Give God the Praise

January 30, 2010
Matthew 6:13
"For thine is the kingdom . . ."

Apparently, the ending phrase to the Lord's prayer was not in the earliest versions of Matthew's gospel. Nowadays, it is found in footnotes in most Bible translations. However, it is always included when groups pray the Lord's prayer together, as in our church each week.

These lines are referred to as the Doxology of the prayer. Doxa is the Greek word for glory, and this part of the prayer focuses on that aspect of God. 1 Chronicles 29:11 is regarded as the basis for this passage.

There are three motifs in this Doxology.

Kingdom - Everything belongs to God. The kingdom is yet to come; it will go on forever. This second mention of the kingdom emphasizes the central message of Jesus' ministry. Saying "Thine is the kingdom" expresses confidence that God has the final say-so.

Power - Control. This ascribes ultimate power to God. There is a cosmic struggle for control. This power is based on love. Jesus came to redeem and to restore. The resurrection is often considered the greatest expression of power in the universe.

Creation also demonstrated God's power. Resurrection, coming later in time, may be considered even greater since its power broke the second law of thermodynamics. (The second law, in plain English, says the universe is running down.)

God's power is also shown by reversing the human tendency to be drawn into brokenness.

Glory - Recognition of a claim. This expression of reverence is associated with light in scripture. Stories of Moses, writings of Paul, and the book of Revelation all make statements along the lines of "His face was like the sun . . ."

The Doxology states our expectation that God will hear and answer.