Lord, teach us

The Lord’s Prayer:

...Your Kingdom Come

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Bible Verse of the Day

Luke 11:1-4

Now Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when He finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.” And He said to them, “When you pray, say:

“Father, hallowed be your name.

Your kingdom come.

Give us each day our daily bread,

and forgive us our sins,

for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us.

And lead us not into temptation.”

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THOUGHTS FROM THE SCRIPTURES:

As Jesus continues His instruction on prayer, His second point is also interestingly not about us, our needs, and our struggles. It’s all about praying for God’s Kingdom to come. What does this mean? Matthew’s description of the Lord’s Prayer includes this statement: “your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” Jesus’ point is that God’s Kingdom is not simply about where we go when we die. There is a very real aspect of God’s Kingdom on this earth, right here, right now, where we are today. You may wonder, what does God’s kingdom coming on earth look like then?

Jesus gives us a good idea in Luke 4:18-19, as he quotes Isaiah the prophet:

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,

because he has anointed me

to proclaim good news to the poor.

He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives

and recovering of sight to the blind,

to set at liberty those who are oppressed,

to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

Praying for God’s Kingdom has a way of tuning us into God’s mission on this earth. As we pray for God’s Kingdom He begins to open our eyes to where He is at work, where He wants to be at work, and how He desires to work through us to accomplish His purposes.

How does God want to “retune” your prayer life around His Kingdom’s mission?