Lent IV St. Paul’s Church, Charlottetown, PEI March 22, 2026, 10:00 am

Lent IV
St. Paul’s Church, Charlottetown, PEI
March 22, 2026, 10:00 am
 
Preludes: Adagio Flor Peeters; Soul, Adorn Thyself With Gladness Johannes Brahms
 
Hymn: SNC 163 We Sing a Love
 
The Gathering of the Community
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
and the love of God,
and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit,
be with you all.
And also with you.
 
Bless the Lord who forgives all our sins.
His mercy endures for ever.
 
Almighty God,
to you all hearts are open, all desires known, and from you no secrets are hidden. Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love you, and worthily magnify your holy name; through Christ our Lord. Amen.
 
The Word of God: Psalm 130: 2-5
A reading from Psalm 30
If you, Lord, were to note what is done amiss, O Lord, who could stand? For there is forgiveness with you; therefore you shall be feared. I wait for the Lord; my soul waits for him; in his word is my hope. My soul waits for the Lord, more than watchmen for the morning, more than watchmen for the morning.
The word of the Lord.
    Thanks be to God. 

Confession and Absolution
Dear friends in Christ,
God is steadfast in love and infinite in mercy;
he welcomes sinners
and invites them to his table.
Let us confess our sins,
confident in God’s forgiveness.
 
Silence is kept.
 
Most merciful God,
we confess that we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done, and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbours as ourselves. We are truly sorry and we humbly repent. For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, have mercy on us and forgive us, that we may delight in your will, and walk in your ways, to the glory of your name. Amen.
 
Almighty God have mercy upon you,
pardon and deliver you from all your sins,
confirm and strengthen you in all goodness,
and keep you in eternal life;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
 
614 Forgive Our Sins As We Forgive (vs. 1, 4)
 
The Collect of the Day
Let us pray,
Almighty God, your Son came into the world to free us all from sin and death. Breathe upon us with the power of your Spirit, that we may be raised to new life in Christ, and serve you in holiness and righteousness all our days; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
 
The Proclamation of the Word
The Holy Gospel: John 11:1-45
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
The Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John.
Glory to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. Mary was the one who anointed the Lord with perfume and wiped his feet with her hair; her brother Lazarus was ill. So the sisters sent a message to Jesus, "Lord, he whom you love is ill." But when Jesus heard it, he said, "This illness does not lead to death; rather it is for God's glory, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it." Accordingly, though Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus, after having heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was. Then after this he said to the disciples, "Let us go to Judea again." The disciples said to him, "Rabbi, the Jews were just now trying to stone you, and are you going there again?" Jesus answered, "Are there not twelve hours of daylight? Those who walk during the day do not stumble, because they see the light of this world. But those who walk at night stumble, because the light is not in them." After saying this, he told them, "Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going there to awaken him." The disciples said to him, "Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will be all right." Jesus, however, had been speaking about his death, but they thought that he was referring merely to sleep. Then Jesus told them plainly, "Lazarus is dead. For your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him." Thomas, who was called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, "Let us also go, that we may die with him." When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, some two miles away, and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them about their brother. When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, while Mary stayed at home. Martha said to Jesus, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that God will give you whatever you ask of him." Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again." Martha said to him, "I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day." Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?" She said to him, "Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one coming into the world." When she had said this, she went back and called her sister Mary, and told her privately, "The Teacher is here and is calling for you." And when she heard it, she got up quickly and went to him. Now Jesus had not yet come to the village, but was still at the place where Martha had met him. The Jews who were with her in the house, consoling her, saw Mary get up quickly and go out. They followed her because they thought that she was going to the tomb to weep there. When Mary came where Jesus was and saw him, she knelt at his feet and said to him, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died." When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, he was greatly disturbed in spirit and deeply moved. He said, "Where have you laid him?" They said to him, "Lord, come and see." Jesus began to weep. So the Jews said, "See how he loved him!" But some of them said, "Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?" Then Jesus, again greatly disturbed, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone was lying against it. Jesus said, "Take away the stone." Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, "Lord, already there is a stench because he has been dead four days." Jesus said to her, "Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?" So they took away the stone. And Jesus looked upward and said, "Father, I thank you for having heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I have said this for the sake of the crowd standing here, so that they may believe that you sent me." When he had said this, he cried with a loud voice, "Lazarus, come out!" The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with strips of cloth, and his face wrapped in a cloth. Jesus said to them, "Unbind him, and let him go." Many of the Jews therefore, who had come with Mary and had seen what Jesus did, believed in him.
The Gospel of Christ.
Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
 
Sermon
 
Hymn: SNC 9 I Rejoiced When I Heard Them Say
 
Prayers of the People – Lent
Intercessory Prayers
As Jesus, in the days before his passion, offered prayers and supplications with loud cries and tears, let us pray for those who suffer, those who are in need, and those who seek reconciliation.
 
With confidence and trust let us pray to the Lord, saying, “hear our prayer.”
 
