The Lord's Prayer
by Thomas Watson
File 6
(... continued from file 5)
The Second Petition in the Lord's Prayer
'Thy kingdom come.' Matt 6: 10
A soul truly devoted to God, joins heartily in this petition,
adveniat regnum tuum, 'thy kingdom come.' In these words it is
implied that God is a king, for he who has a kingdom, can be no less
than a king. 'God is the King of all the earth.' Psa 47: 7. He is a
King upon his throne. 'God sitteth upon the throne of his holiness.'
Psa 47: 8. He has a regal title, high and mighty. 'Thus saith the
high and lofty One.' Isa 57: 15. He has the ensigns of royalty. He
has his sword. 'If I whet my glittering sword.' Deut 32: 41. He has
his sceptre. 'A sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy
kingdom.' Heb 1: 8. He has his crown royal. 'On his head were many
crowns.' Rev 19: 12. He has his jura regalia, his kingly
prerogatives. He has power to make laws, to seal pardons, which are
the flowers and jewels belonging to his crown. Thus the Lord is
King.
Further, he is a great King. 'A great King above all gods.' Psa
95: 3. He is great in and of himself; and not like other kings, who
are made great by their subjects. That he is so great a King appears
by the immensity of his being. 'Do not I fill heaven and earth?
saith the Lord.' Jer 23: 24. His centre is everywhere; he is nowhere
included, yet nowhere excluded, he is so immensely great, that 'the
heaven of heavens cannot contain him'. I Kings 8: 27. His greatness
appears by the effects of his power. He 'made heaven and earth,' and
can unmake it. Psa 124: 8. With a breath he can crumble us to dust;
with a word he can unpin the world, and break the axle-tree of it in
pieces. 'He poureth contempt upon princes.' Job 12: 21. 'He shall
cut off the spirit of princes.' Psa 76: 12. He is Lord paramount,
who does whatever he will. Psa 115: 3. He weigheth 'the mountains in
scales, and the hills in a balance.' Psa 40: 12.
God is a glorious King. 'Who is this King of glory? The Lord of
hosts, he is the King of glory.' Psa 24: 10. He has internal glory.
'The Lord reigneth, he is clothed with majesty.' Psa 93: 1. Other
kings have royal and sumptuous apparel to make them appear glorious
to beholders, but all their magnificence is borrowed; God is clothed
with his own majesty; his own glorious essence is instead of royal
robes, and 'he has girded himself with strength.' Kings have their
guard about them to defend their person, because they are not able
to defend themselves; but God needs no guard or assistance from
others. 'He has girded himself with strength.' His own power is his
lifeguard. 'Who in the heaven can be compared unto the Lord? Who
among the sons of the mighty can be likened unto the Lord?' Psa 89:
6. He has a pre-eminence above all other kings for majesty. 'He has
on his vesture a name written, Rex Regum, KING OF KINGS.' Rev 19:
16. He has the highest throne, the richest crown, the largest
dominions, and the longest possession. 'The Lord sitteth King for
ever.' Psa 29: 10. Though he has many heirs, yet no successors. He
sets up his throne where no other king does; he rules the will and
affections; his power binds the conscience. Angels serve him, all
the kings of the earth hold their crowns and diadems by immediate
tenure from this great King. 'By me kings reign,' Prov 8: 15. To
this Lord Jehovah all kings must give account, and from his tribunal
there is no appeal.
Use 1. For instruction (1) If God be so great a King, and sits
King for ever, it is no disparagement for us to serve him, Deo
servire est regnare [to serve God is to reign]; it is an honour to
serve a king. If the angels fly swiftly upon the King of heaven's
message, then well may we look upon it as a favour to be taken into
his royal service. Dan 9: 21. Theodosius thought it a greater honour
to be God's servant, than to be an emperor. It is more honour to
serve God than to have kings serve us. Every subject of this King is
crowned with regal honour. He 'has made us kings.' Rev 1: 6.
therefore, as the queen of Sheba, having seen the glory of Solomon's
kingdom, said, 'Happy are these thy servants which stand continually
before thee.' 1 Kings 10: 8. So happy are those saints who stand
before the King of heaven, and wait on his throne.
