Listen to this...
I love Cannon in D. It is a great song. It was played at a wonderful wedding that I did this weekend. Take three minutes and enjoy this! Phillip
10/16/08
Book Of The Week VII
I also just finished The Party of Death: The Democrats, the Media, the Courts, and the Disregard for Human Life by Ramesh Ponnuru. It is an amazing resource on all issues pertaining to life: abortion, stem cell research, and euthanasia. If you are not informed on these salient issues it alone is valuable for this.
Ponnuru also takes us through how the popular notions of the history of abortion in
It also deals with the changing of political tide in the Democratic Convention. He argues the party for the little man has forgotten the littlest man, namely the unborn. He shows how they made the killing of infants a part in their political machine. I loved this book because it is a secular defense of life. I can argue a Biblical defense of life, but the writer uses reason, history, and the courts, to show how un-American and devastating our nations killing of our unborn are. It was deep reading at times. It was a ton of information, which was so interesting I read faster than I should have and did not process it as well. But, I can reread it later.
Anyways, now I am moving on the The Vision of the Anointed by Thomas Sowell. It deals with the blind ideas of liberals, how they implement them and refuse to admit their failure. Also, just cracked Why I Am Not A Calvinist by Jerry Walls and Joseph Dongell, name says pretty much what this book is about.
So, as Solomon says in Ecclesiastes 12:12-14 But beyond these, my son, be warned: there is no end to the making of many books, and much study wearies the body. (13) When all has been heard, the conclusion of the matter is: fear God and keep His commands, because this is for all humanity. (14) For God will bring every act to judgment, including every hidden thing, whether good or evil.
Pastor Phillip
10/15/08
Book Of The Week VI
“"Tell me what you read and I'll tell you who you are" is true enough, but I'd know you better if you told me what you reread.” I have started trying to re-read great books. I just finished re-reading Gospel and Kingdom by Graeme Goldsworthy it is a great book. He argues in the whole Bible you are looking for who are God’s people, where are God’s people, and are God’s people enjoying His promises. This all culminates in Jesus who is the focal and centerpiece of all Scripture and all of Scripture has to be interpreted in light of Him.
- Look at what Jesus says about this "You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me" (John 5:39).
- "Beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, [Jesus] interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself" (Luke 24:27; cf. v. 44).
- "What God foretold by the mouth of all the prophets, that his Christ would suffer, he thus fulfilled" (Acts 3:18; cf. vv. 21, 24).
- "I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures" (I Corinthians 15:3f).
In all of these cases, the writer quoted is saying that the Old Testament teaches the gospel. There is grace and continuity between the two Testaments It is a very simple easy to follow and very short. He has a longer version that is on my “to buy and to read list.” If you are not familiar with the whole story Scripture this would be a good book for you. Another book in the same view is God’s Big Picture by Vaughn Roberts. I have re-read it and I love. I encourage you to seek to understand the Bible as beautiful tapestry as opposed to disjointed devotional fragments.
Pastor Phillip
10/14/08
Good Question?
Why doesn’t God totally remove Satan and all demons now, since he will someday without their approval (Revelation 20:10)? John Piper answers this in the first paragraph of chapter nine of Seeing and Savoring Jesus Christ.
The glory of Christ is seen in his absolute right and power to annihilate or incapacitate Satan and all demons. But the reason he refrains from destroying and disabling them altogether is to manifest more clearly his superior beauty and worth. If Christ obliterated all devils and demons now (which he could do), his sheer power would be seen as glorious, but his superior beauty and worth would not shine as brightly as when humans renounce the promises of Satan and take pleasure in the greater glory of Christ.
Think about
Also, this was the daily Psalm I read this morning. It shines light on this as well
Trusting In God's Plan & WIll & Not My Own, Pastor Phillip
10/13/08
Who Wants To Take A Field Trip?
I loved field trips in school. We go to go to goat farm and milk some goats one time, random museums, a overnighter to Charleston. They were great. Mildly educationally, usually slightly chaotic, but I always looked forward to them. Well, I am not sure about this field trip in San Francisco. I was blown away by this. I found this here.
A group of San Francisco first-graders took an unusual field trip to City Hall on Friday to toss rose petals on their just-married lesbian teacher - putting the public school children at the center of a fierce election battle over the fate of same-sex marriage.
