THE GOSPEL LESSON John 19:25-27
THE COVENANT LESSON Genesis 17:1-7,15-16
SERMON "The Covenant of Community: Abraham's Story"
Worship Notes
In today's worship, we continue our journey in Lent to deepen our covenantal relationship with God. The liturgical color for the season is purple. Each Sunday in Lent, we will explore an aspect of God's covenant with creation. This covenant is not only vertical, but also includes a horizontal dimension emphasizing how our relationship with God is reflected in how we relate to one another. Each Sunday in Lent, we will also reflect on one of the last words of spoken by Jesus from the cross. This we do to remember that our Lenten journey culminates in the crucifixion on Good Friday, which this year will be observed in a single worship service involving all Madison's Presbyterian congregations. These seven last words of Christ will be the basis for this joint Good Friday Service of Tenebrae, which will also include the music of Mozart's Requiem.
The covenant we explore today is described in God's promises to Abraham and Sarah to be their God and the God of their descendents, generation after generation. It is God who names us and calls us into community. Both our Call to Worship and Prayer of Confession highlight this covenant relationship as central to who we are as a community of believers.
The psalm lesson for today is taken from Psalm 22, a prayer of adoration for the God of all families of nations. The last word on the cross is Jesus naming his mother and John as family. We ordain and install two officers today as an act of community - where the Holy Spirit is manifested not in an individual act, but in the midst of the whole community.
