For Thine is the Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory

Passage for today

11 Yours LORD, is the greatness, the power, the glory, the victory, and the majesty!
For all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours.
Yours is the kingdom, LORD, and you are exalted as head above all.
12 Both riches and honour come from you, and you rule over all!
In your hand is power and might!
It is in your hand to make great, and to give strength to all!
13 Now therefore, our God, we thank you and praise your glorious name.

1 Chronicles 29:11 – 13

 

World English Bible

It is often pointed out by Bible teachers that the last line of the Lord's Prayer, "Thine is the Kingdom, and the Power, and the Glory" did not exist in the oldest and most reliable Greek manuscripts. It was most probably added later on as a "liturgical addition" as part of Christian tradition.

However, this last line of the Lord's Prayer is not without scriptural basis.

While reading 1 Chronicles chapter 29 a few days ago, I came across a passage from verses 11 to 13 that records the prayer of King David as he blessed the LORD before the congregation of Israel (see passage quoted above). David began his doxology by saying,

"Yours LORD, is the greatness, the power, the glory, the victory, and the majesty!"

He went on to tell the LORD,

". . . Yours is the Kingdom, and you are exalted as head above all",

and

". . . In your hand is power and might".

The last line of the Lord's Prayer might have been a liturgical addition that was possibly based on the Blessing of King David to the LORD in 1 Chronicles 29, where he affirmed that to God belongs the Kingdom, the Power and the Glory.

Brothers and Sisters in Iesus the Anointed One, let us bless Our Heavenly Father, God Almighty, Creator of the Heavens and the Earth. Like King David, let us ascribe to God, "Thine is the Kingdom, and the Power, and the Glory, for ever and ever. Amen"

---

Please visit the following links for my thoughts and observations on related topics.

• Give us each day our daily bread (26-04-2022)
• The Power of spoken words (19-05-2021)
• Worship Him who sits on the Throne (04-08-2014)

The Prayer of our Lord Iesus

Passage of the Day

And in this consists the Life of the Ages--in knowing Thee the only true God and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent.
John 17:3  Weymouth New Testament

Today I ponder over the high priestly prayer of our Lord Iesus the Anointed One as written in John chapter 17, reading from Weymouth New Testament.

When Jesus had thus spoken, He raised his eyes towards Heaven and said,

'Father, the hour has come. Glorify Thy Son that the Son may glorify Thee;
even as Thou hast given Him authority over all mankind, so that on all whom Thou hast given Him He may bestow the Life of the Ages.

And in this consists the Life of the Ages--in knowing Thee the only true God and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent.

I have glorified Thee on earth, having done perfectly the work which by Thine appointment has been mine to do.
And now, Father, do Thou glorify me in Thine own presence, with the glory that I had in Thy presence before the world existed.
'I have revealed Thy perfections to the men whom Thou gavest me out of the world. Thine they were, and Thou gavest them to me, and they have obeyed Thy message.
Now they know that whatever Thou hast given me is from Thee.
For the truths which Thou didst teach me I have taught them. And they have received them, and have known for certain that I came out from Thy presence, and have believed that Thou didst send me.

'I am making request for them: for the world I do not make any request, but for those whom Thou hast given me. Because they are Thine,
and everything that is mine is Thine, and everything that is Thine is mine; and I am crowned with glory in them.
I am now no longer in the world, but they are in the world and I am coming to Thee. 'Holy Father, keep them true to Thy name--the name which Thou hast given me to bear--that they may be one, even as we are.

While I was with them, I kept them true to Thy name--the name Thou hast given me to bear--and I kept watch over them, and not one of them is lost but only he who is doomed to destruction--that the Scripture may be fulfilled.
'But now I am coming to Thee, and I speak these words while I am in the world, in order that they may have my gladness within them filling their hearts.
I have given them Thy Message, and the world has hated them, because they do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world.

I do not ask that Thou wilt remove them out of the world, but that Thou wilt protect them from the Evil one.
They do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world.
Make them holy in the truth: Thy Message is truth.

Just as Thou didst send me into the world, I also have sent them;
and on their behalf I consecrate myself, in order that they may become perfectly consecrated in truth.
'Nor is it for them alone that I make request. It is also for those who trust in me through their teaching;
that they may all be one, even as Thou art in me, O Father, and I am in Thee; that they also may be in us; that the world may believe that Thou didst send me.

And the glory which Thou hast given me I have given them, that they may be one, just as we are one:
I in them and Thou in me; that they may stand perfected in one; that the world may come to understand that Thou didst send me and hast loved them with the same love as that with which Thou hast loved me.

'Father, those whom Thou hast given me--I desire that where I am they also may be with me, that they may see the glory--my glory--my gift from Thee, which Thou hast given me because Thou didst love me before the creation of the world.

