Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1873-11-13

''IhJ kingdom come thy will be
done Oh earth as il is in
noaFaD.'
Abs'racf Of Sermon by Il. ". Htb-
stcr, GRIND Rapids, Noe. Ind, '73.

i'''y ~ 'A''S AAA
first, the address .Our Father which
art in heaven" Second. words of wor-
ship "Hsllowed be thy name" We
have, third, pledge Of loyalty, an
expression Of sympathy, hearty God
speed -'rhy kingdom come thy will
be done on earth as it is in heaven. y
AS if we would say-we are of thy
kingdom; We glory in it; we would
have all men to honor it. We accept
thy will as the perfect wisdom and the
perfect right.
! 1t is a glad accepting of the situa-
ton, to wit; that of the children of a
Father who also is King, whose right
it is to reign, and whose reign secures
the highest possible good.
1t is the childrens committal to the
government and to all the plans Of
their Father. 1t is their oath of allie
glance, expressed, not as by compul-
sion, but freely and joyously, as glory
ing in the position and character of
their Father and as determined to do
| whatever they can to make his sway
over the hearts of men universal.
The text presents two leading ques-
tions:
First-what is the nature of the
kingdom here referred to.
| reply in four points
l. 1t is not a kingdom of force.
1t does not depend for it's existence or
extension, on material resources or on
physical power. So far as these are
concerned, our Fathers kingdom as
come, has always been. and will abide
forever He owns all worlds and con-
trolls all the forces Of matter. There is
none to dispute his territory, it is all
his; not by right of discovery it was
never lost; not by right Of conquest
1t never was possessed by another
nor by right of purchase, He made it.
1t was his before there were any beings
but himself, nay; all who dwell in it
are his handiwork; !; and when, by use
of any material forces, he will do anv
work, none will stny his hand. nor will
any venture to question his right.
Were it a kingdom of mere force which
our Lord here honors, onr pledge Of
loyalty would be very superhuous.
There is 10 lack Of physical force. He
weigheth the mountains in scales and
the hills in a balance. lie taketll up
the isles as a very little thing. At a
word of his, the waters cover the earth
and all flesh is destroyed He speaks
and the earth opens her mouth to swai-
low his adversaries, or fire comes down
to consume them. At his command
the sun and the moon stand still and
the Jordon rolls backward upon itself.
Speaking of mere force, we rightly call
him the Almighty.
But this kinrIom which is to come
was not foun led by physical force no
one is brought into it by force, and no
one will be kept in it by such force
When the king was here, amid a
world of rebels he used no force to
subdne them. All forces obeyed him.
whether mechanical or che meal. or vi
tai forces, but by noue Of them did he
compel men to submit to him. SO
careful was he of the principle that
force must not rule in this kingdom.
that he would not even use it to defend
himself from the physical assaults of
his enemies.
When an impulsive friend drew a
sword to defend him. he rebuked this
appeal - force, saying "they that take
the sword must perish by the sword
and at once healed the wound which
that sword had given. When he had
at his call, twelve legions of angels,
the least Of whom might have routed
all Jerusalem, he considered death at
the hands Of an insane mob better
than an appeal to force, and suffered
them to cruelty him. In this, the
kingdoms of this world are just the
opposite.
They have all been established by
force, and they all stand by force
Their last argument is ever an appeal
to arms. No; the kingdom to come
is not to come by physical force it
was founded, it stands, and it will
come by its ideas, its truth. Men
come into it, drawn by the truth it
presents to their intelligence. Force
does not rule here at all In this king
dom everyone does entirely as he pleas
es. Here is the completest liberty.