(2) If God be such a glorious King, crowned with wisdom, armed
with power, be spangled with riches, it shows us what prudence it is
to have this King to be ours; to say, 'My King, and my God.' Psa 5:
2. It is counted great policy to be on the strongest side. If we
belong to the King of heaven, we are sure to be on the strongest
side. The King of glory can with ease destroy his adversaries; he
can pull down their pride, befoul their policy and restrain their
malice. That stone cut out of the mountain without hands, which
smote the image (Dan 2: 34), was an emblem, says Augustine, of
Christ's monarchical power, conquering and triumphing over his
enemies. If we are on God's side, we are on the strongest side; he
can with a word destroy his enemies. 'Then shall he speak unto them
in his wrath.' Psa 2: 5. Nay, with a look he can destroy them. 'Look
upon every one that is proud and bring him low.' Job 40: 12. It
needs cost God no more to confound those who rise up against him,
than a look, a cast of his eye. 'In the morning watch, the Lord
looked unto the host of the Egyptians, through the pillar of fire,
and troubled the host of the Egyptians, and took off their
chariot-wheels.' Exod 14: 24. What wisdom is it then to have this
King to be ours! Then we are on the strongest side.
Use 2. For exhortation (1) If God be so glorious a King, full
of power and majesty, let us trust in him. 'They that know thy name
will put their trust in thee.' Psa 9: 10. Trust him with your soul;
you cannot put this jewel in safer hands. And trust him with church
and state affairs; he is King. 'The Lord is a man of war.' Exod 15:
3. He can make bare his holy arm in the eyes of all the nations. If
means fail, he is never at a loss; there are no impossibilities with
him; he can make the dry bones live. Ezek 37: 10. As a King he can
command, and as a God he can create salvation. 'I create Jerusalem a
rejoicing.' Isa 65: 18. Let us trust all our affairs with this great
King. Either God can remove mountains or can leap over them. Cant 2:
8.
(2) If God be so great a King, let us fear him. 'Fear ye not
me? saith the Lord: will ye not tremble at my presence?' Jer 5: 22.
We have enough of fear of men. Fear makes danger appear greater, and
sin less; but let us fear the King of kings, who has power to cast
body and soul into hell. Luke 12: 5. As one wedge drives out
another, so the fear of God would drive out all base carnal fear.
Let us fear that God whose throne is set above all kings; they may
be mighty, but he is almighty. Kings have no power, but what God has
given them; their power is limited, his is infinite. Let us fear
this King, whose eyes are 'as a flame of fire.' Rev 1: 14. 'The
mountains quake at him; and the rocks are thrown down by him.' Nahum
1: 5, 6. If he stamps with his foot, all the creatures are presently
up in a battalion to fight for him. Oh, tremble and fear before this
God. Fear is janitor animae, the doorkeeper of the soul. It keeps
sin from entering. 'How can I do this great wickedness, and sin
against God?' Gen 39: 9.
(3) If God be so glorious a King, he has jus vitae et necis, he
has the power of life and death in his hand. Let all the potentates
of the earth take heed how they employ their power against the King
of heaven. They employ their power against God, who with their
sceptres beat down his truth, which is the most orient pearl of his
crown; who crush and persecute his people, who are the apple of his
eye (Zech 2: 8); who trample upon his laws, and royal edicts, which
he has set forth (Psa 2: 3). What is a king without his laws? Let
all that are invested with worldly power and grandeur take heed how
they oppose the King of glory. The Lord will be too hard for all
that come against him. 'Hast thou an arm like God?' Job 40: 9. Wilt
thou measure arms with the Almighty? Shall a little child fight with
an archangel? 'Can thy heart endure, or can thy hands be strong in
the days that I shall deal with thee?' Ezek 22: 14. Christ will put
all his enemies at last under his feet. Psa 110: 1. All the
multitude of the wicked, who set themselves against God, shall be
but as so many clusters of ripe grapes, to be cast into the
winepress of the wrath of God, to be trodden by him till their blood
come forth. The King of glory will come off victor at last. Men may
set up their standard, but God always sets up his trophies of
victory. The Lord has a golden sceptre, and an iron rod. Psa 2: 9.
Those who will not bow to the one, shall be broken by the other.