The 18 Creative Arts Charter School students took a Muni bus and walked a block at noon to toss rose petals and blow bubbles on their just-married teacher Erin Carder and her wife Kerri McCoy, giggling and squealing as they mobbed their teacher with hugs.Mayor Gavin Newsom, a friend of a friend, officiated.
A parent came up with the idea for the field trip - a surprise for the teacher on her wedding day."She's such a dedicated teacher," said the school's interim director Liz Jaroslow. But there was a question of justifying the field trip academically. Jaroflow decided she could. "It really is what we call a teachable moment," Jaroflow said, noting the historic significance of same-sex marriage and related civil rights issues. "I think I'm well within the parameters."
On Friday, McCoy and Carder, both in white, held hands on Newsom's office balcony overlooking the rotunda and recited their vows."With this ring, I thee wed!" Carder said, shouting the last word for emphasis.
After traditional photos, the two walked out City Hall's main doors where the students were lined up down the steps with bags of pink rose petals and bottles of bubbles hanging from their necks. McCoy, a conferences services coordinator, was in on the surprise and beamed as the children swarmed around Carder. The two met on a dance floor two years ago.
Creative Arts administrators and parents acknowledged that the field trip might be controversial, but they didn't see the big deal. Same-sex marriage is legal, they noted. "How many days in school are they going to remember?" asked parent Marc Lipsett. "This is a day they'll definitely remember."Carder's students said they were happy to see their new teacher married.
"She's a really nice teacher. She's the best," said 6-year-old Chava Novogrodsky-Godt, "I want her to have a good wedding." Chava's mothers said they are getting married in two weeks.
The students' parents are planning to make a video with the children describing what marriage is to them. Marriage, 6-year-old Nolan Alexander said Friday, is "people falling in love." It means, he added, "You stay with someone the rest of your life."
As is the case with all field trips, parents had to give their permission and could choose to opt out of the trip. Two families did. Those children spent the duration of the 90-minute field trip back at school with another first-grade class, the interim director said.
"As far as I'm concerned, it's not controversial for me," Jaroflow said. "It's certainly an issue I would be willing to put my job on the line for."
So, is your child going on this trip? What are you feelings? For your information this is what is at stake in the culture wars between conservatism (both social, political and religious) and liberalism (both social, political and religious). This is where the left wants our nation to be heading. They want to use schools, media, taxes, whatever they can find to bring about their agenda. We must be pray and be active. Remember as Edmund Burke said "All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing."
Not Liking At All San Francisco Values, Pastor Phillip
10/11/08
Political Train Wreck
Man, I got to be honest I am little depressed, the whole debacle with economy and Sarah Palin with the ethics violations dealing with ex-brother in law state trooper. McCain supporters at rallies yelling out concerning Obama "Terrorist, off with his head, he is an Arab!" This is untrue and grossly wrong. Then there Obama with his duplicity, love of abortion and ever changing views. Things look just from a political standpoint pretty abysmal.
I have to remember that from a Christ-Centered standpoint that Isaiah 6:1-4 is ture "I saw the Lord seated on a high and lofty throne, and His robe filled the temple. (2) Seraphim were standing above Him; each one had six wings: with two he covered his face, with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. (3) And one called to another: Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of Hosts; His glory fills the whole earth. (4) The foundations of the doorways shook at the sound of their voices, and the temple was filled with smoke." I have king and I am part of a kingdom that far transcends the party-politics of this nation.
I try and remember that if politics could save the world, we would not need Jesus. So, instead of being afraid and our being depressed run to God in prayer. I pray the words of Rev 22:20 “Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!”
Going To Have A Great Day! Pastor Phillip
The Most Christain Nation On Earth...
Christianity in China
Sons of heaven
Oct 2nd 2008 | BEIJING AND SHANGHAI
From The Economist print edition
Inside China’s fastest-growing non-governmental organization
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Jesus loves you |
ZHAO XIAO, a former Communist Party official and convert to Christianity, smiles over a cup of tea and says he thinks there are up to 130m Christians in China. This is far larger than previous estimates. The government says there are 21m (16m Protestants, 5m Catholics). Unofficial figures, such as one given by the Centre for the Study of Global Christianity in Massachusetts, put the number at about 70m. But Mr Zhao is not alone in his reckoning. A study of China by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, an American think-tank, says indirect survey evidence suggests many unaffiliated Christians are not in the official figures. And according to China Aid Association (CAA), a Texas-based lobby group, the director of the government body which supervises all religions in China said privately that the figure was indeed as much as 130m in early 2008.
