By Don Mears
BIG SANDY--I joined the Gladewater Ministerial Alliance in January and received a warm welcome from those pastors who form the active core of the Alliance.
We were hosts for the March lunch meeting of the Alliance at the Church Administration Building on the Ambassador University campus.
During that meeting I was invited to participate in two multi-denominational services sponsored by the Ministerial Alliance, Sunday evening March 31, and Sunday morning April 7, as part of the Ministerial Alliance's contribution to Gladewater's Easter celebration.
Easter this year fell during the same time as our celebration of the Lord's Supper and the Festival of Unleavened Bread.
At that time, we, too, would be remembering the events of Jesus' Last Supper, betrayal, trial, crucifixion and resurrection. So I saw no conflict with our own practice, and felt it would be a good opportunity to build bridges between ourselves and area churches, and to broaden our members' understanding of how other Christians remember these events.
The March 31 service was at Gladewater Methodist Church. It was a Service of Tenebrae, or darkness, a traditional format going back to medieval times.
Sixteen readers, from five denominations, read passages from John 12 through 19 describing the events from Jesus' triumphal welcome into Jerusalem to his death and burial.
As each reading ended, a candle was extinguished to symbolize the encroaching darkness of Jesus' death. The readings were interspersed with congregational hymns and musical performances.
The final candle was extinguished after the account of Jesus' death. The final reading and closing hymn took place in darkness, and described how Jesus' body was laid in the tomb. Then the service was quietly dismissed.
We provided three readers: Tom Delamater, director of Institutional Advancement for Ambassador University; Colleen Bailey from the Church Office; and myself.
Ross Jutsum and the Young Ambassadors also participated. About 50 members from the Big Sandy congregation and Ambassador University also attended.
The second service took place Sunday April 7 at Gladewater Park. I was invited to give the sermon. I could see no good reason not to, and many good reasons to do so.
That Sunday was a day of significance to us and to all the churches of the western Christian world this year. It was both Easter Sunday, and the day of the wave sheaf offering (Leviticus 23:9-14).
On that Sunday in ancient times, Israel offered up the first sheaf of the barley harvest, a firstfruits offering to be accepted by God as a representative for the entire harvest.
In the light of the New Testament we see that the wave sheaf foreshadowed the resurrected Christ, "the firstfruits of the harvest of the dead" (1 Corinthians 15:20, Revised English Bible).
And on that Sunday at sunrise, the risen Jesus first appeared to his disciples; and when he did, they rejoiced and worshiped (Matthew 28:1-9).
Is it proper to worship the risen Christ on a Sunday morning at sunrise? Well, that is exactly what those disciples of Jesus did nearly 2,000 years ago. If it was a good idea for them, it must be a good idea for us.
Wherever and whenever we encounter our Lord and Savior, the proper response is rejoicing and worship. If the time we encounter him is on a Sunday morning at sunrise, then that too is a good time to worship him.
About 200 people braved frosty, 34 degree temperatures and came out for that Sunday morning service. About 50 were there from the Big Sandy congregation and Ambassador University. Some told me that they had come with a sense of trepidation, but had been inspired and encouraged by the experience, and went home filled with joy.
Don and Beth Mears pastor the Big Sandy church, and Don is a regional pastor.
Don and Beth Mears
May 21, 1996, Worldwide News, page six
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