Sermon
For Thine is the Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory!
July 24-25, 1999
Pastor Donald Sheley

Take your Bible and join with me in a portion that we now have been, this is the fourth month that we have been in this marvelous prayer, the Lord's Prayer. It's found in Matthew 6:9. But we decided some weeks ago that a prayer that we have said so many times from our youth up, it would be well for us just to take a few weeks and do an in-depth study, and we've done that. And we now come to the closing phrase of the Lord's Prayer. Matthew chapter 6 verse 9 says, "In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come, Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

Last Lord's Day we said that this last phrase is a doxology, and a doxology is a liturgical term for praise, so this prayer ends with words of praise. There's something interesting. We note that the record in Matthew is different than it is in Luke. Matthew includes the doxology and Luke does not. The prayer is found in Luke chapter 11, but when it gets to the words lead us not into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. Amen. Now you folks that have liturgical or Catholic backgrounds you'll know that when you said the Lord's Prayer, that's were you came to the end. 

You say, then why did Matthew add for Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory? And we learned last week that most, numerous, Bible scholars hold the belief that the doxology was added in the early part of the second century by one of the scribes, because when you go back into the original manuscripts of the New Testament you will not find this phrase, but interesting enough, the translators of the King James text chose to leave it in the Matthew portion, but to take it out of the Luke's portion. Thus it not being a part of the original text, yet we find it very appropriate to add words of praise to a great prayer, and thus we have this beautiful doxology. Someone has said that the measure of our spirituality is the amount of praise and thanksgiving in our prayers. When we pray, for Thine is the kingdom the power and the glory forever, we are declaring in these words our belief that the kingdoms of this world are the rightful property of our Father, that in Him alone belongs all power, and that He alone deserves to receive all glory.

In Revelation 11:15 it says, there were loud voices in heaven, saying, "The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!" So it's the great phrase that's voiced in heaven by those who worship there. And David in ancient past said this, Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom and Your dominion endures throughout all generations. And so in that our prayer closes with words of praise, I thought it would be well for us on this closing Sunday of this series to talk a little bit about praise. It's a tremendous subject, because again we can go back through all of the pages of the Scripture. We went back last Sunday and we found many great doxologies of the Scripture, but this is a book of praise. 

Do you enjoy books? I tell you great books from time to time, and you might like to add this one to your personal library, it's a little red covered book written by a great Baptist preacher whose name was Jack Taylor, and the title of the book is the Hallelujah Factor and what this Baptist pastor decided he would do was spend every Sunday for a year, or at least he was going to cover the subject of praise, and for 52 Sundays he preached on the subject of praise. And the result was his church was absolutely transformed. And that book is some of the sermons that he preached during that 52 week revival that came to his church. He starts his manuscript with these suggestions; if we're going to be people of praise, we have got to learn the proper perspective of praise. In other words, we got to see things as they really are not as we see them to be. You say, just what do you mean Pastor? 

Well, let's go to Revelation. I think this is the best way to start, and this will explain what I am saying. In Revelation, in your Bible it's the last book, and we're going to start in chapter 1. And I want to talk about the proper perspective of praise. John is an old man. He's probably over 90 years of age. He's nearing his hundred mark, and because he's preached the gospel the emperors have banished him off onto a little island out on the Aegean Sea. It's a lonely place. John is an old man and his surrounding are such that they offered him no hope. His associates were the off scouring of society. His friends were far away if even alive, and many of them had already given their lives for the preaching on the gospel, and here's this old man, aged, on a desolate island, living out his closing days. If ever there was a reason to be depressed and discouraged, old John had it. And then in that deep dark moment of his life something happens. 

Go with me to Revelation 1:10. I was in the Spirit, John says, on the Lord's Day. Now most commentators simply feel that it was the Lord's Day of worship and John on that little island was having a worship service by himself and God. Great service. And I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet, saying, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last." And, "What you see, write in a book and send it to the seven churches which are in Asia: to Ephesus, to Smyrna, to Pergamos, to Thyatira, to Sardis, to Philadelphia, and the Laodicea." Then I turned to see the voice that spoke with me. And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands, and in the midst of the seven lampstands One like the Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to the feet and girded about the chest with a golden band. His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and His eyes like a flame of fire; His feet were like fine brass, as if refined in a furnace, and His voice as the sound of many waters; He had in His right hand seven stars, out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged sword, and His countenance was like the sun shining in its strength. And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead. But He laid His right hand on me, saying to me, "Do not be afraid" I am the First and the Last. "I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. 

