The precious prayer in Matthew 6 ends as it began. Jesus taught us to begin our prayers with praise. We are told to pray “Hallowed be Thy name.” Now, we are called to rejoice in who God is and in the power He holds.

We have covered much ground in these sermons. We have learned that:

  • Prayer is about remembering: “Our Father which art in Heaven.”
  • Prayer is about reverencing: “Hallowed be Thy name.”
  • Prayer is about ruling: “Thy kingdom come.”
  • Prayer is about resigning: “Thy will be done.”
  • Prayer is about requesting: “Give us this day our daily bread.”
  • Prayer is about releasing: “And forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors.”
  • Prayer is about relying: “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.”

We will learn today that prayer is about rejoicing: “For Thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory forever, Amen.”

In a world filled with trials, troubles, and problems, it is a comfort to serve a God who is worthy of all the praise and glory we can give Him. It is a comfort to find Someone and something to rejoice about.

I. WE CAN REJOICE IN HIS PRE-EMINENCE

A. He is sovereign. The word sovereign means “independent and holding complete power.” When we say that God is sovereign, this is what we mean. He is “over and above” this world.

The Bible is clear: The God we serve is allpowerful and in absolute control of all things (Is. 43:13; 46:10-11; Eph. 1:11). Christians, rejoice! Our Father is still on the throne, and no one will ever dethrone Him (Ps. 45:6; 145:13).

When Jesus first taught this prayer, Caesar in Rome literally ruled the world. The Roman Empire stretched from the British Isles all the way across the Mediterranean and as far away as India. Caesar had power over every man, woman, and child in the known world. And yet, Jesus said to pray, “Thine is the kingdom . . .”

Don’t let a lost, cynical world tell you that God is out of business. He is still on His throne, and the kingdom of this world is His. One day, the announcement will come from glory (Rev. 11:15). What will be revealed to all on that day is a reality today!

B. He is supreme. When man was created and placed in Eden, he was given dominion over this world (Gen. 1:26-28). When man sinned, he gave that dominion away, and Satan, not man, became the god of this world (2 Cor. 4:4). When Jesus Christ came into this world, died on the cross, and rose from the dead, He redeemed everything Adam had given away. He paid the price and destroyed Satan’s dreams of ruling the universe. Our God, not Satan, is now the supreme Lord of the universe. He alone deserves our worship, love, devotion, and allegiance.

Therefore, when we pray the Lord’s Prayer, we acknowledge God’s supremacy and our subjection to Him as our Sovereign God. We are acknowledging that He is our King and we are His servants. This implies that we are His and His alone.

II. WE CAN REJOICE IN HIS POWER

A. His power is enormous. We have established the fact that God is sovereign and in control. Now we are told to rejoice in the fact that He has the power to control things as well. Friends, we do not serve an anemic, weak God. We serve a God of power and ability! He can do anything He pleases because He holds all power. He is Almighty God! Allow me to share some verses with you that showcase the power of God: Genesis 18:14; Job 42:2; Psalm 62:11; Jeremiah 32:17; Matthew 19:26; Mark 10:27; Ephesians 3:20.

B. His power is eternal. We are told that God’s kingdom, power, and glory are “for ever.” Another of God’s great attributes is the fact that He is immutable. This word means “unchanging or unable to change.” This describes our God (Mal. 3:6; Heb. 13:8; James 1:17). His power today is the same as it has ever been! What confidence that should give us when we come to Him in prayer! All God has ever been, He still is and will continue to be. After all, He is “I AM.”

III. WE CAN REJOICE IN HIS PERSONALITY

A. He alone deserves glory. Everything God is doing as He exercises His pre-eminence and His power is for His glory (Ps. 8:1). He does what He does so that He might be honored by His creation. He does what He does so that humanity might be drawn before Him in worship. He does what He does so that His name may be exalted. He alone is glorious, and He alone deserves glory!

Our God is a jealous God, and He will not share His glory with another (Ex. 34:14; Is. 42:8). When we pray, let us therefore remember that not only does our Father have the authority and the ability to answer our prayers; He also has the alacrity to answer them as well. He wants to move in our lives, our homes, our churches, and our world in power and for His glory, but He will only do so when He—and He alone—receives all the glory!

B. He alone determines glory. We learned earlier that God’s kingdom, power, and glory are “for ever.” This is a great promise we can rejoice in. He will always possess the kingdom, the power, and the glory, but I want to point out that He and He alone determines who will share His glory someday. Only those who know Him in a grace relationship will be permitted to enter into His glorious kingdom (John 14:6; Acts 4:12).

CONCLUSION

The Lord’s Prayer closes with the word “Amen.” What does “amen” mean? A lot of us say it, but do we really understand what it means? Here are some interesting facts about the word “amen.”

  • It is the last word in the Bible.
  • Jesus’ first word in John 1:51 was “Amen.”
  • “Amen” was among the last words in Jesus’ life while He was on the cross (Luke 23:43).
  • The word “Amen” is found 25 times in the Old Testament.
  • The word “Amen” is found 125 times in the New Testament.
  • “Amen” is often translated in the Bible as “Verily, verily.”
  • ”Amen” means “so be it,” “let it be true,” “I affirm this,” and, in some places, it means “true.”

Prayer is about rejoicing! It is all about rejoicing in the pre-eminence, the power, and the personality of our heavenly Father! We are to rejoice because all that is His is ours because we are His (Rom. 8:17).


General Conference Ministerial Association