Wednesday, August 12, 2009

A mighty fortress is our God # 551



Thanks to Stephan Jarnick for recording this for us. I have the MP3 'dry' - no reverb.

Stephan's ministry of supplying MP3 format hymns for small churches without the means to afford a full time organist is a God send.

Take a listen- he even has he words embedded now. Pretty slick!
This is the appointed General Hymn for Trinity X this Sunday.

jd

Pro. #497 O God of Bethel / Dundee
Rec. TBD

Commentary from
THE ANNOTATED
BOOK OF COMMON PRAYER
Edited by JOHN HENRY BLUNT
Rivingtons, London, 1884
TENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY

There is a touching connection between the Epistle and Gospel of this day which seems as if it could hardly be accidental; or, if it is, offers an illustration of the manner in which all Holy Scripture gives evidence that it is drawn from one Fountain of truth. The Gospel shows our Blessed Lord weeping over Jerusalem, because she had failed to recognize the things that belonged to her peace. The Prince of Peace had come to her, offering the good gifts which are ever the fruits of His Presence, but her eyes had been blinded by her wilfulness, those gifts of peace had been rejected, and now they were hid from her. Our Lord's last words of warning a few days afterwards were in the same strain, "Walk while ye have the light, lest darkness come upon you...While ye have light, believe in the light, that ye may be the children of light." They were the last public words of the Light of the world before His Passion began; and when He had spoken them, He "departed, and did hide Himself from them" [John xii. 36]. With such an experience before the new Israel of God, the Apostle St. Paul exhorts them not to be ignorant of the spiritual gifts with which they have been blessed: those manifold operations of the Holy Ghost on the souls of men, by which they are fitted for the work of the ministry, or for that of ordinary Christian life. And the association of these two portions of Holy Scripture comes as a perennial warning to Churches in their corporate capacity, and to individual Christians, calling them to remember that as Jesus had cause to weep over the neglect of His gifts when offered to the Jews, so is such a neglect cause of sorrow even now in Heaven, and may be followed by the judgement which fell upon her of old who knew not the time of her visitation. The enemies of the Church are ever ready to dig their trenches and compass her around, and lay her even with the ground. Her true strength is, that she should ever remember and use her spiritual gifts, and know the value of Christ's Presence in the time when He visits her with His salvation.

The Collect

LET thy merciful ears, O Lord, be open to the prayers of thy humble servants; and, that they may obtain their petitions, make them to ask such things as shall please thee; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.


The One Hundred Forty Fifth Psalm

Exaltabo te, Deus.


I WILL magnify thee, O God, my King; * and I will praise thy Name for ever and ever.

Every day will I give thanks unto thee; * and praise thy Name for ever and ever.

Great is the LORD, and marvellous worthy to be praised; * there is no end of his greatness.

One generation shall praise thy works unto another, * and declare thy power.

As for me, I will be talking of thy worship, * thy glory, thy praise, and wondrous works;

So that men shall speak of the might of thy marvellous acts; * and I will also tell of thy greatness.

The memorial of thine abundant kindness shall be showed; * and men shall sing of thy righteousness.

The LORD is gracious and merciful; * long-suffering, and of great goodness.

The LORD is loving unto every man; * and his mercy is over all his works.

All thy works praise thee, O LORD; * and thy saints give thanks unto thee.

They show the glory of thy kingdom, * and talk of thy power;

That thy power, thy glory, and mightiness of thy kingdom, * might be known unto men.

Thy kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, * and thy dominion endureth throughout all ages.

The LORD upholdeth all such as fall, * and lifteth up all those that are down.

The eyes of all wait upon thee, O Lord; * and thou givest them their meat in due season.

Thou openest thine hand, * and fillest all things living with plenteousness.

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; * yea, all such as call upon him faithfully.

He will fulfil the desire of them that fear him; * he also will hear their cry, and will help them.

The LORD preserveth all them that love him; * but scattereth abroad all the ungodly.

My mouth shall speak the praise of the LORD; * and let all flesh give thanks unto his holy Name for ever and ever.


*Ecclesiasticus 1:1-10


All wisdom cometh from the Lord, and is with him for ever. Who can number the sand of the sea, and the drops of rain, and the days of eternity? Who can find out the height of heaven, and the breadth of the earth, and the deep, and wisdom? Wisdom hath been created before all things, and the understanding of prudence from everlasting. The word of God most high is the fountain of wisdom; and her ways are everlasting commandments. To whom hath the root of wisdom been revealed? or who hath known her wise counsels? [Unto whom hath the knowledge of wisdom been made manifest? and who hath understood her great experience?] There is one wise and greatly to be feared, the Lord sitting upon his throne. He created her, and saw her, and numbered her, and poured her out upon all his works. She is with all flesh according to his gift, and he hath given her to them that love him.


The Epistle
1 Corinthians xii. 1.
CONCERNING spiritual gifts, brethren, I would not have you ignorant. Ye know that ye were Gentiles, carried away unto these dumb idols, even as ye were led. Wherefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed: and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost. Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal. For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; to another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit; to another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues: but all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.



The Gospel
St. Luke xix. 41.
AND when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it, saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes. For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side, and shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation. And he went into the temple, and began to cast out them that sold therein, and them that bought; saying unto them, It is written, My house is the house of prayer: but ye have made it a den of thieves. And he taught daily in the temple.

The Christian Year

by Blessed John Keble

TENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY

Why doth my Saviour weep
At sight of Sion's bowers?
Shows it not fair from yonder steep,
Her gorgeous crown of towers?
Mark well His holy pains:
"Tis not in pride or scorn,
That Israel's King with sorrow stains
His own triumphal morn.

It is not that His son
Is wandering sadly on,
In thought how soon at death's dark goal
Their course will all be run,
Who now are shouting round
Hosanna to their chief;
No thought like this in Him is found,
This were a Conqueror's grief.

Or doth He feel the Cross
Already in His heart,
The pain, the shame, the scorn, the loss?
Feel even His God depart?
No: though He knew full well
The grief that then shall be--
The grief that angels cannot tell--
Our God in agony.

It is not thus He mourns;
Such might be martyr's tears,
When his last lingering look he turns
On human hopes and fears;
But hero ne'er or saint
The secret load might know,
With which His spirit waxeth faint;
His is a Saviour's woe.

"If thou hadst known, even thou,
"At least in this thy day,
"The message of thy peace! but now
"'Tis pass'd for aye away:
"Now foes shall trench thee round,
"And lay thee even with earth,
"And dash thy children to the ground,
"Thy glory and thy mirth."

And doth the Saviour weep
Over His people's sin,
Because we will not let Him keep
The souls He died to win?
Ye hearts, that love the Lord,
If at this sight ye burn,
See that in thought, in deed, in word,
Ye hate what made Him mourn.

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