And I have the keys of Hades and of Death. "Write these things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after this. In the desolate loneliness an old man, who had walked with Christ in his early days, now sees a divine vision of Christ exalted in heaven. And to old John it was such a marvelous experience that he fell as if he were dead. Now he writes in Revelation in chapter 2 and 3, those messages to the seven churches that he's been directed to write, and now we come to chapter 4. After these things, that is after he finished writing those things, I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven. And the first voice which I heard was like a trumpet speaking with me, saying, "Come up here and I will show you things which must take place after this." John looks and he sees a door open in heaven, and this door suggests the immediate possibility of entrance. In chapter 1 we saw him in his loneliness, desolate on an island, seeing the world around him which could be very, very depressing, but God allows him in that deep moment to look into reality, to see and to hear the invitation; come on John, I want to show what reality is really like. I want to show you the world of the invisible. 

It's so true that most of us are so encumbered with this life with all of its tension and all of its pressures that sometimes squeezes out the reason for praise. We've got to learn to catch that vision of the invisible. You see all of us are faced with these two worlds of reality. All of our troubles and our depression and our hopelessness rise at the point of our conviction as to which world is more real. You see we deal with the visible, with the tangible, every day and we know what is real. We must pay our bills. Sickness and death are a part of this life; and there are fears, and doubts, and rejection, and anxieties, and terrifying developments. That's the world that's real around us, and that's often the world that engulfs us and drowns out praise. 

But Paul gives us a picture. And I want you go to 2 Corinthians 4. And Paul makes the comparison of the two worlds. This is what he says, verse 16, 2 Corinthians 4, Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal. And so Paul draws the distinction, what's around us is only for a moment, but what really counts lasts for all of eternity. And I think it's the invisible that is really real. And you have to believe that in order that your philosophy of life as a Christian is right. The door which John saw open was the door between earth and heaven, and it was the visual opportunity for him to view things as God sees them, and the voice says come on John, let Me show you life, let Me show you reality.

You know, I think Jesus was saying to John, listen, things are not as they appear to be, they never are. I'm about to show you things as they really are. I'm about to walk you into the throne room of the universe and to show you genuine reality. Things are not out of control John! The devil has not won! Evil has not triumphed! Man is not a victim of cruel chance. We are not living on a large ball that is about to explode and send us all into oblivion. John, I want you to walk through that door and I want you to get a glimpse of reality. I want you to see the unseen, then it makes what you're experiencing so much easier. You say, Pastor, is there an illustration? Yeah, a beautiful one, and every time I find myself being crippled, my faith being crippled by the world around me, I go to this Old Testament story. It's fabulous. 2 Kings chapter 6  in your Bible. It's a tremendous story. 

Verse 8 says, 2 Kings chapter 6. It says that, Now the king of Syria was making war against Israel; and he consulted with his servants, saying, "My camp will be in such and such a place." And the man of God sent to the king of Israel, saying, "Beware that you do not pass this place, for the Syrians are coming down there." Then the king of Israel sent someone to the place of which the man of God had told him. Thus he warned him, and he was watchful there, not just once or twice. Now here's the setting. The old king up in Syria he's planning his war strategy and his movements, and he said now the camp we're going to set it up here and there, and the man of God already knows what's being planned and so he goes to the king of Israel and says, now you want to watch because that's where they're going to put up their camp. In other words, he gives the directions the warnings. 

Well, look at what happened. Therefore, verse 11, Therefore the heart of the king of Syria was greatly troubled by this thing; and he called his servants and said, which one of you are spies? Now that's the way I put it in there. He said, "Will you not show me which of us is for the king of Israel?" Who's been going out of our planning room and giving the report to the nation that we're going to have war against? Who's telling them our secrets? There's somebody in this room that's squealing. O, verse 12 says, And one of his servants said, "None, my lord, O king; but Elisha, the prophet who is in Israel, tells the king of Israel the words that you speak in your bedroom. So he said, well you go get him. "Go and see where he is, that I may send and get him." And it was told him, saying, well he's probably down at Dothan. So what does he do? Therefore he sent horses and chariots and a great army there, and they came by night and surrounded the city. 

