Theme: Blessed
Hymn 2
Author Unknown
A glorious day is dawning,
And o'er the waking earth
The heralds of the morning
Are springing into birth.
In dark and hidden places
There shines the blessed light;
The beam of Truth displaces
The darkness of the night.
The advocates of error
Foresee the glorious morn,
And hear in shrinking terror,
The watchword of reform:
It rings from hill and valley,
It breaks oppression's chain.
A thousand freemen rally,
And swell the mighty strain.
The watchword has been spoken,
The light has broken forth,
Far shines the blessed token
Upon the startled earth.
To hearts and homes benighted
The blessed Truth is given,
And peace and love, united,
Point upward unto heaven.
Readings from the Bible.
Psalms 1:1‑6 (to :)
Blessed is the man that
walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners,
nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.
But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate
day and night. And he shall be like a
tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his
season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall
prosper. The ungodly are not so: but are
like the chaff which the wind driveth away.
Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in
the congregation of the righteous. For
the Lord knoweth the way of the righteous:
Psalms 18:46
The Lord liveth; and blessed
be my rock; and let the God of my salvation be exalted.
Psalms 33:1‑12
Rejoice in the Lord, O ye
righteous: for praise is comely for the upright. Praise the Lord with harp: sing unto him with
the psaltery and an instrument of ten strings.
Sing unto him a new song; play skilfully with a loud noise. For the word of the Lord is right; and all
his works are done in truth. He loveth
righteousness and judgment: the earth is full of the goodness of the Lord. By the word of the Lord were the heavens
made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth. He gathereth the waters of the sea together
as an heap: he layeth up the depth in storehouses. Let all the earth fear the Lord: let all the
inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him.
For he spake, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast. The Lord bringeth the counsel of the heathen
to nought: he maketh the devices of the people of none effect. The counsel of the Lord standeth for ever,
the thoughts of his heart to all generations.
Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord: and the people whom he hath
chosen for his own inheritance.
Psalms 40:1‑5
I waited patiently for the
Lord; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry. He brought me up also out of an horrible pit,
out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings. And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even
praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the
Lord. Blessed is that man that maketh
the Lord his trust, and respecteth not the proud, nor such as turn aside to
lies. Many, O Lord my God, are thy
wonderful works which thou hast done, and thy thoughts which are to us‑ward:
they cannot be reckoned up in order unto thee: if I would declare and speak of
them, they are more than can be numbered.
Psalms 72:18,19 (to ;)
Blessed be the Lord God, the
God of Israel, who only doeth wondrous things.
And blessed be his glorious name for ever: and let the whole earth be
filled with his glory;
Psalms 89:8‑17
O Lord God of hosts, who is a
strong Lord like unto thee? or to thy faithfulness round about thee? Thou rulest the raging of the sea: when the
waves thereof arise, thou stillest them.
Thou hast broken Rahab in pieces, as one that is slain; thou hast
scattered thine enemies with thy strong arm.
The heavens are thine, the earth also is thine: as for the world and the
fulness thereof, thou hast founded them.
The north and the south thou hast created them: Tabor and Hermon shall
rejoice in thy name. Thou hast a mighty
arm: strong is thy hand, and high is thy right hand. Justice and judgment are the habitation of
thy throne: mercy and truth shall go before thy face. Blessed is the people that know the joyful
sound: they shall walk, O Lord, in the light of thy countenance. In thy name shall they rejoice all the day:
and in thy righteousness shall they be exalted.
For thou art the glory of their strength: and in thy favour our horn
shall be exalted.
Psalms 112:1‑4
Praise ye the Lord. Blessed
is the man that feareth the Lord, that delighteth greatly in his
commandments. His seed shall be mighty
upon earth: the generation of the upright shall be blessed. Wealth and riches shall be in his house: and
his righteousness endureth for ever.
Unto the upright there ariseth light in the darkness: he is gracious,
and full of compassion, and righteous.
Psalms 119:1
Blessed are the undefiled in
the way, who walk in the law of the Lord.
Proverbs 8:32‑35 hearken
hearken unto me, O ye children: for blessed
are they that keep my ways. Hear
instruction, and be wise, and refuse it not.
Blessed is the man that heareth me, watching daily at my gates, waiting
at the posts of my doors. For whoso
findeth me findeth life, and shall obtain favour of the Lord.
