(8.) We are to pray for the advancement of Christ’s kingdom, at his second and glorious coming; when the work of grace shall be brought to its utmost perfection; and all the elect, who shall have lived from the beginning to the end of time, shall be gathered together, and brought into Christ’s kingdom of glory, as they have formerly been into his kingdom of grace, when the highest honours shall be conferred upon them, and they shall reign with him for ever and ever. As the church, under the Old Testament-dispensation, prayed that Christ’s kingdom of grace might come, viz. be administered, as it has been, and now is, under the gospel-dispensation, and, as it is expressed, that he would be like a roe, or like a young hart upon the mountains of Bether, Cant. ii. 17. or, that the desire of all nations would fill his house with glory: So the New Testament-church is represented as praying, that Christ would come quickly, according to his promise, Rev. xxii. 20. and put a final period to every thing that has had a tendency to detract from the glory of his kingdom, or the happiness of his subjects; and, in order hereunto, we must pray, that the elect, who are Christ’s mystical body, may be gathered, and brought in to him; and then we may be sure that he will hasten his coming. And, till this is done, we are to wait patiently, as the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, in the desired harvest, James v. 7. and, in the mean time, we are to pray, that he would be pleased to exert his power, and make the dispensations of his providence in the world, conducive to answer these ends, and more particularly, with respect to ourselves; that hereby we may have, not only an habitual, but an actual meetness for the heavenly kingdom; that when our Lord shall come, we may not be like those virgins mentioned in the parable, who all slumbered and slept, Matt. xxv. 5. but, upon the first alarm, may go out to meet him with joy and triumph; and, as an evidence hereof, that we may be enabled to walk as strangers and pilgrims on the earth, or, as those who desire a better country, that is, an heavenly, Heb. xi. 13, 16. and that we may keep up an intercourse with Christ, that we may be ready to entertain him with delight and pleasure, whenever he comes; that when he, who is our Life, our Hope, and Saviour, as well as our King, shall appear, we may appear with him in glory. Thus concerning the administration of Christ’s Kingly government, as the subject-matter of this petition: And, that we may be farther assisted in directing our prayers to God agreeable thereunto, we may consider his children as addressing themselves to him to this purpose: “We adore and magnify thee, O God our Saviour, as the Governor of the world; who dost according to thy will in the armies of heaven, and amongst the inhabitants of the earth. Thy power is irresistible, and thy works wonderful: But it is matter of the highest astonishment, that thou should exercise that gracious government, in which thou condescendest to be called the King of saints. What is man, that thou shouldst thus magnify him, and set thine heart upon him; that they, whom thou mightest have dealt with as traitors, and enemies to thy government, and, as such, have ruled them with a rod of iron, and broken them in pieces, like a potter’s vessel, should be admitted to partake of the privileges which thou art pleased to bestow on thy servants and subjects! Thou hast often invited us, by holding forth thy sceptre of grace, to come and acknowledge thee to be our Lord and Sovereign; but our hearts have been filled with rebellion against thee. We have served divers lusts and pleasures, and been in confederacy with hell and death, yielding ourselves slaves to Satan, thine avowed enemy: But now, we desire to cast ourselves down before thy foot-stool; and, while we stand amazed at thy clemency, we accept of the overture of a pardon which thou hast made in the gospel, with the greatest thankfulness, accounting it our highest privilege, as well as our indispensable duty, to be thy subjects. Write thy law, we beseech thee, in our hearts; bring down every high thought and imagination, which sets itself against thine interest, and make us entirely willing to be thy servants, devoted to thy fear. We also beg, that thou wouldst take to thyself thy great power and reign. Let Satan’s kingdom be destroyed, thy gospel propagated throughout the world. May thine ancient people, the Jews, who now refuse that thou shouldst reign over them, be called and inclined to own thee as their King; and may the dark parts of the earth see thy salvation. Reform thy churches; let them be constantly supplied with those who shall go in and out before them, and shall feed them with knowledge and understanding. May they be purged from those corruptions which are a reproach to thy government; let not the commandments of men be received, instead of thine holy institutions; may thine ordinances be purely dispensed, that thy people may have ground to hope for thy presence therein; and may they be made effectual for the converting of sinners, and establishing thy saints in their holy faith. And let all the dispensations of thy providence in the world, have a tendency to advance thy kingdom of grace, that, as thou hast, in all ages, appeared in the behalf of thy church and people; so it may be preserved and carried through all the difficulties that it meets with, and be secured from the attempts of thine enemies against it, till they who rejoice in thy government here, shall be received into thy heavenly kingdom hereafter.”
