Reproaches
Thus says the Lord: What have I
done to you, O my people, and wherein have I offended you? Answer me. For I
have raised you up out of the prison house of sin and death, and you have
delivered up your Redeemer to be scourged. For I have redeemed you from the
house of bondage, and you have nailed your Savior to the cross. O my people!
C: Holy
Lord God, holy and mighty God, holy and most merciful Redeemer, God eternal,
leave us not to bitter death. O Lord, have mercy.
C: (Hymn
398 v. 1-2)
Not all the
blood of beasts On Israel's altars slain
Could give the guilty conscience peace Or wash
away the stain.
But Christ,
the heav'nly Lamb, Takes all our sins away,
A sacrifice
of nobler name And richer blood than they.
Second Reproach
P: Thus
says the Lord: What have I done to you, O my people, and wherein have I
offended you? Answer me. For I have conquered all your foes, and you have given
me over and delivered me to those who persecute me. For I have fed you with my
Word and refreshed you with living water, and you have given me gall and vinegar
to drink. O my people!
C: Holy
Lord God, holy and mighty God, holy and most merciful Redeemer, God eternal,
allow us not to lose hope in the face of death and hell. O Lord, have mercy.
C: (Hymn
398 v. 3)
In faith I
place my hand On that dear head divine,
As
penitently here I stand And lay on him my sin.
Third Reproach
P: Thus
says the Lord: What have I done to you, O my people, and wherein have I
offended you? Answer me. What more could have been done for my vineyard than I
have done for it? When I looked for good grapes, why did it yield only bad? My
people, is this how you thank your God? O my people!
C: Holy
Lord God, holy and mighty God, holy and most merciful Redeemer, God eternal,
keep us steadfast in the true faith. O Lord, have mercy.
C: (Hymn
398 v. 4-5)
My soul
looks back to see The burden you did bear
When
hanging on the cursed tree I know my guilt was there!
Believing,
we rejoice To see the curse remove;
We bless the Lamb with cheerful voice And sing
his bleeding love.
Confession and Absolution
P: O almighty God, merciful Father,
C:
I, a poor miserable sinner, confess to you all my sins and iniquities with
which I have ever offended you and justly deserved your punishment both now and
forever. But I am truly sorry for my sins and sincerely repent of them, and I
pray you of your boundless mercy and for the sake of the holy, innocent, bitter
sufferings and death of your beloved Son, Jesus Christ, to be gracious and
merciful to me, a poor sinful being.
P: Upon this, your confession, I, by virtue of my office as
a called servant of the Word, announce the grace of God to all of you, and in
the stead and by the command of my Lord Jesus Christ I forgive you all your
sins in the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.
C:
Amen.
Prayer of the Day for Good Friday
P: Let us pray.
P: God
Most Holy, look with mercy on this, your family, for whom our Lord Jesus Christ
was willing to be betrayed, be given over into the hands of the wicked, and
suffer death upon the cross. Keep us always faithful to him, our only Savior,
who now lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and
ever.
C:
Amen.
Hymn 568 His Robes for Mine
1. His
robes for mine: O wonderful exchange!
Clothed
in my sin, Christ suffered ’neath God’s rage.
Draped in
his righteousness, I’m justified.
In Christ
I live, for in my place he died.
Refrain
I cling
to Christ, and marvel at the cost:
Jesus forsaken, God estranged from God.
Bought by
such love, my life is not my own.
My
praise—my all—shall be for Christ alone.
2. His
robes for mine: what cause have I for dread?
God’s
daunting law Christ mastered in my stead.
Faultless
I stand with righteous works not mine,
saved by
my Lord’s vicarious death and life.
Refrain
I cling
to Christ, and marvel at the cost:
Jesus forsaken, God estranged from God.
Bought by
such love, my life is not my own.
My
praise—my all—shall be for Christ alone.
3. His
robes for mine: God’s justice is appeased.
Jesus is
crushed, and thus the Father’s pleased.
Christ
drank God’s wrath on sin, then cried, “’Tis done!”
Sin’s
wage is paid, propitiation won.
Refrain
I cling
to Christ, and marvel at the cost:
Jesus forsaken, God estranged from God.
Bought by
such love, my life is not my own.
My
praise—my all—shall be for Christ alone.
4. His
robes for mine: such anguish none can know.
Christ,
God’s beloved, condemned as though his foe.
He, as
though I, accursed and left alone;
I, as
though he, embraced and welcomed home!
Refrain
I cling
to Christ, and marvel at the cost:
Jesus forsaken, God estranged from God.