Jeremiah 17:7,8
Blessed is the man that
trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the
waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when
heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year
of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.
Matthew 5:1‑12 seeing (to 2nd
:)
seeing the multitudes, he went up into a
mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him: And he opened his
mouth, and taught them, saying, Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is
the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they
that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst
after righteousness: for they shall be filled.
Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall
see God. Blessed are the peacemakers:
for they shall be called the children of God.
Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for
theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed
are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner
of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven:
Readings from Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy.
vii:1
To those leaning on the sustaining infinite,
to‑day is big with blessings. The
wakeful shepherd beholds the first faint morning beams, ere cometh the full
radiance of a risen day. So shone the
pale star to the prophet‑shepherds; yet it traversed the night, and came where,
in cradled obscurity, lay the Bethlehem babe, the human herald of Christ,
Truth, who would make plain to benighted understanding the way of salvation
through Christ Jesus, till across a night of error should dawn the morning
beams and shine the guiding star of being.
The Wisemen were led to behold and to follow this daystar of divine
Science, lighting the way to eternal harmony.
15:25
Christians rejoice in secret beauty and
bounty, hidden from the world, but known to God. Self‑forgetfulness, purity, and affection are
constant prayers. Practice not
profession, understanding not belief, gain the ear and right hand of
omnipotence and they assuredly call down infinite blessings. Trustworthiness is the foundation of enlightened
faith. Without a fitness for holiness,
we cannot receive holiness.
25:22
Though demonstrating his control over sin and
disease, the great Teacher by no means relieved others from giving the
requisite proofs of their own piety. He
worked for their guidance, that they might demonstrate this power as he did and
understand its divine Principle.
Implicit faith in the Teacher and all the emotional love we can bestow
on him, will never alone make us imitators of him. We must go and do likewise, else we are not
improving the great blessings which our Master worked and suffered to bestow
upon us. The divinity of the Christ was
made manifest in the humanity of Jesus.
40:31
The nature of Christianity is peaceful and
blessed, but in order to enter into the kingdom, the anchor of hope must be
cast beyond the veil of matter into the Shekinah into which Jesus has passed
before us; and this advance beyond matter must come through the joys and
triumphs of the righteous as well as through their sorrows and
afflictions. Like our Master, we must
depart from material sense into the spiritual sense of being.
60:29
Soul has infinite resources with which to
bless mankind, and happiness would be more readily attained and would be more
secure in our keeping, if sought in Soul.
Higher enjoyments alone can satisfy the cravings of immortal man. We cannot circumscribe happiness within the
limits of personal sense. The senses
confer no real enjoyment.
131:26
The mission of Jesus confirmed prophecy, and
explained the so‑called miracles of olden time as natural demonstrations of the
divine power, demonstrations which were not understood. Jesus' works established his claim to the
Messiahship. In reply to John's inquiry,
"Art thou he that should come," Jesus returned an affirmative reply,
recounting his works instead of referring to his doctrine, confident that this
exhibition of the divine power to heal would fully answer the question. Hence his reply: "Go and show John again
those things which ye do hear and see:
the blind receive their sight and the lame walk, the lepers are
cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the
gospel preached to them. And blessed is
he, whosoever shall not be offended in me." In other words, he gave his benediction to
any one who should not deny that such effects, coming from divine Mind, prove
the unity of God,‑‑the divine Principle which brings out all harmony.
323:6‑6 np
Through the wholesome chastisements of Love,
we are helped onward in the march towards righteousness, peace, and purity,
which are the landmarks of Science.
Beholding the infinite tasks of truth, we pause,‑‑wait on God. Then we push onward, until boundless thought
walks enraptured, and conception unconfined is winged to reach the divine
glory.
In order to apprehend more, we must put into
practice what we already know. We must
recollect that Truth is demonstrable when understood, and that good is not
understood until demonstrated. If
"faithful over a few things," we shall be made rulers over many; but
the one unused talent decays and is lost.
When the sick or the sinning awake to realize their need of what they
have not, they will be receptive of divine Science, which gravitates towards
Soul and away from material sense, removes thought from the body, and elevates
even mortal mind to the contemplation of something better than disease or
sin. The true idea of God gives the true
understanding of Life and Love, robs the grave of victory, takes away all sin and
the delusion that there are other minds, and destroys mortality.
