Readings for October 27, 2021

From The Bible

Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning; for in thee do I trust: cause me to know the way wherein I should walk; for I lift up my soul unto thee. ...

Teach me to do thy will; for thou art my God: ...
(Psalms 143:8, 10 (to :))

And it came to pass, that, ... one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, ...

And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, ... Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth. ...

... ¶ And it came to pass, as he spake these things, a certain woman of the company lifted up her voice, and said unto him, Blessed is the womb that bare thee, ...

But he said, Yea rather, blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it.
(Luke 11:1 (to 2nd ,), 1 one (to 7th ,), 2 (to 4th ,), 2 3rd Thy, 27 (to 5th ,), 28)

¶ In the mean while his disciples prayed him, saying, Master, eat. But he said unto them, I have meat to eat that ye know not of. Therefore said the disciples one to another, Hath any man brought him aught to eat? Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.
(John 4:31–34)

... Verily, verily, I say unto you, ...

I can of mine own self do nothing: ... and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.
(John 5:19 Verily (to 4th ,), 30 (to 1st :), 30 and)

¶ Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. ...

For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? ...
(Matthew 16:24, 26 (to 1st ?))

And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully: And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; ...

But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: ...

So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.

... Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat; neither for the body, ...

The life is more than meat, ...

Consider the ravens: for they neither sow nor reap; which neither have storehouse nor barn; and God feedeth them: how much more are ye better than the fowls? ...

... seek not ye what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind. ...

... ¶ But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; ...

For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
(Luke 12:16–18 (to ;), 20 (to :), 21, 22 Therefore (to 4th ,), 23 (to ,), 24, 29 seek, 31 (to ;), 34)

¶ And now, Israel, what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul,
(Deuteronomy 10:12)

¶ The LORD of hosts hath sworn, saying, Surely as I have thought, so shall it come to pass; and as I have purposed, so shall it stand: ...

This is the purpose that is purposed upon the whole earth: ...
(Isaiah 14:24, 26 (to :))

And after certain days king Agrippa and Bernice came unto Cæsarea to salute Festus. And when they had been there many days, Festus declared Paul's cause unto the king, ...

Then Agrippa said unto Festus, I would also hear the man myself. ...

... Then Paul stretched forth the hand, and answered for himself: ...

My manner of life from my youth, ... know all the Jews;

... that after the most straitest sect of our religion I lived a Pharisee. ...

I verily thought with myself, that I ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth. Which thing I also did in Jerusalem: and many of the saints did I shut up in prison, ... and when they were put to death, I gave my voice against them.

... and being exceedingly mad against them, I persecuted them even unto strange cities. Whereupon as I went to Damascus with authority and commission from the chief priests,

... I saw in the way a light from heaven, above the brightness of the sun, ...

And ... I heard a voice speaking unto me, and saying in the Hebrew tongue, ... Saul, why persecutest thou me? ...

... I am Jesus whom thou persecutest. But rise, and stand upon thy feet: for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee; Delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee, To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me. Whereupon, O king Agrippa, I was not disobedient unto the heavenly vision: But shewed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judæa, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance.
(Acts 25:13, 14 (to 2nd ,), 22 (to 1st .); 26:1 2nd Then, 4 (to 1st ,), 4 know, 5 that, 9, 10 (to 1st ,), 10 2nd and, 11 3rd and, 12, 13 I (to 4th ,), 14 (to 1st And), 14 I (to 3rd ,), 14 2nd Saul (to ?), 15–20 2nd I)

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
(Romans 12:1, 2)

If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, ... if any fellowship of the Spirit, ...

Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. ...

Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: ...

For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.
(Philippians 2:1 (to 1st ,), 1 3rd if (to 3rd ,), 2, 3, 5, 13)

Now the God of peace, ...

Make you perfect in every good work to do his will, ... through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
(Hebrews 13:20 (to 1st ,), 21 (to 1st ,), 21 through)

Selections from Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy
Our Master said, “After this manner therefore pray ye,” and then he gave that prayer which covers all human needs. ...

Here let me give what I understand to be the spiritual sense of the Lord's Prayer:

Our Father which art in heaven,
Our Father-Mother God, all-harmonious,
...

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.

(Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Mary Baker Eddy, pp. 16:8–11, 24–27; 17:1)

The supremacy of Spirit was the foundation on which Jesus built.
(Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Mary Baker Eddy, p. 138:14–15)

When the human element in him struggled with the divine, our great Teacher said: “Not my will, but Thine, be done!” — that is, Let not the flesh, but the Spirit, be represented in me. This is the new understanding of spiritual Love. It gives all for Christ, or Truth.
(Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Mary Baker Eddy, p. 33:18–23)

We cannot choose for ourselves, but must work out our salvation in the way Jesus taught. ...

... He said: “Call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven.” Again he asked: “Who is my mother, and who are my brethren,” implying that it is they who do the will of his Father. ... He recognized Spirit, God, as the only creator, and therefore as the Father of all.

First in the list of Christian duties, he taught his followers the healing power of Truth and Love.
(Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Mary Baker Eddy, pp. 30:30–32; 31:4–8 He, 10–13)

He did the will of the Father. He healed sickness in defiance of what is called material law, but in accordance with God's law, the law of Mind.
(Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Mary Baker Eddy, p. 168:20)

The demands of Truth are spiritual, and reach the body through Mind. The best interpreter of man's needs said: “Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink.” ...

Spiritual causation is the one question to be considered, for more than all others spiritual causation relates to human progress.
(Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Mary Baker Eddy, p. 170:14, 22–24)

Jesus once said of his lessons: “My doctrine is not mine, but His that sent me. If any man will do His will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself.” (John vii. 16, 17.)

