DAILY DEVOTION, May 12, 2021. Thy Kingdom come

Ok, I have honored the name of God. Now I can get on with my requests, right? Wrong! As we proceed through the Lord’s Prayer, we still have not arrived at the place where our needs are addressed. The next petition is “Thy kingdom come.” Before we even think about what we desire that God would do for us, we pray for His kingdom to come.

In this petition, we are praying that the kingdom of God will be manifested on the earth.  That is quite a request! It is, however, the heart and soul of Christian prayer. Yes, we have things we want; yes, we pray for blessings upon others, but before we arrive at that point, we pray that God’s Kingdom will be manifested on earth. Those who believe that the kingdom of God has no place in our government cannot possibly pray the Lord’s Prayer sincerely.

Israel made a tragic mistake in 1 Samuel 8. They inform Samuel they want a king to rule over them like the other nations (8:4, 5). God informs Samuel that they are rejecting God as King. God tells Samuel to acquiesce to their demand for a king, but to warn them of the consequences.  God does not intervene and stop all our bad choices, but He does warn us of the consequences of disobeying His will.. Israel made a bad choice when they traded God in for a human king.

We also have a choice to make. Do we really want God’s Kingdom to come to this earth, or do we prefer being ruled by men? Is God’s kingdom our highest priority? We live in a fallen world. God’s Kingdom and God’s will can never be fully realized on earth unless everyone submitted to the authority of Jesus. So what are we praying for in the Lord’s Prayer?  Our prayer is that God’s Kingdom will be our Kingdom of choice. Our primary desire is to live under the Kingdom of our Lord Jesus.

Father, Your Kingdom is the only Kingdom that finally matters. Help me to pray, “Thy Kingdom come” with sincerity. Help me to be a person who seeks first the Kingdom of God, In Jesus name, Amen.