And, righteous Father, though the world has failed to recognize Thee, I have known Thee, and these have perceived that Thou didst send me.
And I have made known Thy name to them and will make it known, that the love with which Thou hast loved me may be in them, and that I may be in them.'

Thy Holy Servant Iesus

Today in my New Testament reading, I came across a passage in Acts chapter 4 that has caught my attention several times in the past.

This passage, from verses 24 to 31, records the account of the disciples' prayer for boldness and for the power of the Holy Spirit, after Peter and John returned from their interrogation by the Sanhedrin for healing the crippled man at Beautiful Gate.

Acts 4:24 - 31  ASV  American Standard Version
And they, when they heard it, lifted up their voice to God with one accord, and said,

O Lord, thou that didst make the heaven and the earth and the sea, and all that in them is:
who by the Holy Spirit, [by] the mouth of our father David thy servant, didst say,

Why did the Gentiles rage, And the peoples imagine vain things?
The kings of the earth set themselves in array,
And the rulers were gathered together,
Against the Lord, and against his Anointed:

for of a truth in this city against thy holy Servant Jesus, whom thou didst anoint, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, were gathered together, to do whatsoever thy hand and thy council foreordained to come to pass.

And now, Lord, look upon their threatenings: and grant unto thy servants to speak thy word with all boldness,
while thy stretchest forth thy hand to heal; and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of thy holy Servant Jesus.

And when they had prayed, the place was shaken wherein they were gathered together; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spake the word of God with boldness.

In the above prayer, the disciples refer to God (v24) as "Lord" (from the Hebrew tetragrammaton YHWH) in verses 24, 26, and 29.

Also, note that they refer to the Lord Iesus as "Anointed" in verses 6 (a quotation from Psalm 2:1 - 2), and "thy holy Servant" in verses 27 and 30.

Let us glorify the Father of our Lord Iesus

Saturday 19Feb2022

Shabbat Shalom.

Today is the Seventh Day of the Biblical week. Let us rest from all our work and keep the Fourth Commandment.

Today I am reminded by Romans chapter 15 verses 5 and 6 to pray for all believers in the assembly of God's people, that they may be likeminded, to glorify God - the Father of our Lord Iesus the Anointed One - with "one mind and one mouth".

Romans 15:5 - 6  KJV  King James Version

5 Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus:
6 That ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Romans chapter 15 also refers to God the Father of our Lord Iesus as:

• the God of Patience 15:5,
• the God of Hope 15:13, and
• the God of Peace 15:33.

About two years ago, I wrote a short devotion on this passage, link below:

• God of Patience, God of Hope, God of Peace (Aug2020)

The Lord Iesus, the Anointed One

Sunday 2021.08.22

This morning's NT reading brought me through Ephesians chapters three and four.

In this portion of scripture, I revisited the Apostle Paul's prayer for the Ephesian assembly in Ephesians 3:14 - 21. During the reading, it occurred to me that whenever "Lord Jesus Christ" is mentioned in the text, the original meaning was "Lord Jesus the Anointed One". The word "Christ" (or Christos in Greek)is a descriptive title rather than a part of the Lord's name.

I thought that if I replace the term "Christ" with the title "the Anointed", the prayer of Paul for the Ephesians would come across more powerfully and meaningfully. In the passage below, I have copied Eph 3:14 - 21 from the King James Version and replaced the word "Christ" with "the Anointed":

Ephesians 3:14 - 21 KJV
14 For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus the Anointed,
15 Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named,
16 That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man;
17 That the Anointed may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,
18 May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height;
19 And to know the love of the Anointed, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.
20 Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,
21 Unto him be glory in the church by the Anointed Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.

I have also written a post about this prayer in my devotional blog, as shown below:

• The Prayer for the Ephesians (Eph 3:14 - 21)

A Prayer for the Bereaved

O God our Father who is in Heaven,
Blessed be Your Name, and Blessed are You,
for You have created all things,
and for Your pleasure they came into existence and were created.

We pray to you Holy Father,
for the bereaving family of our dear Brother/Sister (name)
who has passed away from this world
and has returned to be with You in Heaven.

Father, in this hour of grief and mourning,
we remember deep within our sorrowful hearts,
that naked came we out of our mothers' womb,
and naked shall we return thither:

O LORD our God,
You gave us our Brother/Sister (name),
who brought us love, joy and happiness all these years,
and today You have taken him/her away;

Our hearts are filled with grief,
we mourn for our beloved Brother/Sister (name)
together with each bereaving member of his beloved family.