(4) Is God so great a king, having all power in heaven and
earth in his hand! let us learn subjection to him. You who have gone
on in sin, and by your impieties hung out a flag of defiance against
the King of heaven, O come in quickly, and make your peace, submit
to God. 'Kiss the Son, lest he be angry.' Psa 2: 12. Kiss Christ
with a kiss of love, and a kiss of obedience. Obey the King of
heaven, when he speaks to you by his ministers and ambassadors. 2
Cor 5: 20. When God bids you flee from sin, and espouse holiness,
obey him: to obey is better than sacrifice. 'To obey God,' says
Luther, 'is better than to work miracles.' Obey God willingly. Isa
1: 19. That is the best obedience that is cheerful, as that is the
sweetest honey which drops out of the comb. Obey God swiftly. 'Then
lifted I up mine eyes, and, behold, two women, and the wind was in
their wings.' Zech 5: 9. Wings are swift, but wind in the wings
denotes great swiftness; such should our obedience to God be. Obey
the King of glory.
Use 3. For consolation. Here is comfort to those who are the
subjects of the King of heaven. God will put forth all the royal
power for their succour and comfort. (1) The King of heaven will
plead their cause. 'I will plead thy cause, and take vengeance for
thee.' Jer 51: 36. (2) He will protect his people. He sets an
invisible guard about them. 'I will be unto her a wall of fire round
about.' Zech 2: 5. A wall, that is defensive; a wall of fire, that
is offensive. (3) When it may be for the good of his people, he will
raise up deliverance to them. 'The Lord saved them by a great
deliverance.' I Chron 11: 14. God reigning as a king, can save any
way; even by contemptible means, as the blowing of the trumpets, and
blazing of lamps. Judges 7: 20. By contrary means; as when he made
the sea a wall to Israel, and the waters were a means to keep them
from drowning. The fish's belly was a ship in which Jonah sailed
safe to shore. God will never want ways of saving his people; rather
than fail, their very enemies shall do his work. 2 Chron 20: 23. He
sets Ammon and Mount Seir one against another. As God will deliver
his people from temporal danger, so from spiritual danger, as from
sin, and from hell. 'Jesus which delivered us from the wrath to
come.' I Thess 1: l0.
Use 4. For intimidation. If God be king, he will set his utmost
strength against those who are the enemies of his kingdom. 'A fire
goeth before him, and burneth up his enemies round about.' Psa 97:
3. (1) He will set himself against his enemies. He will set his
attributes against them, his power and justice; and 'who knoweth the
power of thine anger?' Psa 90: 2: (2) He will set the creatures
against them. 'The stars in their courses fought against Sisera.'
Judges 5: 20. Tertullian observes, that when the Persian fought
against the Christians, a mighty wind arose, which made the Persian'
arrows to fly back in their own faces. Every creature has a quarrel
with a sinner; the stone out of the wall, the hail and the frost.
Hab 2: 11. 'He destroyed their vines with hail, and their
sycomore-trees with frost.' Psa 78: 47. (3) God will set men against
themselves. He will set conscience against them. How terrible is
this rod when turned into a serpent! Melanchthon calls it Erinnys
conscientiae, a hellish fury; it is called vermis conscientiae, the
worm of conscience. Mark 9: 44. What a worm did Spira feel in his
conscience! He was a terror to himself. The worst civil wars are
between a man and his conscience. (4) God will set the diseases of
men's bodies against them. 'The Lord smote [Jehoram] in his bowels
with an incurable disease.' 2 Chron 21: 18. God can raise an army
against a man out of his own bowels; he can set one humour of the
body against another; the heat to dry up the moisture, and the
moisture to drown the heat. The Lord needs not go far for
instruments to punish the sinner; he can make the joints of the same
body to smite one against another. Dan 5: 6. (5) God will set men's
friends against them. Where they used to have honey, they shall have
nothing but aloes and wormwood. 'When a man's ways please the Lord,
he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him.' Prov 16: 7.
When he opposes God, he makes his friends to be his enemies. The
wife of Commodes, the emperor, gave him poison in perfumed wine.
Sennacherib's two sons were the death of him. 2 Kings 19: 37. (6)
God will set Satan against them. 'Let Satan stand at his right
hand.' Psa 109: 6. What does Satan at the sinner's elbows? He helps
him to contrive sin. He tempts him to commit sin. He terrifies him
for sin. He that has Satan standing at his right hand, is sure to be
set at God's left hand. Here is the misery of such as oppose God's
royal sceptre, that he will set everything in the world against
them. If there be either justice in heaven or fire in hell, sinners
shall not be unpunished.
