I invite you to turn with me this morning to Matthew 16, Matthew 16, as we read together verses 13 through 20. We read this in connection with the second petition of the Lord's Prayer, Thy Kingdom Come. Matthew 16, beginning at verse 13, as we give our attention to the Word of God. When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked the disciples, Who do people say the Son of Man is? They replied, Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and so others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets. But what about you, He asked. Who do you say I am? Simon Peter answered, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God. Jesus replied, Blessed are you, Simon, son of Jonah, For this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven. Whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. Then he warned his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Christ. And I also invite you to turn in the back of this altar hymnal to page 61. Page 61, there we find Lord's Day 48. Question and answer 123 as we confess together what we believe concerning the second petition. Page 61, Lord's Day 48. Question 123 asks, What does the second request mean? Thy kingdom come means rule us by your word and spirit in such a way that more and more we submit to you. Keep your church strong and add to it. Destroy the devil's work. Destroy every force which revolts against you and every conspiracy against your word. Do this until your kingdom is so complete and perfect that in it you are all in all. Beloved congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ, as God's people, we are being taught in recent weeks as we study together the Lord's Prayer, we are being taught about the intimacy of prayer. In the address of prayer, our Father who art in heaven, Our Lord teaches us in that address that with that address we acknowledge the relationship that exists between the one praying and the one being prayed to. He is our Father in Heaven. We are His children. And therefore, that address reminds us at the very beginning of our prayer that not just anyone can pray and expect to be heard and answered. Only those born again for the sake of Jesus, those brought into a saving relationship of fellowship with God, can truly pray to Him. Only the believer, the Christian, can truly pray. And that only the Christian truly desires the fulfillment of the first petition that God's name be hallowed, which means, as we said, that the child of God, by the renewing influence of the Holy Spirit, desires that God be set apart in His life. And that He be honored by all. And really that's what self-examination is all about, isn't it? As we examine our lives, as we examine ourselves to recognize our sin and our misery and our salvation from sin, and do we truly resolve to live godly before Him, this is what we are to consider. Do I desire that God be set apart in my life from everything else? That He have the throne? in my life and that He'd be honored not only by others, but also by me. But now also in the second and third petitions, our Lord teaches us how God is honored and how His glory is manifested or revealed. God's name is honored and glorified as His kingdom comes and as His will is done. And as we this morning consider the second petition of the Lord's prayer, Thy kingdom come, we need to understand, beloved, that God's name will not be honored throughout the world unless His royal rule is recognized but also acknowledged. With this petition, we pray that God will help us, His children, to seek first His kingdom and His righteousness. Beloved, as we consider the salvation given to us through our Lord Jesus Christ, God's people are called to grateful living under the rule of God's kingdom. God's rule is, first of all, over the kingdom's citizen. Secondly, we consider God's rule is over the kingdom's church. And then finally, God's rule is also over the kingdom's enemies. Now, we're familiar with kings and kingdoms. We know that from our study of history, and especially church history. The history of the Israelites, for example, and their kings is well known to many of us. Or we can think of that same church history and Israel's enemies. Some kings were over cities. Others were over territories or nations. And even some kings were over the entire known inhabited world of the time. But a king was looked to by his subjects, by his kingdom citizens, for protection and provision. That's what the kingdom citizens looked to the king for. And with this petition, beloved, we are considering the kingdom of God over which He is the King. But we are not to think of God's kingdom in physical or territorial terms like a nation of the world or like a particular city. Also, as we know, the Scriptures point out that God rules over all things. His kingdom of power is over every last bit of His creation, even the devil and his hosts. Psalm 97 begins, The Lord reigns. Let the earth rejoice. And then Psalm 99 begins, The Lord reigns. Let the peoples tremble. All of mankind, especially creation, either rejoices or trembles at God's rule, of course, depending upon which side one is on. Yet ultimately, both sides are subject to God's