April 4
“Thy kingdom come.”
In this eighth devotion on the subject of prayer, we direct our attention to the words in the Lord’s Prayer, “Thy kingdom come.” Jesus was anointed to be our King. With His almighty power, Jesus rules in a three-fold kingdom: The kingdom of power, which includes all creatures; the kingdom of grace, which is the Holy Christian Church, made up of all and only believers in Him as God’s Son and our Savior; and the kingdom of glory, which is heaven.
When we pray, “Thy kingdom come,” we are speaking of the kingdom of grace and the kingdom of glory. We are asking God to bring and to keep us in the true faith in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. When Jesus began His public ministry, the evangelist Mark reports, “Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the Gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the Gospel,’” Mark 1:14-15. This refers to the kingdom of grace, the Holy Christian Church. As Christians, we repent of our sins and plead to God for His mercy and forgiveness, which is promised to us by faith in Christ Jesus. The forgiveness of sins and the promise of life everlasting in heaven was gained for us by Jesus. He lived a perfect life and fulfilled all of the Commandments of God in our place. He took our sins upon Himself and carried them to Calvary’s cross where He shed His holy, precious blood to wash them all away, as the evangelist John wrote in his First Epistle: “The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin,” 1 John 1:7.
The apostle Peter expressed it with these words: “You were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold . . . but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a Lamb without blemish and without spot,” 1 Peter 1:18-19. By faith in the Gospel, we become members of the kingdom of grace, the Holy Christian Church.
When we pray, “Thy kingdom come,” we are also asking God to give us the strength to live a Christian life. To the Colossians, Paul wrote, “As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him,” Colossians 2:6. Walk in Him – that is, live according to His Word and will.
The Second Petition, “Thy kingdom come,” is the Mission Petition of the Lord’s Prayer. We are asking God to build and extend the kingdom of grace, the Holy Christian Church, on earth. Jesus says to us, “The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into the harvest,” Matthew 9:37-38.
Finally, we are asking God to hasten the day when Jesus will return to earth to take us into the kingdom of glory, which is heaven. At the close of the Book of Revelation, John writes, “He who testifies to these things says, ‘Surely I am coming quickly.’ Amen. Even so, come Lord Jesus,” Revelation 22:20. Come quickly and take us to heaven!
Hark! The voice of Jesus crying, “Who will go and work today?
Fields are white and harvests waiting, Who will bear the sheaves away?”
Loud and long the Master calleth, Rich reward He offers thee;
Who will answer, gladly saying, “Here am I, send me, send me”? Amen.