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Your Kingdom Come
Our world is a fearful place at this moment in history. The world has been here before, but that doesn’t calm our fears. As we read history, wars, economic crises, and political instability are common themes. But reading about them and living through them are two very different prospects. The natural response of many as they face a crisis is to look for a savior. But ironically and sadly, many look to politics and human wisdom for help instead of our actual savior, Jesus. Jesus is our king and our savior, and our wholehearted allegiance must be to his kingdom.
Jesus taught us to pray by giving us a template we call the Lord’s Prayer. This prayer helps us to focus on living in and toward his kingdom at the same time.
“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come,
your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil".
(Matt 6:9-13 ESV)
Often, when we recite this prayer, the phrases, “Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven,” are said as if they are three distinct thoughts. This is understandable, in a way, because this prayer is often recited together, and this phrasing helps everyone stay together. But this custom has a downside: these three phrases are actually just one thought, and breaking it up can sometimes obscure the thing we are asking for.
What are we really asking for here?
I have heard this topic discussed many times, and the answer to this question generally runs in three directions.
* We are asking Jesus to return and usher in the kingdom of God in its fullest form.
* We are praying that all would repent and follow the true King Jesus.
* We are praying for this present age to be changed to conform more closely to the principles of the kingdom of God.
To me, if you take any one of those ideas as complete, you are missing something in this prayer. We are praying for the kingdom of God to come. But this is hard to imagine if the king is still absent. The full realization of the kingdom only comes with the return of our king, Jesus.
However, the second half of this petition speaks of a change on the earth. And while the final and ultimate transformation will come with the return of Jesus and the abolition of evil. We are, nevertheless, to be salt and light. We are to be agents of change. Jesus compared the kingdom of God to a mustard seed. A tiny seed that grew into a plant, a plant large enough for birds to nest in. In Daniel, we see it described as a stone that grows to fill the earth. In these metaphors and prophecies, we see the kingdom of God starting small and growing tremendously.
So, I think all three of these ideas are correct as long as they are taken together and not separately. Without the ultimate hope of our king’s return there is little motivation to try to change the hot mess that is this present age. Without actively engaging the wickedness of this age through the gospel and taking action motivated by the love of Christ, we become part of the problem rather than part of the solution.
If we did nothing but sit and wait for our king’s return, the temptation would be to check out of this life in a vain attempt to find some safe place to hide and wait out the storm. But there is much to do while we wait.
Consider this story Jesus told describing the time of waiting for his return:
Therefore you also must be ready,
for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.
“Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his master has set over his household, to give them their food at the proper time?
Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes.
Truly, I say to you, he will set him over all his possessions.
But if that wicked servant says to himself,
‘My master is delayed,’ and begins to beat his fellow servants
and eats and drinks with drunkards,
the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him
and at an hour he does not know and will cut him in pieces
and put him with the hypocrites.
In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
(Matt 24:44-51 ESV)
Get full access to On walking the Way at tompossin.substack.com/subscribe
Jesus understood the tendencies of humanity very well. He knew that a failure to maintain faith in his imminent return would result in moral corrosion and, ultimately, destruction. In this passage, a vital faith in Jesus seems contingent on a vital faith in his return. This story also implies that his return will take much longer than many expect, making faith in his return all the more important to us today. But having faith also means we must continue actively serving our Master until he comes.
How do we respond to this petition today?
Given this understanding of the Kingdom of God, how do we respond to this beyond simply remembering that Jesus will return someday? This is where we really need to think through how our faith affects every area of our lives.
We say and think all kinds of things, but more often than not, we do what we truly believe. Over time, our actions describe our beliefs better than our words. (Not always the happiest thought, I have to admit) Nevertheless, praying for the kingdom to come will have its first effect on us. It changes the relative value we place on everything we do. Much like having your house on fire, makes you reevaluate which things are really important in your house.