If so, it would mean China contains more Christians than Communists (party membership is 74m) and there may be more active Christians in China than in any other country. In 1949, when the Communists took power, less than 1% of the population had been baptised, most of them Catholics. Now the largest, fastest-growing number of Christians belong to Protestant “house churches”.
In a suburb of Shanghai, off Haining Road, neighbours peer warily across the hallway as visitors file into a living room, bringing the number to 25, the maximum gathering allowed by law without official permission. Inside, young urban professionals sit on sofas and folding chairs. A young woman in a Che Guevara T-shirt blesses the group and a man projects material downloaded from the internet from his laptop onto the wall. Heads turn towards the display and sing along: “Glory, Glory Glory; Holy, Holy, Holy; God is near to each one of us.” It is Sunday morning, and worship is beginning in one of thousands of house churches across China.
House churches are small congregations who meet privately—usually in apartments—to worship away from the gaze of the Communist Party. In the 1950s, the Catholic and main Protestant churches were turned into branches of the religious-affairs administration. House churches have an unclear status, neither banned nor fully approved of. As long as they avoid neighbourly confrontation and keep their congregations below a certain size (usually about 25), the Protestant ones are mostly tolerated, grudgingly. Catholic ones are kept under closer scrutiny, reflecting China’s tense relationship with the Vatican. To read the rest of the article more click here trouble. (This keeps me from getting in trouble)
10/10/08
Family Pictures
Here are some new pictures that Brandi Miller kindly took of our family. She did a great job! But, let's honest it is hard to make a family that is this good looking look bad, right!
Preparing Yourself For Sunday Morning
Parallels in
| Genesis | Revelation |
| In the beginning (1:1) | I am. . .the Beginning and the End (21:6) |
| God created the heavens and the earth (1:1) | I saw a new heaven and a new earth (21:1) |
| Let there be light (1:3) | God gives it light (21:23) |
| The darkness He called “night” (1:5) | There will be no night there (21:25) |
| The gathered waters He called “seas” (1:10) | There was no longer any sea (21:1) |
| God made the two great lights (1:16) | Does not need the sun/moon (21:23) |
| He also made the stars (1:16) | The Morning Star (22:16) |
| Subdue [the earth]. Rule over (1:28) | And they will reign forever (22:5) |
| God blessed the 7th day (2:2-3) | |
| [God] made it holy (2:3) | The |
| Tree of Life (2:9) He must not take from the Tree of Life (3:22-23) | Tree of Life (22:2) God will take away His share in the Tree of Life (22:19) |
| A river watering the garden (2:10) | River of the Water of Life (22:1) The free gift of the Water of Life (22:17) |
| There is gold (the gold of that land is good) (2:11-12) | A measuring rod of gold (21:15) The city was. . .pure gold (21:18) The street. . .was pure gold (21:21) |
| The bdellium stone (pearls) (2:12) | Pearls, each gate made of a single pearl (21:21) |
| Onyx (2:12) | Sardonyx (21:20) |
| You will surely die (2:17) Or you will die (3:3) | No more death (21:4) |
| A man will. . .be united to his wife (2:23-25) | The bride of the wife of the Lamb (21:9-10) |
| The serpent. . .was crafty (3:1) | The Devil, who deceived them (20:10) |
| Shown a garden into which sin entered (3:6-7) | Shown a city into which sin will never enter (21:27) |
| The Lord God. . .was walking in the garden (3:8) | Nations will walk by His light (21:24) |
| Walk of God with man interrupted (3:8-10) | Walk of God with man resumed (21:3) |
| I was ashamed [naked] (3:10) | Anyone who does what is shameful (21:27) |
| Initial triumph of the Serpent (3:13) | Ultimate triumph of the Lamb (20:10; 22:3) |
| Cursed. . .cursed (3:14, 17) | No longer. . .any curse (22:3) |
| Eve’s offspring (3:15) | The Offspring of David (22:16) |
| I will greatly multiply your pain (3:16-17) | No more. . .pain (21:4) |
| The Lord God made garments of skins and clothed them (3:21) | Blessed are those who wash their robes (22:14) |
| God banished him (3:23) | They will see His face (22:4) |
| He drove the man out of the garden (3:24) | I saw the |
| Cherubim. . .to guard the way (3:24) | With 12 angels at the gates (21:12) |
| A flaming sword (3:24) | Fiery lake of burning sulfur (21:8) |
The Significance of the Parallels in Genesis 1-3 and Revelation 20-22
1. Immutability: While we are prone to change, God does not change (Mal 3:6a). Even when we are faithless, He remains forever faithful (2 Tim 2:12). In His first dealings with mankind, He provided the sacrifice to meet the needs of the fallen Adam and Eve (i.e., animal skins, see
2. Restoration: The world as we now know it is not what God intended. Rather, our world is a result of man’s fall (Gen 3:1-24;
3. Progress: The new heavens and the new earth are actually an improvement over the garden of Eden in that there is no sea, no night, no sun, or moon, etc. (Rev 21:1, 23-27).