Bought by
such love, my life is not my own.
My
praise—my all—shall be for Christ alone.
The First
Word — Luke 23:32-34
32 Two other men, who were criminals,
were led away with Jesus to be executed.
33 When they came to the place called The Skull, they crucified
him there with the criminals, one on his right and the other on his left.
34 Jesus said, “Father, forgive them,
for they do not know what they are doing.”
They cast lots to divide his garments among them.
Sermon: Seven Crucial Last Words
Prayer
P: O Lord
Jesus Christ, fold your hands in prayer for us; those wounded hands once
stretched and nailed to the cross. Pray for us as you once prayed for your executioners;
C: “Father,
forgive them for they do not know what they are doing.”
P: O Lord
Jesus Christ, we know our sinful rebellion. We dare plead ignorance of your
holy will. But in your death for us, we find forgiveness for all
of our known and unknown crimes.
C: Stretch
out your forgiving hands, O Lord, for your endless mercies’ sake. Amen.
Response: Hymn 435
vv 1-2 Jesus, in Your Dying Woes
verse 1
1. Jesus,
in your dying woes,
Even
while your lifeblood flows,
Craving
pardon for your foes:
Hear us,
holy Jesus!
2. Jesus,
pitying the sighs
Of the
thief who near you dies,
Promising
him paradise:
Hear us,
holy Jesus!
+
The first candle is extinguished +
The Second
Word — Luke 23:39-43
39 One of the criminals hanging there
was blaspheming him, saying, “Aren’t you the Christ? Save yourself and us!”
40 But the other criminal rebuked
him. “Don’t you fear God, since you are under the same
condemnation? 41 We are punished justly, for we are receiving what
we deserve for what we have done, but this man has done nothing wrong.” 42
Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come in your kingdom.”
43 Jesus said to him, “Amen I tell you: Today you will be with me in paradise.”
Prayer
P: O Lord Jesus
Christ, we too like the thief on the cross deserve to die for the sins of our
soul. With the thief of old, we can only plead:
C:
“Remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
P: How
tender your gaze, how sweet your words, how powerful your promise that gives
life forever with you. With sure confidence and true humility, we wait eagerly
for the day when you will whisper your words in our ears:
C: “Today,
you will be with me in Paradise.” Amen.
Response:
Hymn 436 vv 1-2 The Seven Words
1. Their
nails were freshly driven, their hatred clearly shown,
when,
“Let them be forgiven,” was heard at heaven’s throne.
Your
enemies, O Jesus, you loved beyond degree,
a love so
pure and precious it even pardoned me.
2. On
you, my King, depending, I’m rid of all my sins!
My final
day here ending, my first in heav’n begins.
As you
have truly spoken, in paradise I’ll be,
with you
in bliss unbroken— you will remember me.
+ The second candle is extinguished +
The third
Word — John 19:25-27
25 Jesus’ mother, his mother’s
sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene
were standing near the cross.
26 When Jesus saw his mother and the
disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, “Woman, here is
your son!” 27 Then he said to the disciple, “Here is your mother!”
And from that time this disciple took her into his own home.
Prayer
P: O Lord
Jesus Christ, how could you care so much for the hurt of your mother while you
were suffering hell for the sins of the world?
C: Oh, what
boundless love and divine mercy you pour out to your mother from your cross.
P: Forgive
us when we think of you as cold-hearted toward our suffering and indifferent
toward our pain. Open our eyes to see how your love for us held you to the
cross so that we might become your sons and daughters.
C: We come
to you for protection and peace from sin within us and evil around us. Amen.
Response:
Hymn 435 vv 3-4 Jesus, in Your Dying Woes
3. Jesus,
loving to the end
Her whose
heart your sorrows rend,
And your
dearest human friend:
Hear us,
holy Jesus!
4. Jesus,
plunged in depths unknown
With our
evil foe alone,
While no
light from heav’n is shown:
Hear us,
holy Jesus!
+
The third candle is extinguished +
The Fourth
Word — Matthew 27:45-46
45 From the sixth hour until the
ninth hour, there was darkness over all the land. 46 About the ninth
hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?” which means “My God, my God, why have you
forsaken me?”
Prayer
P: O Lord
Jesus Christ, your bone-chilling cry revealed to the entire world what God was
doing on that dark noon. You continued to trust and call on your Father even while he was punishing you for our sins.
C: “My God,
my God, why have you forsaken me?”
