“Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” Matthew 6:10 NIV
When we pray, too often we want to move on quickly to our own concerns. In Jesus’ model prayer, we first pray about the concerns of God’s Kingdom and His will. This is not the petitioner’s prayer so much as the disciple’s prayer. This is how disciples are to learn to think and pray and act, with God’s Kingdom foremost and forefront in their minds. “Your kingdom come . . .”. What are we asking? We cannot take this phrase or fragment on its own without looking at the rest of the sentence, since the meaning is found in the context. “Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” The idea of the Kingdom of God is complex. It goes far back into the Old Testament, at least to the book of Exodus, where God reveals Himself as Israel’s King. He makes a covenant with them (Exodus 19:3-6). Having no king but God is one of the unique hallmarks of the Israelites, to the point that their clamouring for a king under Samuel’s judgeship was considered a sin (1 Samuel 8). Saul was Israel’s first human king. David was the second king. He is promised that one of his sons will always sit upon the throne (2 Samuel 7), fulfilled ultimately in Jesus Christ. John the Baptist comes proclaiming, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near”. The kingdom of God comes when Jesus proclaims God’s reign, demonstrating that reign by preaching good news to the poor, freedom for the prisoners, sight for the blind, release for the oppressed. The kingdom is here in Jesus and His disciples, in you and me, but it will come fully and completely when Jesus returns to earth to reign over all as King and Lord (Revelation 11:15).
PRAYER THOUGHT
Lord, let the reign of Your Kingdom be demonstrated in our daily living.
PRAYER FOR TODAY
Lord Jesus, You came proclaiming God’s reign, demonstrating that reign by preaching good news to the poor, freedom for the prisoners, sight for the blind, release for the oppressed. Let Your kingdom be demonstrated to others in and through our daily living. AMEN
INTERNATIONAL BIBLE READING ASSOCIATION (IBRA)
Psalm 78:70-72
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