Good Friday Full Worship Liturgy, Matthew

Call to Worship  

L  The Lord be with you.

P  And also with you

                                

1. PRAYER                                          MATTHEW 26:36

Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.”

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name.

Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. 

Give us this day our daily bread.

Lead us not into temptation and deliver us from evil.

For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.

2. HE NAIL OF STUMBLING                               MATTHEW 26:37-40

He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled.  Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.” Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.” Then he came to the disciples and found them sleeping; and he said to Peter, ‘So, could you not stay awake with me one hour? 

(Silent Meditation & Extinguishing of Candles)

Let all mortal flesh keep silence, And with fear and trembling stand

Ponder nothing earthly minded, For with blessing in His hand,

Christ our God to earth descended, Our full homage to demand

3. THE NAIL OF BETRAYAL                                       MATTHEW 26:48-50

Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, “The one I will kiss is the man; arrest him.”  At once he came up to Jesus and said, “Greetings, Rabbi!” and kissed him.  Jesus said to him, “Friend, do what you are here to do.”  Then they came and laid hands on Jesus and arrested him.

4.. THE NAIL OF CRUELTY                                 MATTHEW 27:27-31, 39-42

Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the governor’s headquarters, and they gathered the whole cohort around him.  They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, and after twisting some thorns into a crown, they put it on his head.  They put a reed in his right hand and knelt before him and mocked him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!”  They spat on him, and took the reed and struck him on the head.  After mocking him, they stripped him of the robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him away to crucify him.

(Silent Meditation & Extinguishing of Candles)

Let all mortal flesh keep silence, And with fear and trembling stand

Ponder nothing earthly minded, For with blessing in His hand,

Christ our God to earth descended, Our full homage to demand

5. RESPONSIVE READING: THE PROMISE OF MERCY      Psalm 22:1-5a

We know what it is like to cry out, as the psalmist did 

My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

   Why are you so far from helping me, from the words of my groaning O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer;

   and by night, but find no rest.

Yet you are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel. In you our ancestors trusted; they trusted, and you delivered them. To you they cried, and were saved.

6.   THE NAIL OF HATRED                                        Matthew 27: 41-44 

In the same way the chief priests also, along with the scribes and elders, were mocking him, saying, ‘He saved others; he cannot save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down from the cross now, and we will believe in him. He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he wants to; for he said, “I am God’s Son.” ’The bandits who were crucified with him also taunted him in the same way.

Lift up your hearts

We lift them up to the Lord

7. RESPONSE: ACT OF CONFESSION                                          

     You are invited to nail your sins to the cross

(Silent Meditation & Extinguishing of Candles)

King of kings, yet born of Mary, As of old on earth He stood, Lord of lords in human vesture, In the body and the blood. He will give to all the faithful, His own self for heavenly food. 

8. COMMUNION

Let us give thanks to the Lord our God

It is right to give our thanks and praise…Jesus our teacher, our brother, our friend knowing he was going to be betrayed and die, he took the bread and broke it and said, this is my body broken for you Then Jesus took the cup and said: “I am poured out like water, and my bones are out of joint” And even though Jesus knew that he would feel alone, he knew he would call out “My God, my God, Elohim, Elohim why have you forsaken me?” He poured himself out, sacrificing his very self for our sins. Every time we eat this bread and drink this cup, we proclaim the death of Jesus until he comes again.

9.  DARK MATTHEW 27:48-51

From noon on, darkness came over the whole land^* until three in the afternoon. And about three o’clock Jesus cried with a loud voice, ‘Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?’ that is, ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’ Then Jesus cried again with a loud voice and breathed his last.^* At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. The earth shook, and the rocks were split. 

(Silent Meditation & Extinguishing of Candles)