Sample Liturgy for Ascension Day

• Before using this liturgy, please read the information and instructions throughout “The Service of the Word and Lord’s Supper.”
• Ascension Day, also called the Feast of the Ascension of the Lord, is the 40th day of Easter, always on a Thursday. It is one of the principal feasts of the Christian year, alongside feasts such as Christmas Day, Easter Day, and Pentecost. Recovering this feast will go a long way to recovering the neglected doctrine of the ascension which was central to the apostolic preaching. If your church does not have an Ascension Day service, consider moving your midweek meeting (e.g., Wednesday Bible study) to a Thursday and having a full service instead. For more on the 50-day season of Easter, see “A Guide to Easter.”
• This liturgy is built around the texts in the Revised Common Lectionary. The same texts are used in Year A, B, and C. See “Collects and Readings for Easter.”
• Hymn numbers correspond to Our Great Redeemer’s Praise (Seedbed, 2022). Chorus numbers correspond to The Chorus Book: Contemporary and Traditional Favorites (Lillenas, 2003). See also “Easter Hymns, Songs, and Metrical Psalms.”

Artwork for Bulletins/Slideshows

• Rembrandt van Rijn, The Ascension (1636), oil on canvas

The Liturgy

THE PROCESSIONAL

• Rejoice, the Lord Is King (277) — a call to lift up heart and voice and rejoice over the ascension; a great call to worship; would also go well after the sursum corda; piano track

THE ACCLAMATION

Alleluia! Christ is risen!
The Lord is risen indeed! Alleluia!

CALL TO WORSHIP

Grace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, and happy Ascension Day! It is good for us to be together on this fortieth day of Easter to celebrate the Feast of the Ascension of our Lord.

This feast day has a long history in the church. In the fourth century, Saint Augustine spoke of this feast as the universal observance of the Church long before his time, and even suggested that it could have went back to the apostles themselves.

Whatever the case, it is very fitting that we should set aside times to remember the wonderful works of God, and the ascension of our Lord is truly wonderful! Thomas Oden calls it “the climactic event of salvation history,” and Patrick Schreiner writes that in one sense, “the ascension was the goal of the incarnation.” In the Eastern church, this day is sometimes simply called “The Salvation.”

So join in the feast, brothers and sisters, and as Charles Wesley said, “Hail the day that sees him rise, alleluia! To his throne above the skies, alleluia!”

OPENING PRAYER

Let us pray.

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 SUMMARY OF THE LAW

Hear what our Lord Jesus Christ says:
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.

THE KYRIE AND/OR TRISAGION

Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.

Holy God, holy and mighty,
Holy Immortal One,
Have mercy upon us.

THE GLORIA PATRI

Then is sung,

Glory be to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Ghost,
as it was in the beginning,
is now and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

HYMN OF PRAISE

Glory be to God on high, and on earth peace, good will towards men. We praise you, we bless you, we worship you, we glorify you, we give thanks to you for your great glory, O Lord God, heavenly king, God the Father Almighty. O Lord, the only-begotten Son Jesus Christ; O Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father, that takes away the sins of the world, have mercy upon us. You that takes away the sins of the world, have mercy upon us. You that takes away the sins of the world, receive our prayer. You that sits at the right hand of God the Father, have mercy upon us. For you alone are holy, you alone are the Lord, you alone, O Christ, with the Holy Spirit, are most high in the glory of God the Father. Amen.

HYMN

• Hail the Day That Sees Him Rise (269)

PRAYER BEFORE THE LESSONS

The Lord be with you.
And with your spirit.
Let us pray.

Almighty God, gladden us with holy joys, and make us rejoice with devout thanksgiving, for the Ascension of Christ your Son is our exaltation, and where the Head has gone before in glory, the Body is called to follow in hope. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, forever and ever. Amen.