And old Elisha he's sleeping with his servant down there in Dothan, having a good night's rest. The old servant gets up to do some jogging in the morning. He gets up early. Notice verse 15. And when the servant of the man of God arose early and went out, there was an army, surrounding the city with horses, and chariots. And he runs back into the house and shakes his master Elisha, and he says, "Alas, my master! What shall we do?" Old Elisha opens one eye. I'm just seeing the story as it takes place. He said, "Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them." And then Elisha says a prayer. God, would open the eyes so this guy can really see? Then the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. He saw the invisible. He saw a mighty God at work, and old Elisha knew it. The old servant was concerned about the surroundings, but Elisha said, just get your eyes open man.

The God of the universe is on our side, and He's already set up His battlements, and they're going to take care of us. O if we could only realize that as Christians, that the God that we serve loves us intensely, and He's promised that He would send His angels to be encamped about us to protect us. You don't even have to ask Him. It's already a promise. You know, it's hard for us to learn some spiritual lessons, but I learned this lesson about 16 years ago. I've always, throughout our ministry, walked through this building day after day, and my prayer is dear God, I pray that the hosts of heaven will just surround this facility today and stand garrison watching over us and protecting us Lord Jesus, and giving us Your peace and giving us Your blessing. May the hosts of heaven fill the skies above. And after I pray that I often, in my imagination, I can just see the angels just standing around this place protecting us. And after 40 years of being here, He's done it many, many times. 

One day we had a tragedy take place here at the church. It was back in the early 80s and a number of schools were being hurt by molestations. And many schools closed immediately because of the reaction of the parents. We had a similar situation, but we took care of it just in a matter of a couple hours, but I knew that when that story hit the newspaper they would use the blackest of ink to print that story. Sure enough. I'm sitting down here in what is now Baker's Square, but used to be Sambo's Restaurant, and I picked up the newspaper and the story, they had twisted the story and made us look ugly, and made us look bad, and made us look terrible. And I thought to myself, my stomach sank within me. I said God, we've got 1,060 children, and if those parents walk in tomorrow and take their children out simply because they do not have confidence in us, God, it will absolutely be a tragedy because we had over 100 teachers on contract and it just could have.

So I came back up here to the church and I started walking up and down that mall all night long, God, You promised that You'd have Your angels protecting us. I ask You to protect this ministry and this church. I need You dear God. And I called out to God, and I watched my clock and as the 7 o'clock hour was the hour we opened for the children to start coming, I thought to myself dear God how's this going to happen? The parents came. God had brought a tranquility and a peace amongst the parents and across this school, and when the day was finished only 1 out of 1,060. One child was taken from the school by a parent. I tell you, I know beyond a shadow of a doubt we often let the world around us as we see it really drag us down. 

But what Christ is saying, John I know it's bad out there on the island, but catch a glimps of a God who's in control! He sits on the throne room of heaven and He's in charge! And John's heart is filled with praise because the rest of the book of Revelation is praise after praise after praise. Someone has written that the absence of praise simply means that someone has an inadequate view of God. I mean, when you understand the greatness, and the love, and the concern, and the care of almighty God, you can't help but rejoice. 

That's why when Paul wrote in the book of Romans chapter 8, and old J. I. Packer in his last chapter in his book entitled Knowing God. The title of his chapter is the adequacy of God, and Dr. Packer shows that God will not allow any accusation to be brought against us. The God who gave His only Son, the God who will protect us, the God who will never let us out of His love, who can separate us from the love of God? Such an adequate God who cares for us as His children. We have every reason to lift our voice in praise and adoration, even in times when it's hard. That's why the writer to the Hebrews says, offer Him the sacrifice of praise, the sacrifice of praise. That is when the world looks black around you, start praising God and you'll be amazed how things change.

