Service for Sunday, Sept. 28, 2014

Subject: Reality

 Hymn 64 
 Violet Hay

 From sense to Soul my pathway lies before me,
   From mist and shadow into Truth's clear day;
 The dawn of all things real is breaking o'er me,
   My heart is singing:  I have found the way.

 I reach Mind's open door, and at its portal
   I know that where I stand is holy ground;
 I feel the calm and joy of things immortal,
   The loveliness of Love is all around.

 The way leads upward and its goal draws nearer,
   Thought soars enraptured, fetterless and free;
 The vision infinite to me grows clearer,
   I touch the fringes of eternity.

The scriptural selection is from I Kings.

I Kings 3:5‑15 (to ;)
In Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night: and God said, Ask what I shall give thee.  And Solomon said, Thou hast shewed unto thy servant David my father great mercy, according as he walked before thee in truth, and in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with thee; and thou hast kept for him this great kindness, that thou hast given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day.  And now, O Lord my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David my father: and I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in.  And thy servant is in the midst of thy people which thou hast chosen, a great people, that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude.  Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people?  And the speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing.  And God said unto him, Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast not asked for thyself long life; neither hast asked riches for thyself, nor hast asked the life of thine enemies; but hast asked for thyself understanding to discern judgment; Behold, I have done according to thy words: lo, I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart; so that there was none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee.  And I have also given thee that which thou hast not asked, both riches, and honour: so that there shall not be any among the kings like unto thee all thy days.  And if thou wilt walk in my ways, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as thy father David did walk, then I will lengthen thy days.  And Solomon awoke;

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.

 Violet Hay

 From these Thy children gathered in Thy name,
 From hearts made whole, from lips redeemed from woe,
 Thy praise, O Father, shall forever flow.
     Alleluia!  Alleluia!

 O perfect Life, in Thy completeness held,
 None can beyond Thy omnipresence stray;
 Safe in Thy Love, we live and sing alway
     Alleluia!  Alleluia!

 O perfect Mind, reveal Thy likeness true,
 That higher selfhood which we all must prove,
 Joy and dominion, love reflecting Love.
     Alleluia!  Alleluia!

 Thou, Soul, inspiring‑‑give us vision clear,
 Break earth‑bound fetters, sweep away the veil,
 Show the new heaven and earth that shall prevail.
     Alleluia!  Alleluia!

 
Solo: “The Tabernacle of God”           
 


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 408
 Edith Gaddis Brewer

 Prayer with our waking thought ascends,
   Great God of light, to Thee;
 Darkness is banished in the glow
   Of Thy reality.

 Lo, to our widening vision dawns
   The realm of Soul supreme,
 Faith‑lighted peaks of Spirit stand
   Revealed in morning's beam.

 Thus in Thy radiance vanishes
   Death's drear and gloomy night;
 Thus all creation hears anew
   Truth's call, Let there be light.

"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 29:18

Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.

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