DISSECTING THE LORD’S PRAYER
Thy Kingdom Come
The Kingdom of God
As a child, I used to think that heaven is up there, earth is down here, and hell is further down below. Children are often taught in such spatial terms until they grow old enough to understand the spiritual.
The coming of the kingdom of heaven is something that the Jews are looking forward to. They have gone from having God as their king to asking God for a king which God granted them in the person of Saul and eventually of David and his children. Then, they waited for the coming of the Messiah and of the kingdom. They looked forward to this so much that Jesus was asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come. To this Jesus answered,
The coming of the kingdom of God cannot be observed, and no one will announce, “Look, here it is”, or “there it is”. For behold, the kingdom of God is among you.
(Luke 17:20–21, NABRE)
From these words, we somehow sense that the kingdom of God is not a place, in the spatial or physical sense of the word. Instead, it is something spiritual. Jesus, in his trial before Pilate, said,
My kingdom does not belong to this world. If my kingdom did belong to this world, my attendants would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not here. (John 18:36, NABRE)
And yet, in spite of these statements, we hear Jesus say, at the beginning of his ministry,
This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel. (Mark 1:15, NABRE)
This statement at the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry (see also Matthew 4:17) shows us that the kingdom of God is not similar to the kingdoms of the world with known boundaries. Instead, the kingdom of God is in the hearts of people who have God as their king. It is also different from the kingdoms of this world who wage war in defense of their sovereign (refer to Jesus’ answer to Pilate in the Gospel of John above). Rather, St. Paul says,
For the kingdom of God is not a matter of food and drink, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the holy Spirit. (Romans 14:17, NABRE)
This corresponds to what Jesus says,
But seek first the kingdom [of God] and his righteousness, and all these things will be given you besides. (Matthew 6:33, NABRE)
The kingdom of God, then, is a kingdom of righteousness, peace and joy. It is a kingdom where we stand by what is right even if it is not easy. It is a kind of spirituality that brings us inner peace amid the turmoils that surround us. It is a heart of joy even when we are persecuted.
Why then do we have joy and peace even when we are persecuted for the sake of righteousness? It is because we know that the kingdom of God is a great treasure.
The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure buried in a field, which a person finds and hides again, and out of joy goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. (Matthew 13:44, NABRE)
And it grows.
The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a person took and sowed in a field. It is the smallest of all the seeds, yet when full-grown it is the largest of plants. It becomes a large bush, and the “birds of the sky come and dwell in its branches”.
The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed with three measures of wheat flour until the whole batch was leavened. (Matthew 13:31–33, NABRE)
It grows because it brings many people into its fold like a merchant of fine pearls or a big fishing net.
Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant searching for fine pearls. When he finds a pearl of great price, he goes and sells all that he has and buys it. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net thrown into the sea, which collects fish of every kind. (Matthew 13:45–47, NABRE)
What does it mean to pray, “Thy Kingdom Come”
In the Lord’s Prayer, we pray to the Father and ask that his kingdom come. When we do so, we ask that his kingdom comes to us. We ask that we be among the birds that find shelter in the mustard tree, among the fish that are collected in the net, and among the wheat flour leavened by the yeast. And we recognize that we are dependent on him and on his kingdom — the tree, the net, and the yeast.
When we ask the Father that his kingdom come, we ask him to grant us a heart of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit that the things of the world may not make our hearts worried. We ask that we be saved from all anxieties and distress as we await the hope of Jesus’ second coming.
When we ask the Father “Thy kingdom come”, we also commit ourselves to him. We repent and believe in the Gospel, with the fervent hope that we may be counted among the rich soil.
But the seed sown on rich soil is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and yields a hundred or sixty or thirtyfold.
(Matthew 13:23, NABRE)
We recognize ourselves as his subjects, who will champion his cause in this world. We make ourselves truly the good seeds and not the weeds (refer to Matthew 13:24–30).
“First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles for burning; but gather the wheat into my barn.” (Matthew 13:30, NABRE)
We commit ourselves to carrying our crosses daily and to following him.
The next time we pray the Lord’s Prayer, may we find in ourselves the strength to cooperate in his sanctifying power so that we may truly make his kingdom come to us and be alive in us.
This is the fourth in a series of articles dissecting the Lord’s Prayer beginning with Our Father which was followed by Who Are in Heaven and Hallowed be Thy Name.