But this is not primarily a self-improvement prayer. It is a radical world-changing prayer. A prayer that reaches into the very core of why this world is the way it is and attacks its rebellious and thoroughly selfish heart. It is a prayer of revolution and rejection of the current world order and a focused effort to prepare the way for the coming king.
My kingdom is not of this world
When Jesus was on trial, Pontius Pilot asked him if he was a king.
Jesus replied, “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world.”
As we ponder how to be faithful servants of Jesus while we wait for his return, it is tempting to forget that the kingdom of God is not something that springs from this world. It is the kingdom of God. It belongs to Him, and it comes from Him. It is not the product of human effort and certainly not the product of human conflict. It is a gift that is either received with joy or rejected with contempt.
Human government will never be the source of the kingdom of God. We must never indulge in the idolatry of human effort in some vain and misguided attempt to bring about God’s kingdom on earth. The kingdom of God already has a King. The more we struggle against his rule, the worse our situation becomes. If we keep placing our faith in earthly kings in the ridiculous hope that they will force those “other people” to finally get in line. We are not honoring the prayer that asks for His will to be done on earth as it is in heaven. We will instead be ushering in yet another human tyranny. Where there is no repentance, there is no change.
Our job is to announce the good news of the coming kingdom of God and to demonstrate this kingdom every day in our interactions with each other. This will not result in us bringing the kingdom of God into being — God already did that. But it is the fruit of the kingdom of God in us that will, in time, bear fruit in others. This is fruit worthy of the kingdom, and we will be rewarded for our labors when the King returns.
Our hope is not in the kingdoms of this world. Our hope is in the kingdom of God. The answer is not to be found in the wisdom of this world but in the wisdom of God.
Today, we pray for God’s kingdom to come, and we work as faithful servants of the King to proclaim the freedom that is found only in God’s kingdom, demonstrating that the kingdom of God is truly coming through our obedience to the King and our love for one another.
Have a great week!
Get full access to On walking the Way at tompossin.substack.com/subscribe
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By Tom PossinOur world is a fearful place at this moment in history. The world has been here before, but that doesn’t calm our fears. As we read history, wars, economic crises, and political instability are common themes. But reading about them and living through them are two very different prospects. The natural response of many as they face a crisis is to look for a savior. But ironically and sadly, many look to politics and human wisdom for help instead of our actual savior, Jesus. Jesus is our king and our savior, and our wholehearted allegiance must be to his kingdom.
Jesus taught us to pray by giving us a template we call the Lord’s Prayer. This prayer helps us to focus on living in and toward his kingdom at the same time.
“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come,
your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil".
(Matt 6:9-13 ESV)
Often, when we recite this prayer, the phrases, “Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven,” are said as if they are three distinct thoughts. This is understandable, in a way, because this prayer is often recited together, and this phrasing helps everyone stay together. But this custom has a downside: these three phrases are actually just one thought, and breaking it up can sometimes obscure the thing we are asking for.
What are we really asking for here?
I have heard this topic discussed many times, and the answer to this question generally runs in three directions.
* We are asking Jesus to return and usher in the kingdom of God in its fullest form.
* We are praying that all would repent and follow the true King Jesus.
* We are praying for this present age to be changed to conform more closely to the principles of the kingdom of God.
To me, if you take any one of those ideas as complete, you are missing something in this prayer. We are praying for the kingdom of God to come. But this is hard to imagine if the king is still absent. The full realization of the kingdom only comes with the return of our king, Jesus.
However, the second half of this petition speaks of a change on the earth. And while the final and ultimate transformation will come with the return of Jesus and the abolition of evil. We are, nevertheless, to be salt and light. We are to be agents of change. Jesus compared the kingdom of God to a mustard seed. A tiny seed that grew into a plant, a plant large enough for birds to nest in. In Daniel, we see it described as a stone that grows to fill the earth. In these metaphors and prophecies, we see the kingdom of God starting small and growing tremendously.