P: To know
the answer to your riveting question is to know your heart, your grace, your
forgiveness! May your cry for your Father ever burn in
our hearts!
C: Let no
shadow of doubt ever darken our trust in you, nor separate us from your Father and ours. Amen.
Response: Hymn 436 vv 4 The Seven Words
4. Condemned,
cut off, forsaken, outside the Father’s care,
by terror
overtaken, no ear would hear your prayer.
On you
God’s wrath was vented, on you his fury fell,when,
on the
cross tormented, you took my place in hell.
+ The fourth candle is extinguished +
The Fifth
Word — John 19:28
28 After this, knowing that
everything had now been finished, and to fulfill the Scripture, Jesus said, “I
thirst.”
Prayer
P: O Lord
Jesus Christ, lead us to see the depths of your thirst as you suffered as true
man. Emaciated and dehydrated, you thirsted to proclaim our salvation.
C: Being
true man you suffered every ounce of torture in your death. Being God your holy death paid completely for every sin. True God
and true man, none other could have saved us.
P: Because
you drank every drop from the cup of suffering, you have become for us the well
of salvation unto eternal life.
C: May we
drink deeply from you and never thirst again. Amen.
Response: Hymn 435 vv 5-6 Jesus, in Your
Dying Woes
5. Jesus,
in your thirst and pain,
While
your wounds the lifeblood drain,
Thus
fulfilling Scripture’s plan:
Hear us,
holy Jesus!
6. Jesus,
all our ransom paid,
All your Father’s will obeyed,
By your suff’rings perfect made:
Hear us,
holy Jesus!
+ The fifth candle is extinguished +
The Sixth
Word — John 19:29-30
29 A jar full of sour wine was
sitting there. So they put a sponge soaked in sour
wine on a hyssop branch and held it to his mouth.
30 When Jesus had received the sour wine, he said, “It is finished!”
Then, bowing his head,he
gave up his spirit.
Prayer
P: Lord
Jesus Christ, give us your strength as you resolved to do your Father’s work
and finish it. What profound peace it gives to know that all has been
accomplished for our salvation. Your one word seals the enormous payment you
made for our sin.
C: “It is
finished!” Amen.
Response: Hymn 433 God Was There on Calvary
1. God
was there on Calvary,
God the
Father’s only Son,
Dying
that the world might live,
There on
Calvary.
2. All
the world on Calvary,
Crucified
the Prince of life,
Pierced
the hands of God’s own Son,
There on
Calvary.
3. Sin
was there on Calvary,
All the
sins of ev’ryone,
Laid upon
God’s sinless Lamb
There on
Calvary.
4. Love
was there on Calvary,
Streaming
from the heart of God,
Reaching
out for ev’ryone
There on
Calvary.
5. Life
was there on Calvary,
Flowing
from his wounded side,
Spent
that death itself might die
There on
Calvary.
6. We
were there on Calvary;
We were
pardoned, saved, set free,
Saved to
live eternally-
Blessed
Calvary!
+ The sixth candle is extinguished
+
The
Seventh Word — Luke 23:44-46
44 It was now about the sixth hour,
and darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour, 45 while
the sun was darkened. Then the curtain of the temple was torn in two. 46
Jesus cried out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my
spirit!” When he had said this, he breathed his last.
Response: Hymn 432 vv 1-5 O Dearest
Jesus
1. O dearest
Jesus,
what law
have you broken
That such
sharp sentence
should on
you be spoken?
Of what
great crime
have you
to make confession
What dark
transgression?
2. They
crown your head with thorns,
they
smite, they scourge you;
With
cruel mockings
to the
cross they urge you;
They give
you gall to drink,
they
still decry you;
They
crucify you.
3. Whence
come these sorrows,
whence
this mortal anguish?
It is my
sins for which you,
Lord,
must languish;
Yes, all
the wrath,
the woe
that you inherit,
This I do
merit.
4. What
punishment
so
strange is suffered yonder!
The
Shepherd dies for
sheep
that love to wander;
The
Master pays
the debt
his servants owe him,
Who would
not know him.
5. The
sinless Son of God
must die
in sadness;
The
sinful child of man
may live
in gladness;
We
forfeited our lives,
yet are
acquitted
God is
committed.
Prayer and Lord’s Prayer
Bidding Prayer
L: Let us
pray for the whole Church, that our Lord God would defend her against all the
assaults and temptations of the adversary and keep her perpetually on the true
foundation, Jesus Christ:
P: Almighty
and everlasting God, since you have revealed your glory to all nations in Jesus
Christ and in the Word of his truth, keep, we ask you, in safety the works of
your mercy so that your Church, spread throughout all nations, may be defended
against the adversary and may serve you in true faith and persevere in the
confession of your name; through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
C: Amen.