rule. Psalm 103, verse 19 says, The Lord has established His throne in the heavens, and His sovereignty rules over all. Beloved, God indeed rules over all things. by His sovereign power. But this petition, Thy Kingdom Come, is talking specifically about God's kingdom of grace. God's kingdom of grace, the realm where God is king, and He is known, and He is acknowledged, He is loved, and He is freely obeyed by willing subjects. In that kingdom, His Word is law, and that law is written in the hearts of all of His kingdom's citizens. This is the kingdom where God's throne is not only in heaven, but it's also in the hearts of His subjects. In this kingdom, God's kingship, His rule, and His sovereignty are recognized in the hearts and operate in the lives of His people. And again, as we examine ourselves, we might ask ourselves, what is my kingdom status? What is my kingdom status? Do I fit with all of this? You see, wherever the heavenly reign and rule of God through Jesus Christ and the gospel of grace is found, there is this kingdom. And this petition, Thy kingdom come, is a prayer that this kingdom come completely. And therefore, this prayer looks forward to and longs for that time of perfection and when salvation will be fully realized. It looks forward to the second coming of Jesus Christ when the last enemy, death, will be destroyed. And as 1 Corinthians 15, verse 24 says, Christ delivers up the kingdom to God the Father. This kingdom, beloved, was promised throughout the Old Testament as the Messiah was promised. This kingdom was very near as John the Baptist preached. And this kingdom arrived with the first coming of Jesus as he said that the kingdom was in the midst of God's people. And Peter himself acknowledged by the revelation of heaven that the Messiah had come. He said, you are the Christ, the Son of the living God. And we know, of course, that Christ has ascended His throne in heaven at the right hand of His Father. He reigns with all power and authority as He builds His church. Yet He has not yet put all His enemies under His feet. He has won the war, but the battle is not yet over. Of course, we know the outcome. Satan will be forever destroyed. And we live in the new order as Satan's dominion has been stripped out of his hands, Yet the old order of sin is still breathing, isn't it? And even as a church, we must confess that we experience this. We enjoy the new order as we gather together as God's people for worship, and especially as we gather together around the Lord's table. We enjoy that new order. But the very next day, the old order touches our lives as we gather together as the same people around the grave. Our prayer in this petition is that the old order be completely abolished by the rule of God's kingdom. The catechism rightly teaches us that God's kingdom rule is to be, first of all, over the kingdom's citizen. That is, over every individual believer. What does the second request mean? Thy kingdom come means, rule us by your word and spirit in such a way that more and more we submit to you. Not right away, this is uncharacteristic. At least with regard to the people of the world, isn't it? Nobody in their right mind asks for someone else to rule over them. Except for the Christian, by God's grace. Rule us. Rule us. Now who is the us? Again, this is talking about believers. Those alone who are able to call God Father. Only those who desire to be ruled by God are those who will pray this prayer. And this is a desire that is born of God's grace. This is the desire of the regenerated heart which has been brought to life by God Himself through His Spirit. This is a desire that fits with kingdom citizenship. God's people have been delivered from the clutches and from the dominion of Satan and now submit willingly and obediently in the love of God to the rule of His Word and Spirit. Kingdom citizens have a new law written on their hearts. They serve a new master. They speak a different language. They follow different customs. And all of these things, of course, are different from the world. Yet Christians are fully aware of the fact that they still live in the midst of a world of sin. Sin still clings to them against their renewed will. That's why we are called to examine ourselves. Of course, Paul makes this clear in Romans 7, for the good that I wish I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not wish. And we must confess that even we often rebel against God's rule in our hearts and in our lives. It's interesting, I think, that if we were the ones to write this question and answer, or maybe even to rewrite it, we would probably say something quite different. Instead of saying, rule us, We might like to begin this question, this answer, rule the heathen. They need it so that they might be converted. But the truth is this prayer for God's kingdom doesn't begin out there, beloved. But it begins in here at home. It begins in my heart. It begins in your heart. Our trust and our obedience is not yet perfect. We are called to work at it day by day and we ask for God's continued grace that we might work at it day by day. Christians are soldiers in the army of God called to defend and fight for