THE FIRST LESSON: ACTS 1:1–11

A reading from the Acts of the Apostles, Chapter 1, at the first verse:

In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, 2 until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. 3 He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God. 4 And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, “you heard from me; 5 for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” The Ascension 6 So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” 7 He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” 9 And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. 10 And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, 11 and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

THE PSALM: PSALM 47

Psalm 47 may be read or sung. Or, Psalm 93 may be used.

Clap your hands, all you nations; shout to God with cries of joy. 2 For the Lord Most High is awesome, the great King over all the earth. 3 He subdued nations under us, peoples under our feet. 4 He chose our inheritance for us, the pride of Jacob, whom he loved. 5 God has ascended amid shouts of joy, the Lord amid the sounding of trumpets. 6 Sing praises to God, sing praises; sing praises to our King, sing praises. 7 For God is the King of all the earth; sing to him a psalm of praise. 8 God reigns over the nations; God is seated on his holy throne. 9 The nobles of the nations assemble as the people of the God of Abraham, for the kings of the earth belong to God; he is greatly exalted.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

HYMN

• Crown Him With Many Crowns (278)

THE SECOND LESSON

A reading from Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians, Chapter 1, at the 15th verse:

For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, 16 I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, 17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, 18 having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might 20 that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. 22 And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

HYMN

• All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name (279)

THE GOSPEL READING: LUKE 24:44–53

The Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke, Chapter 24, at the 44th verse:

Then he said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.” 45 Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, 46 and said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, 47 and that repentance for the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. 48 You are witnesses of these things. 49 And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.” 50 And he led them out as far as Bethany, and lifting up his hands he blessed them. 51 While he blessed them, he parted from them and was carried up into heaven. 52 And they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, 53 and were continually in the temple blessing God.

The Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to you, Lord Christ.

CATECHISM QUESTION

The Minister may ask the question and all may say the answer together.

Q. 34. Why did Christ ascend into heaven to sit at the right hand of the Father?
With the same body in which he was raised, Christ ascended to sit and reign as Lord of heaven and earth, intercede as our Advocate before the Father, and build his Church through his Spirit until he returns to judge all people on the last day.

THE SERMON

THE CREED

Let us confess our faith in the words of the Nicene Creed.

I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds; God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God; begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made. For us and for our salvation, he came down from heaven, and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary, and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate; He suffered and was buried; and the third day He rose again, according to the Scriptures; and ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of the Father; and He shall come again, with glory, to judge the living and the dead; whose kingdom shall have no end. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of Life; who proceeds from the Father [and the Son]; who with the Father and the Son together is worshiped and glorified; who spoke by the prophets. I believe one holy catholic and apostolic Church. I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins; and I look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.

THE PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE

THE INVITATION

If you truly and earnestly repent of your sins, and are in love and charity with your neighbors, and intend to lead a new life, following the commandments of God, and walking from this point forward in his holy ways; draw near with faith, and take this holy sacrament to your comfort; and make your humble confession to Almighty God.

THE CONFESSION AND ABSOLUTION

Almighty God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Maker of all things, Judge of all men; we acknowledge and lament our many sins, which we have, from time to time, most grievously committed, by thought, word, and deed, against your divine majesty. We earnestly repent, and are sincerely sorry for our misdoings; the remembrance of them is grievous to us. Have mercy upon us, have mercy upon us, most merciful Father. For the sake of your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, forgive us all that is past; and grant that we may ever hereafter serve and please you in newness of life, to the honor and glory of your name, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Almighty God, our heavenly Father, in your great mercy you have promised forgiveness to all who turn to you with sincere repentance and true faith. Have mercy upon us; pardon and deliver us from all our sins, confirm and strengthen us in all goodness, and bring us to everlasting life, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

THE COMFORTING WORDS AND THE PEACE

Brothers and sisters, Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners (1 Tim. 1:15), and is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them (Heb. 7:25). If anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins (1 Jn. 2:1–2).