The three great verities of Spirit, omnipotence, omnipresence, omniscience, — Spirit possessing all power, filling all space, constituting all Science, — contradict forever the belief that matter can be actual. These eternal verities reveal primeval existence as the radiant reality of God's creation, in which all that He has made is pronounced by His wisdom good. ...

Jesus demonstrated the power of Christian Science to heal mortal minds and bodies.
(Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Mary Baker Eddy, pp. 109:28–7; 110:25–26)

We should examine ourselves and learn what is the affection and purpose of the heart, for in this way only can we learn what we honestly are. ...

... There is a cross to be taken up before we can enjoy the fruition of our hope and faith.

Dost thou “love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind”? This command includes much, even the surrender of all merely material sensation, affection, and worship. ... It involves the Science of Life, and recognizes only the divine control of Spirit, in which Soul is our master, and material sense and human will have no place.
(Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Mary Baker Eddy, pp. 8:28–30; 9:14–21 (to 1st .), 22)

Jesus taught the way of Life by demonstration, that we may understand how this divine Principle heals the sick, casts out error, and triumphs over death. ... By his obedience to God, he demonstrated more spiritually than all others the Principle of being. Hence the force of his admonition, “If ye love me, keep my commandments.”
(Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Mary Baker Eddy, p. 25:13–16, 17)

Paul was not at first a disciple of Jesus but a persecutor of Jesus' followers. When the truth first appeared to him in Science, Paul was made blind, and his blindness was felt; but spiritual light soon enabled him to follow the example and teachings of Jesus, healing the sick and preaching Christianity throughout Asia Minor, Greece, and even in imperial Rome.
(Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Mary Baker Eddy, p. 324:19)

If we wish to follow Christ, Truth, it must be in the way of God's appointing. ... 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.

We must forsake the foundation of material systems, however time-honored, if we would gain the Christ as our only Saviour. ...

The purpose and motive to live aright can be gained now. This point won, you have started as you should. You have begun at the numeration-table of Christian Science, and nothing but wrong intention can hinder your advancement. Working and praying with true motives, your Father will open the way. “Who did hinder you, that ye should not obey the truth?”
(Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Mary Baker Eddy, p. 326:3–4, 8–14, 16)

... The first demand of this Science is, “Thou shalt have no other gods before me.” This me is Spirit. Therefore the command means this: Thou shalt have no intelligence, no life, no substance, no truth, no love, but that which is spiritual. ... It should be thoroughly understood that all men have one Mind, one God and Father, one Life, Truth, and Love. ... Having no other gods, turning to no other but the one perfect Mind to guide him, man is the likeness of God, pure and eternal, having that Mind which was also in Christ.
(Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Mary Baker Eddy, p. 467:3–7 The, 9–10, 13)

When we realize that there is one Mind, the divine law of loving our neighbor as ourselves is unfolded; whereas a belief in many ruling minds hinders man's normal drift towards the one Mind, one God, and leads human thought into opposite channels where selfishness reigns. ...

When we fully understand our relation to the Divine, we can have no other Mind but His, — no other Love, wisdom, or Truth, no other sense of Life, and no consciousness of the existence of matter or error.
(Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Mary Baker Eddy, p. 205:22, 32)

To be “with the Lord” is to be in obedience to the law of God, to be absolutely governed by divine Love, — by Spirit, not by matter.
(Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Mary Baker Eddy, p. 14:9)

Who is it that demands our obedience? He who, in the language of Scripture, “doeth according to His will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay His hand, or say unto Him, What doest Thou?”
(Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Mary Baker Eddy, p. 256:19)

Divine Mind rightly demands man's entire obedience, affection, and strength. No reservation is made for any lesser loyalty. Obedience to Truth gives man power and strength.
(Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Mary Baker Eddy, p. 183:21–24)

The scientific unity which exists between God and man must be wrought out in life-practice, and God's will must be universally done.
(Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Mary Baker Eddy, p. 202:3)

Hymns from the Christian Science Hymnal

Hymn 190
My God, my Father, make me strong, / When tasks of life seem hard and long, / To greet them with this triumph song, / Thy will be done.

With confident and humble mind, / My joy in service I would find, / My prayer through every task assigned, / Thy will be done.

Things deemed impossible I dare, / Thine is the call and Thine the care, / Thy wisdom shall the way prepare; / Thy will be done.

Heaven's music chimes the glad days in, / Hope soars beyond death, pain and sin, / Faith sings in triumph, Love doth win; / Thy will is done.
(Christian Science Hymnal, No. 190)

Hymn 553
Our desire to heed God's calling / Lifts us to a new design, / Outlined by pure inspiration, / Rendered in Love's graceful line.

When our own plans seem to crumble / Incomplete or ill-defined, / Let us turn to God's creation, / Always perfectly aligned.

With the model right before us, / Perfect God and perfect man, / Let God's wholeness reign within us, / Let Mind's will perfect our plan.

Far beyond the bounds of matter, / Unrestrained by fear or time, / All our plans unfold together / In Soul's harmony and rhyme.
(Christian Science Hymnal, No. 553)

Hymn 46
Day by day the manna fell: / O, to learn this lesson well. / Still by constant mercy fed, / Give me, Lord, my daily bread.

Day by day the promise reads, / Daily strength for daily needs: / Cast foreboding fears away; / Take the manna of today.

Lord, my times are in Thy hand: / All my sanguine hopes have planned, / To Thy wisdom I resign, / And would mold my will to Thine.

Thou my daily task shalt give; / Day by day to Thee I live; / So shall added years fulfill / Not my own, my Father's will.
(Christian Science Hymnal, No. 46)