Reading his works on kindle book. A lot to learn about the Church of England and the prayer book and 39 articles of faith by the Martyr Thomas Cramer. I always thought the Church of England leaned more towards the Church of Rome with all the compromises over the years but I guess there will always be two camps of people within all denominations of churches ontil the Return of Christ. I would not consider myself leaning towards Calvinism personally but reading Ryle one won’t go wrong in thinking and understanding of the Christian Faith. After all there will always be short comings in all of us ontil heaven.
BRETHREN, WE HAVE MET TO WORSHIP George Atkins, 19th century Ascribe to the Lord the glory due His name. Bring an offering and come before Him; worship the Lord in the splendor of His holiness. (1 Chronicles 16:29) The apostle Paul’s favorite name for fellow believers was “brethren.” He used this term at least 60 times throughout his various epistles. Paul’s concept of the local church was a worshiping family—the family of God. Of course, we need to worship God daily in our individual devotional lives. But every believer also needs the enriching experience of worshiping and serving God with other family members on a weekly basis. Only a church of faithful worshiping members is adequately prepared to do its work and fulfill its witness in the world. Our worship of God, both personally and corporately, should share with the young prophet these five elements depicted in Isaiah 6: • Recognition: “I saw the Lord …” (v. 1) • Praise: “Holy, Holy, Holy …” (v. 3) • Confession: “Woe is me …” (v. 5) • Assurance of Pardon: “This has touched your lips … forgiven” (v. 7) • Dedication: “Here am I …” (v. 8) This interesting hymn has been a favorite, especially in the South, since it first appeared in 1825. Nothing is known of George Atkins, the author of the text. Brethren, we have met to worship and adore the Lord our God. Will you pray with all your power, while we try to preach the Word? All is vain unless the Spirit of the Holy One comes down. Brethren, pray, and holy manna will be showered all around. Brethren, see poor sinners round you slumb’ring on the brink of woe. Death is coming, hell is moving—Can you bear to let them go? See our fathers and our mothers and our children sinking down. Brethren, pray, and holy manna will be showered all around. Sisters, will you join and help us? Moses’ sister aided him. Will you help the trembling mourners who are struggling hard with sin? Tell them all about the Savior—Tell them that He will be found. Sisters, pray, and holy manna will be showered all around. Let us love our God supremely. Let us love each other too. Let us love and pray for sinners till our God makes all things new. Then He’ll call us home to heaven; at His table we’ll sit down; Christ will gird Himself and serve us with sweet manna all around.
For Today: Psalm 96:4, 9; 107:32; John 4:24; Hebrews 10:25
Make a list of the various activities that you think would improve your church worship service. Share these ideas with your pastor and other concerned leaders. Reflect on the purpose of group worship as you sing this hymn—
O DAY OF REST AND GLADNESS Christopher Wordsworth, 1807–1885 There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God; for anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from His. Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest … (Hebrews 4:9, 10, 11) Christopher Wordsworth, a nephew of the renowned English poet, William Wordsworth, reminds us in this hymn that since God rested after His acts of creation, we who are made in His image also need a day of rest and spiritual renewal. We need the encouragement and fellowship of other believers to keep our lives aglow for God. The way we use the Lord’s Day reflects our true devotion to God. Very early in the Christian era, the first day of the week replaced the Jewish Sabbath as the day of worship because it was on Sunday that the resurrection took place. Although we do not observe it according to the many set rules such as the Jews had for their Sabbath, Sunday should always be a special day of refreshment and of giving honor and worship to our God. Christopher Wordsworth was an Anglican bishop, a noted scholar, and a distinguished writer. He composed 127 hymn texts that were intended to teach the truths of Scripture and encourage worship. “O Day of Rest and Gladness,” his only hymn widely used today, focuses on the doctrine of the Trinity. In the second stanza, the triune Godhead is compared to three important events or a “triple light” that occurred on the first day of the week: The creation of light (Genesis 1:1), the resurrection of Christ, and the advent of the Holy Spirit. In the final stanza, Wordsworth addresses each member of the Godhead by name, as the church raises its perpetual voice to “Thee, blest Three in One.” O day of rest and gladness, O day of joy and light, O balm of care and sadness, most beautiful, most bright: On thee, the high and lowly, thru ages joined in tune, sing “Holy, Holy, Holy,” to the great God Triune. On thee, at the creation, the light first had its birth; on thee, for our salvation, Christ rose from depths of earth; on thee, our Lord, victorious, the Spirit sent from heav’n; and thus on thee, most glorious, a triple light was giv’n. New graces ever gaining from this our day of rest, we reach the rest remaining to spirits of the blest. To Holy Ghost be praises, to Father, and to Son; the Church her voice upraises to Thee, blest Three in One.
