In Matthew 6:9-13:
“This, then, is how you should pray:
“‘Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
10 your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us today our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.” NIV
The phrase, “ Thy Kingdom Come” is a prayer for the kingdom of God to prevail on earth. It is the longing for a kingdom where God rules and all human beings submit to his rule. It is a kingdom where there is justice, where the believer looks forward to the second coming of Christ and where everyone works in making the kingdom agenda visible. In other words, “Utopia”, a world that presently does not exist, but which we should all long for. However, we don’t have to long for this ideal. We can all make our own personal efforts to establish the kingdom of God, one person at a time.
So, what does it take to do this? Jesus Christ already gave us the guidelines in Matthew 22: 34-40:
“Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. 35 One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: 36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”
37 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” NIV
The first command which Jesus gave was first mentioned by God in Deuteronomy 6:5, when he said:
“ Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.” NIV
So, God expects us to love him with the totality of our being, that is with our emotions, soul, strength and intellect. We need to demonstrate a deep interest in the ways of God, be obedient to him, that is surrendering to his will and moving closer to him daily. All these are goals that we can achieve, but there is something that stands between God and human beings that does not want them to be what he wants.
This is called the “Will of Man”.
When Man exercises his Will, it clashes with the Will of God, culminating in Sin.
You see , when God created Man, he gave him a Will. This enables him to make choices for himself and for others. A person can be as close to God as he wants. However, there are too may distractions that separate Man from the perfect Will of God.
So, for example, even though a person genuinely loves God, he can make several poor choices which can go against the Will of God. These choices may be based on his emotions, and so many other factors that can influence him at that particular time. That is why you have people sometimes commit crimes, even though they seem pious and morally upright. Yet the poor choices they make shows them to be less than what God wanted when he created them.
Apostle Paul puts this so beautifully in Romans 7:21-25:
“It seems to be a fact of life that when I want to do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong. 22 I love to do God’s will so far as my new nature is concerned; 23-25 but there is something else deep within me, in my lower nature, that is at war with my mind and wins the fight and makes me a slave to the sin that is still within me. In my mind I want to be God’s willing servant, but instead I find myself still enslaved to sin.
So you see how it is: my new life tells me to do right, but the old nature that is still inside me loves to sin. Oh, what a terrible predicament I’m in! Who will free me from my slavery to this deadly lower nature?
Thank God! It has been done by Jesus Christ our Lord.
He has set me free.” TLB
The second guideline or commandment given by Jesus Christ is constantly flouted even more than the first one. It urges us to “love our neighbors as ourselves”. However, this commandment is regularly flouted without any misgivings or remorse because we cannot see God, so its easy to disobey him. However, since we can see other human beings its easier to not do right by them, and then hope that there will be no consequences for wrong action or behavior. This is especially so , when the oppressor is in a position of power and authority.
Some do wrong by others hoping to get away with it. However, God, the righteous judge and the impartial arbiter always redresses wrongs and ensures that justice is done.
So, how does God expect us to behave towards our fellow human beings , especially when we pray for God’s kingdom to come? Let’s look at teaching of Jesus Christ in the “Parable of the Good Samaritan”.
In Luke 10:25-37:
”On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
26 “What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?”
27 He answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.”
28 “You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”
29 But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
30 In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. 31 A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. 32 So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. 34 He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35 The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’
36 “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”
37 The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”
Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.” NIV
So, dear readers, your neighbor is anyone in need, regardless of race, status or their station in life. Mercy and compassion are the true hallmarks of neighborliness, even for strangers and enemies.
Finally, remember the “ Golden Rule” ,which everyone longing for the Kingdom of God to come must live by. In Mathew 7-12, Jesus said:
“So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.”
Invitation to Salvation.
Jesus is calling you today. He is saying to you:
“Come to me all who are tired from carrying your heavy loads and I will give you rest”. Mathew 11:28
If you want to accept this invitation, pray to God. You can say something like this:
“Lord Jesus, I am a sinner. I confess my sins before you today. Thank you for dying on the cross for my sins. I want to know you personally. I open the door of my life to you and ask you to come in and be my Lord and personal Savior. Take control of my life. Thank you for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. Make me the kind of person that you want me to be. In Jesus name I have prayed. Amen.”
If you have sincerely put your trust in Jesus to be your Savior, welcome to the household of God!