His kingdom. And before we ask God to add new members, new soldiers, which we must do, our prayer is that He make us better, more faithful, more useful, and more submissive soldiers. And the kingdom instruments used to mold and shape kingdom citizens are God's Word and Spirit. And beloved, these two go hand in hand. They cannot be separated. Many indeed try to separate them and have one without the other. But the truth is the Word is the Word of the Spirit and the Spirit is the Spirit of the Word. If there is no Spirit, the Word of God will do us no good. And if there is no Word of God, the Spirit of God has nothing to apply to our hearts and lives. Paul says in Ephesians 6 that the Word of God is the sword of the Spirit. And as the writer of Hebrews reminds us, it is a double-edged sword. We have a need. We have a need to be controlled by God and possessed by His will. His Word reveals to us His will. And His Spirit works in our hearts to place us under the discipline of His will and to give us a desire for His will. The Spirit gets to the heart of the matter, applying God's Word to our heart, the same heart as the Bible says, from which flows the issues of life. He makes our hearts willing with a new obedience. Beloved, it's clear that Peter's confession came from the Spirit and the Word. He knew that the Old Testament Scriptures spoke of the coming Messiah. And Jesus says in verse 17, Blessed are you, Simon, son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. The Spirit of God applied the Word of God to Peter's heart so that he knew that Jesus was the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy. Congregation, this petition is a prayer for God's continued work of sanctification in our hearts and lives that continued cleansing. Cleansing us of the pollution and the stain of sin. And those who pray this petition with their mouths must also live it with their lives. Those who pray this petition must be willing to be ruled by God to live for Him unconditionally even when called upon to suffer for the sake of the kingdom. You see, the whole shape of our lives must be molded by God's kingdom and God's will. One contemporary commentator says we must make a radical decision, a clear choice between playboy philosophy and God-ordered living, between the greed of the present economic system and the stewardship of God's creation. between the arrogance of humanism and the righteousness of God. Now we must confess, beloved, there are many influences in this life that surround us. Young people, you know that full well. And often we allow ourselves to be influenced by different things, by people who are popular, maybe good athletes or something of that nature, by musical groups, whatever the case may be. We have posters in our rooms. Many of you probably do. Posters of this famous person or that popular person, whatever the case may be. And those things in and of themselves aren't wrong. But I ask you, do you have a poster maybe that says, Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light upon my path. Or how about a poster in your room that says, For we are saved by grace through faith. Or maybe a poster that says, My grace is sufficient for you. Wherever people believe the Gospel and acknowledge Jesus as Lord by the grace of God, that's where the Kingdom of God comes to life. And when that takes place, not only do we have worship services to Him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb, but as well, all of life becomes service to Him and all our work becomes worship of Him. Our prayer in this petition, beloved, is that I not be conformed to this world, but that I be transformed by the renewing of my mind. Our prayer in this petition is Thy kingdom come in me. And when that happens, then God is also ruling over the kingdom's church. The catechism says, keep your church strong and add to it. The older version of the catechism says, preserve and increase your church. Preserve her. Keep her in existence. Keep her going. Now we need to understand that the church and the kingdom of God are not identical. The church is a part of the kingdom and the church on this earth is a visible manifestation of the kingdom, but the kingdom of God is broader than the church. The church is called to make the invisible kingdom visible through faithful Christian living and witness as well the church on this earth is the fighting army of the kingdom and she exercises both an offensive and defensive function. Defensively, the church is to defend against the kingdom of Satan. And offensively, she is to conquer for Christ. The church represents the kingdom of God in the world and the kingdom cause is preserved and even extended through the church. Well, how does God use His Son's bride, the church? The church is the great instrument through which God brings His people into the kingdom and by which He demonstrates the character of the kingdom to the world. The gospel of salvation through Jesus Christ is proclaimed through the church. The church preserves and teaches the truth of the kingdom. Through the church, Christ calls and gathers His elect out of the world. Children of the kingdom are born and nurtured within the