THE LORD'S PRAYER: DOXOLOGY

Preached by Gregory W. Lee
2 October 2005

I. Introduction
-- turn in Bibles to Matthew 6 [read vs. 9-13 in KJV]
-- the other day I was in the grocery store with Kim when I glanced over at the magazine rack by the register
-- there, to my surprise, was a bright bold headline shouting out to the world, "Jesus is on earth!" -- I immediately left my place in line and grabbed the magazine and flipped over to the article -- now, this is not the most reliable news magazine in the world, but that headline grabbed my attention
-- I threw it up on the grocery store conveyor belt and Kim said, "Don't tell me you are going to buy that" -- but, I was captivated by that headline -- whether they knew it or not, this magazine had gotten something right -- perhaps the most important truth of all time -- Jesus IS here on earth with us right now -- and everytime you recite the Lord's Prayer and close with the doxology, you are testifying to that fact -- I hope you see what I mean as we finish our series on the Lord's Prayer by looking at the doxology this morning

II. The Doxology
-- the doxology is found at the end of the prayer -- but, depending on the translation of the Bible you use, this doxology may or may not be in there
-- it is found in the King James Version, and, because most of us learned the Lord's Prayer out of the King James Version, we are fairly familiar with the doxology -- but most modern translations do not include this second part of verse 13 because it is not found in the earliest and most reliable copies of the New Testament
-- apparently, the doxology was added at a later time by believers -- possibly to give this prayer a closing worthy of our Lord and Savior -- the doxology only occurs in Matthew's version of the prayer -- it is not included as part of Luke's gospel
-- I think it's important to recognize that these words were added later -- but they should not detract from our using them in praying to God
-- remember that I pointed out in the start of this series that this is a model prayer that Jesus gave us -- He did not intend for us to pray it word for word every single time like we generally do in our services -- as a model prayer, then, it is perfectly acceptable for us to modify it and to pray with greater fervency in those areas where we feel a particular need -- whether that is in seeking God's help for our daily sustenance or with a temptation in our life -- or whether it is merely a time we need to praise and thank God for who He is and what He has done in our lives
-- the doxology that has been handed down through the centuries and that has been added to the King James version of the Bible is an excellent summary of praise and thanksgiving to our God -- and, as I said earlier, everytime we recite the doxology at the end of this prayer, we are telling the world that Jesus is here on earth today

III. How is Jesus here?
-- so, how is Jesus here? -- the doxology gives us the answer by giving us three glimpses into Jesus' ministry on earth, both now and in the future

A. Thine is the Kingdom
-- the first glimpse of Jesus' ministry on earth is contained in the opening phrase of the doxology, "for thine is the kingdom" -- as we have learned in our study of the Lord's Prayer, the kingdom of God means both the heavenly kingdom where Jesus sits at the right hand of God the Father and the spiritual kingdom present in the world today
-- we all recognize that the kingdom of God is present where ever Jesus is -- Jesus told us in Matthew 18:20 that whenever two or three believers came together in His name, that He was there with them -- that means that Jesus is here on earth today -- He is in this sanctuary with us this morning
-- that is why I put that chair in front of the altar -- to remind you that Jesus is in our midst -- we may not be able to see Him, but He is here with us -- and when we pray this prayer -- when we say, "for Thine is the Kingdom" -- we are testifying to the fact that Jesus and the kingdom of God is present on earth today -- and that all of us who believe in Him and trust in Him as Lord and Savior are members of this kingdom
-- the Bible also points out that not only is Jesus present with us when the church gathers together, but God is present and living within each of His believers in the person of the Holy Spirit
-- 1 John 4:15 says that if anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, then God lives in Him and he in God -- and 1 Corinthians 3:16 says, "Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you?"
-- this truth -- captured in this magazine headline by accident -- is one of the unique things about the Christian faith -- when we pray, we are not praying to a distant God living in a heaven located somewhere in the cosmos -- but we are praying to a living God who is with us and in our midst and working in the world today
-- how do I know that Jesus is here on earth today? -- because He lives in me and I can see His kingdom being made visible through the presence and the work of the church -- the body of Christ -- in the world today
-- I am currently reading the Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis -- in one of the books in the series, "The Dawn Treader," Queen Lucy is given the task of helping some people who have been enchanted and turned invisible become visible again -- so she goes into the room of the magician in the story and finds his spell book and says a spell that makes invisible things visible
-- as soon as she says the spell, Aslan the lion, who is symbolic of the Lord Jesus, appears to her -- she cries out in joy and says, "I am so glad to see you here" and he replies, "I have been here all the time, but you have just made me visible"
-- in the same way, the church of Christ -- the believers who gather in His name and who have the living presence of God within them -- make Jesus visible to a watching world today