Comfort each one of them, O LORD,
take away the pain from their hearts,
and grant them Your peace,

for you are the Father of our Lord Iesus the Anointed,
You are the Father of mercies,
and You are the God of all comfort;
who comforts us in all our tribulation,

To You, the One True God, the Father,
from whom are all things and for whom we exist,
and through our Lord Iesus the Anointed One,
through whom are all things and through whom we exist,

We pray.

Amen and Amen.

A Prayer for Enlightenment

Adapted from Ephesians 1: 17-22
This prayer was written on 07Mar2017. An earlier version of this prayer was posted on this blog on 04Mar2013.

A Prayer for Enlightenment

O God of our Master Yeshua (Iesou) Your Anointed One,
Grant us the spirit of wisdom and revelation
in the knowledge of You, God,
That the eyes of our understanding be enlightened,
That we may know
what is the hope of Your calling,
what are the riches of the glory of Your inheritance in the saints and
what is the exceeding greatness of Your power
toward us who believe,

According to the working of your mighty power
which You worked in Your Anointed One,
when You raised him from the dead and
seated him at Your right hand
in the heavenly places,
Far above all principality
and power
and might
and dominion
and every name that is named,
not only in this age
but also in the age to come.

And You put all things under his feet,
And You gave him to be head over all things
to the Assembly,
which is his body,
the fullness of him who fills all in all.

Amen. Amen.

---

My thoughts on the Prayer for the Ephesians:

• That we may know God — our Father (May2010)

---

A Prayer for the Severely Sick

Our Father who is in Heaven, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, who is above all and in all, and from whom are all things,

Blessed are You, and Blessed be Your Name,

We pray to You, O God,
for our beloved (Name),
for he is in distress,
he is very sick,
his body has grown extremely weak,
he is faint, and in deep anguish and agony.

O LORD, Have mercy on (Name),
And have mercy on us all,
we lift our hearts and hands to You,
we pour out our hearts before You
and ask that You may heal (Name) of his severe illness.

Preserve our Brother / Sister (Name), O God,
and be a refuge for him in this hour of suffering,
For you are our Lord, and we have no good apart from you.

Heal him, and he will be healed,
Save him, and he will be saved,
For You are the one we praise.

We ask this from you, O God our Father, in the Name of Your Chosen King, our Lord and Saviour Iesou the Anointed One.

Now to You who is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think,
according to the power that works in us,
To You be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus
To all generations for ever and ever. Amen

A Prayer after morning chores are done

Our Father in Heaven,
the God and Father of your Holy Servant,
the Lord Iesou the Anointed One,
Blessed be Your Name, and Blessed are You
for you have provided us all we need,
in sufficiency and in abundance.

Thank you for the enabling me to complete this morning's tasks
of washing the car and the backyard.
Thank you also for the equipment and opportunity
to practise music on stringed instruments.

Help me, I pray,
to understand your Holy Scriptures
as I read them at this morning's devotion.
And grant me wisdom,
from such understanding,
to discern between right and wrong
in all that I do today.

Protect my children,
and my grandchildren,
from harm and illness,
and provide them all that they need in the coming days,
sufficiently.

Grant them a broad space
to do their work successfully
and give them favour
in the sight of their employers and their colleagues.

In the Name of our Lord Iesou the Anointed One
we ask of Thee our Heavenly Father.

Amein and Amein.

A Prayer at Morning Devotion.

Our Father who is in Heaven,
Creator Almighty,
O God and Father of our Lord Iesou your Anointed One,

Blessed are You,
and Blessed be Your Name,
For you have granted me this computer for writing,
and this set of sound equipment for music practice,
and have given to me this family.

And You have kept us
and guarded us in safety,
in sufficiency
and in good health all these years.

We give you thanks through our Lord Iesou,
your Holy Servant.

Grant me your wisdom
in understanding these passages,
and grant me the power
to keep the lessons so learnt in mind
throughout the day.

Amen and Amen.

The Prayer for the Ephesians

Friday 2013.06.07

Ephesians 3:14-21, a prayer for the Ephesians.

This is a good prayer for all of us to exemplify, especially because, like all prayers in the NT, this is essentially a prayer to our Heavenly Father. If we want to pray like Paul in Ephesians 3:14-21, we should do the following:

(Scripture quoted from Young's Literal Translation)

***
Bow to our Heavenly Father, who is also the Father of our Master Jesus the Messiah.

"For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ," 3:14

***
Acknowledge that every being in heavens and earth receives its true name from our Father in heaven. He is our creator God.

"of whom the whole family in the heavens and on earth is named"3:15

***
Ask our Heavenly Father to give us strength in our inner being, through His Spirit according to the wealth of His glory. Yes, this we must ask for such wealthy, glorious strength from our Father.

