A Lenten Sermon Series 6/6
1 Chronicles 29: 11-13; Matthew 6: 9-13
by Rev. Carson Overstreet
Van Wyck Presbyterian Church
March 25, 2018
Palm Sunday
Yours, O Lord, are the greatness, the power, the glory, the victory, and the majesty; for all that is in the heavens and on the earth is yours; yours is the kingdom, O Lord, and you are exalted as head above all. Riches and honour come from you, and you rule over all. In your hand are power and might; and it is in your hand to make great and to give strength to all. And now, our God, we give thanks to you and praise your glorious name.
1 Chronicles 29: 11-13
Jesus said, Pray then in this way:
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 also have forgiven our debtors.
And do not bring us to the time of trial,
but rescue us from the evil one. - Mathew 6: 6-9
We just read Matthew’s account of the Lord’s Prayer as Jesus taught his disciples. And I wonder if you caught it.
We heard Jesus praise God for the gift of their relationship, petitions for seeking God’s will, provision, forgiveness, and being led into deeper obedience as we renounce evil and trust God’s complete deliverance from it.
So what about the closing of the prayer? For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever, Amen?
It’s not there. And it’s not in Luke’s Gospel account either.
The doxology or the final words of the Lord’s Prayer actually comes from King David in 1 Chronicles 29: 11-13. These words were added much later after Matthew’s Gospel was written. And Matthew’s Gospel was written about 80 or even 90 years after Jesus’s death and resurrection.
Interpreting Jesus’ life and ministry through the Jewish tradition is so very important to Matthew’s Gospel. Jesus is the fulfillment of the Torah (first five books of the Bible) and the prophets. Jesus is the Son of God from the line of King David. Jesus is the new Moses leading God’s people into God’s kingdom and eternal promised land. And as we conclude our series on the Lord’s Prayer, it is worth noting that it is in keeping with the ancient Jewish tradition of prayer.
The basic form of Jewish prayer begins with the words of blessing, “Blessed are you, O Lord our God, King of the universe...” The body of the prayer moves into praise for who God is and also in petitions to request God to act. The prayer closes with a seal repeating the opening words of blessing.[1]
That seal binds the prayer as authentic testimony to God’s character and promises. The overall movement of the Jewish prayer and the Lord’s Prayer become a faith confession as an individual or the community lifts up their voices in gratitude and full assurance that God will fulfill these petitions because of who God is.
The Lord’s Prayer was integral to the life of the early church, therefore the doxology was added to seal the prayer with a resolute hope that God is on the move to fully reveal God’s kingdom, power, and glory. These very words trained the early church’s spiritual conviction of God’s faithfulness which transcends time. [2]
Theologian Karl Barth says:
“The kingdom has already come through Jesus Christ. And the kingdom is the final victory over sin. It is the reconciliation of the world to God which will bear a new aeon, a new heaven, and a new earth because they are surrounded by the peace of God… The coming kingdom is totally independent of our powers therefore, God’s kingdom, power, and glory are the object of prayer. God alone, who created the world, can and will complete it in this act of accomplishment, in this justification of himself and of his cross. It concerns the peace and the justice of the world which is brought to its perfection; and that can only be the result of God’s work.” [3]
Palm Sunday shapes our perspective of God’s power to completely dismantle the kingdom of this world and also to bring the kingdom of God to completion. God’s power revealed in Jesus Christ looks quite different than worldly power.
Worldly power has long been demonstrated as gaining honor and might at the expense of shaming others.
God’s power is revealed in the weakness of an infant born in a manger who grew in the humility of God’s wisdom.
Jesus Christ knew his God given purpose was to preach, teach, and heal in the name of God who reaches out to those who are poor in spirit, mourning, meek, those who hunger & thirst for right relationships, those who are merciful, pure in heart, peacemakers, and the persecuted (Matthew 5: 1-11).
Today we celebrate the power of our coming King who rode into Jerusalem not on a mighty war horse but on a donkey.
Our King was not armed with military might but was armed in God’s self-giving love and compassion. Christ our King reveals a power that did not look down on people but looked into the eyes of his sisters and brothers.
The eyes of Christ empowered us to see our true humanity through his; we are created in God’s image to do nothing less than love God and neighbor.
And because sin disrupts our highest calling, Jesus Christ suffered the shame of the cross to free us and demonstrate God’s power of salvation. That kind of self-giving power is what God is harnessing to transform the world.
We cannot help but pray, proclaim, and affirm God’s glory; it is the divine quality of God’s Easter splendor that we will once again celebrate next Sunday. Glory is a visible sign of God’s goodness and mysterious presence. It bears the weight of God’s awesome steadfast love, mercy, and grace. And yet we only see glimpses of God’s glory since Moses’ time because we cannot possibly take it all in (Exodus 33: 17-19).
The truth of God’s glory is that God chooses to live in relationship with us and to shine his glory through you and me.
We see God’s glory pass by when we notice God’s presence in the trials of life. We see God’s glory shining brightly when the gift of faith moves us to carry our cross to follow Christ; to be good stewards of creation, to let the children come without hindrance, to care for the least, to welcome the stranger, to forgive, to ethically work for God’s peace and justice.
And yet on our best days, we catch a vision of God’s dream when the Spirit moves us to shine the light into the darkness.
Karl Barth likens the veil of God’s glory to a wooden table fully covered by a table cloth. We knock on the table and know it is there. And if we pull up the cloth up we will be able to truly see the table. And so we pray in bold assurance that when the complete comes in God’s good timing, the veil will be completely removed and we will behold the fullness of God’s glory.
Jesus teaches us to pray with a bold trust in God to fulfill our petitions. The Lord’s Prayer is training our spiritual eyes to be on the lookout for God’s kingdom, power, and glory to reign.
We let go and give it all to God saying, “Amen.”
In Hebrew and Greek “Amen” means “Let it be,’ or “Truly.” To say “Amen” is a holy action of trust in the certainty that God hears our prayers. And that certainty is greater than what we desire and what we have prayed for (Heidelberg Catechism question and answer 129).
It takes guts to pray the Lord’s Prayer. Karl Barth says, “To clasp our hands in prayer is the beginning of an uprising against the disorder of the world.”
The Lord’s Prayer shapes our identity as God’s beloved community. It connects us to our spiritual ancestors who have also prayed as Jesus taught.
Just think about all the generations whom have prayed these very words of Jesus Christ over and over again. And now our youngest children are learning the prayer to join the refrain.
We are truly blessed by a tie that binds us in Christian love. That love which has been tried and is true strengthens our confidence that the One who began a good work among us will bring it to completion by the day of Jesus Christ (Philippians 1:6).
The Lord’s Prayer transcends chronological time as we follow Jesus to join God in this holy work of reconciling, recreating and renewing all of creation and humanity.
One day the work of Easter will be complete and all creation and humanity will abound in Hallelujah.
In the name of God our Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer. Amen.
Sources Referenced:
[1] Dan Juster, “Jewish Roots: Understanding Your Jewish Faith” (Shippensburg :Destiny Image Publishers, 2013).
[2] New Interpreter's Bible Commentary, "Matthew" (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015), p. 133.
[3] Karl Barth, “Prayer” (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2002), pp. 35-36.
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