Quest. CXCII.
Quest. CXCII. What do we pray for in the third petition?
Answ. In the third petition, [which is, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven] acknowledging that, by nature, we, and all men, are not only utterly unable and unwilling to know and do the will of God, but prone to rebel against his word, to repine and murmur against his providence, and wholly inclined to do the will of the flesh, and of the Devil: We pray, that God would by his Spirit, take away from ourselves and others, all blindness, weakness, indisposedness, and perverseness of heart, and by his grace make us able and willing to know, do, and submit to his will in all things, with the like humility, cheerfulness, faithfulness, diligence, zeal, sincerity, and constancy, as the angels do in heaven.
For the understanding of this petition, we must enquire,
I. What is meant by the will of God, and how it is said to be done by us. We have, under a foregoing answer, considered[[118]], that this is distinguished into his secret and revealed will, and shewn that as the former of these is the reason of his own actings, and determines the event of things; the latter is what we are more especially concerned about, as it is a rule of duty to us. It is also farther distinguished into his perceptive and providential will; the former of which we are to obey; the latter, to admire, submit to, and be well pleased with: Accordingly, when we pray, Thy will be done, we desire, that his laws might be obeyed, and thereby his universal dominion, and right to govern the world, practically acknowledged; and that, by this means, sin might be prevented, and this earth might not become so much like hell as it would be, in this method, which God has taken to direct our actions, and give a check to our corruptions, were wholly disregarded by us. When we consider God as the Creator of man, the next idea we have of him is, that he exercises his dominion and sovereignty in giving laws to him; which he is under a natural obligation to obey; otherwise he disowns himself to be a creature, or a subject, which is the highest affront that can be offered to the divine Majesty, and exposes him to that punishment which is due to those who are found in open rebellion against him: This is what we are to pray against in this petition, in which there is something supposed, namely,[[119]]
1. That his will must be known by us, otherwise it cannot be obeyed. And this supposes the law to be promulgated; which has been already done; particularly as it was written by God on the heart of man at first, in such legible characters, that our apostacy from him has not wholly erased it. But besides this, there must be an internal impression made on the minds and consciences of men, whereby they may be brought to see the excellency and glory thereof, and their indispensable obligation to yield obedience thereunto.
2. It is farther supposed, that the will of man is naturally averse, and disinclined, to obey the divine commands, which is the result of our fall and apostacy from God; and, through the corruption of our nature, we are prone to say, Who is lord over us, Psal. xii. 4. and, What is the Almighty, that we should serve him, Job xxi. 15. This is the source of all that opposition which the heart of man expresses against the laws of God, while sinners entertain a fixed resolution to give laws to themselves; and, on the other hand, are wholly inclined to do the will of the flesh and of the Devil: This the apostle calls fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; while at the same time, they walk according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that worketh in the children of disobedience, Eph. ii. 2, 3. This will of the flesh is agreeable to the dictates of Satan, by whom it is content to be kept in perpetual bondage; his suggestions are agreeable to the corruption of nature; whereas, the command of God being contrary to it, as containing in them the signatures of his holiness, are grievous and burdensome to fallen man; the law is spiritual, and therefore it cannot be agreeable to those who are carnal, and, as it were sold under sin. And this discovers itself,
(1.) In that, sinful man is determined to do, not what is lawful, but what is pleasing to himself, not considering what he ought to do, as being accountable to God, the judge of all for his behaviour in this world; but whether it is agreeable to his own inclinations, and affords some present delight to his carnal appetite.
(2.) As for Satan, he uses his utmost endeavours to strengthen these resolutions, and increase the depravity and corruption of our nature; and, for this end, daily presents objects to our imaginations, that are agreeable to the desires of the flesh; and these are received with pleasure and delight, whereby a snare is laid for the ruin of the soul, so that it becomes more and more alienated from the life of God; and not only indifferent, as to matters of religion, but utterly averse to them. This is the reason of all the dishonour that is brought to God in the world; whereby it appears, that his will is not done therein, as it ought to be.