church. The church holds the keys of the kingdom. And in the church is where kingdom citizens profess to live under the rule of the king. Do you notice what an important task the church has? Such a wonderful place given to her by God. But many visible churches have failed in their task. They have abandoned their tasks because they seek to please man rather than God. And beloved, we are called to fight to stay true to the Word of God in our worship, in our Bible studies, in our education of our children, in our boys' and girls' clubs and our young peoples. We must fight to stay true to the Word of God because the Word of God alone governs all of these things. The church is built upon Peter's confession, each member confessing that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God. And what an important function also that she has holding the keys of the kingdom, preaching and church discipline. As our Lord says, I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven. Whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. She preaches the gospel, opening the kingdom to those who repent and believe, but closing the doors of the kingdom to those who reject Christ. As well, through discipline, she is used to protect the kingdom against those who would seek to destroy God's kingdom. As well, to draw the drifters, those who have drifted away, back into the kingdom. This petition is a prayer, beloved, that the church be kept safe, That she be preserved in order to function according to her calling by Christ. But also that she be preserved from her own death. You see, the church faces many dangers in the world, both from within and without. In dark days, there's danger of persecution. And not being able to stand under that persecution. In days of prosperity, there is danger of conforming to the world's standards. And therefore, our prayer must be that the church be preserved from unfaithfulness. That the church be preserved from proclaiming a false or an incomplete gospel. That the church be preserved from discord, disunity, decline, error, apathy, unbelief, and even self-righteousness. That the church be preserved from being visible only on Sunday, but invisible the rest of the week. Indeed, may God always provide her with faithful watchmen who, when they see danger approaching on the horizon, they give a clear and a complete warning. but this is also a prayer that the church grow she's not yet complete if every last one of the elect had already been gathered in this world would be no more you see boys and girls this world is only the scaffolding for the building of God's kingdom the scaffolding we know that in a building project the scaffolding is used to build the building especially the higher we go but once the building is done the scaffolding is torn down It's temporary. It has no more use after the building is completed. Once the building is done, this building, God's building, the scaffolding of the world will be torn down. We pray, I trust, for spiritual growth as individual Christians, for our children as well. We even pray for spiritual growth as a church body. But we must also pray, beloved, for numerical growth in the church of Christ. If He chooses to provide that here, praise God. But that's not our prayer. Our prayer is that God provide numerical growth in the church of Jesus Christ. May God add to His church through our covenant children taking their stand on the Word of God and claiming God's promises, baptism promises to them. May God add to His church through missions to the heathen of the world. as well as through evangelizing of the wayward. And may God increase His church through your witness and through my witness. And praise God that even as we pray, Thy kingdom come. It is coming. Even though it might not always look like it on this earth, God's kingdom continues to grow and strengthen and be brought nearer to completion as Christ's lordship and rule is recognized more and more every day. Indeed, it may seem that God's kingdom is growing secretly and silently as many of Christ's parables teach us, but it is also growing unstoppably. That's because God's rule is also over the kingdom's enemies. As the church is kept strong in attitude, the enemies of God are being destroyed and are decreasing in power again. It may not seem like this is true in this life, but Satan's time is running out. He's prowling around now. But soon he will be caged forever. When we pray this petition, you see, we pray antithetically. We pray against the kingdom of Satan. It must be that way because it is impossible to pray for the coming of God's kingdom and at the same time not to pray for the destruction of those opposed to his kingdom. The catechism says destroy the devil's work. Destroy every force which revolts against you and every conspiracy against your word. Satan's kingdom is completely opposed to the kingdom of God. There is no agreement between the two. The two cannot stand side by side because there is no harmony between the two and only one will stand forever. Satan deceives himself into thinking that he can win. We know that throughout history, he has attacked the church in many different ways. During the