Our Sacred Roots: The Priesthood of All Believers

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T he S eason from E aster to P entecost

Second Sunday of Easter April 24 - 30, 2022

WEEK 22

On Easter Sunday we celebrate the bodily resurrection of Jesus. The same lowly Nazarene – he who was betrayed by his own disciple, who suffered under Pilate’s cruel gaze, who was crucified on a Roman cross, and who was buried in a borrowed tomb – the same Lord rose triumphantly on the third day. Jesus has risen from death to life through the power of God. “Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed!”

THIS WEEK’S THEME Jesus Appears to His Disciples, John 20.19-31

On the evening of the first day of the week, the evening of Resurrection Day, Jesus revealed himself as risen and alive to his disciples, with Thomas being absent. While the disciples affirmed Jesus’s resurrection to him, Thomas rejected their testimony, saying he would need bodily proof of Jesus himself before he would believe. A week later, Jesus again appeared amid the disciples behind locked doors, this time with Thomas in attendance. Jesus asked Thomas to inspect his hands and side, to believe and not doubt. Thomas, overwhelmed, affirmed Jesus as Lord and God, and Jesus says those who have not seen and yet believe are those truly blessed.

Daily Devotional Guide Preparing Our Hearts

Invocation: Our Prayer of Acclamation O Father God Almighty, who through the Last Adam has conquered death and put the devil down, who has paid the penalty for our sins, and laid the foundation for a new heavens and earth, enable us to give you praise appropriate to