of the upper room, looking for a reason to hope.
Friends, maybe you are like Peter, running to this Table,
hungry and longing for a taste of good news.
Maybe you are like the other disciples,
hanging back, arms crossed, tentative and unsure.
Or maybe you are somewhere in between it all.
No matter where you stand and what you feel, this Table is for you.
The one who walked this earth,
healed the sick, welcomed the children, and loved the outcast,
welcomes you to this Table.
So, come.
Bring your grief. Bring your questions. Bring your hope.
Bring the messy middle of your life. Bring your faith and your dreams.
Bring it all, for God meets us exactly where we are,
smack-dab in the middle, with nothing but love.
So come. This Table is for you.
Great Prayer of Thanksgiving
God of yesterday, tomorrow, and right now,
God of the sun, the moon,
and the pink before dawn,
God of our head, our heart, and our gut,
we are full of Alleluias.
Holy God, we are full of Alleluias
because this morning the sun rose once again.
This morning, the birds sang for you,
children laughed, flowers bloomed, and hope was shared.
This morning, we heard how the stone was rolled away.
This morning we dare to believe that life is stronger than death
and love is stronger than evil.
So today, we are full of Alleluias,
today we are full of hope.
However, we know that not every day feels like today.
Just two days ago, we walked the path to the cross,
we remembered the violence humanity is capable of,
we remembered the cruelty that this world knows all too well.
So on this hopeful day, as well as on those grief-filled days,
we ask that you would meet us here.
Meet us in this sanctuary,
in this community and at this Table.
Pour out your Spirit on this bread and cup.
Roll back the stone, again and again, as many times as it takes for us to see you.
Call us by name, again and again, as many times as it takes for us to hear you.
Pull us from the trenches of our grief, and give us reason to hope.
As you do, we will keep singing your praises, we will come back to this Table,
we will continue to bring you our hope, our grief, and everything in between.
With a mouth full of Alleluias,
we join our voices once more to pray the prayer you taught us to pray, saying …
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name;
Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Save us from the time of trial and deliver us from evil.
For the Kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours now and forever. Amen.
The Story
Every time we gather at this table, we tell the same story –
the story of Jesus who gathered his friends together for one last supper,
the story of Jesus who died and was risen.
On the night of Jesus betrayal and arrest, as he shared a meal with his friends,
Jesus took bread; gave thanks, broke it, and gave it to his followers, saying:
“Share this bread among you; this is my body which will be broken for justice.
Do this to remember me.”
When supper was over, he took the cup, gave thanks and gave it to his disciples, saying:
“Share this wine among you; this is my blood which will be shed for liberation.
Do this to remember me.”
The meal is prepared: the bread of life, the cup of hope.
Let us feast and remember.
(eat and drink)
Prayer after Communion
God of the mountain, the valley, and every step in between,
may this meal be a fresh start.
May this moment, where all are fed and all are welcomed,
be the beginning of something new.
Show us how to carry the love we experience here
from the walls of this church
into the world we encounter in the days ahead.
Show us how to leave abundant breadcrumbs
of good news along our path
and everywhere in between.
With deep hope we pray,
Amen.
We Sing: “Yours be the glory” – (TiS 380)
Yours be the glory, risen, conquering Son,
endless is the victory over death you’ve won;
angels in bright raiment rolled the stone away,
kept the folded grave-clothes, where your body lay.
Yours be the glory, risen, conquering Son,
endless is the victory over death you’ve won.
See, Jesus meets us, risen from the tomb;
lovingly he greets us, scatters fear and gloom;
let the church with gladness hymns of triumph sing,
for the Lord is living, death has lost its sting.
Yours be the glory …
No more we doubt you, glorious Prince of life;
life is naught without you: aid us in our strife;
make us more that conquerors through your deathless love;
bring us safe through Jordan to your home above.
Yours be the glory …
Blessing and Sending:
He is not here; He is risen.
Let go all that holds you back
and go out to serve in joy and celebration,
in the strength of the steadfast love of God
which endures forever.
May the love of God,
the grace of Jesus the Christ,
and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit
be with you all.
And all the people say: Amen.
Thanks to all those who have assisted in preparation for this liturgy with encouragement, prayers and conversation. I have also utilised the following resources:
Sanctified Art (Everything in Between), Ministry Matters and Fig Tree Worship.