Sunday Service from Hillside Circuit for April 13th 2025:
Lectionary Theme: Behold our King
Occasion: Palm Sunday
Lectionary readings:
Psalm 22
Isaiah 56: 1-8
Hebrews 10: 1-10
Luke 19: 29-44
[Click or tap on a Bible reference above to jump down the page to the Bible reading to read it for yourself (and/or to listen to it) and then click or tap on Back to top to come back here.]
Songs:
Here are the songs for Sunday morning service. Click or tap on a song to open it in YouTube.
Trotting, trotting.
Make way.
Children of Jerusalem.
Hosanna, hosanna, hosanna in the highest.
Ride on, ride on.
May the Lord.
Prayers:
You can listen and join in with prayers from the English Methodist Service Book. They can be found at the Prayers for worship webpage.
Children’s Address:
No Children’s Address was received this week, but you can find an activity for Holy Week by clicking/tapping here to jump down the page to find the instructions and illustrations.
Sermon:
From the Archives
No online service was received this week, but here is the Palm Sunday service from the archives for 2023:
Bible readings:
Psalm 22
1 My God, my God, why have you deserted me?
Why are you so far away?
Won’t you listen to my groans and come to my rescue?
2 I cry out day and night, but you don’t answer,
and I can never rest.
3 Yet you are the holy God, ruling from your throne
and praised by Israel.
4 Our ancestors trusted you,
and you rescued them.
5 When they cried out for help, you saved them,
and you did not let them down
when they depended on you.
6 But I am merely a worm, far less than human,
and I am hated and rejected by people everywhere.
7 Everyone who sees me makes fun and sneers.
They shake their heads, 8 and say,
“Trust the LORD! If you are his favourite,
let him protect you and keep you safe.”
9 You, LORD, brought me safely through birth,
and you protected me
when I was a baby at my mother’s breast.
10 From the day I was born, I have been in your care,
and from the time of my birth,
you have been my God.
11 Don’t stay far off
when I am in trouble with no one to help me.
12 Enemies are all around like a herd of wild bulls.
Powerful bulls from Bashan are everywhere.
13 My enemies are like lions
roaring and attacking with jaws open wide.
14 I have no more strength than a few drops of water.
All my bones are out of joint;
my heart is like melted wax.
15 My strength has dried up like a broken clay pot,
and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth.
You, God, have left me to die in the dirt.
16 Brutal enemies attack me like a pack of dogs,
tearing at my hands and my feet.
17 I can count all my bones,
and my enemies just stare and sneer at me.
18 They took my clothes and gambled for them.
19 Don’t stay far away, LORD!
My strength comes from you, so hurry and help.
20 Rescue me from enemy swords
and save me from those dogs.
21 Don’t let lions eat me.
You rescued me from the horns of wild bulls,
22 and when your people meet,
I will praise you, LORD.
23 All who worship the LORD, now praise him!
You belong to Jacob’s family and to the people of Israel,
so fear and honour the LORD!
24 The LORD doesn’t hate or despise the helpless
in all of their troubles.
When I cried out, he listened and did not turn away.
25 When your people meet, you will fill my heart
with your praises, LORD,
and everyone will see me keep my promises to you.
26 The poor will eat and be full,
and all who worship you will be thankful
and live in hope.
27 Everyone on this earth will remember you, LORD.
People all over the world will turn and worship you,
28 because you are in control, the ruler of all nations.
29 All who are rich and have more than enough
will bow down to you, LORD.
Even those who are dying and almost in the grave
will come and bow down.
30 In the future, everyone will worship
and learn about you, our LORD.
31 People not yet born will be told,
“The LORD has saved us!”
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Isaiah 56
1 The LORD said: Be honest and fair!
Soon I will come to save you;
my saving power will be seen everywhere on earth.
2 I will bless everyone who respects the Sabbath
and refuses to do wrong.
3 Foreigners who worship me must not say,
“The LORD won’t let us be part of his people.”
Men who are unable to become fathers must no longer say,
“We are dried-up trees.”
4 To them, I, the LORD, say:
Respect the Sabbath, obey me completely,
and keep our agreement.
5 Then I will set up monuments in my temple
with your names written on them.
This will be much better than having children,
because these monuments will stand there forever.
6 Foreigners will follow me. They will love me
and worship in my name;
they will respect the Sabbath and keep our agreement.
7 I will bring them to my holy mountain,
where they will celebrate in my house of worship.
Their sacrifices and offerings will always be welcome
on my altar.
Then my house will be known as a house of worship
for all nations.
8 I, the LORD, promise to bring together my people
who were taken away, and let them join the others.
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Hebrews 10
1 The Law of Moses is like a shadow of the good things to come. This shadow isn’t the good things themselves, because it cannot free people from sin by the sacrifices that are offered year after year. 2 If there were worshippers who already have their sins washed away and their consciences made clear, there would not be any need to go on offering sacrifices. 3-4 But the blood of bulls and goats cannot take away sins. It only reminds people of their sins from one year to the next.
5 When Christ came into the world, he said to God,
“Sacrifices and offerings are not what you want,
but you have given me my body.
6 No, you are not pleased with animal sacrifices
and offerings for sin.”
7 Then Christ said,
“And so, my God, I have come to do what you want,
as the Scriptures say.”
8 The Law teaches that offerings and sacrifices must be made because of sin. But why did Christ mention these things and say that God did not want them? 9 Well, it was to do away with offerings and sacrifices and to replace them. That is what he meant by saying to God, “I have come to do what you want.” 10 So we are made holy because Christ obeyed God and offered himself once for all.
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Luke 19
29 As he was getting near Bethphage and Bethany on the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples on ahead. 30 He told them, “Go into the next village, where you will find a young donkey that has never been ridden. Untie the donkey and bring it here. 31 If anyone asks why you are doing that, just say, ‘The Lord needs it.’ “
32 They went off and found everything just as Jesus had said. 33 While they were untying the donkey, its owners asked, “Why are you doing that?”
34 They answered, “The Lord needs it.”
35 Then they led the donkey to Jesus. They put some of their clothes on its back and helped Jesus get on. 36 And as he rode along, the people spread clothes on the road in front of him. 37 When Jesus was starting down the Mount of Olives, his large crowd of disciples were happy and praised God because of all the miracles they had seen. 38 They shouted,
“Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!
Peace in heaven and glory to God.”
39 Some Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, make your disciples stop shouting!”
40 But Jesus answered, “If they keep quiet, these stones will start shouting.”
41 When Jesus came closer and could see Jerusalem, he cried 42 and said:
It is too bad that today your people don’t know what will bring them peace! Now it is hidden from them. 43 Jerusalem, the time will come when your enemies will build walls around you to attack you. Armies will surround you and close in on you from every side. 44 They will level you to the ground and kill your people. Not one stone in your buildings will be left on top of another. This will happen because you did not see that God had come to save you.
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[Did you miss last week’s Sunday Services? They can now be found at Worship Archive – April 6th 2025.]
A Palm Sunday or Holy Week Activity for All Ages:
You might like to make your own Palm Crosses. Here are the instructions (suitable for age 10+; younger children can ask someone to help them).
Note that you don’t need to soak the palm leaves unless they have dried out, and you don’t need to use a knife to split the leaves; it can be done by hand.
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Methodist Church: Hillside Circuit 
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