Use 5. For encouragement. If God be such an absolute monarch,
and crowned with such glory and majesty, let us all engage in his
service, and stand up for his truth and worship. Dare to own God in
the worst time. He is King of kings, and is able to reward all his
servants. We may be losers for him, we shall never be losers by him.
We are ready to say, as Amaziah, 'What shall I do for the hundred
talents?' 2 Chron 25: 9. If I appear for God, I may lose my estate,
my life. I say with the prophet, God is able to give you much more
than this; he can give you for the present inward peace, and for the
future a crown of glory which fadeth not away.
What kingdom is meant when Christ says, 'Thy kingdom come'?
Let us show first what he does not mean. (1) He does not mean a
political or earthly kingdom. The apostles indeed did desire
Christ's temporal reign. 'Wilt thou at this time restore the kingdom
again to Israel?' Acts 1: 6. But Christ said his kingdom was not of
this world. John 18: 36. So that, when Christ taught his disciples
to pray, 'Thy kingdom come,' he did not mean it of any earthly
kingdom, that he should reign here in outward pomp and splendour.
(2) It is not meant of God's providential kingdom. 'His kingdom
ruleth over all;' that is, the kingdom of his providence. Psa 103:
19. This kingdom we do not pray for when we say, 'Thy kingdom come;'
for this kingdom is already come. God exercises the kingdom of his
providence in the world. 'He putteth down one and setteth up
another.' Psa 75: 7. Nothing stirs in the world but God has a hand
in it; he sets every wheel at work; he humbles the proud, and raises
the poor out of the dust to set them among princes. I Sam 2: 8. The
kingdom of God's providence rules over all; kings do nothing but
what his providence permits and orders. Acts 4: 27, 28. This kingdom
of God's providence we do not pray should come, for it is already
come.
What kingdom then is meant when we say, 'Thy kingdom come'?
Positively a twofold kingdom is meant. (1) The kingdom of grace,
which God exercises in the consciences of his people. This is regnum
Dei micron. God's lesser kingdom. When we pray, 'Thy kingdom come,'
we pray that the kingdom of grace may be set up in our hearts and
increased. (2) We pray also, that the kingdom of glory may hasten,
and that we may, in God's good time be translated into it. These two
kingdoms of grace and glory, differ not specifically, but gradually;
they differ not in nature, but in degree only. The kingdom of grace
is nothing but the beginning of the kingdom of glory. The kingdom of
grace is glory in the seed, and the kingdom of glory is grace in the
flower. The kingdom of grace is glory in the daybreak, and the
kingdom of glory is grace in the full meridian. The kingdom of grace
is glory militant, and the kingdom of glory is grace triumphant.
There is such an inseparable connection between these two kingdoms,
grace and glory, that there is no passing into the one but by the
other. At Athens there were two temples, a temple of virtue and a
temple of honour; and there was no going into the temple of honour,
but through the temple of virtue; so the kingdoms of grace and glory
are so closely joined together, that we cannot go into the kingdom
of glory but through the kingdom of grace. Many people aspire after
the kingdom of glory, but never look after grace; but these two,
which God has joined together, may not be put asunder. The kingdom
of grace leads to the kingdom of glory.
I. The first thing implied in this petition, 'Thy kingdom
come,' is that we are in the kingdom of darkness. We pray that we
may be brought out of the kingdom of darkness. The state of nature
is a kingdom of darkness, where sin is said to reign. Rom 6: 12. It
is called, 'the power of darkness. ' Col 1: 13. Man, before the
fall, was illuminated with perfect knowledge, but this light is now
eclipsed, and he is fallen into the kingdom of darkness.
How many ways is a natural man in the kingdom of darkness?
(1) He is under the darkness of ignorance. 'Having the
understanding darkened.' Eph 4: 18. Ignorance is a black veil drawn
over the mind. Men by nature may have a deep reach in the things of
the world, and yet be ignorant of the things of God. Nahash the
Ammonite would make a covenant with Israel to thrust out their right
eyes. I Sam 11: 2. Since the fall, our left eye remains, a deep
insight into worldly matters; but our right eye is thrust out, we
have no saving knowledge of God. Something we know by nature, but
nothing as we ought to know. I Cor 8: 2. Ignorance draws the
curtains round about the soul. I Cor 2: 14.