Do you anticipate with joy the Lord’s Day, when you can worship God in your local church? How can Sunday become a more meaningful time of renewal and refreshment for you and your family? Reflect on this hymn as you go—
O BREATH OF LIFE Bessie P. Head, 1850–1936 I have heard of Your fame; I stand in awe of Your deeds, O Lord. Renew them in our day, in our time make them known. (Habakkuk 3:2) Set us afire, Lord, stir us, we pray—while the world perishes, we go our way Purposeless, passionless, day after day; set us afire, Lord, stir us, we pray! —Unknown When the Holy Spirit was poured out at Pentecost for the birth of the church, it was in response to the fervent prayers of God’s people. This is still the principle for an effective ministry of any church—determined, persistent prayer for the Holy Spirit’s enabling power to accomplish our mission for God. Vitality is essential to any Christian ministry; complacency is deadly. There must be the fervency of divine life infused into us by God the Holy Spirit. Just as a healthy vine manifests itself in producing foliage and fruit, so it is with a healthy Christian—he will bear evidence of an infectious enthusiasm for the furtherance of the gospel and a life that produces the fruits of the Spirit. This song of pleading for Holy Spirit power was written by Mrs. Bessie Head, a member of the Church of England. She was the author of numerous hymn texts, several of which appeared in the 1937 Keswick Hymn Book, including this hymn. It would be helpful if each believer, as well as each local church, would use this musical prayer often as a theme song. We need God’s continual reviving, renewing, refreshing, comforting, and equipping power if we are to effectively “spread the light” and meet the needs of this hour. O Breath of Life, come sweeping through us. Revive Thy Church with life and pow’r; O Breath of life, come, cleanse, renew us, and fit Thy Church to meet this hour. O Wind of God, come bend us, break us, till humbly we confess our need; then in Thy tenderness remake us, revive, restore, for this we plead. O Breath of Love, come breathe within us, renewing thought and will and heart; Come, Love of Christ, afresh to win us, revive Thy Church in ev’ry part. O Heart of Christ, once broken for us, ’tis there we find our strength and rest; our broken contrite hearts now solace, and let Thy waiting Church be blest. Revive us, Lord! Is zeal abating while harvest fields are vast and white? Revive us, Lord, the world is waiting. Equip Thy Church to spread the light.
For Today: Psalm 85:6; Jeremiah 20:9; Luke 11:13; Acts 3:19; Romans 5:5
Why is it that we as individual believers and as a local church easily become complacent about the things of God? What steps can be taken to change this? Carry this musical prayer with you as you reflect on this serious matter—
GLORIOUS THINGS OF THEE ARE SPOKEN John Newton, 1725–1807 Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in the mountain of His holiness. Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth is Mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King. God is known in her palaces for a refuge. (Psalm 48:1, 2, 3 KJV) Of the many hymn texts by the noted English clergyman, John Newton, this one is generally considered to be one of his finest and most joyous. In the Old Testament, the city of Zion was the place where God dwelt among His people. It was a haven of refuge, a treasured place. In our New Testament age, Zion refers to the church, a community of God’s people, a living and dynamic organism. Newton’s hymn refers to God’s strong protection of His people, His promise to supply their needs, and His presence to lead His own by the cloud and fire as He did the Israelites of old. With all its shortcomings and faults, the local church is still God’s means of meeting the needs of mankind. As Christians, we are to promote the church, supporting it with enthusiasm and finding our spiritual strength and fellowship in it. Then as members of Christ’s universal church, we are commanded to be His worthy representatives to the entire world. We must be actively involved in ministering the “streams of living waters” which “never fail from age to age.” John Newton, the convicted slave trader and sea captain, never stopped praising God for His “sure repose”—“whose Word cannot be broken”—who formed us “for His own abode.” Glorious things of thee are spoken, Zion, city of our God; He whose word cannot be broken formed thee for His own abode: On the Rock of Ages founded, what can shake thy sure repose? With salvation’s walls surrounded, thou mayst smile at all thy foes. See, the streams of living waters, springing from eternal love, well supply thy sons and daughters and all fear of want remove: Who can faint while such a river ever flows their thirst to assuage? Grace which, like the Lord, the Giver, never fails from age to age. Round each habitation hov’ring, see the cloud and fire appear for a glory and a cov’ring, showing that the Lord is near! Glorious things of Thee are spoken, Zion, city of our God; He whose word cannot be broken formed thee for His own abode.
For Today: Psalm 87:3; Isaiah 33:20, 21; Matthew 16:18; Romans 12:5
Be thankful for your local church and what it means in your life. Ask for God’s special blessing on your pastor, the board members, and your fellow church members. Allow this hymn to help—
This is my personal collection of thoughts and writings, mainly from much smarter people than I, which challenge me in my discipleship walk. Don't rush by these thoughts, but ponder them.
Milo 