We pray for peace: For the one holy catholic and apostolic Church throughout the world, for all the clergy and people, that by self-examination we acknowledge the need for courage to give more of our selves to doing your will in the world. God of love.
hear our prayer.
We pray for peace: For the mission of the Church, that in faithful witness we may preach the gospel to the ends of the earth, that in repentance we may be a people that show your transforming love and justice in all that we do. God of love.
hear our prayer.
We pray for peace: that a spirit of respect and reconciliation may grow among nations and peoples, that through fasting and self-sacrifice we can achieve an end to violence and war, that we promote a cease fire and negotiation. God of love.
hear our prayer.
We pray for peace: For the poor, the persecuted, the sick, and all who suffer; for immigrants, refugees, prisoners, and all in danger; that they may be relieved and protected, that by the giving of our time, talent and treasure we will be empowered with the resources needed to make a difference. God of love.
hear our prayer.
We pray for peace: For those who are ill at home or in hospital: especially those known to us…
-  
And others we may name out loud or in our hearts…
-
… that in our prayer we trust that you will deliver them and keep them in your love. God of love.
hear our prayer.
We pray for peace: For all those who have died in the peace of Christ, and for those whose faith is known to you alone, that they may have a place in your eternal kingdom, especially,
-
… and be a comfort to those who mourn. God of love.
hear our prayer.
We pray for peace: For the just and proper use of your creation; that by reading and meditating on your word we will strive to safeguard the integrity of creation, and respect, sustain and renew the life of the Earth. God of love.
hear our prayer.
We pray for peace: For all whom we have injured or offended; for grace to amend our lives and to further your reign. God of love.
hear our prayer.
God of all consolation and compassion, your Son comforted the grieving sisters, Martha and Mary; your breath alone brings life to dry bones and weary souls. Pour out your Spirit upon us, that we may face our own circumstances with the hope of resurrection and faith in the One who called Lazarus forth from the grave. In his name we pray. Amen.
 
The Peace
The peace of the Lord be always with you
and also with you.
 
Announcements
 
Hymn: SNC 156 I Heard the Voice of Jesus Calling
 
The Celebration of the Holy Eucharist
Prayer Over the Gifts
Let us pray,
Giver of life, your Son has destroyed the power of death for all those who believe in him. Accept all we offer you this day and strengthen us in faith and hope; through Jesus Christ, the Lord of all the living. Amen.
 
Eucharistic Prayer 3
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your hearts.
We lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
 
Blessed are you, gracious God, creator of heaven and earth, because you bid your faithful people to cleanse their hearts and to prepare with joy for the paschal feast; that reborn through the waters of baptism and renewed in the eucharistic mystery, we may be more fervent in prayer and more generous in the works of love.
 
Therefore we raise our voices to you in praise to proclaim the glory of your name.
Holy, holy, holy Lord,
God of power and might,
heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest.
 
We give thanks to you, Lord our God, for the goodness and love you have made known to us in creation; in calling the Hebrews to be your people; in your Word spoken through the prophets; and above all in the Word made flesh, Jesus your Son.
 
For in these last days you sent him to be incarnate from the Virgin Mary, to be the Saviour and Redeemer of the world. In him, you have delivered us from evil, and made us worthy to stand before you. In him, you have brought us out of error into truth, out of sin into righteousness, out of death into life.
 
On the night he was handed over to suffering and death, a death he freely accepted, our Lord Jesus Christ took bread; and when he had given thanks to you, he broke it, and gave it to his disciples, and said, “Take, eat: this is my body which is given for you. Do this for the remembrance of me.”
 
After supper he took the cup of wine; and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, and said, “Drink this, all of you: this is my blood of the new covenant, which is shed for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Whenever you drink it, do this for the remembrance of me.”
 
Therefore, Father, according to his command,
we remember his death,
we proclaim his resurrection,
we await his coming in glory;
and we offer our sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving to you, Lord of all; presenting to you, from your creation, this bread and this wine.
 
We pray you, gracious God, to send your Holy Spirit upon these gifts, that they may be the sacrament of the body of Christ and his blood of the new covenant. Unite us to your Son in his sacrifice, that we, made acceptable in him, may be sanctified by the Holy Spirit.
 
In the fullness of time, reconcile all things in Christ, and make them new, and bring us to that city of light where you dwell with all your children; through Jesus Christ our Lord, the firstborn of all creation, the head of the Church, and the author of our salvation;
 
by whom, and with whom, and in whom, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all honour and glory are yours, almighty Father, now and for ever. Amen.
 
The Lord’s Prayer
As our Saviour taught us, let us pray,
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us. Save us from the time of trial, and deliver us from evil. For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours, now and for ever. Amen.
 
Breaking of the Bread - 7 Lent and Holy Week
We break this bread,
Communion in Christ’s body once broken.
Let your Church be the wheat
which bears its fruit in dying.
If we have died with him,
we shall live with him;
if we hold firm,
we shall reign with him.
 
Giving of Communion
The gifts of God for the People of God.
Thanks be to God.
 
Lamb of God
Lamb of God you take away the sin of the world
have mercy on us.
Lamb of God you take away the sin of the world
have mercy on us.
Lamb of God you take away the sin of the world
grant us your peace.
 
Hymns-during-communion
63 East This Bread
PB 19 I Come By Faith
 
The Sending Forth of the Community
Hymn: PB 19 I Come By Faith
 
Prayer after Communion
All your works praise you, O Lord.
And your faithful servants bless you.
 
Gracious God we thank you for feeding us with the body and blood of your Son Jesus Christ. May we, who share his body, live his risen life; we, who drink his cup, bring life to others; we, whom the Spirit lights, give light to the world. Keep us firm in the hope you have set before us, so that we and all your children shall be free, and the whole earth live to praise your name; through Christ our Lord. Amen.
 
Blessing (Lent)
May the God of mercy transform you by his grace,
and the blessing of God almighty,
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
be among you and remain with you always. Amen.
 
Hymn: 649 Breathe on Me, Breath of God
 
Dismissal
Go forth in the name of Christ.
Thanks be to God.