“Your kingdom come.”
As Jesus was standing before Pontius
Pilate in the judgment hall, Pilate wanted to know what Jesus had done to be
sentenced to death. Jesus responded, “My kingdom is not of this world.”
Mentioning “kingdom” caused Pilate to further examine Him, “Are you a king
then?” Little did Pilate know that he was looking into the eyes and questioning
the King of Kings and Lord of Lords; he knows now...
Jesus told His disciples to pray, “Your” (this pronoun refers to our Father in
heaven, v9) “kingdom” (Gk, basileia, rule or reign, this kingdom belongs to
God) “come” (Gk, erchomai). The verb “come” means let Your reign come
now, suddenly, and quickly. It is a desire for the Lord to rule over all the
nations of the earth now! This is akin to John’s desire, “Even so, come, Lord
Jesus (Rev 22:20).
The first three petitions of this prayer are concentrating on God’s
name, God’s kingdom, and God’s will. You get the impression that the things of
God are to have priority over personal petitions. This follows with the
preeminence doctrine – doing all for the glory of God. Even our prayers are not
excluded!
Note that nothing is mentioned about self at this point. Often we come storming
into the throne room with an attitude that it’s “all about us.” Self is
at the forefront of all our prayers; finally, we leave a little room in our
prayers for God by saying, “In the name of Jesus. Amen!” It reveals that our heart is
not in sync with God’s program, His pulse, and His desire. Self-centeredness oftentimes is
filled to the brim in our prayer life.
Instead of concerning ourselves with issues that build God’s kingdom, we are
too preoccupied with building our own. We got our plans, our objectives, and
our way of doing things. We are on a schedule. The only time God is in the
picture is when He coincides with our wishes.
Do we really understand what is happening when we are
praying, “Your kingdom come?” Praying Your kingdom come means that I am telling
God that I am relinquishing control of my life and asking the Holy Spirit to
take over the wheel of my life for the furtherance of God’s kingdom here on earth. Father,
reign in my life now! Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus!
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