“When You Pray, Say…”: Learning to Pray Like JesusSample

YOUR KINGDOM COME

“Your kingdom come.” LUKE 11:2 (ESV)

The kingdom of God is vastly different from any earthly kingdom that has existed or will exist. Earthly kingdoms are under the sway of sovereigns whose power is limited and will inevitably decline. But God’s kingdom is far more than a geopolitical entity or piece of history. It is everlasting, universal, and personal, and His dominion over it will endure throughout all generations (Psalm 145:13).

We must keep these truths in mind when we pray, “Your kingdom come.” When we follow Jesus’ example and pray like this, one of the things we are asking is that God’s sovereign rule might increasingly be established in our hearts and lives. We pray that those who know Christ might live in increasing, joyful submission to His rule.

This is a vastly different worldview from any we’re confronted with daily. Mostly, today’s Western culture praises personal achievement and self-sufficiency. We’re encouraged to believe that we are in control. But when God’s kingdom comes into our lives—when we pray for Jesus to take His rightful place upon the throne of our heart—a revolution takes place. We are no longer slaves to sin. The King of creation resides in our lives and begins conforming us to the image of His Son (Romans 8:29). When we pray in this way, the Holy Spirit ministers to us by establishing God’s kingly rule over every dimension of our lives.

And that’s not all. When we pray “Your kingdom come,” we also acknowledge that God is King of the nations—that He reigns over all the affairs of time. Isaiah describes God as whistling for the nations to come “from the ends of the earth; and behold, quickly, speedily they come!” (Isaiah 5:26). As we might call a family dog inside, the King summons the nations to come. When He whistles, they run to do His bidding.

Then, we need not be panic-stricken or tyrannized by any shift in earthly powers. Instead, we can rejoice in the Lord our King, who is sovereign over all these things.

His kingdom cannot fail,

He rules o’er earth and heav’n;

The keys of death and hell

Are to our Jesus giv’n:

Lift up your heart,

Lift up your voice!

Rejoice, again I say, rejoice![1]

• How is God calling me to think differently?
• How is God reordering my heart’s affections—what I love?
• What is God calling me to do as I go about my day today?

Further Reading: PSALM 2

[1] Charles Wesley, “Rejoice, the Lord Is King!” (1744).