Join Z
Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87947246888?pwd=SlQ3aC83OGp5SVU3a3FBZjRrMVdoZz09
Meeting ID: 879 4724 6888
Passcode: 740388
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
the love of God,
and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit
be with you
and also with you.
Song: Meekness and Majesty https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4tK1hQpacs8
First Reading Matt 26:17-25
Jesus Eats the Passover Meal with His Disciples
17 On the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread the disciples came to Jesus and asked him, “Where do you want us to get the Passover meal ready for you?”
18 “Go to a certain man in the city,” he said to them, “and tell him: ‘The Teacher says, My hour has come; my disciples and I will celebrate the Passover at your house.’”
19 The disciples did as Jesus had told them and prepared the Passover meal.
20 When it was evening, Jesus and the twelve disciples sat down to eat. 21 During the meal Jesus said, “I tell you, one of you will betray me.”
22 The disciples were very upset and began to ask him, one after the other, “Surely, Lord, you don't mean me?”
23 Jesus answered, “One who dips his bread in the dish with me will betray me. 24 The Son of Man will die as the Scriptures say he will, but how terrible for that man who will betray the Son of Man! It would have been better for that man if he had never been born!”
25 Judas, the traitor, spoke up. “Surely, Teacher, you don't mean me?” he asked.
Jesus answered, “So you say.”
Prayers of Penitence
Our Lord Jesus Christ says:
‘If you love me, keep my commandments.’
‘Unless I wash you, you have no part in me.’
‘Let us confess to almighty God our sins against his love,
and ask him to cleanse us.
Have mercy on us, O God, in your great goodness;
according to the abundance of your compassion blot out our offences.
Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
Against you only have we sinned
and done what is evil in your sight.
Christ, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
Purge us from our sin and we shall be clean;
wash us and we shall be whiter than snow.
Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
May the Father forgive us
by the death of his Son
and strengthen us
to live in the power of the Spirit
all our days.
Amen.
Second Reading Matthew 26:26-30
The Lord's Supper
26 While they were eating, Jesus took a piece of bread, gave a prayer of thanks, broke it, and gave it to his disciples. “Take and eat it,” he said; “this is my body.”
27 Then he took a cup, gave thanks to God, and gave it to them. “Drink it, all of you,” he said; 28 “this is my blood, which seals God's covenant, my blood poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. 29 I tell you, I will never again drink this wine until the day I drink the new wine with you in my Father's Kingdom.”
30 Then they sang a hymn and went out to the Mount of Olives.
Song: Behold the Lamb https://youtu.be/XR77xKx_0CQ
Third Reading Matt 26:31-35
Jesus Predicts Peter's Denial
31 Then Jesus said to them, “This very night all of you will run away and leave me, for the scripture says, ‘God will kill the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’ 32 But after I am raised to life, I will go to Galilee ahead of you.”
33 Peter spoke up and said to Jesus, “I will never leave you, even though all the rest do!”
34 Jesus said to Peter, “I tell you that before the rooster crows tonight, you will say three times that you do not know me.”
35 Peter answered, “I will never say that, even if I have to die with you!”
And all the other disciples said the same thing.
Song: How Deep the Father’s Love for us https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzQj7XvKFmA
Fourth Reading: Matt 26:36-46
Jesus Prays in Gethsemane
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.” 37 He took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee. Grief and anguish came over him, 38 and he said to them, “The sorrow in my heart is so great that it almost crushes me. Stay here and keep watch with me.”
39 He went a little farther on, threw himself face downward on the ground, and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, take this cup of suffering from me! Yet not what I want, but what you want.”
40 Then he returned to the three disciples and found them asleep; and he said to Peter, “How is it that you three were not able to keep watch with me for even one hour? 41 Keep watch and pray that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
42 Once more Jesus went away and prayed, “My Father, if this cup of suffering cannot be taken away unless I drink it, your will be done.” 43 He returned once more and found the disciples asleep; they could not keep their eyes open.
44 Again Jesus left them, went away, and prayed the third time, saying the same words. 45 Then he returned to the disciples and said, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Look! The hour has come for the Son of Man to be handed over to the power of sinners. 46 Get up, let us go. Look, here is the man who is betraying me!”
Our Prayers:
In the power of the Spirit let us pray to the Father
through Christ the saviour of the world.
Father,
on this, the night he was betrayed,
your Son Jesus Christ washed his disciples’ feet.
We commit ourselves to follow his example of love and service.
Lord, hear us
and humble us.
On this night, he prayed for his disciples to be one.
We pray for the unity of your Church.
Lord, hear us
and unite us.
On this night, he prayed for those who were to believe through his disciples’ message.
We pray for the mission of your Church.
Lord, hear us
and renew our zeal.
On this night, he commanded his disciples to love,
but suffered rejection himself.
We pray for the rejected and unloved.
Lord, hear us
and fill us with your love.
On this night, he reminded his disciples
that if the world hated them it hated him first.
We pray for those who are persecuted for their faith.
Lord, hear us
and give us your peace.
On this night, he accepted the cup of death
and looked forward to the new wine of the kingdom.
We remember those who have died in the peace of Christ.
Lord, hear us
and welcome all your children into paradise.
