First Church of Christ, Scientist, La Cañada Flintridge

Wednesday Meeting Readings

w210804dt
The Pastor — our spiritual shepherd
Wednesday, August 4, 2021
The Bible
  1. Ps. 23:1, 2

    1The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

    2He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.

  2. Jer. 3:15

    15And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding.

  3. Isa. 40:1, 3-6, 8-11

    1Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God.

    3The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.

    4Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain:

    5And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.

    6The voice said, Cry. And he said, What shall I cry? All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field:

    ... 8The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever.

    9O Zion, that bringest good tidings, get thee up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, that bringest good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God!

    10Behold, the Lord God will come with strong hand, and his arm shall rule for him: behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him.

    11He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.

  4. Ezek. 34:12, 14-16 (to :), 27, 30 (to 1st ,), 31

    12As a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered; so will I seek out my sheep, and will deliver them out of all places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day.

    ... 14I will feed them in a good pasture, and upon the high mountains of Israel shall their fold be: there shall they lie in a good fold, and in a fat pasture shall they feed upon the mountains of Israel.

    15I will feed my flock, and I will cause them to lie down, saith the Lord God.

    16I will seek that which was lost, and bring again that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick:

    27And the tree of the field shall yield her fruit, and the earth shall yield her increase, and they shall be safe in their land, and shall know that I am the Lord, when I have broken the bands of their yoke, and delivered them out of the hand of those that served themselves of them.

    ... 30Thus shall they know that I the Lord their God am with them,

    ... 31And ye my flock, the flock of my pasture, are men, and I am your God, saith the Lord God.

  5. Rev. 1:1-3

    1The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John:

    2Who bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw.

    3Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.

  6. Rev. 10:1, 2, 8-11

    1And I saw another mighty angel come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud: and a rainbow was upon his head, and his face was as it were the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire:

    2And he had in his hand a little book open: and he set his right foot upon the sea, and his left foot on the earth,

    ... 8And the voice which I heard from heaven spake unto me again, and said, Go and take the little book which is open in the hand of the angel which standeth upon the sea and upon the earth.

    9And I went unto the angel, and said unto him, Give me the little book. And he said unto me, Take it, and eat it up; and it shall make thy belly bitter, but it shall be in thy mouth sweet as honey.

    10And I took the little book out of the angel’s hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter.

    11And he said unto me, Thou must prophesy again before many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings.

  7. Ps. 23:4

    4Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

  8. John 13:1, 20

    1Now before the feast of the passover, when Jesus knew that his hour was come that he should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end.

    20Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that receiveth whomsoever I send receiveth me; and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me.

  9. John 14:16, 26

    16And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;

    ... 26But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

  10. II Tim. 1:1, 2, 13

    1Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, according to the promise of life which is in Christ Jesus,

    2To Timothy, my dearly beloved son: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

    ... 13Hold fast the form of sound words, which thou hast heard of me, in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus.

  11. II Tim. 2:1, 2, 7, 15

    1Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.

    2And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.

    ... 7Consider what I say; and the Lord give thee understanding in all things.

    ... 15Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

  12. II Tim. 3:14-17 continue

    14continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them;

    15And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.

    16All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:

    17That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.

  13. Ps. 25:4, 5

    4Shew me thy ways, O Lord; teach me thy paths.

    5Lead me in thy truth, and teach me: for thou art the God of my salvation; on thee do I wait all the day.

  14. Ps. 23:5, 6

    5Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.

    6Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.


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

  1. SH 578:5-7

        [Divine love] is my shepherd; I shall not want.

    6    [Love] maketh me to lie down in green pastures: [love] leadeth me beside the still waters.

  2. SH 195:15-22

    15    Whatever furnishes the semblance of an idea governed by its Principle, furnishes food for thought. Through as-tronomy, natural history, chemistry, music, mathematics, 18thought passes naturally from effect back to cause.

        Academics of the right sort are requisite. Observa-tion, invention, study, and original thought are expansive 21and should promote the growth of mortal mind out of it-self, out of all that is mortal.

  3. SH 558:1-560:5

    558:1St. John writes, in the tenth chapter of his book of Revelation: —

    3 And I saw another mighty angel come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud: and a rainbow was upon his head, and his face was as it were the sun, and his feet as pillars of 6fire: and he had in his hand a little book open: and he set his right foot upon the sea, and his left foot on the earth.

    9    This angel or message which comes from God, clothed with a cloud, prefigures divine Science. To mortal sense The new EvangelScience seems at first obscure, abstract, and 12dark; but a bright promise crowns its brow. When understood, it is Truth’s prism and praise. When you look it fairly in the face, you can heal by its means, 15and it has for you a light above the sun, for God “is the light thereof.” Its feet are pillars of fire, foundations of Truth and Love. It brings the baptism of the Holy 18Ghost, whose flames of Truth were prophetically de-scribed by John the Baptist as consuming error.

    559

    559:1    This angel had in his hand “a little book,” open for all to read and understand. Did this same book contain 3Truth’s volumethe revelation of divine Science, the “right foot” or dominant power of which was upon the sea, — upon elementary, latent error, the source of 6all error’s visible forms? The angel’s left foot was upon the earth; that is, a secondary power was exercised upon visible error and audible sin. The “still, small voice” 9of scientific thought reaches over continent and ocean to the globe’s remotest bound. The inaudible voice of Truth is, to the human mind, “as when a lion roareth.” 12It is heard in the desert and in dark places of fear. It arouses the “seven thunders” of evil, and stirs their latent forces to utter the full diapason of secret tones. Then is 15the power of Truth demonstrated, — made manifest in the destruction of error. Then will a voice from harmony cry: “Go and take the little book. . . . Take it, and eat 18it up; and it shall make thy belly bitter, but it shall be in thy mouth sweet as honey.” Mortals, obey the heavenly evangel. Take divine Science. Read this book from 21beginning to end. Study it, ponder it. It will be indeed sweet at its first taste, when it heals you; but murmur not over Truth, if you find its digestion bitter. When you 24approach nearer and nearer to this divine Principle, when you eat the divine body of this Principle, — thus partak-ing of the nature, or primal elements, of Truth and Love, 27 — do not be surprised nor discontented because you must share the hemlock cup and eat the bitter herbs; for the Israelites of old at the Paschal meal thus prefigured this 30perilous passage out of bondage into the El Dorado of faith and hope.

        The twelfth chapter of the Apocalypse, or Revela-560560:1tion of St. John, has a special suggestiveness in connec-tion with the nineteenth century. In the opening of the 3To-day’s lessonsixth seal, typical of six thousand years since Adam, the distinctive feature has reference to the present age.

  4. SH 358:9

    9    Christian Science, understood, coincides with the Scriptures, and sustains logically and demonstratively Scientific and Biblical factsevery point it presents. Otherwise it would 12not be Science, and could not present its proofs. Christian Science is neither made up of contra-dictory aphorisms nor of the inventions of those who scoff 15at God. It presents the calm and clear verdict of Truth against error, uttered and illustrated by the prophets, by Jesus, by his apostles, as is recorded throughout the 18Scriptures.

  5. SH 488:11

    Hence the Scriptures often appear in 12our common version to approve and endorse belief, when they mean to enforce the necessity of understanding.

  6. SH 578:16

        Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in the house [the consciousness] 18of [love] for ever.


From the Christian Science Hymnal:  
Hymn 245: “O tender loving shepherd”
Hymn 74: “Go, take the little open book”
Hymn 494: “Holy Bible, book divine”