Holy Saturday, April 19

Great Vigil of Easter

7:30 p.m. – Service of Worship
Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper
Reaffirmation of the Baptismal Covenant
Rev. Emily Berman D’Andrea, preaching
No Fear, All Joy and Praise
Quartet
Reception Following Worship

Readings:
Genesis 1:1-2a
Psalm 136:1-9, 23-26
Genesis 7:1-5, 11-18, 8:6-18; 9:8-13
Psalm 46
Exodus 14:10-31; 15:20-21
Exodus 15:1b-13, 17-18 
Isaiah 55:1-11
Isaiah 12:2-6
Proverbs 8:1-8, 19-21, 9:4b-6
Psalm 19
Ezekiel 36:24-28
Psalm 42 and 43
Ezekiel 37:1-14
Psalm 143
Zephaniah 3:14-20
Psalm 98
Romans 6:3-11
Psalm 114
Matthew 28:1-10

Matthew 27: 62-66

The next day, the one after Preparation Day, the chief priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate. “Sir,” they said, “we remember that while he was still alive that deceiver said, ‘After three days I will rise again.’ So give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, his disciples may come and steal the body and tell the people that he has been raised from the dead. This last deception will be worse than the first.”

“Take a guard,” Pilate answered. “Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how.” So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard.

Devotion

We know the chronology of the last days of Jesus’ life: his entry into Jerusalem, the trial, the condemnation to death, the crucifixion and resurrection. In this passage, Matthew describes the hours after Jesus’ death and burial. Chief priests and Pharisees appealed to Pontius Pilate to help prevent any tampering with Jesus’ body out of fear that the prophecy might be fulfilled as Jesus said, “After three days I will rise again.”

Pilate agreed to place guards at the tomb, but they had to be members of the temple police, Jews, and not the Roman police. Since the following day was the Sabbath, the guards were placed at the tomb to make it as secure as possible. So, the guards went to the tomb “and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard.”

For me, the important meaning from this passage is not in the details themselves but rather in the broader message. No matter how much others try to persecute Christians and keep the Biblical message from others, God’s gift to us transcends all. He is always there for us, no matter how much we or others try to keep him away.

Prayer

Dear heavenly father, thank you for sending me your son. Through your gift, I know I can never be separated from your love. You are an eternal living presence in my life always. Amen.

Harriet Hopkins