Service for Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2013


Works
 Hymn 12
 Violet Hay 

 Arise ye people, take your stand,
 Cast out your idols from the land,
 Above all doctrine, form or creed
 Is found the Truth that meets your need.
 Christ's promise stands: they that believe
 His works shall do, his power receive.

 Go forward then, and as ye preach
 So let your works confirm your speech,
 And prove to all with following sign
 The Word of God is power divine.
 In love and healing ministry
 Show forth the Truth that makes men free.

 O Father‑Mother God, whose plan
 Hath given dominion unto man,
 In Thine own image we may see
 Man pure and upright, whole and free.
 And ever through our work shall shine
 That light whose glory, Lord, is Thine.

Readings from the Bible.

Deuteronomy 2:7 the (to 1st :)
the Lord thy God hath blessed thee in all the works of thy hand:

I Chronicles 16:7‑12 David,23‑28
David delivered first this psalm to thank the Lord into the hand of Asaph and his brethren.  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.

Psalms 8:1,3‑6,9
O Lord our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens. 

When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?  For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour.  Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet:

O Lord our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth!

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 77:11‑14
I will remember the works of the Lord: surely I will remember thy wonders of old.  I will meditate also of all thy work, and talk of thy doings.  Thy way, O God, is in the sanctuary: who is so great a God as our God?  Thou art the God that doest wonders: thou hast declared thy strength among the people.

Psalms 104:24
O Lord, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all: the earth is full of thy riches.

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;

Psalms 107:8,9,15,20,21
Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!  For he satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness.

Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men! 

He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.  Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!

Psalms 145:1‑18
I will extol thee, my God, O king; and I will bless thy name for ever and ever.  Every day will I bless thee; and I will praise thy name for ever and ever.  Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; and his greatness is unsearchable.  One generation shall praise thy works to another, and shall declare thy mighty acts.  I will speak of the glorious honour of thy majesty, and of thy wondrous works.  And men shall speak of the might of thy terrible acts: and I will declare thy greatness.  They shall abundantly utter the memory of thy great goodness, and shall sing of thy righteousness.  The Lord is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy.  The Lord is good to all: and his tender mercies are over all his works.  All thy works shall praise thee, O Lord; and thy saints shall bless thee.  They shall speak of the glory of thy kingdom, and talk of thy power; To make known to the sons of men his mighty acts, and the glorious majesty of his kingdom.  Thy kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and thy dominion endureth throughout all generations.  The Lord upholdeth all that fall, and raiseth up all those that be bowed down.  The eyes of all wait upon thee; and thou givest them their meat in due season.  Thou openest thine hand, and satisfiest the desire of every living thing.  The Lord is righteous in all his ways, and holy in all his works.  The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth.

Matthew 5:13‑16
#Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.  Ye are the light of the world.  A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.  Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.  Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

John 10:37,38
If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not.  But if I do, though ye believe not me, believe the works: that ye may know, and believe, that the Father is in me, and I in him.

I Timothy 6:17‑19
Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy; That they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate; Laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life.

II Timothy 3:16,17
All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.

Readings from Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy.

xi:9‑21
  The physical healing of Christian Science results now, as in Jesus' time, from the operation of divine Principle, before which sin and disease lose their reality in human consciousness and disappear as naturally and as necessarily as darkness gives place to light and sin to reformation.  Now, as then, these mighty works are not supernatural, but supremely natural.  They are the sign of Immanuel, or "God with us,"‑‑a divine influence ever present in human consciousness and repeating itself, coming now as was promised aforetime,

    To preach deliverance to the captives [of sense],
    And recovering of sight to the blind,
    To set at liberty them that are bruised. 

14:12
  Become conscious for a single moment that Life and intelligence are purely spiritual,‑‑neither in nor of matter,‑‑and the body will then utter no complaints.  If suffering from a belief in sickness, you will find yourself suddenly well.  Sorrow is turned into joy when the body is controlled by spiritual Life, Truth, and Love.  Hence the hope of the promise Jesus bestows: "He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; . . . because I go unto my Father,"‑‑[because the Ego is absent from the body, and present with Truth and Love.]  The Lord's Prayer is the prayer of Soul, not of material sense. 

37:16
  When will Jesus' professed followers learn to emulate him in all his ways and to imitate his mighty works?  Those who procured the martyrdom of that righteous man would gladly have turned his sacred career into a mutilated doctrinal platform.  May the Christians of to‑day take up the more practical import of that career!  It is possible,‑‑yea, it is the duty and privilege of every child, man, and woman,‑‑to follow in some degree the example of the Master by the demonstration of Truth and Life, of health and holiness.  Chris‑tians claim to be his followers, but do they follow him in the way that he commanded?  Hear these imperative commands: "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect!"  "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature!"  "Heal the sick!"