4. Triumph: God’s purposes are never thwarted by anyone or anything (Rom 9:6-29). Although things may have looked bleak in
5. Beginning and End: In
6. Unity of God’s Plan:
7. Unity of Scripture: By these extensive parallels (both similar and contrasting), we see that there is very close literary connection between two biblical books, written centuries apart, by different human authors, who were recording the words of a greater, overseeing author, God. Only God Himself could have orchestrated this unity of the Scriptures.
10/9/08
Global Abortion
Here is very sad article. I pray our nation never comes to this, but with this upcoming election we can't know for sure that it won't. Remember that Barack Obama is a cosponsor of the so-called "Freedom of Choice Act which has been called "the most sweeping piece of pro-abortion legislation ever proposed in Congress." The FOCA is a bill that would make partial-birth abortion legal again, strike down restrictions on taxpayer funding of abortion, and nullify virtually every state and federal law or policy that would in any way "interfere with" access to abortion, including parental notification laws. Please vote and pray!
Proposed abortion laws threaten doctors' rights By Eamonn Mathieson
The anti-conscience clause in Victoria's new Abortion Law Reform Bill 2008 is extreme and unprecedented. Even the ACT, which has the most liberal abortion legislation in the country, includes a provision to safeguard the rights of health professionals to refuse to participate in abortions.
This extraordinary attempt by pro-abortion legislators to coerce health professionals to participate in the taking of human life is an unconscionable attack on their human rights.
Under this proposed legislation many health practitioners will find their practices under threat if they are unwilling to advise or perform an abortion or refer for abortion. The right to conscientious objection by professional health practitioners in the state of Victoria will be severely curtailed.
Such a provision is contrary to the codes of ethics of the AMA, the Royal Australian College of Nursing and the National Health and Medical Research Council. It is also in breach of section 14 of Victoria's Charter of Human rights and Article 18 of the International Covenant of Civil and Political Rights.
This misguided and unethical provision reflects how poorly drafted this legislation is. It relies on the false premise that "abortion is just like any medical procedure". Only euthanasia and medically assisted executions share the same intent and objective: the direct taking of human life. It bases its framework on an incorrect definition of abortion. It defines abortion as "intentionally causing the termination of a woman's pregnancy". This is incorrect. This would include inducing a live birth prematurely for serious health risks and the management of ectopic pregnancies. This flawed definition enables the creation of the clinical fiction of "emergency abortions". And it is this misleading category that gives the apparent justification to the coercion of health professionals to participate in abortions.
The management of complicated and life-threatening obstetric cases does not necessitate the direct and active killing of the unborn. The indirect and unintended loss of life of an unborn child in early pregnancy resulting from the management of serious maternal health risk is not an abortion per se. And attempting to deliver a live birth late in pregnancy is always the safer option in emergency or high risk situations. Suicidal risk for a pregnant woman is a psychiatric emergency, not a surgical or abortion emergency. In almost all clinical situations the management of maternal health risk need not involve the consideration of an abortion.
In this way, despite claims by legislators their legislation does not reflect a competent grasp of the realities of current clinical practice.
Regarding the rights of doctors to refuse to participate in the process of abortion by refusing to refer "to another whom the practitioner knows does not have a conscientious objection to abortion". The legislation relies on the mistaken advice given by the VLRC that Victoria would be following a precedent in the United Kingdom. This is just one of several incorrect and misleading recommendations given by the VLRC which have gone unchallenged. It reveals the flawed process in which VLRC recommendations are not open to public scrutiny and expert criticism following their release and prior to legislation being framed around it.
