Easter Week Services at Christ Reformed

Maundy Thursday, April 1 at 7:30 PM

Sermon: Love One Another

Scripture references: Leviticus 19:1–19 & John 13:31–14:4

Good Friday, April 2 at 7:30 PM

Sermon: They Will Look on Him, Whom They Have Pierced

Scripture references: Psalm 22, Isaiah 52:13-53:12 & John 19:1-37

Easter Sunday, April 4 at 10:25 AM

Sermon: Jesus Is the Christ

Scripture references:  Isaiah 25:1–9 & John 20:1–31

You are cordially invited!

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Comments

[Richard]

I've been trying to get my Reformed pastor to do Maundy Thursday services at our PCA church. No such luck. Any advice on lighting a fire under him?

[Timinator]

Sorry to hear that Richard. If you don't have a reformed church in your area willing to do a Maundy Thursday service you can always listen to CRC's as they well put it on the website to listen to later

[Lloyd I. Cadle]

How awful, a pastor doesn't want to do a Maundy Thursday service. Maybe the pastor should get another "job".

What a lazy, complacent pastor!

[George]

Realize, y'all, that to hold services like Maundy Thursday means that the pastor is more or less following the "church year" calendar, something that evangelicals by-and-large do not do. I once asked one of them why they did not celebrate Lent or Advent and they replied, "We do!" Then I asked how, why, where, and when since I didn't observe that they had any special services. They said, "Oh, well we celebrate the season of Advent during the Sunday services (with the lighting of the Advent candle along with a scripture reading)."

Then, I asked about Lent, since I did not observe any special message, scripture reading, or hymn singing, or services. They couldn't answer that. I suppose that the original reason for this might stem back to the 17th Century radical reformers and their obsession with avoiding anything that looked like a carry over from the Papists. But I also think that many evangelical pastors get so wrapped around the axle with expository preaching (not that there's anything wrong with that, per se!) that they can't deviate from their book of the Bible in order to pay attention to the church year events outside of the main holidays - Christmas and Easter.

By the way, why do the stained glass windows at that Christ Reformed church look like they are about two-thirds covered over with plywood? Vandals?

[Matthew Robinson]

George,

It's not plywood, it's Gold tiles.

[George]

Curmudgeonly behavior, poor eyesight, a tendency to jump to conclusions ... yep, I think I've turned the corner.

[Lloyd I. Cadle]

Most churches in America today celebrate the 4th of July, Mothers Day, Fathers Day, and other events that celebrate "us".

However, they don't have a clue about the richness of the "Church Year." What a great way to think about what Christ has done for us: The Adent, (Coming), four Sundays. Christmas, (Birth) Dec. 25th. Epiphany (Appearing), (January 6 and four to nine Sundays (The last three Sundays are sometimes considered a transition to Lent.) Lent (Suffering and Death), six Sundays including Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday (Institution of the Lord's Supper), and Good Friday. Easter (Resurrection), six Sundays. Ascension (Return to Heaven) forty days after Easter. Pentecost (Sending of the Holy Spirit), for fifty days after Easter.

Then we have the Non-Festival half of the Church Year, from June to November. And, it may included 22 to 27 Sundays.

Wow, does this add a lot to our lives as Christians!

[Steve]

"How awful, a pastor doesn't want to do a Maundy Thursday service. Maybe the pastor should get another "job".

What a lazy, complacent pastor! "

Really? Seems a bit too harsh.

[Lloyd I. Cadle]

Steve:

Where is the zeal that the pastor should have during the all important time of "Holy Week."

I have seen many retired pastors, when the regular pastor is out of town, preach on a Sunday morning and be excited about the events of the church year. For them, it is not a "job", but a privilege that they can still be used by God to preach the Law and the Gospel and to properly administer the Sacraments.

We are talking about a Reformed pastor here. Not about a Calvary Chapel pastor that might not have ever heard of a "Maundy Thursday" service.

[Robin]

Dear Pastor Kim,

The Maundy Thursday sermon was (as always) powerful and touching - especially taken in the context of the sequence you always present during Holy Week.

A guest who accompanied me was moved by the reverence and beauty of the service. Having been nearly starved to death, her smoldering cadlewick is gaining flame again.

It is a heavy sadness that overall The Church is spewing out rocks instead of the rich feast Christ ordained to serve the flock.

Meanwhile, we are so grateful to know that supper is always ready, at Christ Reformed!

[Steve]

Lloyd - I understand the importance - but does not having a Maundy Thursday service automatically make a pastor lazy and complacent? I grew up in a reformed church (and not just a nominal reformed church only) and NEVER saw a Maundy Thursday service. Come out of the cage my friend. The church calendar is much more important and followed much more closely in Lutheran churches than in Reformed.

[Lloyd I. Cadle]

Steve:

The church year calendar is a great part of our Lutheran tradition. With the blue and purple colors of the Advent Season. We will use white during our Christmas Season. Our Epiphany Season has white and green. During our Lenten Season, we'll use black and purple. During Holy week, we'll use purple, white and black. During Easter, including The ascension of Our Lord, we'll get into white. During our Pentacost season, we'll use red, white and green. During End Time season, we'll use red during Reformation Sunday. Red is also used in Second Sunday of End Time (Last Judgment).

During the Third Sunday of End Time, (Saints Triumphant), we'll use white. During the Last Sunday of End Time (Christ the King), white is also used.

Then, of course, we also have our calendar dates for the Christian Church Year, and the one and three year Lectionary readings. This actually allows the pastors to go through the entire Bible.

Once you get into the Church Year calendar, it adds so much to the life of a Christian. You never look at a regular calendar the same way again.

You gotta love the deep, rich, colorful, historical, confessional and liturgical Lutheran tradiition.

Brother Steve, my friend; don't let me "out of the cage."

Happy Easter to all my Riddleblog friends, and of course, especially pastor Kim!

[Charles L. Baker]

Not observing Maundy Thursday does not mean a pastor is lazy. It is a historical fact that the Westminster Directory of Publique Worship decimated, destroyed, and repudiated the historic liturgy of the Church, including Biblical elements like chanting the Psalms and the Canticles. No one, of course, should or can take issue with the command to preach, teach, administer the Sacraments, and absolve. The Church has always chanted the Psalms, but the Reformed went to paraphrases instead (?). Also, the catechical value of the Church Years was rejected, which is one reason for its existence. Our Lutheran brethren are correct in affirming the normative function of Holy Writ over worship.