52:19
  The "man of sorrows" best understood the nothingness of material life and intelligence and the mighty actuality of all‑inclusive God, good.  These were the two cardinal points of Mind‑healing, or Christian Science, which armed him with Love.  The highest earthly representative of God, speaking of human ability to reflect divine power, prophetically said to his disciples, speaking not for their day only but for all time: "He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also;" and "These signs shall follow them that believe."
                                                                                                                                   
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. 

145:31
  The theology of Christian Science includes healing the sick.  Our Master's first article of faith propounded to his students was healing, and he proved his faith by his works.  The ancient Christians were healers.  Why has this element of Christianity been lost?  Because our systems of religion are governed more or less by our systems of medicine.  The first idolatry was faith in matter.  The schools have rendered faith in drugs the fashion, rather than faith in Deity.  By trusting matter to destroy its own discord, health and harmony have been sacrificed.  Such systems are barren of the vitality of spiritual power, by which material sense is made the servant of Science and religion becomes Christlike. 

209:31
  Spiritual sense is a conscious, constant capacity to understand God.  It shows the superiority of faith by works over faith in words.  Its ideas are expressed only in "new tongues;" and these are interpreted by the translation of the spiritual original into the language which human thought can comprehend. 

326:3
  If we wish to follow Christ, Truth, it must be in the way of God's appointing.  Jesus said, "He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also." He, who would reach the source and find the divine remedy for every ill, must not try to climb the hill of Science by some other road.  All nature teaches God's love to man, but man cannot love God supremely and set his whole affections on spiritual things, while loving the material or trusting in it more than in the spiritual. 

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"? 

360:28
  Of old, the Jews put to death the Galilean Prophet, the best Christian on earth, for the truth he spoke and demonstrated, while to‑day, Jew and Christian can unite in doctrine and denomination on the very basis of Jesus' words and works.  The Jew believes that the Messiah or Christ has not yet come; the Christian believes that Christ is God.  Here Christian Science intervenes, explains these doctrinal points, cancels the disagreement, and settles the question.  Christ, as the true spiritual idea, is the ideal of God now and forever, here and everywhere.  The Jew who believes in the First Commandment is a monotheist; he has one omnipresent God.  Thus the Jew unites with the Christian's doctrine that God is come and is present now and forever.  The Christian who believes in the First Commandment is a monotheist.  Thus he virtually unites with the Jew's belief in one God, and recognizes that Jesus Christ is not God, as Jesus himself declared, but is the Son of God.  This declaration of Jesus, understood, conflicts not at all with another of his sayings: "I and my Father are one,"‑‑that is, one in quality, not in quantity.  As a drop of water is one with the ocean, a ray of light one with the sun, even so God and man, Father and son, are one in being.  The Scripture reads: "For in Him we live, and move, and have our being."

483:22
  Because the Science of Mind seems to bring into dishonor the ordinary scientific schools, which wrestle with material observations alone, this Science has met with opposition; but if any system honors God, it ought to receive aid, not opposition, from all thinking persons.  And Christian Science does honor God as no other theory honors Him, and it does this in the way of His appointing, by doing many wonderful works through the divine name and nature.  One must fulfil one's mission without timidity or dissimulation, for to be well done, the work must be done unselfishly.  Christianity will never be based on a divine Principle and so found to be unerring, until its absolute Science is reached.  When this is accomplished, neither pride, prejudice, bigotry, nor envy can wash away its foundation, for it is built upon the rock, Christ. 

Silent prayer followed by the audible repetition of the Lord’s Prayer.


 Hymn 178 
 Based on the Danish of Nikolaj F. S. Grundtvig

 Love is life's true crown and glory,
   Love the splendor of the light,
 Truly is God's counsel gentle,
   Truly all His ways are bright;
 Jesus knew the law of kindness,
 Healing mind and heart of blindness;
   And in heavenly wisdom taught
   Holy works of love he wrought.

 Love, the Golden Rule of living,
   Showeth forth the perfect Mind;
 Love, our debt to God who gives it,
   All compassion is, and kind;
 Charity the law fulfilleth,
 Mid the nations rancor stilleth;
   Loving hearts in friendship blend,
   One in Him, our heavenly Friend.

Sharing of experiences, testimonies and remarks by members of the congregation.


 Hymn 221 

 Margaret Glenn Matters

 O Jesus, our dear Master,
   Thy works, now understood,
 Reveal their full effulgence
   Through love and brotherhood.
 Today Christ's precious Science
   Thy healing power makes plain:
 With joy may all obey thee
   And cast out sin and pain.

 The Christ, eternal manhood,
   As God's own Son beloved,
 A tender ever‑presence
   Within each heart is proved.
 O God, our Father‑Mother,
   Thy name we see expressed
 By man, who in Thy Science
   Is perfect, holy, blessed.

 O Science, God‑sent message
   To tired humanity,
 Thou art Love's revelation
   Of Truth that makes us free.
 Thy kingdom, God, within us
   Shows forth Love's sweet control.
 God's idea, man, rejoices;
   He knows the reign of Soul.

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