(2) A natural man is under the darkness of pollution. Hence
sinful actions are called 'works of darkness.' Rom 13: 12. Pride and
lust darken the glory of the soul. A sinner's heart is a dark
conclave that looks blacker than hell.
(3) A natural man is under the darkness of misery; he is
exposed to divine vengeance; and the sadness of this darkness is,
that men are not sensible of it. They are blind, yet they think they
see. The darkness of Egypt was such thick darkness as 'might be
felt.' Exod 10: 21. Men by nature are in thick darkness; but here is
the misery, the darkness cannot be felt; they will not believe they
are in the dark till they are past recovery.
Use I. See what the state of nature is. It is a 'kingdom of
darkness,' and it is a bewitching darkness. 'Men loved darkness
rather than light;' as the Athlantes in Ethiopia curse the sun. John
3: 19. Darkness of sin leads to 'chains under darkness.' Jude 6.
What comfort can such take in earthly things? The Egyptians might
have food, gold, silver; but they could take but little comfort in
them, while they were in such darkness as might be felt; so the
natural man may have riches and friends to delight in, yet he is in
the kingdom of darkness, and how dead are all these comforts! Thou
who art in the kingdom of darkness, knowest not whither thou goest.
As the ox is driven to the shambles, but knows not whither he goes,
so the devil is driving thee before him to hell, but thou knowest
not whither thou goest. Shouldest thou die in thy natural estate,
while thou art in the kingdom of darkness, blackness of darkness is
reserved for thee. 'To whom is reserved the blackness of darkness
for ever.' Jude 13.
Use 2. Let us pray that God will bring us out of this kingdom
of darkness. God's kingdom of grace cannot come into our hearts till
we are brought out of the kingdom of darkness. Col 1: 13. Why should
not we strive to get out of this kingdom of darkness? Who would
desire to stay in a dark dungeon? O fear the chains of darkness.
Jude 6. These chains are God's power, binding men as in chains under
wrath for ever. O pray that God would deliver you out of the kingdom
of darkness! (1) Be sensible of thy dark, damned estate, that thou
hast not one spark of fire to give thee light! (2) Go to Christ to
enlighten thee! 'Christ shall give thee light;' he will not only
bring thy light to thee, but open thine eyes to see it. Eph 5: 14.
That is the first thing implied, 'Thy kingdom come;' we pray that we
may be brought out of the kingdom of darkness.
II. The second thing implied is ' Thy kingdom come,' is that we
pray against the devil's kingdom; that his kingdom may be demolished
in the world. His kingdom stands in opposition to Christ's kingdom;
and when we pray, 'Thy kingdom come,' we pray against Satan's
kingdom. He has a kingdom: he got it by conquest: he conquered
mankind in paradise. He has his throne. 'Thou dwellest where Satan's
seat is.' Rev 2: 13. His throne is set up in the hearts of men; he
does not care for their purses, but their hearts. He is served upon
the knee. Eph 2: 2. 'They worshipped the dragon,' that is, the
devil. Rev 13: 4. Satan's empire is very large. Most kingdoms in the
world pay tribute to him. His kingdom has two qualifications or
characters: [1] It is regnum nequitiae: a kingdom of impiety. [2] It
is regnum servitutis: a kingdom of slavery.
[1] The kingdom of Satan is a kingdom of impiety. Nothing but
sin goes on in his kingdom. Murder and heresy, lust and treachery,
oppression and division, are the constant trade driven in his
dominions. He is called 'the unclean spirit.' Luke 11: 24. What else
is propagated in his kingdom but a mystery of iniquity?
[2] Satan's kingdom is a kingdom of slavery. He makes all his
subjects slaves. Peccati reus dura daemonis tyrannide tenetur [The
sinner is held captive under the grim tyranny of the devil]. Satan
is a usurper and a tyrant; he is a worse tyrant than any other. (1)
Other tyrants do but rule over the body, but Satan's kingdom rules
over the soul. He rides some men as we do upon horses. (2) Other
tyrants have some pity on their slaves. Though they make them work
in the galleys, yet they give them meat, and let them have their
hours for rest; but Satan is a merciless tyrant, who gives his
slaves poison instead of meat, and hurtful lusts to feed on. I Tim
6: 9. Nor will he let his slaves have any rest: he hires them out to
do his drudgery. 'They weary themselves to commit iniquity.' Jer 9:
5. When the devil had entered into Judas, he sent him to the high
priests, and from thence to the garden, and never let him rest till
he had betrayed Christ and hanged himself. Thus he is the worst of
tyrants. When men have served him to their utmost strength, he
welcomes them to hell with fire and brimstone.
