Palm Sunday: Where Your Treasure Is: In Christ

Sunday, March 29, 2026
10:30 AM 11:30 AM 10:30 11:30

Union Presbyterian Church 200 E Main St Endicott, NY, 13760 United States (map)

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Welcome to Holy Week—the most sacred celebration of the Christian year. It all begins on Palm Sunday, the day on which we witness Jesus entering into Jerusalem. He is entering with throngs of people from all over the known world: It is the great Passover festival. It is also be the week in which he will be crucified.

Join us at Union Presbyterian for this very special Sunday. Join us in waving palm branches as the service begins, and moving into the words and actions Jesus shares and performs as this momentous week commences. You can join us in our beautiful sanctuary at 200 East Main Street in Endicott, NY. Or, you can join us online by clicking on the livestream, right here, on Sunday morning at 10:30. You are invited! Share Holy Week with us.

Palm Sunday

Where Your Treasure Is: In Christ

Matthew 21:1-11; Psalm 118:19-29; Matthew 21:12-17

March 29, 2026 

Union Presbyterian Church 

Sharing the Light of Christ, Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow 

Liturgist: Becky Conklin Preacher: Rev. Pat Raube 

Jim Mica percussion for Time For Young Disciples, Anthem, Hymn after Sermon

Preludes

“With Palms Before Him Went,” Douglas E. Wagner Chris Bartlette

Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.     

“Agape,” Howard F. Starks Tower Ringers

Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.     

Welcome   Becky Conklin

* Call to Worship (Responsive) Zechariah 9:9
Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!

Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem!

Lo, your king comes to you;

triumphant and victorious is he,

humble and riding on a donkey,

on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

* Proclamation of the Entrance into Jerusalem Rev. Pat Raube

* Scripture Matthew 21:1-11

Now they had come near Jerusalem and reached Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, “Go into the village before you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her; release them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, just say this, ‘The Son of Woman needs them.’ And they will send them immediately.” This took place to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet, saying,

“Tell the daughter of Zion,

‘Look, your sovereign is coming to you,

humble, and mounted on a donkey,

and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’ ”

The disciples went and did just as Jesus had instructed them; they brought the donkey and the colt, and put their cloaks on them, and he sat on them. A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. The crowds that were going before him and the one following were shouting, saying:

“Hosanna to the Son of David!

Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Holy One!

Hosanna in the highest!”

When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was shook, asking, “Who is this?” The crowds were saying, “This is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth in Galilee.”

* Hymn # 197

“Hosanna, Loud Hosanna”

(Public Domain)

Hosanna, loud hosanna,
The little children sang;
Through pillared court and temple
The joyful anthem rang.
To Jesus, who had blessed them,
Close folded to his breast,
The children sang their praises,
The simplest and the best.

From Olivet they followed
'Mid an exultant crowd,
The victor palm branch waving,
And chanting clear and loud;
The Lord of earth and heaven
Rode on in lowly state,
Nor scorned that little children
Should on his bidding wait.

“Hosanna in the highest!”
That ancient song we sing,
For Christ is our Redeemer;
The Lord of heaven, our King.
O may we ever praise him
with heart and life and voice,
And in his blissful presence
Eternally rejoice.

* Call to New Life

As we witness the unfolding of this Holy Week, we walk alongside Jesus from his triumphant entry to the cross, and from the tomb to his resurrection. In our prayer we ask that God would strengthen us in faith, hope, and love, so that we might walk with him all our days.

* Prayer for Palm Sunday (unison)

Everlasting God, in your tender love for the human race you sent your Son to take our nature, and to suffer death upon the cross. In your mercy, enable us to share in his obedience to your will and in the glorious victory of his resurrection; we pray this in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

* Words of Assurance

Anyone who is in Christ is a new creation.

The old life has gone; a new life has begun.

Know that you are forgiven by the grace of God, and be at peace.

Thanks be to God.

* Sharing of the Peace

May the peace of God be with you.

And also with you.

Let us share with one another a sign of God’s peace.