L: Let us
pray for all the ministers of the Word and for all the people of God:
P: Almighty
and everlasting God, by whose Spirit the whole body of the Church is governed
and sanctified, receive the supplications and prayers which we offer before you
for all your servants in your holy Church that every member of the same may
truly serve you; through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
C: Amen.
L: Let us
pray for all in authority that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all
godliness and honesty:
P: O merciful
Father in heaven, because you hold in your hand all the might of man and
because you have ordained, for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise
of those who do well, all the powers that exist in all the nations of the
world, we humbly pray you graciously to regard your servants, especially the
President and Congress of the United States, the Governor of this state, and all those who make,
administer, and judge our laws that all who receive the sword as your
representatives may bear it according to your Word; through Jesus Christ, our
Lord.
C: Amen.
L: Let us
pray our Lord God Almighty that he would deliver the world from disease, ward
off famine, set free those in bondage, grant health to the sick and a safe
journey to all who travel:
P: Almighty
and everlasting God, the consolation of the sorrowful and the strength of those
who labor, may the prayers of those who in any tribulation or distress cry to
you graciously come before you, so that in all their necessities they may
rejoice in your manifold help and comfort; through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
C: Amen.
L: Let us
pray for all who are outside the Church, that our Lord God would be pleased to
deliver them from their error, call them to faith in the true and living God
and his only Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, and gather them into his family, the
Church:
P: Almighty
and everlasting God, because you seek not the death but the life of all, hear
our prayers for all who have no right knowledge of you, free them from their
error, and for the glory of your name bring them into the fellowship of your
holy Church; through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
C: Amen.
L: Let us
pray for peace, that we may come to the knowledge of God’s holy Word and walk
before Him as is fitting for Christians:
P: Almighty
and everlasting God, King of Glory, and Lord of heaven and earth, by whose
Spirit all things are governed, by whose providence all things are ordered, the
God of peace and the author of all concord, grant us, we implore You, Your heavenly peace and concord that we may serve You in
true fear, to the praise and glory of Your name; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
C: Amen.
L: Let us
pray for our enemies, that God would remember them in mercy and graciously
grant them such things as are both needful for them and profitable to their
salvation:
P: O
almighty, everlasting God, through your only Son, our blessed Lord, you have
commanded us to love our enemies, to do good to those who hate us, and to pray
for those who persecute us. We therefore earnestly implore you that by your
gracious visitation all our enemies may be led to true repentance and may have
the same love and be of one accord and of one mind and heart with us and with
your whole Church; through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
C: Amen.
L: Let us
pray for the fruits of the earth, that God would send down his blessing upon
them and graciously dispose our hearts to enjoy them according to his own
goodwill:
P: O Lord,
Father Almighty, by your Word you created and you
still continue to bless and uphold all things. We pray you so to reveal to us
your Word, our Lord Jesus Christ, that he may dwell in our hearts
and we may by your grace be made ready to receive your blessing on all the
fruits of the earth and these things that pertain to our bodily need through
Jesus Christ, our Lord.
C: Amen.
L: Finally
let us pray for all these things for which our Lord would have us ask, praying:
C: Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as in
heaven. Give us today our daily bread; and forgive us our sin, as we forgive
those who sin against us; and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil. For kingdom, the power and the glory are yours
now and forever. Amen.
+ The seventh candle is
extinguished +
Blessing
P: The
almighty and merciful Lord, the Father, the Son, † and the Holy Spirit, bless
us and keep us.
C: Amen.
✞ The Christ candle is carried from
the sanctuary.
✞ Silence for meditation
✞ A loud noise (strepitus)
representing the closing of Christ’s tomb is heard.
✞ The Christ Candle is returned to
the altar to await the joy of Easter Morning.
Closing Hymn 432 vv 6-7 O Dearest Jesus
6. I'll
think upon your
mercy
without ceasing,
That
earth's vain joys
to me no
more be pleasing;
To do
your will
shall be
my sole endeavor
Henceforth
forever.
7. And
when, dear Lord,
before
your throne in heaven
To me the
crown of
joy at
last is given,
Where
sweetest hymns
your
saints forever raise you,
I too
shall praise you.
The minister exits the chancel.
The congregation may remain for prayer and meditation before
dispersing quietly, placing your nail in the cross.