ALL THINGS ARE THINE

a hymn Devotion for 17 September 2024 Anno domini  the Anglican Orthodox Communion Worldwide

Click here to listen and watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CO2Gg4Hf8kU

“For the world is mine, and the fulness thereof.” (Psalm 50:12)

            This hymn of praise is written by the classical writer, John Greenleaf Whittier (1807-1892), a Quaker northerner. The hymn was composed for the opening of Plymouth Church in Minnesota in 1872. The tune, Melcombe, is the work of Samuel Webbe, Sr (1740-1816)

ALL THINGS ARE THINE

All things are Thine; no gift have we,
Lord of all gifts, to of­fer Thee:
And hence with grate­ful hearts to­day
Thine own be­fore Thy feet we lay.

Thy will was in the build­ers’ thought;
Thy hand un­seen amidst us wrought;
Through mor­tal mo­tive, scheme and plan
Thy wise eter­nal pur­pose ran.

In weak­ness and in want we call
On Thee for whom the hea­vens are small;
Thy glo­ry is Thy child­ren’s good,
Thy joy Thy ten­der Fa­ther­hood.

O Fa­ther, deign these walls to bless;
Fill with Thy love their emp­ti­ness;
And let their door a gate­way be
To lead us from our­selves to Thee.

       All things are Thine; no gift have we, Lord of all gifts, to of­fer Thee: And hence with grate­ful hearts  to­day Thine own be­fore Thy feet we lay. ALL things belong to God including our very bodies and those of every creature. We can offer nothing to God that He does not already possess except our hearts. Whatever we presumed to offer the Lord is His by right and title. As the Psalmist says: “ For every beast  of the forest is mine, And the cattle upon a thousand hills. I know all the fowls of the mountains: And the wild beasts of the field are mine.” ( Psalms 50:10-11)

            Thy will was in the build­ers’ thought; Thy hand un­seen amidst us wrought; Through mor­tal mo­tive, scheme and plan Thy wise eter­nal pur­pose ran. The plan with cunning schemes and lab or endlessly to obtain the builder’s prize, but no plan, no labor, can succeed without the Lord working in and through the mind and hands of the builder. We are His Creation, and He has made us to attain to His image that was marred at Eden. His total will shall be accomplished with persistent perseverance. His natural laws obey His Law perfectly, and so shall all Creation conform at last.

            In weak­ness and in want we call On Thee for whom the hea­vens are small; Thy glo­ry is Thy child­ren’s good, Thy joy Thy ten­der Fa­ther­hood. It is difficult for modern man to conceive the magnanimity of God. The entire Universe is a creation of His Space/Time/ Matter continuum and is less than a grain of salt compared with His magnificence and majesty. God takes joy in His Creation and in mankind in general, but He takes a particular joy in those who love and obey Him as devoted children. What an exalted privilege to call God Almighty our Father.

            O Fa­ther, deign these walls to bless; Fill with Thy love their emp­ti­ness; And let their door a gate­way be To lead us from our­selves to Thee. This hymn is written for the dedication of a church building, but the building is not the church. God may bless the building as an anointed place, but the purpose is not is not for the building but for the hearts of His adherents. The church building is empty regardless the number of congregants unless it is filled with the love of God and our love for one another. There is nothing emptier and colder than a church building filled with legalistic and loveless hearts. As our Lord has commanded, “Come out from among them and be ye separate.