Reading 5 Matt 26:47-56
The Arrest of Jesus
47 Jesus was still speaking when Judas, one of the twelve disciples, arrived. With him was a large crowd armed with swords and clubs and sent by the chief priests and the elders. 48 The traitor had given the crowd a signal: “The man I kiss is the one you want. Arrest him!”
49 Judas went straight to Jesus and said, “Peace be with you, Teacher,” and kissed him.
50 Jesus answered, “Be quick about it, friend!”[a]
Then they came up, arrested Jesus, and held him tight. 51 One of those who were with Jesus drew his sword and struck at the High Priest's slave, cutting off his ear. 52 “Put your sword back in its place,” Jesus said to him. “All who take the sword will die by the sword. 53 Don't you know that I could call on my Father for help, and at once he would send me more than twelve armies of angels? 54 But in that case, how could the Scriptures come true which say that this is what must happen?”
55 Then Jesus spoke to the crowd, “Did you have to come with swords and clubs to capture me, as though I were an outlaw? Every day I sat down and taught in the Temple, and you did not arrest me. 56 But all this has happened in order to make come true what the prophets wrote in the Scriptures.”
Then all the disciples left him and ran away.
Song: Who can sound the depths of sorrow? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MU_Jc8apIEw
Reading 6 Matt 26:57-67
Jesus before the Council
57 Those who had arrested Jesus took him to the house of Caiaphas, the High Priest, where the teachers of the Law and the elders had gathered together. 58 Peter followed from a distance, as far as the courtyard of the High Priest's house. He went into the courtyard and sat down with the guards to see how it would all come out. 59 The chief priests and the whole Council tried to find some false evidence against Jesus to put him to death; 60 but they could not find any, even though many people came forward and told lies about him. Finally two men stepped up 61 and said, “This man said, ‘I am able to tear down God's Temple and three days later build it back up.’”
62 The High Priest stood up and said to Jesus, “Have you no answer to give to this accusation against you?” 63 But Jesus kept quiet. Again the High Priest spoke to him, “In the name of the living God I now put you under oath: tell us if you are the Messiah, the Son of God.”
64 Jesus answered him, “So you say. But I tell all of you: from this time on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right side of the Almighty and coming on the clouds of heaven!”
65 At this the High Priest tore his clothes and said, “Blasphemy! We don't need any more witnesses! You have just heard his blasphemy! 66 What do you think?”
They answered, “He is guilty and must die.”
67 Then they spat in his face and beat him; and those who slapped him 68 said, “Prophesy for us, Messiah! Guess who hit you!”
Song: O Sacred Head now wounded https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wRvMx8uWaX4
Reading 7 Matt 26:69-75
Peter Denies Jesus
69 Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard when one of the High Priest's servant women came to him and said, “You, too, were with Jesus of Galilee.”
70 But he denied it in front of them all. “I don't know what you are talking about,” he answered, 71 and went on out to the entrance of the courtyard. Another servant woman saw him and said to the men there, “He was with Jesus of Nazareth.”
72 Again Peter denied it and answered, “I swear that I don't know that man!”
73 After a little while the men standing there came to Peter. “Of course you are one of them,” they said. “After all, the way you speak gives you away!”
74 Then Peter said, “I swear that I am telling the truth! May God punish me if I am not! I do not know that man!”
Just then a rooster crowed, 75 and Peter remembered what Jesus had told him: “Before the rooster crows, you will say three times that you do not know me.” He went out and wept bitterly.
Lamentations:
How lonely sits the city that once was full of people!
How like a widow she has become,
she that was great among the nations!
She weeps bitterly in the night, with tears on her cheeks;
among all her lovers she has no one to comfort her.
Jerusalem, Jerusalem, return to the Lord your God.
The roads to Zion mourn, for no one comes to the festivals;
all her gates are desolate, her priests groan;
her young girls grieve, and her lot is bitter.
Her children have gone away, captives before the foe.
Is it nothing to you, all you who pass by?
Look and see if there is any sorrow like my sorrow.
Jerusalem, Jerusalem, return to the Lord your God.
From on high he sent fire; it went deep into my bones;
he spread a net for my feet; he turned me back;
he has left me stunned, faint all day long.
For these things I weep; my eyes flow with tears;
for a comforter is far from me, one to revive my courage;
my children are desolate, for the enemy has prevailed.
Jerusalem, Jerusalem, return to the Lord your God.
All who pass along the way clap their hands at you;
they hiss and wag their heads at daughter Jerusalem;
‘Is this the city that was called the perfection of beauty,
the joy of all the earth?’
The thought of my affliction and homelessness is wormwood and gall.
Jerusalem, Jerusalem, return to the Lord your God.
The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases,
his mercies never come to an end;
they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
‘The Lord is my portion,’ says my soul,
‘therefore I will hope in him.’
The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the soul that seeks him.
Jerusalem, Jerusalem, return to the Lord your God.
It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.
It is good for one to bear the yoke in youth,
to sit alone in silence when the Lord has imposed it,
to put one’s mouth to the dust (there may yet be hope),
to give one’s cheek to the smiter, and be filled with insults.
For the Lord will not reject for ever.
Jerusalem, Jerusalem, return to the Lord your God.
We end in silence