Your Kingdom Come
Read Luke 11.
The conflict is escalating; can you feel it in the air? The religious leaders are making accusations, trying to trick Jesus, voicing their hurt over the things he has said and, by the end of the chapter, they have decided to try to trap him. Maybe he will slip up, they think, and the crowds will turn against him. That will be their moment!
Yet, as the conflict has increases, Jesus has already set the tone for the whole discussion. When the disciples ask him how to pray, he gives them a model prayer. We call it "The Lord's Prayer," but it really should be "The Disciples' Prayer" because he gave it to us. It's meant for us. And yes, Luke gives a shortened version of it, but at the center of it is still Jesus' purpose, his reason for being:
"Your kingdom come."
Everything Jesus has done and is doing is all about the kingdom. Everything he says and everything he will say is about the arrival of the kingdom. There is no other cause to which Jesus dedicates time and energy. We are often very divided. Okay, maybe I should just speak for myself: I am often very divided. Too many things attract my attention. Too many causes seem worthwhile. Too many missions find my interest. But Jesus prays for only one thing:
"Your kingdom come."
It's not about establishing my kingdom. It's not about me supporting your kingdom. Everything we do should be about seeing God's kingdom come, causing God's reign and rule to be established here and now.
Wars no more. Swords beaten into plowshares. No more tears, death, crying or pain. No more brokenness and sin. God's kingdom comes wherever he is allowed to reign, where his rule is the guiding principle of life. That's what Jesus prays for.
When God's kingdom comes, our preferences will not be our highest priority; his will. When God's kingdom comes, we won't tear each other apart or hurt one another. When God's kingdom comes, nation will no longer rise up against nation and we will learn war no more. There will be no hunger, poverty, injustice or oppression. When God's kingdom comes, the world will be what God always imagined it could be.
Soren Kierkegaard said that purity of heart is to will one thing.
"Your kingdom come."
I want that to be my one thing. May it be so.
The conflict is escalating; can you feel it in the air? The religious leaders are making accusations, trying to trick Jesus, voicing their hurt over the things he has said and, by the end of the chapter, they have decided to try to trap him. Maybe he will slip up, they think, and the crowds will turn against him. That will be their moment!
Yet, as the conflict has increases, Jesus has already set the tone for the whole discussion. When the disciples ask him how to pray, he gives them a model prayer. We call it "The Lord's Prayer," but it really should be "The Disciples' Prayer" because he gave it to us. It's meant for us. And yes, Luke gives a shortened version of it, but at the center of it is still Jesus' purpose, his reason for being:
"Your kingdom come."
Everything Jesus has done and is doing is all about the kingdom. Everything he says and everything he will say is about the arrival of the kingdom. There is no other cause to which Jesus dedicates time and energy. We are often very divided. Okay, maybe I should just speak for myself: I am often very divided. Too many things attract my attention. Too many causes seem worthwhile. Too many missions find my interest. But Jesus prays for only one thing:
"Your kingdom come."
It's not about establishing my kingdom. It's not about me supporting your kingdom. Everything we do should be about seeing God's kingdom come, causing God's reign and rule to be established here and now.
Wars no more. Swords beaten into plowshares. No more tears, death, crying or pain. No more brokenness and sin. God's kingdom comes wherever he is allowed to reign, where his rule is the guiding principle of life. That's what Jesus prays for.
When God's kingdom comes, our preferences will not be our highest priority; his will. When God's kingdom comes, we won't tear each other apart or hurt one another. When God's kingdom comes, nation will no longer rise up against nation and we will learn war no more. There will be no hunger, poverty, injustice or oppression. When God's kingdom comes, the world will be what God always imagined it could be.
Soren Kierkegaard said that purity of heart is to will one thing.
"Your kingdom come."
I want that to be my one thing. May it be so.
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