Scripture Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29 NRSVUE

As we pray this psalm together, we remember all those arriving for the Passover in joyous procession to the Temple, singing psalms as they went.

A reading from the Psalter, selected verses from Psalm 118.

Give thanks to the Lord, for the Lord is good;
God’s mercy endures forever!

Let Israel now declare,
“God’s mercy endures forever!”

Open for me the gates of righteousness,
I will enter them and give thanks to the Lord.

This is the gate of the Lord;
here the righteous may enter.

I give thanks to you, for you have answered me
and you have become my salvation.
The stone that the builders rejected
has become the chief cornerstone.
By the Lord’s has this been done;
it is marvelous in our eyes.
This is the day that the Lord has made;
let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Hosanna! O Lord, save us!
We pray to you Lord, prosper our days!

Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.
We bless you from the house of the Lord.
The Lord is God, and has given us light.

Form a procession with branches,
up to the horns of the altar.

You are my God, and I will thank you;
you are my God, and I will exalt you.

Give thanks to the Lord, for the Lord is good;
God’s mercy endures forever!

Time for Young Disciples Rev. Pat Raube

Music: “God the Sculptor of the Mountains” (Hymn #5)

Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.     

Anthem Choir

“Ain’t No Rock Gonna Shout for Me,” J. Paul Williams, Lloyd Larson

Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.     

Here comes the Lord ridin’ on a donkey

With people waving branches and callin’ him “King.”

Here comes the Lord ridin’ through Jerusalem.

If the people don’t shout, the rocks will cry out!

Rocks, keep silent! Jesus comes to set me free.

Rocks, keep silent! I’m gonna’ shout in victory!

Rocks, keep silent! Jesus reigns in majesty.

Ain’t no rock gonna’ shout for me.

Here comes the Lord as thousands throng to see him.

Children stand on tiptoe to see the King.

Here comes the Lord; excitement in the air.

If the people don’t shout, the rocks will cry out!

Rocks, keep silent! Jesus comes to set me free.

Rocks, keep silent! I’m gonna’ shout in victory!

Rocks, keep silent! Jesus reigns in majesty.

Ain’t no rock gonna’ shout for me.

Rocks, keep silent! Ain’t no rock gonna’ shout for me.

Here comes the Lord; hosannas fill the air.

The people bow and worship the promised King!

Here comes the Lord, “Hosanna in the highest!”

If the people don’t shout, the rocks will cry out!

Rocks, keep silent! Jesus comes to set me free.

Rocks, keep silent! I’m gonna’ shout in victory!

Rocks, keep silent! Jesus reigns in majesty.

Ain’t no rock gonna’ shout for me.

Scripture Matthew 21:12-17

Then Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who were selling and buying in the temple, and the tables of the moneychangers he overturned, as well as the station of those who sold doves. He said to them, “It is written,

‘My house shall be called a house of prayer’;

but you all are making it a den of robbers.”

And they came to him in the temple, those who were blind and disabled, and he cured them. Now when the chief priests and the religious scholars saw the amazing things that he did, and heard the girls and boys crying out in the temple, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” they became angry. They said to him, “Do you hear what these are saying?” Jesus said to them, “Yes; have you never read, ‘Out of the mouths of infants and nursing babies you have prepared praise for yourself’?” He left them, went out of the city to Bethany, and spent the night there.

Response Holy Wisdom, Holy Word.

Thanks be to God.

Sermon “In Christ”

Affirmation of Faith for Lent

We believe in a God who so loves the world,

he came among us in Jesus:

Emmanuel, God-With-Us.

Deeply human and fully God,

Jesus was born of a woman.

He was called by God into a ministry

of teaching, feeding, and healing,

but first, he underwent a time of testing.

In the wilderness for forty days,

Jesus embraced the treasure

of his unwavering faith in God

and resisted the temptation

to use godly powers in self-service.

Jesus called a gathering of faithful individuals

to follow him and learn from him.

Understood fully by people on the margins

as a loving preacher, prophet, and healer,

Jesus was seen by those in power as a threat.

He was betrayed by one of his own,

was tried as a traitor to Rome,

and was nailed to a tree, where he died.