So, I think all three of these ideas are correct as long as they are taken together and not separately. Without the ultimate hope of our king’s return there is little motivation to try to change the hot mess that is this present age. Without actively engaging the wickedness of this age through the gospel and taking action motivated by the love of Christ, we become part of the problem rather than part of the solution.
If we did nothing but sit and wait for our king’s return, the temptation would be to check out of this life in a vain attempt to find some safe place to hide and wait out the storm. But there is much to do while we wait.
Consider this story Jesus told describing the time of waiting for his return:
Therefore you also must be ready,
for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.
“Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his master has set over his household, to give them their food at the proper time?
Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes.
Truly, I say to you, he will set him over all his possessions.
But if that wicked servant says to himself,
‘My master is delayed,’ and begins to beat his fellow servants
and eats and drinks with drunkards,
the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him
and at an hour he does not know and will cut him in pieces
and put him with the hypocrites.
In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
(Matt 24:44-51 ESV)
Get full access to On walking the Way at tompossin.substack.com/subscribe
Jesus understood the tendencies of humanity very well. He knew that a failure to maintain faith in his imminent return would result in moral corrosion and, ultimately, destruction. In this passage, a vital faith in Jesus seems contingent on a vital faith in his return. This story also implies that his return will take much longer than many expect, making faith in his return all the more important to us today. But having faith also means we must continue actively serving our Master until he comes.
How do we respond to this petition today?
Given this understanding of the Kingdom of God, how do we respond to this beyond simply remembering that Jesus will return someday? This is where we really need to think through how our faith affects every area of our lives.
We say and think all kinds of things, but more often than not, we do what we truly believe. Over time, our actions describe our beliefs better than our words. (Not always the happiest thought, I have to admit) Nevertheless, praying for the kingdom to come will have its first effect on us. It changes the relative value we place on everything we do. Much like having your house on fire, makes you reevaluate which things are really important in your house.
But this is not primarily a self-improvement prayer. It is a radical world-changing prayer. A prayer that reaches into the very core of why this world is the way it is and attacks its rebellious and thoroughly selfish heart. It is a prayer of revolution and rejection of the current world order and a focused effort to prepare the way for the coming king.
My kingdom is not of this world
When Jesus was on trial, Pontius Pilot asked him if he was a king.
Jesus replied, “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world.”
As we ponder how to be faithful servants of Jesus while we wait for his return, it is tempting to forget that the kingdom of God is not something that springs from this world. It is the kingdom of God. It belongs to Him, and it comes from Him. It is not the product of human effort and certainly not the product of human conflict. It is a gift that is either received with joy or rejected with contempt.
Human government will never be the source of the kingdom of God. We must never indulge in the idolatry of human effort in some vain and misguided attempt to bring about God’s kingdom on earth. The kingdom of God already has a King. The more we struggle against his rule, the worse our situation becomes. If we keep placing our faith in earthly kings in the ridiculous hope that they will force those “other people” to finally get in line. We are not honoring the prayer that asks for His will to be done on earth as it is in heaven. We will instead be ushering in yet another human tyranny. Where there is no repentance, there is no change.
Our job is to announce the good news of the coming kingdom of God and to demonstrate this kingdom every day in our interactions with each other. This will not result in us bringing the kingdom of God into being — God already did that. But it is the fruit of the kingdom of God in us that will, in time, bear fruit in others. This is fruit worthy of the kingdom, and we will be rewarded for our labors when the King returns.
Our hope is not in the kingdoms of this world. Our hope is in the kingdom of God. The answer is not to be found in the wisdom of this world but in the wisdom of God.
Today, we pray for God’s kingdom to come, and we work as faithful servants of the King to proclaim the freedom that is found only in God’s kingdom, demonstrating that the kingdom of God is truly coming through our obedience to the King and our love for one another.
Have a great week!
Get full access to On walking the Way at tompossin.substack.com/subscribe