October 20 I Tuesday

Isaiah 59-61

2 Thessalonians 3

“Your kingdom come...” —Matthew 6:10

When we pray, are we concerned with the work of God? Basic perfected praying is the recognition of the sovereignty and lordship of Christ, abandoning our agenda for His agenda. Whatever it is we are praying for, it is in submission to His kingship. For a kingdom, by definition, is that which is ruled by a king.

Where is this kingdom? Jesus tells us, “The coming of the kingdom of God is not something that can be observed, nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is in your midst” (Luke 17:20-21). The place in which God exercises His kingship is in us. In our praying, we are coming to God and saying that everything we are going to ask Him for is going to be an expression of our worship of Him. It is going to be an expression of His work being done because as we pray “Your kingdom come” we are implying, “my kingdom go.”

In the Gospel of Matthew, the word “kingdom” is recorded about 54 times, talking mostly about the kingdom of heaven and sometimes about the kingdom of God. We find John the Baptist preaching, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near” (Matthew 3:2). And when Jesus began to preach, He gave the same message: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near” (Matthew 4:17). Both John the Baptist and Jesus preached with anticipation of a coming kingdom.

In the book of Acts, the kingdom of God is here because the kingdom was implemented when the Holy Spirit came on the Day of Pentecost, filling those disciples waiting in the upper room and empowering them to begin implementing the agenda of the King. This would explain what Jesus meant when He said, “Truly I tell you, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom.” Jesus was not talking about His second coming, because those disciples have all died, but alluding to Pentecost.

The last chapter of Acts reveals the message of the kingdom: “[Paul] proclaimed the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ—with all boldness and without hindrance!” (Acts 28:31). The kingdom is about the kingship of Christ. There is a future aspect to the kingdom in the New Testament too, where one day, there is going to be the setting up of a visible kingdom. In the meantime, the kingdom is the reign of Christ in the hearts of those who belong to Him. As we pray, will we surrender our agenda and say, “Your kingdom come”?

Prayer: Lord Jesus Christ, Your kingdom come and my kingdom go. I surrender to Your kingship—rule over my life. Thank You