B. The Power of God

-- the second glimpse of Jesus' ministry on earth is in the second part of the doxology -- it reads, "for Thine is the Kingdom and the Power" -- when the church of Christ makes Jesus visible to a watching world, what they see is the power of God made manifest through us
-- I had a discussion with a coworker this week about karma and grace -- she said that she believed in karma and tried to live it out in her life -- you know, if you do good things, then good things will happen to you -- but if you do bad things, then bad things will happen -- now I know this is an oversimplification of karma, but this is what she said she was practicing in her life
-- so I countered back that I would rather trust in grace over karma any day -- I pointed out to her that karma will never work because we -- as humans born in sin -- can never be good enough -- but that grace works because it is the free gift of God and it doesn't matter how good we are -- we can't get more grace by being good or by doing good works
-- she said that grace was only for the future -- for after death -- for salvation -- and so I pointed out to her how the grace of God and the power of God working in our lives is demonstrated in the world every single day
-- we know that Jesus is here on earth today because we can see the results of His presence and His power made manifest through His grace
-- the world can't understand this, because they can't see Jesus -- they can't see the physical Jesus standing before them, so they don't believe He can be here on earth and they don't believe that He can be working today
-- it's kind of like the conversation that Jesus had with Nicodemus in John chapter 3 -- Nicodemus comes to Jesus at night and starts asking Him about spiritual things -- Jesus tries to help Nicodemus see past the material world and to the spiritual around him -- in verse 8 He says, "The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.""
-- what Jesus is trying to get Nicodemus to recognize is that the Spirit is always at work around us, even if we can't see Him -- we can't see the wind -- but we know it's there, because we hear it's sound and we see it's effects
-- in the same way, even though we can't physically see Jesus in the world today, we know He is here because we can see the effects of His power on the world around us in the form of changed hearts and changed lives
-- just look at the recent outpouring of God's grace through His church in response to the needs of those affected by Katrina and Rita -- man could not respond in this way -- man didn't respond in this way -- that is why there is such an outcry in the media about the lack of effective response by the city of New Orleans and the state of Louisiana and the federal government
-- but, while the media was going on about how man had failed to respond in an effective way, the power of God was being made manifest as churches and Christians poured out their hearts and their lives -- spiritually, financially, physically -- to reach out and take care of their brothers and sisters who were hurting as a result of these natural disasters
-- and this same story -- this same outpouring of God's power and grace -- occurs every single moment of every single day all around this world -- maybe not as visible as the outpouring of God's power has been in the wake of Katrina and Rita -- but present none-the-less
-- we know that Jesus is here on earth today because we can see His fingerprints in the lives that He touches every day

C. The Glory of God

-- the final glimpse of Jesus' ministry on earth is in the end of the doxology -- it reads, "for Thine is the Kingdom and the Power and the Glory" -- when I think about the glory of God as it relates to the ministry of Christ -- I am immediately led to the moment when -- as the hymn writer says in "It is Well with My Soul" -- "my faith becomes sight"
-- when all that I have hoped for and longed for and trusted in occurs -- when Christ comes back to earth and restores all of creation and reigns from the City of Jerusalem
-- when I think of the glory of Christ, I am immediately led to the passages on the second coming of Christ in 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18 and in Revelation 21:1-5 -- listen as I read these passages

1 Thes 4: 16-18: "For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. -- After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. -- Therefore encourage each other with these words."

Rev. 21:1-5: "Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. -- I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. -- And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. -- He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away." -- He who was seated on the throne said, "I am making everything new!" Then he said, "Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.""

III. Closing
-- when we pray in the Lord's prayer, "for Thine is the Kingdom and the Power and the Glory" -- this is what I see in my mind -- when I read the headline in this magazine that said, "Jesus is on the earth" -- this is what I longed for
-- Paul tells us in Romans 8 that all of creation has been groaning as it waited for restoration at the second coming of Christ -- I think that is true for all of us -- whether Christian or not -- we all long for a better place -- for a place where there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain or war or violence or crime -- a place where things are good and where people are good and where life is better -- I think that's why this article grabbed my attention so much
-- even though the world may deny the presence of Christ today -- even though the world may deny that Christ is coming again to set up His kingdom and to restore creation -- secretly, in their heart of hearts, the world hopes that it will come to pass
-- that is why the closing of this prayer is so important -- not only to us but to the world as well -- you see, when we pray this prayer -- when we cry out to God, "for Thine is the Kingdom and the Power and the Glory" -- we are telling a world without hope that there is hope -- we are telling a world awash in sin and evil that there is a better way -- we are telling a world that there is life available through our Redeemer and our Savior and our God
-- when we pray this prayer and when we allow God to work through us and in us -- then the world will come to see the Kingdom and the Power and the Glory of God -- and their lives and their hearts will be changed forever and they will be able to exclaim with us, "Jesus is on earth today!"
-- as I close, I would invite you to join with me in prayer for the world around us and pray that they might see God's presence through us as we minister to them in Christ's name -- maybe God is calling you this morning to make a committment to serve Him more in the world -- to carry His light and His truth to a people seeking salvation -- maybe He put on your heart someone you need to talk to about God -- or maybe He is calling you to become involved in missions or to become more involved in the ministry of this church -- whatever it is, if you have heard God speak to you this morning, please do not turn away from His call
-- let us pray