Jesus gave us the Lord’s Prayer as basic instruction for praying. After recognizing God’s holiness, the first request is for His kingdom to come. Once we realize that this request should naturally come before any of our own, then it seems important to reflect on what we are really praying for in this case.
Your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven. Matthew 6:10 (ESV)
Very simply, this is a prayer that God’s ways would be manifested in our world. Although there is a future, final aspect to this statement, it’s clear in Jesus’ teachings that there is an immediate aspect as well, that there are ways that the kingdom of God is manifested before He returns. This is the “already but not yet” aspect of the kingdom.
Also clear in New Testament teaching is that the kingdom is manifested first in changed hearts, and that then leads to changed lives. For example, when the disciples asked about the physical realization of the kingdom in Acts 1:6, Jesus pointed them again to the need to proclaim Him, because only by accepting His salvation and lordship could the necessary first step occur.
When Jesus’ followers show changed lives that include serving and loving those around them, then the kingdom becomes manifest.
The fact that this process starts with changed hearts highlights the importance of evangelism: not just to save individuals, but to bring God’s saving power to the world through those individuals. When salvation is followed by discipleship, the impact to the world grows like a seed sprouting forth into a great tree.
Thus, although the reality of God’s kingdom is manifested in many different ways, we can start by praying that the kingdom comes in people’s hearts as they know God through Christ.
Heavenly Father, I pray that Your kingdom would come into the lives of those around me, that Your salvation would be known to them personally and that it would work out through them to the rest of the world.
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