With his last breath

he commended his spirit into God’s hands.

Death could not hold back his power or his goodness;

on the third day he was raised to life by God almighty.

When at last he entered the heavenly realm,

he sent his Holy Spirit to be with us forever:

Emmanuel: God-With-Us.

* Hymn # 391

“This is the Day,” Pablo Sosa

Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.     

This is the day; this is the day;

This is the day that God has made!

Open, now, open the doorways of justice!

Let us be glad as we pass through those gates.

This is the place where the righteous may enter,

Singing to God with thanksgiving and praise.

This is the day; this is the day;

This is the day that God has made!

I will sing praises because you have heard me,

Offering salvation with grace upon grace,

Turning the stone that the builders rejected

Into the cornerstone, rock of our faith.

This is the day; this is the day;

This is the day that God has made!

It is the Lord who has done all these wonders.

I have seen marvelous, marvelous things.

This is the day that the Lord has created.

Join the rejoicing as every heart sings:

This is the day; this is the day;

This is the day that God has made!

Praise the Creator, the Christ, and the Spirit,

From the beginning through worlds without end:

God who is now and who evermore shall be,

Glory forever, amen and amen!

This is the day; this is the day;

This is the day that God has made!

Prayers of the People 

The Lord’s Prayer  

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen. 

Prayer Response see insert

“Eternal Spirit of the Living Christ,” Frank von Christierson  (verse 1)

Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.     

Eternal Spirit of the living Christ,

I know not how to ask or what to say;

I only know my need, as deep as life,

And only you can teach me how to pray.

Call for Offering     

* Doxology # 582

“Glory to God, Whose Goodness Shines on Me,” Paul M. Vasile (verse 1)

Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.     

Glory to God, whose goodness shines on me,

And to the Son, whose grace has pardoned me,

And to the Spirit, whose love has set me free.

As it was in the beginning,

Is now, and ever shall be. Amen.

* Prayer of Dedication of Our One Great Hour of Sharing Offering

O God, you call us to love and serve one another, in the name of Jesus Christ.

O Lord, we give you our hearts.

Generous God, you call us to help your children

who work your land and fish your seas;

who seek clean water and new ways to bring seeds to fruition.

O Lord, we give you our hands.

Compassionate God, you call us to respond to your children around the world

who suffer as a result of natural disasters.

O Lord, we give you our determination.

Righteous God, you call us to join in the struggle for justice,

and an end to poverty, hunger, and oppression.

O Lord, we give you our offerings.

God, our provider, we give thanks for the blessings in our lives; we pray for those who do not yet know the blessings of justice, freedom or hope. We ask for peace, safety and the resources for the empowerment and opportunity of our kin around the world who are poor, oppressed and disadvantaged, through the love of Christ and the comfort of the Spirit.

Amen.

* Hymn #264

“At the Name of Jesus,” Ralph Vaughan Williams

Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.     

At the name of Jesus
Every knee shall bow,
Every tongue confess him
King of glory now;
'Tis the Father's pleasure
We should call him Lord,
Who from the beginning
Was the mighty Word.

Humbled for a season
To receive a name
From the lips of sinners
Unto whom he came,
Faithfully he bore it
Spotless to the last,
Brought it back victorious,
When from death he passed;

Bore it up triumphant,
With its human light,
Through all ranks of creatures,
To the central height,
To the throne of Godhead,
To the Father's breast,
Filled it with the glory
Of that perfect rest.

Christians, this Lord Jesus
Shall return again,
With his Father's glory
O'er the earth to reign;
For all wreaths of empire
Meet upon his brow,
And our hearts confess him
King of glory now.

* Benediction 

Postlude Chris Bartlette

“Hosanna, Loud Hosanna,” John Carter

Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.     

Where an * is indicated, please rise in body and/or in spirit.     

Scripture Translations are from A Women’s Lectionary for the Whole Church, Year A, by Wilda C. Gafney, unless otherwise noted.

Liturgy from the PCUSA Book of Common Worship (2018)

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Palm Sunday: Where Your Treasure Is: In Christ