Use. Let us pray that Satan's kingdom, set up in the world, may
be overthrown. It is sad to think that, though the devil's kingdom
be so bad, yet that it should have so many to support it. He has
more to stand up for his kingdom than Christ has for his. What a
large harvest of souls has Satan! and God only a few gleanings. The
Pope and the Turk give the power to Satan. If in God's visible
church the devil has so many loyal subjects that serve him with
their lives and souls, how do his subjects swarm in places of
idolatry and paganism, where there is none to oppose him, but all
vote on the devil's side! Men are willing slaves to Satan; they will
fight and die for him; therefore he is not only called 'the prince
of this world,' but 'the god of this world' (John 12: 31; 2 Cor 4:
4), to show what power he has over men's souls. O let us pray that
God would break the sceptre of the devil's kingdom; that Michael may
destroy the dragon; that, by the help of a religious magistracy and
ministry, the hellish kingdom of the prince of darkness may be
beaten down! Satan's kingdom must be thrown down before Christ's
kingdom can flourish in its power and majesty.
When we pray, 'Thy kingdom come,' something is positively
intended.
III. We pray that the kingdom of grace may be set up in our
hearts.
When we pray, 'Thy kingdom come,' we pray that the kingdom of
grace may come into our hearts. This is regnum Dei mikron, God's
lesser kingdom. 'The kingdom of God is righteousness.' Rom 14: 17.
'The kingdom of God is within you.' Luke 17: 21.
Why is grace called a kingdom?
Because, when grace comes, there is a kingly government set up
in the soul. Grace rules the will and affections, and brings the
whole man in subjection to Christ; it kings it in the soul, sways
the sceptre, subdues mutinous lusts, and keeps the soul in a
spiritual decorum.
Why is there such need to pray that this kingdom of grace may
come into our hearts?
(1) Because, till the kingdom of grace come, we have no right
to the covenant of grace. The covenant of grace is sweetened with
love, bespangled with promises; it is our Magna Charta, by virtue of
which God passes himself over to us to be our God. Who are heirs of
the covenant of grace? Only such as have the kingdom of grace in
their hearts. 'A new heart will I give you, and a new spirit will I
put within you.' Ezek 36: 26. Here the kingdom of grace is set up in
the soul; it then follows, 'I will be your God', 5: 28. The covenant
of grace is to an ungracious person a sealed fountain; it is kept as
a paradise with a flaming sword, that the sinner may not touch it.
Without grace, you have no more right to it than a farmer to the
city-charter.
(2) Unless the kingdom of grace be set up in our hearts, our
purest offerings are defiled. They may be good as to the matter, but
not as to the manner; they want that which should meliorate and
sweeten them. Under the law, if a man who was unclean by a dead
body, carried a piece of holy flesh in his skirt, the holy flesh
could not cleanse him, but he polluted it. Hag 2: 12. Till the
kingdom of grace be in our hearts, ordinances do not purify us, but
we pollute them. Even the prayer of an ungracious person becomes
sin. Prov 15: 8. In what a sad condition is a man before God's
kingdom of grace is set up in his heart! Whether he comes or comes
not to the ordinance, he sins. If he does not come to the ordinance,
he is a condemner of it; if he does come, he is a polluter of it. A
sinner's works are opera mortua, dead works; and those works which
are dead, cannot please God. A dead flower has no sweetness. Heb 11:
6.
(3) We had need pray that the kingdom of grace may come,
because until this kingdom come into our hearts, we are loathsome in
God's eyes. 'My soul loathed them.' Zech 11: 8. Quanta est foeditas
vitiosae mentis [How great is the foulness of a corrupt mind]. A
heart void of grace looks blacker than hell. Sin transforms man into
a devil. 'Have I not chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil?'
