Theme: Rejoice
Hymn 10
Frederic W. Root – Based on hymn by Martin Luther
All power is given unto our Lord,
On Him we place reliance;
With truth from out His sacred word
We bid our foes defiance.
With Him we shall prevail,
Whatever may assail;
He is our shield and tower,
Almighty is His power;
His kingdom is forever.
Rejoice, ye people, praise His name,
His care doth e'er surround us.
His love to error's thralldom came,
And from its chains unbound us.
Our Lord is God alone,
No other power we own;
No other voice we heed,
No other help we need;
His kingdom is forever.
O then give thanks to God on high,
Who life to all is giving;
The hosts of death before Him fly,
In Him we all are living.
Then let us know no fear,
Our King is ever near;
Our stay and fortress strong,
Our strength, our hope, our song;
His kingdom is forever.
Readings from the Bible.
Deuteronomy 16:11 thou
thou shalt rejoice before the Lord thy God, thou, and thy son, and thy daughter, and thy
manservant, and thy maidservant, and the Levite that is within thy gates, and the stranger, and the
fatherless, and the widow, that are among you, in the place which the Lord thy God hath chosen
to place his name there.
Deuteronomy 26:11 thou
thou shalt rejoice in every good thing which the Lord thy God hath given unto thee, and unto
thine house, thou, and the Levite, and the stranger that is among you.
I Chronicles 16:8‑12,23‑31
Give thanks unto the Lord, call upon his name, make known his deeds among the people. Sing
unto him, sing psalms unto him, talk ye of all his wondrous works. Glory ye in his holy name:
let the heart of them rejoice that seek the Lord. Seek the Lord and his strength, seek his face
continually. Remember his marvellous works that he hath done, his wonders, and the judgments
of his mouth;
Sing unto the Lord, all the earth; shew forth from day to day his salvation. Declare his glory
among the heathen: his marvellous works among all nations. For great is the Lord, and greatly to
be praised: he also is to be feared above all gods. For all the gods of the people are idols: but the
Lord made the heavens. Glory and honour are in his presence; strength and gladness are in his
place. Give unto the Lord, ye kindreds of the people, give unto the Lord glory and strength. Give
unto the Lord the glory due unto his name: bring an offering, and come before him: worship the
Lord in the beauty of holiness. Fear before him, all the earth: the world also shall be stable, that
it be not moved. Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice: and let men say among the
nations, The Lord reigneth.
Psalms 9:1,2,4,11,13,14
I will praise thee, O Lord, with my whole heart; I will shew forth all thy marvellous works. I will
be glad and rejoice in thee: I will sing praise to thy name, O thou most High.
For thou hast maintained my right and my cause; thou satest in the throne judging right.
Sing praises to the Lord, which dwelleth in Zion: declare among the people his doings.
Have mercy upon me, O Lord; consider my trouble which I suffer of them that hate me, thou that
liftest me up from the gates of death: That I may shew forth all thy praise in the gates of the
daughter of Zion: I will rejoice in thy salvation.
Psalms 33:1‑9
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.
Psalms 68:3 let,4 (to :)
let the righteous be glad; let them rejoice before God: yea, let them exceedingly rejoice. Sing
unto God, sing praises to his name:
Psalms 97:1‑12
The Lord reigneth; let the earth rejoice; let the multitude of isles be glad thereof. Clouds and darkness are round about him: righteousness and judgment are the habitation of his throne. A fire goeth before him, and burneth up his enemies round about. His lightnings enlightened the world: the earth saw, and trembled. The hills melted like wax at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the Lord of the whole earth. The heavens declare his righteousness, and all the people see his glory. Confounded be all they that serve graven images, that boast themselves of idols: worship him, all ye gods. Zion heard, and was glad; and the daughters of Judah rejoiced because of thy judgments, O Lord. For thou, Lord, art high above all the earth: thou art exalted far above all gods. Ye that love the Lord, hate evil: he preserveth the souls of his saints; he delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked. Light is sown for the righteous, and gladness for the upright in heart. Rejoice in the Lord, ye righteous; and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness.
Psalms 105:1‑5
O give thanks unto the Lord; call upon his name: make known his deeds among the people. Sing
unto him, sing psalms unto him: talk ye of all his wondrous works. Glory ye in his holy name:
let the heart of them rejoice that seek the Lord. Seek the Lord, and his strength: seek his face
evermore. Remember his marvellous works that he hath done; his wonders, and the judgments
of his mouth;
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:
Philippians 4:4
Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice.
Readings from Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy.
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.
22:11‑29
"Work out your own salvation," is the demand of Life and Love, for to this end God worketh
with you. "Occupy till I come!" Wait for your reward, and "be not weary in well doing." If your
endeavors are beset by fearful odds, and you receive no present reward, go not back to error, nor
become a sluggard in the race.
When the smoke of battle clears away, you will discern the good you have done, and receive
according to your deserving. Love is not hasty to deliver us from temptation, for Love means
that we shall be tried and purified.
Final deliverance from error, whereby we rejoice in immortality, boundless freedom, and sinless
sense, is not reached through paths of flowers nor by pinning one's faith without works to
another's vicarious effort. Whosoever believeth that wrath is righteous or that divinity is
appeased by human suffering, does not understand God.