time of the early New Testament church as well as during the time of the Reformation, his attack was openly cruel and blatant as many a martyr found out? Even today, not us, but some in parts of the world struggle. Christians are being put to death, being tortured and put to death for their faith. If you were threatened to have boiling water poured down your throat, if you confessed Christ, would you still confess Him? Would you still confess Him? Think about that tonight, especially as we come together and profess our faith publicly here, unhindered, using the words of the Apostles' Creed. If carrying your Bible in public meant that your hand would be cut off, would you still carry it? These things are happening in some parts of the world, even today. But Satan has also worked through heresy within the church with false teachings surfacing which, of course, attack the foundation which is the Word of God. He works through anti-Christian and anti-biblical laws. He works as well in ways that makes him look like a friend to the church and to believers. And he especially works through neutrality. And I think this is where we also need to be careful sometimes. We're so quick to call things a gray area. But this is the false notion that something is neither Christian or non-Christian. Religious or non-religious. Biblical or unbiblical. Beloved, nothing is neutral. Not even a tree. Not even a blade of grass. God's finger touches all of creation and to remove Him from any aspect of life is the same as to deny Him. Our comfort is that the gates of Hades will not overcome or overpower the kingdom of God, His church, or the confession of His people. Instead, God's rule shall prevail over Satan, as Paul says in Romans 16.20, and the God of peace will crush Satan under your feet shortly. When that happens, when Satan's world of disorder and discord and confusion is done away with forever, then the perfection of God's kingdom will have arrived. And we are to pray this prayer, as the Catechism says, until your kingdom is so complete and perfect that in it you are all in all. until there are no more enemies of God present. And until everyone in God's kingdom recognizes Him as who He is. This is to be our desire, because anyone who has tasted of the world to come by the grace of God craves the whole package. Notice the catechism says until. It's a small word with big certainty. With the Lord's Supper, you know, We are called to proclaim the Lord's death until He comes. And indeed, really that's to be the characteristic of our lives, isn't it? That our lives, too, must proclaim the Lord's death, salvation in Jesus Christ, until He comes. The Bible also says that we have the Spirit as a guarantee until we are completely redeemed in glory. Our time, this age that we live in, will have a conclusion. It will come to an end. Then every knee shall bow, even Satan, his hosts, and all his followers in hell. But then God's kingdom of grace will be His kingdom of glory. And in the new heavens and the new earth, all will be in perfect harmony with the King of the kingdom. Nothing will oppose Him. We will not oppose Him. Praise God. With our thoughts, our words, our deeds, we will not oppose Him. That will be a kingdom of perfect peace, perfect joy and perfect worship of our God. Beloved, this will be ours because this is what our Lord Jesus Christ earned for His people, for His bride. Those who oppose the kingdom of God are not in His kingdom. And apart from Him, they will be destroyed. But He promises, He promises eternal protection and eternal provision for those who turn to Him in repentance and faith. Beloved, there is no other king that can deliver. There's no other king that can make good on these promises. Only His kingdom is forever. You see, to pray this petition is to pray for Christ's return. Are you ready for that? Are you ready for Christ's return? You see, in order to truly pray, Thy kingdom come, you must be ready. Because if you are standing on the outside of the door of His kingdom, When He returns, you will stay outside forever. And outside there is only darkness and eternal gloom. But inside is eternal light and light in the presence of the Almighty God. Beloved, may you earnestly pray that God's kingdom will come. That it will come in you. That it will come in the world through His church. And may your prayer be that it will come completely. Amen. Shall we pray? dear heavenly father with humble heart we bow before you again in this morning hour praising you that indeed we have the confidence as believers of being citizens of your kingdom not because of anything we have done or could do not because of anything worthwhile in us but only because of your infinite mercy and grace and Father may it truly be our desire that we would be ruled by you more and more each and every day and also that many many others would be brought under your rule that they might experience the joy of salvation which we enjoy even this day Father continue to prepare your bride for the day of Christ Jesus complete her oh Lord make us ready and may you receive all the praise and the honor and the glory. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.