Lord’s Prayer Devotional, Part 3
Think: Contrary to modern assumptions, Jesus never refers to His Kingdom as a place we go after we die. So what are we praying for when we pray “Your Kingdom Come?” As opposed to “To your Kingdom may I go someday!”
Recall: Read Exodus 19:4-6 again. What kind of Kingdom does God want to build?
- Hint: “You shall be to me a KINGDOM of _______________
- What is a priest?
Read: Revelation 5:10. What is God’s goal for His people? (To reign with Him on the earth as His priestly rulers).
Daniel 7:27 (NIV) 27 Then the sovereignty, power and greatness of all the kingdoms under heaven will be handed over to the holy people of the Most High. His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all rulers will worship and obey him.’
(THIS is what we are praying for when we pray “your Kingdom come!”)
Ponder: Who is qualified to reign as priest with Christ in His Kingdom?
- During Jesus’ ministry, he released people of both sins and physical ailments. Many of those ailments are recorded in Leviticus as disqualifying a person from being able to represent God as a priest.
- What is Jesus doing? What kind of people is He “qualifying” to rule in His priestly Kingdom?
Read: Luke 6:20-26 as a contrast of the value systems of the worldly kingdoms vs. the Kingdom of God.
- Money/comfort vs. poor in spirit
- Appetites/lusts vs. hunger
- Laughing (gloating) vs. Those who weep.
- Recognition/celebrity vs. Rejection & exclusion.
What is it about these people that qualifies them for the Kingdom of God?
- HINT: He’s not saying that to enter, you have to be poor, hungry, etc. Nor is He saying that those who are rich, famous, etc. are automatically disqualified.
- Instead, Jesus is proclaiming Good News for those who are aware of their lack, spiritual depravity, and need for a savior. He qualifies the unqualifiable.
- How is that different than all other kingdoms?
Reflect: Do you know that God created you to reign with Him as a priest in the Kingdom of God? What kind of kingdom do you long for most? Does your life reflect His Kingdom’s values, or the world’s?
Read Colossians 2:15. How does the cross make a public spectacle of the powers and authorities (and their kingdoms/values)?
Pray: “Your Kingdom Come…”
- A renunciation of the kingdoms of this world and their power over my life.
- A longing for God’s Kingdom to be brought to bear in my life, and that God would use me as His priest to enact the reign of God on earth.