"that He may give to you, according to the riches of His glory, with might to be strengthened through His Spirit, in regard to the inner man" 3:16

***
Along with the inner strength, ask the Father to make our Messiah (the Anointed One) to dwell in our hearts through our trust in Him.

"that the Christ may dwell through the faith in your hearts" 3:17a

***
Also ask that the Father will make us established in His love:

" in love having been rooted and founded," 3:17b

***
Ask the Father that we may also, together with all other saints, have the power to understand the full dimensions (of His love)

"that ye may be in strength to comprehend, with all the saints, what [is] the breadth, and length, and depth, and height" 3:18

***
Ask our Father that we may also know the love of the Messiah, a love which is beyond our normal knowledge / ability to understand,

"to know also the love of the Christ that is exceeding the knowledge" 3:19a

***
So that we may be full of the nature of God our Father
"that ye may be filled -- to all the fulness of God;" 3:19b

***
Finally, let us sing our doxology to God our Father, who works in us by His power: to HIM (God our Father) be the glory in the assembly (ekklesia) by Jesus our Messiah.

"and to Him who is able above all things to do exceeding abundantly what we ask or think, according to the power that is working in us, to Him [is] the glory in the assembly in Christ Jesus, to all the generations of the age of the ages. Amen" 3:20,21

***

Brothers and Sisters, let us pray to God, He is our Father in Heaven.

---

My thoughts on the Prayer for the Ephesians:

• That we may know God — our Father (May2010)

---

A devotion on the Prayer for the Colossians

A few days ago, I posted The Prayer for the Colossians, from Col 1: 3 - 20.
Today, I'd like to point out from this passage that Paul and Timothy prayed for the Colossian brethren in the following way:

(1) they gave thanks to the God and Father of the Master Yeshua Messiah (Iesous Christos), always praying for the Colossian brethren. (v3)

(2) they did not cease to pray for them, asking God:
(2a)- that they may be filled
- - - with the full knowledge of God's will
- - - in all wisdom and spiritual understanding, (v9)

(2b) that they may walk worthily of the Master
- fully pleasing,
- in every good work being fruitful,
- and increasing to the knowledge of God,
- in all might being made mighty
- - - according to the power of His glory,
- - - to all endurance and long-suffering with joy. (v10,11)

(2c) that they may give thanks to God, the Father,
- who made them qualified
- - - for the participation of the inheritance of the saints in the light,
- who rescued them out of the authority of the darkness,
- who translated them into the reign of the Son of His love, (v12,13)

(3) In this prayer, Paul and Timothy also affirmed that:
- the Son is the IMAGE of the invisible God, the firstborn of God in all creation. (v15)
- the first-born out of the dead, (v18)
- it pleased God, the Father, that all fullness should dwell in the Son (v19)
- and it pleased the Father to reconcile all things
- - - whether in heaven and on earth
- - - to Himself,
- - - through His Son, through the blood of his cross (v20)

Dear Christian brothers and sisters, let us likewise affirm and give thanks to God, our Father:
- that our Father is the God and Father of our Master Yeshua Messiah (Iesou Christo)
- that our Father has made us qualified to share in the inheritance of saints,
- that our Father has rescued us out of the authority of darkness,
- that our Father has translated us into the reign of His beloved Son, Yeshua, and
- that our Father is pleased to reconcile all things to Himself through His Son.

Indeed, only our Father in Heaven has done all these things.
Blessed be the Name of our Heavenly Father!
He is the Only True God.

That we may know God, our Father.

Saturday, 8-5-2010, Ephesians 1:15-23

Morning devotion at Tiara Beach Resort, Port Dickson, while attending the annual retreat of Temerloh Gospel Chapel.

Pauls' prayer for the Ephesian brethren tells of the greatness of God our Father and his great works.

Firstly, we can see in this passage that God is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus (v.3, 17). Our God in heaven is the Father of glory. (v.17) And it is only He who can grant us the spirit of wisdom and revelation for our knowledge of him. (v.17b).

Secondly, note that Paul prayed for the Ephesian Christians to know the hope of God's calling and to know the "riches of the glory" of God's inheritance in us.

Thirdly, it is the exceeding greatness of God's power - His might - which God worked in Christ when God raised Christ and seated Christ at His right hand (v.19,20).

Indeed, our Lord Jesus Christ is now seated at the right hand of God, in a position "far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come" (v.21). All these are granted to Christ by the Only True God, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus.

Brothers and Sisters in Christ who, like the Ephesian brethren, put your faith in the Lord Jesus and who show love for all the saints, let us pray for one another like the apostle Paul had prayed, that we may know God our Father: the God and Father of our Lord Jesus.

We know that God has put all things under the feet of Christ, and has given him to be head over all things to the church. (v.22)

Philippians 4:20
Now to our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen