Service for Sunday, Jan. 20, 2013


Subject: Life

 Hymn 5 
 Irving C. Tomlinson

 A voice from heaven we have heard,
   The call to rise from earth;
 Put armor on, the sword now gird,
   And for the fight go forth.
 The foe in ambush claims our prize,
   Then heed high heaven's call.
 Obey the voice of Truth, arise,
   And let not fear enthrall.

 The cause requires unswerving might:
   With God alone agree.
 Then have no other aim than right;
   End bondage, O be free.
 Depart from sin, awake to love:
   Your mission is to heal.
 Then all of Truth you must approve,
   And only know the real.

The scriptural selection is from James.

James 1:12,13,16‑25
Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.  Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man:

Do not err, my beloved brethren.  Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.  Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.  Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.  Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.  But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.  For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.  But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.


Silent prayer, followed by the audible repetition of the Lord’s prayer, with its spiritual interpretation as given in the Christian Science textbook, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, by Mary Baker Eddy


Our Father which art in heaven,
Our Father-Mother God, all-harmonious,
Hallowed be Thy name.
Adorable One.
Thy kingdom come.
Thy kingdom is come; Thou art ever-present.
Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
Enable us to know – as in heaven, so on earth
God is omnipotent, supreme.
Give us this day our daily bread;
Give us grace for today; feed the famished affections;
And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
And Love is reflected in love;
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil;
And God leadeth us not into temptation, but delivereth us from sin, disease, and death.
For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever.
For God is infinite, all-power, all Life, Truth, Love, over all, and All.


 Hymn 88
 Thomas T. Lynch* 

 Gracious Spirit, dwell with me:
 I myself would gracious be,
 And with words that help and heal
 Would Thy life in mine reveal;
 And with actions bold and meek
 Christ's own gracious spirit speak.

 Truthful Spirit, dwell with me:
 I myself would truthful be,
 And with wisdom kind and clear
 Let Thy life in mine appear;
 And with actions brotherly
 Follow Christ's sincerity.

 Mighty Spirit, dwell with me:
 I myself would mighty be,
 Mighty, that I may prevail
 Where unaided man must fail;
 Ever by triumphant hope
 Pressing on and bearing up.

Solo: “Walk Humbly With Thy God”             


Friends:
The Bible and the Christian Science textbook are our only preachers. We shall now read Scriptural texts, and their correlative passages from our denominational textbook; these comprise our sermon.

The canonical writings, together with the word of our textbook, corroborating and explaining the Bible texts in their spiritual import and application to all ages, past, present, and future, constitute a sermon undivorced from truth, uncontaminated and unfettered by human hypotheses, and divinely authorized.

The lesson-sermon from the Bible and the Christian Science textbook, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, by Mary Baker Eddy, read by the First and Second Readers.

The content of the Lesson Sermon may be found in the Christian Science Quarterly. You may also read the Lesson-Sermon for this week online by clicking here.

 Hymn 175 
 Violet Hay

 Lo, He sent His Word and healed them,
   Still that Word of God is here.
 Still its tender healing message
   Speaks to every listening ear.
 Truth divine, that overcometh
   All the ills that seem to be,
 In our hearts Thy Word abiding,
   We may know Thee and be free.

 Love divine, that faileth never,
   Still Thy presence and Thy power
 Mighty are to save and heal us,
   Guard and guide us every hour.
 Life divine, Thy Word proclaimeth
   All true being one with Thee.
 Sinless, fearless, whole, rejoicing,
   Now and through eternity.
  
"The Scientific Statement of Being" (S&H p. 468} and the correlative scripture according to I John 3:1-3.

There is no life, truth, intelligence, nor substance in matter. All is infinite Mind and its infinite manifestation, for God is All-in-all. Spirit is immortal Truth; matter is mortal error. Spirit is the real and eternal; matter is the unreal and temporal. Spirit is God, and man is His image and likeness. Therefore man is not material; he is spiritual.

Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p.468

1John.3
[1] Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.
[2] Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.
[3] And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.

Benediction

Matt  10:8
Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.

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