Peace be with you.
And also with you.

THE OFFERTORY

THE SURSUM CORDA AND THE SANCTUS

Lift up your hearts.
We lift them up to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to our God.
It is fitting and right to do so.

O Lord, Holy Father, Almighty, Everlasting God, it is very fitting, right, and our bounden duty, that we should at all times, and in all places, give thanks unto you through your dearly beloved Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who after his glorious resurrection appeared to all his apostles, and in their sight ascended into heaven to prepare a place for us; that where he is, there we might also ascend, and reign with him in glory.

Therefore with angels and archangels, and with all the company of heaven, we laud and magnify your glorious name, evermore praising you, and saying,
Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of hosts, heaven and earth are full of your glory. Glory be to you, O Lord most high. Amen.

HYMN

• Arise, My Soul, Arise (535)
• Or, Before the Throne of God Above (275) — “Behold Him there, the risen Lamb! … my soul is purchased by His blood”

THE PRAYER OF CONSECRATION

Almighty God, our heavenly Father; of your tender mercy, you gave your only Son, Jesus Christ, to suffer death upon the cross for our redemption. By once offering himself there, he made a full, perfect, and sufficient sacrifice, offering, and satisfaction for the sins of the whole world.

So now, most merciful Father, we humbly ask you to bless and sanctify, with your Word and Spirit, these gifts of bread and wine; and grant that we may receive them according to the holy institution of your Son, our Savior Jesus Christ, in remembrance of his death and passion, and be partakers of his most blessed Body and Blood.

In the same night that he was betrayed, he took* bread; and when he had given thanks, he brake* it; and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take, eat; this* is my Body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of me.”

Likewise after Supper he took* the Cup; and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, “Drink you all of this; for this* is my Blood of the New Testament, which is shed for you, and for many, for the remission of sins: Do this as often as you shall drink it, in remembrance of me.”

Therefore we proclaim the mystery of faith:

Christ has died;
Christ is risen;
Christ will come again.

THE LORD’S PRAYER

Let us pray.

Our Father, who is in heaven, hallowed be your name; your kingdom come; your will be done; on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil. For yours is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.

THE MINISTRATION

Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world.
Have mercy on us, and grant us your peace.
Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us;
Therefore, let us keep the feast.
The gifts of God for the people of God.
Thanks be to God.

The Ministers receive the Bread and Cup, and then invite the people to come forward to partake. When delivering the bread to each person, one of the following may be said:

• The body of our Lord Jesus Christ, which was given for you.
• The body of Christ, preserve your body and soul unto everlasting life.
• The body of Christ; take and eat this in remembrance that Christ died for you.
• The body of Christ; feed on him in your heart by faith, with thanksgiving.
• The body of Christ, the bread of heaven.

When delivering the cup to each person, one of the following may be said:

• The blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, which was shed for you.
• The blood of Christ, preserve your body and soul unto everlasting life.
• The blood of Christ; drink this in remembrance that Christ’s blood was shed for you, and be thankful.
• The blood of Christ, the cup of salvation.

During the distribution, a fitting song may be played.

• Alleluia! Sing to Jesus! — “You within the veil have entered, robed in flesh, our great High Priest; Here on earth both Priest and Victim in the Eucharistic feast.”
• At the Lamb’s High Feast

THE POST COMMUNION PRAYER

Almighty, ever-living God, we thank you for allowing us on earth to celebrate your divine mysteries, and ask you to grant that Christian hope may draw us onward to that place where our nature is united with you, through Christ our Lord. Amen.

THE DOXOLOGY

Praise God from whom all blessings flow
Praise him all creatures here below
Praise him above, you heavenly host
Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost.

THE BLESSING AND SENDING

May the grace of God keep your hearts and minds firmly fixed on things above, where Christ is, that when Christ, who is your life, appears, you also may appear with him in glory. Amen.

Go and tell the world that our God reigns!
Thanks be to God!