 You know old Job was a man who went through a lot, and he's lost his family, he's lost his home, he's lost his cattle. Now he's sitting on the streets. He's got boils that are oozing all over him, and his wife comes up and says, honey, why don't you just curse God and die? And old Job comes back and says I came in here empty and I'll go out empty, blessed be the name of the Lord. And part way through his experience he says, I know one thing that my Redeemer liveth, and I'll stand before Him one of these days. 

Now, it's in the closing of his book, and if you'd like to go there it's Job 38. God is going to have a conversation with Job and He's going to show him the vastness of reality. And Job's whole concept now is going to change. Look at what he says in verse 2 of Job 38. Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said: "Who is this who darkens counsel By words without knowledge? Now prepare yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer Me. Job it's time we get things straight. I'm going to ask you some questions and I want you to give Me an answer. All right?

Question number one; where were you, Job, when I laid the foundations of the earth? That's a difficult question. Tell Me, if you have understanding. Job, who determined its measurements? That is, who gave earth its boundaries, the tide only goes so far, comes back out. Who put all of these measurements to the universe Job? Surely you know! Or who stretched out the line upon it? To what were its foundations fastened Job? Or who laid its cornerstone, when the morning stars sang together, And all the sons of God shouted for joy? Job, do you know that this earth in its creation moments was wrapped in the swaddling clothes of praise? All the stars were singing and all the angels were shouting for joy. 

Now I don't know how many starts there are, but there are billions of them. And almighty Creator says now you folks up here in the northern sphere you sing the altos, and all of you stars over here in the southern sphere you sing the basses, and He gives instruction and He says now all the sons of God will shout for joy, and I tell you that our earth, the early moments of its creation, was filled with the joys of shouting stars and singing angels. Boy, to realize that it all began in praise and then it seems that the very law of praise was written into the very structure of the universe. That's an amazing thing to me. Everything in this universe praises God. Well where does it say that? 

Go with me to Psalm 148. It's amazing. Look at what the writer to the Psalm says, Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord from the heavens; Praise Him, in the heights! Praise Him, all His angels; Praise Him, all His hosts! Praise Him, sun and moon; Praise Him, all the stars of light! Praise Him, you heavens of heavens, And you waters above the heavens! Let them praise the name of the Lord, For He commanded and they were created. He also established them forever and ever; He made a decree which shall not pass away. Praise the Lord from the earth, You great sea creatures and all the depth. What are those fish doing down there on the bottom of the sea? Singing praises to God. That's why they open their mouth. Fire and hail, snow and clouds; Stormy wind, fulfilling His word; Mountains and all hills; Fruit trees and all cedars; Beasts and all cattle. The cows are not mooing. They're praising God. Kings of the earth and all peoples; Princes and all judges of the earth; Both young men and maidens; Old men and children. Let them praise the name of the Lord, For His name alone is exalted; His glory is above the earth and heaven. 

What is he saying? Structured into the very universe in the atoms which make up this universe is the very nature of praise. I've always prayed dear God help me to see my world as David. Everything to him as the creek quietly flows by and trickles over the rocks; those sounds were the sounds of praise. As the birds sang in the trees, those birds were singing praise to God. As the wind blew through the leaves of the tree and the sound of the wind, that was the sound of praises David sang. Jesus knew that structured into the very universe was this whole concept of praise. He's on His way to Jerusalem and His critics are saying shut those people up, they're praising You too much, and Jesus turned to them and what did He say? He said I tell you if they keep quiet the stones will cry out. Jesus said look at, I mean if they don't praise Me, the stones we walk on structured in their very molecular structure is the capacity to praise God. They'll start praising if you don't. It's amazing the power of praise. Praise you see is really where God lives. 

Go with me to Psalm 22:3. Here's a very, very interesting verse of Scripture. Psalm 22:3, you might want to write it down. Here's what it says, But You are holy, Enthroned in the praises of Israel. Where is God's home address? Praise. God inhabits, that is He dwells, in the praises of His people. Now that's what you and I experience in the high moments of worship here at the church from time to time. The songs absolutely lift us heavenward. I had a lady say to me, she said I don't like coming to your church because I have to fix my eye mascara every time I leave. She said all I do is cry. She said I cry with joy. I said thank God. But when we begin to praise God, God comes and dwells amongst us. That's what we feel, His presence. The Bible says He inhabits the praises of His people. Is there a story to prove that? Yes there is. 