The effects of Christian Science are not so
much seen as felt. It is the
"still, small voice" of Truth uttering itself. We are either turning away from this
utterance, or we are listening to it and going up higher. Willingness to become as a little child and
to leave the old for the new, renders thought receptive of the advanced idea. Gladness to leave the false landmarks and joy
to see them disappear,‑‑this disposition helps to precipitate the ultimate
harmony. The purification of sense and
self is a proof of progress.
"Blessed are the pure in heart:
for they shall see God."
518:13
God gives the lesser idea of Himself for a
link to the greater, and in return, the higher always protects the lower. The rich in spirit help the poor in one grand
brotherhood, all having the same Principle, or Father; and blessed is that man
who seeth his brother's need and supplieth it, seeking his own in another's
good. Love giveth to the least spiritual idea might, immortality, and goodness,
which shine through all as the blossom shines through the bud. All the varied expressions of God reflect
health, holiness, immortality‑‑infinite Life, Truth, and Love.
572:23‑574:2
The Revelator had not yet passed the
transitional stage in human experience called death, but he already saw a new
heaven and a new earth. Through what
sense came this vision to St. John? Not
through the material visual organs for seeing, for optics are inadequate to
take in so wonderful a scene. Were this
new heaven and new earth terrestrial or celestial, material or spiritual? They could not be the former, for the human
sense of space is unable to grasp such a view.
The Revelator was on our plane of existence, while yet beholding what
the eye cannot see,‑‑that which is invisible to the uninspired thought. This testimony of Holy Writ sustains the fact
in Science, that the heavens and earth to one human consciousness, that
consciousness which God bestows, are spiritual, while to another, the
unillumined human mind, the vision is material.
This shows unmistakably that what the human mind terms matter and spirit
indicates states and stages of consciousness.
Accompanying this scientific consciousness
was another revelation, even the declaration from heaven, supreme harmony, that
God, the divine Principle of harmony, is ever with men, and they are His
people. Thus man was no longer regarded
as a miserable sinner, but as the blessed child of God. Why?
Because St. John's corporeal sense of the heavens and earth had
vanished, and in place of this false sense was the spiritual sense, the
subjective state by which he could see the new heaven and new earth, which
involve the spiritual idea and consciousness of reality. This is Scriptural authority for concluding
that such a recognition of being is, and has been, possible to men in this
present state of existence,‑‑that we can become conscious, here and now, of a
cessation of death, sorrow, and pain.
This is indeed a foretaste of absolute Christian Science. Take heart, dear sufferer, for this reality
of being will surely appear sometime and in some way. There will be no more pain, and all tears
will be wiped away. When you read this,
remember Jesus' words, "The kingdom of God is within you." This spiritual consciousness is therefore a
present possibility.
Silent prayer followed by the audible repetition of the Lord’s Prayer.
Hymn 58
Elizabeth C. Adams
Father, we Thy loving children
Lift our hearts in joy today,
Knowing well that Thou wilt keep us
Ever in Thy blessed way.
Thou art Love and Thou art wisdom,
Thou art Life and Thou art All;
In Thy Spirit living, moving,
We shall neither faint nor fall.
Come we daily then, dear Father,
Open hearts and willing hands,
Eager ears, expectant, joyful,
Ready for Thy right commands.
We would hear no other voices,
We would heed no other call;
Thou alone art good and gracious,
Thou our Mind and Thou our All.
In Thy house securely dwelling,
Where Thy children live to bless,
Seeing only Thy creation,
We can share Thy happiness,
Share Thy joy and spend it freely.
Loyal hearts can feel no fear;
We Thy children know Thee, Father,
Love and Life forever near.
Sharing of experiences, testimonies and remarks by members of the congregation.
Hymn 276
Charles Wesley – Adapted
Peace be to this congregation;
Peace to every heart therein;
Peace, the earnest of salvation;
Peace, the fruit of conquered sin;
Peace, that speaks the heavenly Giver;
Peace, to worldly minds unknown;
Peace, that floweth as a river
From th' eternal source alone.
O Thou God of peace, be near us,
Fix within our hearts Thy home;
With Thy bright appearing cheer us,
In Thy blessed freedom come.
Come with all Thy revelations,
Truth which we so long have sought;
Come with Thy deep consolations,
Peace of God which passeth thought.