Only last week a UK doctor received confirmation from the General Medical Council that he was acting according to professional medical rules by conscientiously objecting to participating in abortions through referral.
The issue of objecting to referral for abortion seems to confound some people. If the word 'abortion' was substituted with 'euthanasia' or 'female circumcision' it is perhaps easier to see the issue. If these practices were legal and the state compelled doctors to refer, despite their conscientious objection and against their clinical judgement, to known 'euthanasists' or 'genital mutilators' the issue of participation is perhaps more evident.
This point was made in a recent letter by AMA president Dr Doug Travis to Premier John Brumby:
The Bill infringes the rights of doctors with a conscientious objection by inserting an active compulsion for a doctor to refer to another doctor who they know does not have a conscientious objection. Respect for a conscientious objection is a fundamental principle in our democratic country, and doctors expect that their rights in this regard will be respected, as for any other citizen.It was also a point made recently in Ontario, Canada, when an attempt to override doctors' rights to conscientiously object was defeated. Rabbi Reuven Bulka stated, "Referring is just a way of sloughing off your responsibility ? If you're opposed to these things, referring is the same as taking part in the evil."
Not only should the state protect the lives of its citizens, it should also protect the rights of health professionals not to participate in killing against their will. The Legislative Council should reject this legislation and the legislators should return to the drawing board and start again.
Dr Eamonn Mathieson is an obstetric anaesthetist and a member of the Doctors in Conscience Against Abortion Bill group.
God Save The Unborn & Our Nation, Pastor Phillip
10/8/08
The Family That Eats Together...
I found this interesting article. It is worth a read and tell me what do you think?
More family meals mean less risky sex for teens
By Anne Harding
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Parents who don't want their teens to engage in risky sexual behavior should make family time a priority, a new study suggests.
Adolescents who took part in family activities more often had sex less frequently, less unprotected sex, and fewer sex partners, Dr. Rebekah Levine Coley of Boston College and her colleagues found.
Most research on parenting and teen sexual behavior has simply looked at whether or not a teen has had sex, not the degree of sexual risk he or she takes, Coley noted in an interview with Reuters Health. But given that two out of three U.S. teens have sex before they turn 19, more specific information would provide a better understanding of the risks involved, Coley and her team point out in the Journal of Adolescent Health.
To investigate, as well as to better define whether parental qualities influence a child's sexual behavior rather than vice versa, Coley and her team used increasingly stringent statistical techniques to analyze the results of a survey of 4,950 U.S. teens, 1,058 of whom were siblings. The adolescents were 12 to 16 years old when the study began, and completed the survey every year for 3 years.
By comparing parenting quality and sexual behavior for siblings raised in the same household, Coley noted, it is possible to tease out potential cause-and-effect relationships.
The more times a week that an adolescent reported having dinner with their family, "doing something religious" as a family, or having fun with their family, the less likely he or she was to engage in risky sexual behavior, the researchers found.
However, having a parent who used "negative and psychologically controlling" behavior increased the likelihood that a teen would be having risky sex. This includes "criticizing the ideas of the adolescents, controlling and directing what they think and how they feel," Coley explained.
"Negative and psychologically controlling parenting behaviors may inhibit adolescents' development of self-efficacy and identity, interfere with mature and responsible decision making skills, and affect the development of healthy relationships, in turn leading to an elevated likelihood of engaging in risky behaviors," the researchers suggest.
On the other hand, they add, family activities are "centrally important supports for children, providing opportunities for emotional warmth, communication, and transmission of values and beliefs."
The findings make it clear, Coley said, that "what parents do with their adolescents really matters."
SOURCE: Journal of Adolescent Health, August 2008.
Going to be eating dinner with Cason everyday of His life! Pastor Phillip
10/7/08
Pray For Me
I just read these convicting words from a favorite writer of mine, Martin Luther.