Go with me to 2 Chronicles 20. This is a tremendous story. Old Jehoshaphat he's got a problem. He's got an enemy and he's the king. I'm at 2 Chronicles 20:2 and it says, Then some came and told Jehoshaphat, saying, "A great multitude is coming against you from beyond the sea, from Syria. So now he's the king and he's got some enemies marching on him. In verse 3 is says, And Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the Lord, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah. Verse 6, and said: "O Lord God of our fathers, are You not God in heaven, and do You not rule over all the kingdoms of the nations, and in Your hand Is there not power and might so that no one I able to withstand You? God you're the God who rules the universe. 

Verse 14, Then the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jahaziel the son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite of the sons of Asaph, in the midst of the assembly. And he said, "Listen, all you of Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem, and you, King Jehoshaphat! Thus says the Lord to you: 'Do not be afraid nor dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours, but God's. Ahh, verse 17, 'You will not need to fight in this battle. Position yourselves, stand still and see the salvation of the Lord, who is with you, O Judah and Jerusalem! Do not fear or be dismayed; tomorrow go out against them, for the Lord is with you. All right. In the next few verses they've organized the choir, put them out in front of the army. 

Look at verse 22. Here're the words they're supposed to say: "Praise the Lord, For His mercy endures forever." Now this is the choir marching in front of the army. That's a strange one. Now when they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set ambushes against the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah; and they were defeated. How did they defeat them? Just start praising God. It's one of the great secrets folks of living as Christians. Like I said, the world around us with its reality squeezes out the real world. The fact that our God, our heavenly Father, is in charge of this universe, He still reigns, He's still on the throne, He's got His angels to take care of us, and we have every reason to praise God. And I'll tell you, when it looks black around you, when everything's falling in, get out our praise tapes and start praising God.

It's an amazing thing what happens. You'll find that when you get to the end of this great book, all history will end in praise, because as John sees the closing moments of the great commencement of eternity, he sees it filled with praise. You say, Pastor, then what's the point? The point is this, I've said it before, I say it again, if we don't learn how to praise God down here we're going to be miserable in heaven because heaven is filled with praise. You know, some of us came from backgrounds where we were taught silent in the church, just sing the hymns real slow and real quiet, don't get noisy because that's fanaticism. Right? Yet you get into this book and every time the subject of worship and praise is talked about, it's always done with exuberance, with joy, with loudness! It says that in heaven with a loud voice they praise God!

I've had people come to church and they say Pastor, you 're just too noisy here. Those horns over there, quiet them down. O no, those horns are playing for the glory of God. We're shouting and we're rejoicing and worshiping God and I tell the musicians, I don't want fanaticism, but I want joy and I want worship. I want people to encounter the presence of God when they come to this church. We want to be people of praise because God becomes a part of us and our service when we praise. So, we come to the closing of this prayer and I thought how, if we're going to really say this doxology like we should; Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. When we're getting out of this doxology we should say, For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever! Amen! 

You say, do you say it that loud? Well they did it in the Scriptures, and I thought to myself, now ever time we say the Lord's Prayer when we get to the doxology, shout it. Because that's really the way it is. He's the King! He's eternal! He's all glorious! He's on the throne! We're His children! We're a part of his kingdom, and were going to spend all of eternity with Him. For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen! Amen. Let's say it like we mean it because that's the way He wanted us to pray. I can imagine. I heard the other day where some kids back in high school graduation that the baccalaureate speaker was told he couldn't do anything religious. So they announced that they had come to a time of silence and somebody in that congregation of thousands began to say the Lord's Prayer, and everybody by the thousands started saying. Can you imagine at that graduation ceremony when they got to the, For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen! Boy, that would have been a great baccalaureate service. Amen? Do you love God? Tell Him so. Let's stand.

Wonderful God, glorious Redeemer, precious Father, wonderful Savior, majestic Lord, eternal King, our Savior and our God. We love You. We love You dear God, and thank you for loving us. And everybody said. Amen. God bless you.