John 6: 70. Envy is the devil's eye, hypocrisy is his cloven foot.
Thus it is before the kingdom of grace come. So deformed is a
graceless person, that when once he sees his own filth and leprosy,
the first thing he does is to loathe himself. 'Ye shall loathe
yourself in your own sight for all your evils.' Ezek 20: 43. I have
read of a woman who always used flattering glasses, and who, by
chance, seeing her face in a true glass, in insaniam delapsa est,
she ran mad. When once God gives those who now dress themselves by
the flattering glass of presumption, a sight of their own
filthiness, they will abhor themselves. 'Ye shall loathe yourselves
in your own sight for all your evils.'
(4) Before the kingdom of grace comes unto us we are
spiritually illegitimate, of the bastard brood of the old serpent.
John 8: 44. To be illegitimate is the greatest infamy. 'A bastard
shall not enter into the congregation of the Lord even to his tenth
generation.' Deut 23: 2. He was to be kept out of the holy
assemblies of Israel as an infamous creature. A bastard by law
cannot inherit. Before the kingdom of grace comes into the heart, a
person is to God as illegitimate, and so continuing he cannot enter
into the kingdom of heaven.
(5) Before the kingdom of grace be set up in men's hearts, the
kingdom of Satan is set up in them. They are said to be under 'the
power of Satan.' Acts 26: 18. Satan commands the will; though he
cannot force the will, by his subtle temptations he can draw it. He
is said to take men captive 'at his will.' 2 Tim 2: 26. The Greek
word signifies to take them alive as the fowler does the bird in the
snare. The sinner's heart is the devil's mansion-house. 'I will
return into my house.' Matt 12: 44. It is officina diaboli, Satan's
shop, where he works. 'The prince of the air that now worketh in the
children of disobedience.' Eph 2: 2. The members of the body are the
tools with which Satan works. He possesses men. In Christ's time
many had their bodies possessed, but it is far worse to have the
souls possessed. One is possessed with an unclean devil, another
with a revengeful devil. No wonder the ship goes full sail when the
wind blows; no wonder men go full sail in sin when the devil, the
prince of the air, blows them. Thus, till the kingdom of grace come,
men are under the power of Satan, who, like Draco, writes all his
laws in blood.
(6) Till the kingdom of grace comes, a man is exposed to the
wrath of God. 'Who knoweth the power of thine anger?' Psa 90: 11. If
when but a spark of God's wrath flies into a man's conscience in
this life it is so terrible, what will it be when God stirs up all
his anger? So inconceivably torturing is God's wrath, that the
wicked call to the rocks and mountains to fall on them and hide them
from it. Rev 6: 16. The hellish torments are compared to a fiery
lake. Rev 20: 15. Other fire is but painted in comparison of this;
and this lake of fire burns for ever. Mark 9: 44. God's breath
kindles this fire. Isa 30: 33. Where shall we find engines or
buckets to quench it? Time will not finish it; tears will not quench
it. To this fiery lake are men exposed till the kingdom of grace be
set up in them.
(7) Till the kingdom of grace comes, men cannot die with
comfort. He only who takes Christ in the arms of his faith can look
death in the face with joy. It is sad to have the king of terrors in
the body and not the kingdom of grace in the soul. It is a wonder
every graceless person does not die distracted. What will a grace-
despiser do when death comes to him with a writ of habeas corpus?
Hell follows death. 'Behold, a pale horse, and his name that sat on
him was death, and hell followed with him.' Rev 6: 8. Thus you see
what need we have to pray that the kingdom of grace may come. Of him
that dies without Christ I may say, 'It had been good for that man
if he had not been born.' Matt 26: 24. Few believe the necessity of
having the kingdom of grace set up in their hearts, as appears by
this, that they are well content to live without it. Does that man
believe the necessity of pardon who is content to be without it?
Most people, if they may have trading, and may sit quietly under
their vine and fig-trees, are in their kingdom, though they have not
the kingdom of God within them. If the candle of prosperity shine
upon their head, they care not whether the grace of God shine in
their hearts. Do these men believe the necessity of grace? Were they
convinced how needful it is to have the kingdom of God within them,
they would cry out as the jailor, 'What must I do to be saved?' Acts
16: 30.
The Lord's Prayer
by Thomas Watson
(continued in file 7...)
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