“After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen” (Matthew 6:9-13, KJV).

The words of Jesus Christ continue to resonate today, even across the world. Known as “The Lord’s Prayer,” this resplendent and authoritative passage is found within the confines of Luke 11:2-4 & Matthew 6:9-13. From the moment Jesus taught it to His disciples on the Mount of Olives nearly two-thousand years ago, it has become the most recited prayer in Christendom.

Unfortunately, for many people, this prayer has become a mere repetition of words, rather than a prayer born from the heart. Perhaps, we are all guilty of committing this injustice at one time or another. Jesus emphatically rebuked the religious leaders of His day for honoring Him with lip service only; in turn, they withheld honor from Him by failing to surrender their hearts. Jesus identified them as “hypocrites” and “vipers” (see Mark 7:6; Matt. 12:34). Strong words—fitting for today’s church; may we all take heed to these words.

For those who long for a deeper understanding of how to intimately communicate with God, it has become a pattern whereby one can fashion his or her thoughts and words against. A small segment of the “Lord’s Prayer” reads:

“Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven…” (Matthew 6:10).

If we only knew what we are really saying when we utter the words, “Thy Kingdom come”—when we close “The Lord’s Prayer.” At some point in our walk with God, we must acquire a greater understanding of the meaning behind, “Thy Kingdom Come.”

Some questions are worth asking.

1. Why am I praying “thy Kingdom come?”
2. Where is Christ’s Kingdom?
3. Is God’s Kingdom still futuristic? Or, is it already here?
4. Can a heavenly Kingdom inhabit a sinful earth?

My intention is to bring forth a greater clarity of the Kingdom through an overview of integral truths. God, in his infinite wisdom, has designed a glorious plan for His people. It reaches back to the Beginning, a “time” preceding the creation of Time!

“According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love” (Ephesians 1:4).

Below are ten Biblically sound points, fundamental to understanding the dynamics of God’s Kingdom.

• The Kingdom is governed by Jesus Christ
• The Kingdom is a government
• The Kingdom is eternal
• The Kingdom is personal
• The Kingdom is a manifestation of the Gospel
• The Kingdom is for the meek
• The Kingdom’s citizens are of Heavenly origin
• The Kingdom will be both physical and spiritual on Earth
• The Kingdom is given to the saints
• The Kingdom will be ruled from Jerusalem by Jesus Christ

Jesus used parables to reveal mysteries of the Kingdom. A parable, in short, teaches a spiritual truth or principle through the use of a word-picture analogy. Those who had eyes to see, ears to hear, and a heart to believe, were able to understand the parables. However, Jesus also used parables to conceal the revelation of God’s Kingdom from those who were spiritually blind and filled with unbelief.

“And he said, Unto you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God: but to others in parables; that seeing they might not see, and hearing they might not understand” (Luke 8:10).

Do you have the faith and sincerity to better understand “The Lord’s Prayer?”

Our prayers can become the motif whereby heaven moves and hell shutters. The “Kingdom of Heaven” was a major theme in the teachings of Jesus Christ. Jesus emphasized it in the many parables he taught. In Matthew 13 & Mark 4, we find seven parables, all pertaining to the Kingdom of Heaven, also referred to asthe Kingdom of God.

1. “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. A man found it, and he concealed it. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field” (Matthew 13:44).
2. “The kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it” (Matthew 13:45-46).
3. “The kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house, who brings out of his treasure both what is new and what is old” (Matthew 13:52).
4. “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven that a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, till it was all leavened” (Matthew 13:33).
5. “The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. It is the smallest of all seeds, but it grows larger than all the garden plants and becomes a tree. The birds of the air can come and make nests in its branches” (Matthew 13:31-32).
6. “The kingdom of God is like a man scattering seed on the ground. He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows —he knows not how. The earth, by itself, produces first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. But when the grain is ripe, at once the man puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come” (Mark 4:26-29).
7. “The kingdom of heaven is like a net that fisher-folk threw into the sea. The net gathered all sorts of fish. When the net was full, the fisher-folk drew it ashore. They sat down and sorted the good fish into containers but threw away the bad. So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous and cast the evil into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matthew 13:47-50).

Jesus Christ, being a Jew, challenged the Judeo-orthodox system of worship. Both Jews and Gentiles, including the religious elite, rejected Christ’s teachings because of hardened hearts. They perceived Christ’s teachings as being “new doctrine” (See Mark 1:27), because they did not believe that YHWH was incarnate in the man Christ Jesus. Instead of believing, accepting, and obeying the voice of God, they wrote Him off as someone other than who He truly was—the Messianic King of Israel. The Holy Spirit is the only One who can bring a revelation of this truth. Jesus affirmed this to Peter.

“And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 16:17).

I write as a witness to God’s amazing grace. How blessed is the one who can understand the secrets of the Kingdom, mysteries that have been kept hidden from the foundations of the world!

That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world (Matthew 13:35)

The salvation of the Gentiles, I believe, is the greatest mystery of the Kingdom. It is embedded in God’s plan to adopt the Gentiles as the seed of Abraham—the heirs of the promise through faith. God’s grace extends beyond the borders of Israel, within every nation, and into every city. The day of Pentecost ushered the Kingdom of God upon this earth in a way unprecedented. Even today, the name of Jesus is glorified in the Acts 2:38 message of redemption.

“…God at the first did visit the Gentiles, to take out of them a people for his name” (Acts 15:14).

The same blessing promised to the Jewish Apostle Peter would also be afforded unto Luke, a Gentile who not only wrote a Gospel account, but also the Book of Acts narrative.

“What if the goal of Jesus was not just to get us from earth to heaven after we die, but to empower us to bring heaven to earth before we die?”

― J.A. Hardgrave

The Kingdom is filled with promises! In the Old Testament, God’s salvation and favor were symbolized by immediate earthly blessings—such as land and peace. For the children of Israel, covenantal relationship was determined by their obedience to God. When God made a promise to Abraham, obedience brought him into a position of blessing. The promised land, for example, was the promise for the children of Israel.

When we pray to God for His kingdom to come upon this earth, our desire should be centered on touching unsaved souls by obeying the Great Commission. Our motive for praying should be more centered around others, and less focused upon ourselves. God is searching for willing vessels whereby He can pour His anointing on to reach the unsaved.

In the New Testament, God’s salvation and favor are symbolized by the new-birth experience rooted in obeying Acts 2:38-40. (Repentance, baptism in the name of Jesus Christ, and infilling of the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in other tongues).

After this born-again experience, redemptive evidence is demonstrated by the spiritual fruit in one’s life. To continue in sanctification and holiness is a necessity for salvation. This is how a child of God commits to the responsibility of keeping God’s covenant.

May the Lord Jesus Christ help the Church to allow His Kingdom to come through us, that all might be saved through the power of the Gospel!