In the previous blog we saw the importance of praying a big prayer for God to establish His Kingdom on earth right now. But just what do we mean when we pray for His Kingdom to come? What does “Your Kingdom come” really mean? Just what are we praying for?
The Kingdom of God, or Kingdom of Heaven, essentially the same thing, is something Jesus talked about almost every day. The Bible never precisely defines it, but its basic mean is pretty clear. A kingdom requires a king who rules, subjects who are ruled by the king, and a place where this takes place. We have a King, Jesus, who rules His subjects, believers who submit to His will. This is what heaven is all about – God’s will being perfectly done in the lives of His people. Jesus says we should pray this happens on earth as well. Thus this kingdom we are to pray for is a society on earth in which God’s will is as perfectly done as it is in heaven. That’s what “Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” refers to.
Jesus wants us to pray, first of all, that His perfect will is carried out on earth as it is in heaven. That means we are praying for Him to return and remove evil, establishing His perfect rule here as it was before Adam and Eve sinned. But it means more than that. It means we are desiring to make this same kingdom concept of completely following God’s will the main thing in our lives starting right now. When we pray “Your Kingdom come” we are also saying “My kingdom go.” This life isn’t about what we want but about doing God’s will in every area of our life. We can’t be living for God’s Kingdom and our own kingdom at the same time, it’s one or the other!
Praying for God’s Kingdom to comes begins in our own life. We enter by faith as a little child (Luke 18:17) and are born into God’s family. Without this we cannot see this Kingdom (John 3:5). Then we desire to live for Him. We want His values to predominate our thinking and decision making. We want His cause to be advanced by all we say and do. It isn’t about us and our advancement but about Him and His advancement. Pray this for your family as well, and your church and the whole nation (Proverbs 14:34).
“Your kingdom come” is not a passive prayer. It is an imperative, a command, an urgent desire to live your life exactly as God would have you live it for Him. Are you doing so? Can you pray “Your Kingdom come” and mean it? Do so right now.
(Written by Jerry Schmoyer, 2014. You can find more of his writings at http://www.christiantrainingonline.org/. If you have questions or suggestions feel free to contact him at jerry@schmoyer.net)