Good Friday                                                                               April 15, 2022 

 

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.