Let us then consider it certain and conclusively established that the soul can do without all things except the Word of God, and that where this is not there is no help for the soul in anything else whatever. But if it has the Word it is rich and lacks nothing, since this Word is the Word of life, of truth, of light, of peace, of righteousness, of salvation, of joy, of liberty, of wisdom, of power, of grace, of glory, and of every blessing beyond our power to estimate (Martin Luther, “A Treatise on Christian Liberty” 23).So, pray "that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel," Eph 6:19
Pastor Phillip
Safe and Clean
Where there are no oxen, the barn is clean, but an abundant harvest comes through the strength of an ox. Pro 14:4
My wife loves a clean house. But, she faces two problems in accomplishing her goal of living in a clean house: Cason and Me. We are boys and we are messy. We both try to help clean, but we are not very good at it. But, I am very confident that Rebecca is content to deal with a lived in home, that is not perfectly spotless all the time, because she loves her two boys. She trades a clean house for two handsome, kind, polite, and decently smelling fellas.
You see in
So, let’s look at life. What is the easiest way to keep your self from conflict, hurt, sadness, or embarrassment? Do nothing, have no relationships, try nothing, be safe all the time, never step out in faith, never love or open up to someone and you might live a safe life. Happy, I doubt it, but probably a steady and easy life. You see if your life is empty of people, it is useless; and if you live only for yourself, your life loses its meaning. Instead of avoiding people, we should serve others, share our faith, and seek to help them bear their burdens. Is your life clean but empty? Or does it give evidence of dirty knees and bloody hands that show your serving God wholeheartedly?
Look at church. I love a happy unified church. I love it when everyone agrees all the time. But, if this comes at the expense of the church, doing nothing, trying nothing, never stepping out in faith, protecting status quo, then it is worthless. Does it make my job easy and less stressful? Probably, but in no way do we this as representing the ideals that Jesus has in mind for his church. You look at all the vibrant and gowing churches in the New Testament, none were prefect all had problems and big personalities. Read Philippians and check Euodia and Syntyche.
Look at Peter in
Then in
Could God have done things more efficiently and easily and avoided Peter all together? Yes. Could God do things easier and more effectively without us? Yes. Then why does God bother with us? God uses us because he loves us and he loves to see us live for Him. Does, He love to see us fall? No, but when we fail and coming running back to Him and let Him clean us off it does give him great joy. Is cleanliness next to godliness? Maybe, but remember in our lives if the are to imitate Jesus, they must include taking a bloody and old rugged cross daily and seeking to live for Him.
Got to clean up a dirty office, Pastor Phillip
10/6/08
C.S. Lewis Quote
C.S. Lewis Quote
Indeed, if we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that Our Lord finds our desires, not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased. (The Weight of Glory 1949)Are you far too easily pleased? What cheap and small pleasures in your life keep you from the true pleasure of knowing Christ and being known by Him? Be like Jacob grab a hold of God and don't let go until he blesses you!
Striving for infinite joy, Pastor Phillip
10/5/08
You Better Go To Church Today!
You better go to church today, because you are apart of the body Christ and the body needs each part present and functioning. Enjoy the words of this classic hymn written by Samuel Stone in 1866. It is powerful and honest in it’s description of the church, the trials it faces, and the Jesus who loves it and died for it.
The Church’s one foundation
Is Jesus Christ her Lord,
She is His new creation
By water and the Word.
From heaven He came and sought her
To be His holy bride;
With His own blood He bought her
And for her life He died.She is from every nation,
Yet one o’er all the earth;
Her charter of salvation,
One Lord, one faith, one birth;
One holy Name she blesses,
Partakes one holy food,
And to one hope she presses,
With every grace endued.The Church shall never perish!
Her dear Lord to defend,
To guide, sustain, and cherish,
Is with her to the end:
Though there be those who hate her,
And false sons in her pale,
Against both foe or traitor
She ever shall prevail.Though with a scornful wonder
Men see her sore oppressed,
By schisms rent asunder,
By heresies distressed:
Yet saints their watch are keeping,
Their cry goes up, “How long?”
And soon the night of weeping
Shall be the morn of song!’Mid toil and tribulation,
And tumult of her war,
She waits the consummation
Of peace forevermore;
Till, with the vision glorious,
Her longing eyes are blest,
And the great Church victorious
Shall be the Church at rest.Yet she on earth hath union
With God the Three in One,
And mystic sweet communion
With those whose rest is won,
With all her sons and daughters
Who, by the Master’s hand
Led through the deathly waters,
Repose in Eden land.O happy ones and holy!
Lord, give us grace that we
Like them, the meek and lowly,
On high may dwell with Thee:
There, past the border mountains,
Where in sweet vales the Bride
With Thee by living fountains
Forever shall abide!
Go To Preach, Pastor Phillip
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