"After this manner, therefore, pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen."
Matthew 6:9-13
Part 3
Yesterday: We Learned to Pray to God Our Father Who is Holy
“Our Father which art in heaven.”
“Hallowed be thy name.”
God is the only One who hears and answers prayer. He is Holy.
Today: We Learn to Pray for God’s Kingdom and His Will to be Done
(Matthew 6:10)
“Thy kingdom come.”
The believer’s mission is to bring glory to God and to advance His Kingdom! When we pray, we need a zeal for God and His Name, His Kingdom, and His Will! Our lives as believers are all about what He wants, what He thinks, and about doing His Will. Our human tendency is to defend our good name and reputation before anything else. God’s way is different. He calls us not to be concerned about those things that the “Gentiles seek after” (Matthew 6). Instead, we are to give God and His Kingdom priority in our lives. He will see to our needs being met.
Jesus preached,
“…Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 3:2).
“From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 4:17).
When God saved us, He included us with the believers in His Church Universal and His Kingdom.
“Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins” (Colossians 1:12-14).
Now we pray for His Kingdom to come. In reality, this is to pray for Jesus’ soon return!
“Thy will be done in earth.”
David said,
“I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart” (Psalm 40:8).
How do you feel about doing God’s Will? Is God’s Will “your delight?” Most people hate the idea of anyone, let alone God, telling them what to do. They are blindly happy doing their own thing, believing that “I am the master of my fate, the captain of my soul”[1] (Henley). Dear friends, we remember that He owns us as His creatures. He made us. And also, we are His by salvation! We know that our God has the first claim on us. He calls His child to do His Will, and we are not our own to do what we want with our lives. We are here on God’s earth, breathing His air, eating His food, and clearly, He has the right to say how we should live and what He wants of us. What is God’s Will anyway? How can I do God’s Will if I do not know what His Will is? I cannot!
“God’s Will is…”
Let me encourage you to search your New Testaments to find out what God’s Will is all about. Several times in the New Testament, we are explicitly told what His Will is. This personal study is well worth your time and effort! Blessings on you as you study God’s Word, seeking for His Will that you might do it.
“As it is in heaven.”
God’s Will is always carried out in Heaven. In heaven dwell all the heavenly creatures that sided with Jehovah. They refused to rebel with the devil millennia ago. The angels’ choice was made, their future has been settled. In electing to follow their Creator, the angels always do His Will, and they are faithful to Him. Their faithfulness is a great example for all of God’s children to follow.
Jesus said that believers do God’s Will. If a man refuses to do His Will, he is not one of God’s children.
“Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 7:21).
Jesus also pointed out that the ones who are doing God’s will have a special family relationship with Him.
“For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother and sister, and mother” (Matthew 12:50).
We, believers, are praying as God’s Will is always done in Heaven, so it will be done on the earth! In a way, for us to pray for God’s Will to be done is to pray for Him to return, then His Will on earth will be carried out as well as in heaven! Rather than living our lives as lost worldlings who think and say, “I am the master of my fate, The captain of my soul,”[2] let us live our lives sincerely telling the Lord,
“Have thine own way, Lord!
Have thine own way!
Thou art the potter,
I am the clay.
Mold me and make me
after thy Will,
while I am waiting,
yielded and still.”[3]
Today we have been learning to ask for God to come with His Kingdom. We, believers, desire for His Will to be done here on earth. This will finally happen when Jesus returns to earth in “power and great glory” (Matthew 24:30; Mark 13:26; Luke 21:27). Lord Jesus, please come soon!
Tomorrow we will learn about trusting God for our daily needs. See you then.
Quote: “I am Thy servant to do Thy will, and that will is sweeter to me than position or riches or fame, and I choose it above all things on Earth or in Heaven”[4] (A.W. Tozer).
[1] These are the last two lines of William Ernest Henley’s poem, “Invictus.” Henley’s quote Downloaded: Wednesday, June 2, 2021. From: https://poemanalysis.com/william-ernest-henley/i-am-the-master-of-my-fate-i-am-the-captain-of-my-soul/.
[2] William Ernest Henley, ibid.
[3] This is the first stanza of “Have Thine Own Way, Lord!” (1906) by Adelaide A. Pollard (1862-1934). Tune: ADELAIDE (Stebbins). Copyright Status: Public Domain.
[4] Tozer’s quote Downloaded: Thursday, June 3, 2021. From: https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/gods-will.