28:32
There is too much animal courage in society and not sufficient moral courage. Christians must
take up arms against error at home and abroad. They must grapple with sin in themselves and in
others, and continue this warfare until they have finished their course. If they keep the faith, they
will have the crown of rejoicing.
140:4
That God is a corporeal being, nobody can truly affirm. The Bible represents Him as saying:
"Thou canst not see My face; for there shall no man see Me, and live." Not materially but
spiritually we know Him as divine Mind, as Life, Truth, and Love. We shall obey and adore in
proportion as we apprehend the divine nature and love Him understandingly, warring no more
over the corporeality, but rejoicing in the affluence of our God. Religion will then be of the heart
and not of the head. Mankind will no longer be tyrannical and proscriptive from lack of
love,‑‑straining out gnats and swallowing camels.
249:1‑17
Let us accept Science, relinquish all theories based on sense‑testimony, give up imperfect
models and illusive ideals; and so let us have one God, one Mind, and that one perfect, producing
His own models of excellence.
Let the "male and female" of God's creating appear. Let us feel the divine energy of Spirit,
bringing us into newness of life and recognizing no mortal nor material power as able to destroy.
Let us rejoice that we are subject to the divine "powers that be." Such is the true Science of
being. Any other theory of Life, or God, is delusive and mythological.
Mind is not the author of matter, and the creator of ideas is not the creator of illusions. Either
there is no omnipotence, or omnipotence is the only power. God is the infinite, and infinity
never began, will never end, and includes nothing unlike God. Whence then is soulless matter?
265:31
The pains of sense are salutary, if they wrench away false pleasurable beliefs and transplant the
affections from sense to Soul, where the creations of God are good, "rejoicing the heart." Such is
the sword of Science, with which Truth decapitates error, materiality giving place to man's higher
individuality and destiny.
342:21
Christian Science awakens the sinner, reclaims the infidel, and raises from the couch of pain the
helpless invalid. It speaks to the dumb the words of Truth, and they answer with rejoicing. It
causes the deaf to hear, the lame to walk, and the blind to see. Who would be the first to disown
the Christliness of good works, when our Master says, "By their fruits ye shall know them"?
354:18‑29
Consistency is seen in example more than in precept. Inconsistency is shown by words without
deeds, which are like clouds without rain. If our words fail to express our deeds, God will
redeem that weakness, and out of the mouth of babes He will perfect praise. The night of
materiality is far spent, and with the dawn Truth will waken men spiritually to hear and to speak
the new tongue.
Sin should become unreal to every one. It is in itself inconsistent, a divided kingdom. Its
supposed realism has no divine authority, and I rejoice in the apprehension of this grand verity.
561:32‑21
John the Baptist prophesied the coming of the immaculate Jesus, and John saw in those days the
spiritual idea as the Messiah, who would baptize with the Holy Ghost,‑‑divine Science. As Elias
presented the idea of the fatherhood of God, which Jesus afterwards manifested, so the Revelator
completed this figure with woman, typifying the spiritual idea of God's motherhood. The moon
is under her feet. This idea reveals the universe as secondary and tributary to Spirit, from which
the universe borrows its reflected light, substance, life, and intelligence.
The spiritual idea is crowned with twelve stars. The twelve tribes of Israel with all
mortals,‑‑separated by belief from man's divine origin and the true idea,‑‑will through much
tribulation yield to the activities of the divine Principle of man in the harmony of Science. These
are the stars in the crown of rejoicing. They are the lamps in the spiritual heavens of the age,
which show the workings of the spiritual idea by healing the sick and the sinning, and by
manifesting the light which shines "unto the perfect day" as the night of materialism wanes.
Silent prayer followed by the audible repetition of the Lord's prayer.
Hymn 304
"Feed My Sheep" – Mary Baker Eddy
Shepherd, show me how to go
O'er the hillside steep,
How to gather, how to sow,‑‑
How to feed Thy sheep;
I will listen for Thy voice,
Lest my footsteps stray;
I will follow and rejoice
All the rugged way.
Thou wilt bind the stubborn will,
Wound the callous breast,
Make self‑righteousness be still,
Break earth's stupid rest.
Strangers on a barren shore,
Lab'ring long and lone,
We would enter by the door,
And Thou know'st Thine own;
So, when day grows dark and cold,
Tear or triumph harms,
Lead Thy lambkins to the fold,
Take them in Thine arms;
Feed the hungry, heal the heart,
Till the morning's beam;
White as wool, ere they depart,
Shepherd, wash them clean.
Sharing of experiences, testimonies and remarks by members of the congregation.
Hymn 342
Laura Lee Randall
This is the day the Lord hath made;
Be glad, give thanks, rejoice;
Stand in His presence, unafraid,
In praise lift up your voice.
All perfect gifts are from above,
And all our blessings show
The amplitude of God's dear love
Which every heart may know.
The Lord will hear before we call,
And every need supply;
Good things are freely given to all
Who on His word rely.
We come today to bring Him praise
Not for such gifts alone,
But for the higher, deeper ways
In which His love is shown.
For sin destroyed, for sorrow healed,
For health and peace restored;
For Life and Love by Truth revealed,
We thank and bless the Lord.
This is the day the Lord hath made,
In praise lift up your voice.
In shining robes of joy arrayed,
Be glad, give thanks, rejoice.
