to see your danger, and to go to Christ. And if Christ's, keep close to Him. There are breakers ahead. Fasten your eye on Him, who alone can guide you through them. Steadily trust Him. Then yours shall be the promise,-"Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation which is coming on all the world to try those which dwell on the earth.” Amen! "Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.”

SERMON VIII.

MATTHEW VI. 13.

For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.

WE have now arrived at the end of the Lord's Prayer; and it is not a little striking to observe, that as it began with a prayer for God's glory it ends with an ascription of glory to Him. It is true that in St. Luke these words are not given, which has been thus accounted for. The words themselves are, I believe, common in Jewish prayers, and were frequently added to the prayer as a doxology. They might, therefore, be looked on as either part of the prayer, or as the usual conclusion to any prayer-like the verse, "Praise God from whom all blessings flow," which we add to many hymns, but which belongs exclusively to none. St. Matthew recorded the words because our Lord used them. St. Luke omitted the words, because it seemed to him a matter of course that He should use them, and, therefore, not needing to be recorded. And, perhaps, the Spirit who taught both Matthew

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and Luke, inspired one to insert them, and the other to exclude them, to teach us not to stick in the letter of the prayer; not to suppose, as Roman Catholics do, that there is any particular virtue in a pater-noster; but to use it rather as a model for prayer, showing us after what manner we should pray.

This concluding doxology is not prayer, but praise. It is important that we should keep clearly in view the meaning of what we do. Because St. Paul expressly tells us, that in malice we are to be children, but in understanding men. Prayer is asking God for blessings. It is in its nature request. And praise is the ascription of blessing to God. And each forms part of that devotion of the heart which even reason teaches us to be called for by our own necessities and God's claims :-" In everything, by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God." There is a mode of prayer which, without being childlike, is very childish. There is a great difference between these two things. Prayer should be childlike. It should be the outpouring of a child's heart to its loving Father. But prayer should not be childish. It should be marked by manly good sense. For instance, when a Roman Catholic repeats the Lord's Prayer as many times as there are beads on a string, I call it childish. And that is a very mild word to use about it. Our Lord calls it heathenish. Or when a Protestant does what I know some persons

calling themselves Protestants do,-repeats the Creed for a prayer; I call that very childish, and it seems to show that he who does so, neither understands prayer nor yet the Creed. O brethren, a little common sense about such matters is a great help to godliness! Depend upon it, there is no opposition between those two things:-"In understanding be ye men;" "I will pray with the spirit, I will pray with the understanding also." We have seen in the first part of this form an example of prayer; now, in the last part, we are to see an example of praise.

Praise is in some respects more difficult than prayer. It is not called forth by our wants, but by our mercies. For ten lepers who could ask for healing, there was but one found to return to give glory to God. And too often we just forget this most holy part of worship. There is in it much more of heaven than in prayer. We do not know that we shall pray at all in heaven. When every want will be supplied unasked, there may be, perhaps, no room for prayer; but heaven is and ever will be full of praise. Cherubim and Seraphim, and all the company of heaven are continually praising. Never are their harps silent; and the very atmosphere of heaven is praise. There they rest not day or night, saying, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; heaven and earth are full of his glory." We should cultivate a spirit of praise; not only pray always, but praise always:-" For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever, and ever.

Amen."

Three things are ascribed to God-the kingdom, the power, and the glory. And

I. The kingdom. "Thine is the kingdom.” In the prayer itself, we are taught to pray, "Thy kingdom come, as in heaven so in earth." Here, it is "Thine is the kingdom." There is no contradiction between the two:-it is now in heaven; we pray that it may be on earth as it is in heaven. But the kingdom now is God's. We may attach different meanings to this word, but in every sense the kingdom is the Lord's.

God reigns over the angels. They all were created by Him, and therefore all honour Him. They are his subjects, and count it their highest glory to love, and obey, and serve Him. This is one part of his sovereignty, and a very important one it is. We know but little respecting the angelic hosts, but this much we do know, that they consist of many different degrees. There are cherubim and seraphim, archangels and angels, principalities and powers. But however many their orders, however various their functions, however high their offices, however transcendent their natures, their loftiest dignity is to serve God. They prize this more than anything else. He is their Sovereign Ruler,—for the kingdom is the Lord's.

This sovereignty extends itself to all persons, all places, and all events. Nothing can happen without God's permission. Little things are ordered by Him. "Not a sparrow falleth to the ground,