4 To thee we dedicate this house,

And our best offerings bring;
Here pay to thee our solemn vows,

And hymns of triumph sing.
5 Long may these temple walls resound

With thy most worthy praise ;
And may each heart, O God, be found

A temple of thy grace.

HYMN 484.

L. M. [#]

Christian Ministry.
1 FATHER of mercies, in thy house

Smile on our homage and our vows;
While, with a grateful heart, we share

These pledges of our Master's care.
2 The Saviour, when to heaven he rose,

In splendid triumph o'er his foes,
Bestowed his gifts on men below,

And wide his royal bounties flow. 3 So shall a bright succession run,

Till the last courses of the sun;
While unborn churches, by their care,

Shall rise and flourish, large and fair. 4 Jesus, our Lord, their hearts shall know,

The Spring whence all these blessings flow; Pastors and people shout his praise, Through the long round of endless days.

HYMN 485. L. M. [#]

Settlement or Ordination of a Minister. 1 GREAT Lord of angels, we adore

The grace that builds thy courts below; And, mid ten thousand sons of light,

Stoops to regard what mortals do. 2 Amid the wastes of time and death

Successive pastors thou dost raise, Thy kingdom and thy truth to spread,

And form a people for thy praise. 3 At length, dismissed from labours here,

Thy servants join the heavenly band; With them through distant worlds they fly,

With them before thy presence stand, 4 O blest employment ! glorious hope !

Sweet lenitive of grief and care !
When shall we reach those radiant courts,

And all their joys and honours share? 5 Yet, while these labours we pursue,

Though distant from thy heavenly throne, Give us a zeal and love like theirs,

And half their heaven shall here be known.

HYMN 486. C. M. [#]

Apostolic Commission.
1 Go preach the gospel, Jesus cries;

To you this power is given;
Declare salvation's glorious prize

To all beneath the heaven.

2 Commissioned thus, through every age,

His heralds, in his name,
In this delightful work engage,

And peace and hope proclaim. 3 To him, whom we to thee ordain,

Thy gifts, O God, impart;
May he those sacred truths maintain,

Which heal the wounded heart. 4 May all, by his instruction blest,

The path to heaven pursue ;
And converts to thy temple press,

Numerous as drops of dew.

HYMN 487. C. M. [#]

Installation or Ordination.
1 ETERNAL Father, God of peace,

We bow before thy throne,
And sing that wondrous love and grace,

Which call us all thine own.
2 Within these walls, O may thy voice

Of pardoning love be heard ;
Here may the broken heart rejoice,

The contrite soul be cheered.
3 And may thy servant, who, this day,

Is set apart for thee,
Enjoy the gospel's heavenly ray,

And all thy glory see. 4 Teach him to show that peace on earth

Which true religion gives ;
And point the eye of hope and faith

To realms where Jesus lives.

5 O may thy grace his heart enlarge,

To teach thy precepts given,
Till, with the people of his charge,

He shall be called to heaven.

HYMN 488. L. M. [#]

Pastoral Care. 1 GREAT God, before thy throne we bow;

To thee we raise the fervent prayer ; Do thou on us thy grace bestow,

And make us all thy tender care. 2 Him thou dost place as pastor here,

Wilt thou, O Saviour, deign to bless : With firmness and with godly fear

May he declare thy truth and grace. 3 May no vain pride his heart possess,

To wrest thy word, thy truth conceal; Be thou his Strength and Righteousness,

And with thy love his bosom fill. 4 And on this people, gracious Lord,

Pour down thy blessings from above, Cause every heart to love thy word,

And in thy paths their footsteps move. 5 We pray, O God, and we believe ;

We've seen thy kindness all our days; And long as we existence have,

We'll celebrate thy wondrous praise.

HYMN 489. L. M. [#]

Ordination or Installation. 1 O Thou, who art above all height,

Our God, our Father and our Friend, Beneath thy throne of love and light,

Let thine adoring children bend. 2 We kneel in praise, that here is set

A vine that by thy culture grew;
We kneel in prayer, that thou wouldst wet

Its opening leaves with heavenly dew. 3 Since this thy servant now hath given

Himself, his powers, his hopes, his youth,
To the great cause of truth and heaven,

Be thou his Guide, O God of truth. 4 Here may his doctrine drop like rain,

His speech like Hermon's dew distil, Till green fields smile, and golden grain, ,

Ripe for the harvest, waits thy will. 8 And when he sinks in death, by care,

Or pain, or toil, or years oppressed, O God, remember then our prayer,

And take his spirit to thy rest.

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