Service for Sunday, July 27, 2014

Subject: Truth

 Hymn 148 
 Anna L. Waring*

 In heavenly Love abiding,
   No change my heart shall fear;
 And safe is such confiding,
   For nothing changes here.
 The storm may roar without me,
   My heart may low be laid;
 But God is round about me,
   And can I be dismayed?

 Wherever He may guide me,
   No want shall turn me back;
 My Shepherd is beside me,
   And nothing can I lack.
 His wisdom ever waketh,
   His sight is never dim;
 He knows the way He taketh,
   And I will walk with Him.

 Green pastures are before me,
   Which yet I have not seen;
 Bright skies will soon be o'er me,
   Where darkest clouds have been.
 My hope I cannot measure,
   My path in life is free;
 My Father has my treasure,
   And He will walk with me.

Readings from the Bible.

Psalms 31:1‑3,5,16,23,24
In thee, O Lord, do I put my trust; let me never be ashamed: deliver me in thy righteousness.  Bow down thine ear to me; deliver me speedily: be thou my strong rock, for an house of defence to save me.  For thou art my rock and my fortress; therefore for thy name's sake lead me, and guide me. 

Into thine hand I commit my spirit: thou hast redeemed me, O Lord God of truth. 

Make thy face to shine upon thy servant: save me for thy mercies' sake. 

O love the Lord, all ye his saints: for the Lord preserveth the faithful, and plentifully rewardeth the proud doer.  Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope in the Lord.

Psalms 25:4‑6,9,10,21
Shew me thy ways, O Lord; teach me thy paths.  Lead me in thy truth, and teach me: for thou art the God of my salvation; on thee do I wait all the day.  Remember, O Lord, thy tender mercies and thy lovingkindnesses; for they have been ever of old. 

The meek will he guide in judgment: and the meek will he teach his way.  All the paths of the Lord are mercy and truth unto such as keep his covenant and his testimonies. 

Let integrity and uprightness preserve me; for I wait on thee.

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 181 
 Rosemary B. Hackett

 Loving Father, we Thy children
   Look to Thee in fear's dark night
 While the angels of Thy presence
   Guide us upward to the light.

 Then we feel the power that lifts us
   To Thy holy secret place,
 Where our gloom is lost in glory
   As we see Thee face to face.

 We would learn, O gracious Father,
   To reflect Thy healing love.
 May we all awake to praise Thee
   For Thy good gifts from above.

 Make us strong to bear the message
   To Thy children far and near:
 Fear shall have no more dominion.
   God is All, and heaven is here.

Solo: “Awake, Thou That Sleepest” 

Explanatory Note
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 245 
 Frederic W. Root

 O tender, loving Shepherd,
   We long to follow thee,
 To follow where thou leadest,
   Though rough the path may be;
 Though dark and heavy shadows
   Enshroud the way with gloom,
 We know that Love will guide us,
   And safely lead us home.

 We know, beloved Shepherd,
   The path that thou hast trod
 Leads ever out of darkness,
   And on and up to God.
 If from that path we wander,
   And far astray we roam,
 O, call us, faithful Shepherd,
   And bring us safely home.

 Throughout the way, dear Shepherd,
   Thy strong hand doth uphold;
 The weary ones, at nightfall,
   Thou gently dost enfold.
 And when to Truth's green pastures
   With joy at length we come,
 There shall we find, O Shepherd,
   Our blest, eternal home.

"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
Proverbs 4:18 the

 the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.

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