Your Kingdom Come

“Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”Matthew 6:10 (ESV)Why should you and I yearn for, pray for, and work for God’s kingdom to come? Is it worthwhile to completely abandon yourself to God’s kingship, God’s authority, God’s rule? The answer is, “Yes! Yes! A thousand times yes!”Critics and scoffers have maintained that devotion to God and Christ is the root of narrow-mindedness and the cause of all kinds of ills. This is simply not true. What is true is that the disposal of God and any practice of halfhearted devotion causes both narrow-mindedness and all kinds of human ills. Where God is rejected and subjected is where we are far from the kingdom of God. Contrary to the accusations we will never be villains or fools if we commit ourselves to the pursuit of God’s kingdom. “Let your kingdom come.”The overarching reality of God’s kingdom is that his will is done. The subjects of God’s kingdom consistently and completely embrace the will of God, the wisdom of God, the ways of God, and the commandments of God. Have you ever dared to imagine what that looks like? Everyone relating to one another out of heart of love, with no thought of injuring, defrauding, oppressing, or hurting your neighbor for your own ends; no fear of losing out on life because the love of God anchors your life and you know nothing can separate you from it. No need for jealousy because you can freely rejoice in the success of your neighbor, his/her success does not threaten or diminish you, it brings glory to God and that is enough. “My your kingdom come.”People are not dispensable in the kingdom of God, everyone is assigned an eternal place, contribution, and purpose. This is not so with godlessness or idolatry, people are dispensable there. Those who cannot contribute, those who threaten the current power structure, those who became a financial liability, those who can be a means to an end, those believe differently are all dispensable in the kingdoms, philosophies, and man-made religions of our world. Not so with God’s kingdom, sinners, the broken, the feeble, the weak, and the poor are esteemed and invited on the same level as the powerful, the rich, the privileged. “Your kingdom come.”How many keys do you have? How many PIN #s and passwords? When God’s kingdom is fully realized you won’t need any of them because you won’t have to be afraid of someone coveting or stealing your stuff. “Your Kingdom come.”We are not meant to just wait for it, that’s a gross misinterpretation of eschatology. As a follower of Christ I am citizen of the kingdom (Philippians 3:20), I am called to live out God’s kingdom will now, yearn for it now, pray for it to unfold now. But to do so in a world that seeks its own kingdoms will be costly, will require faith, will stretch and challenge us daily, but it is worth it, a thousand times worth it. “Let his kingdom come.”To God be all glory, Pastor Hans