Dear Friends,
Jesus taught us to pray ‘Thy Kingdom Come’. What are we asking God to do when we pray this prayer?
We are asking Him for revolution! Listen to heaven’s final shout of triumph:
“The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign for ever and ever.” (Revelation 11:15)
They aren’t shouting that yet because it hasn’t happened yet. But that’s what we are praying for: the total overthrow of every kingdom, authority and leader who doesn’t acknowledge Jesus as King. It’s a revolution.
Yet the Kingdom of God is very different to the kingdoms of this world. Worldly kingdoms often come with a sudden takeover; Jesus said His kingdom would grow in a gradual way over a lengthy period. Worldly revolutions are usually violent; but Jesus’ revolution is even a revolution of the way revolutions normally happen!
How does Jesus’ Kingdom Come?
The Kingdom comes as we witness
Jesus sends His church out into the world not with guns and weapons – things which look powerful but which can only wound and kill. Instead, Jesus sends His church out with the powerful gospel of God, which looks weak but when accepted and believed, it changes hearts and conquers death. When we lovingly share this gospel, we are working for the revolution, inviting people to join the kingdom that will outlast all others. Therefore…
The Kingdom comes person by person
It’s ‘hand to hand combat’, one soul at a time. Francis Schaeffer used to say ‘there are no little people’ – there is no such thing as a person who is insignificant. Everybody is a member of one kingdom or the other. And when someone joins the revolution and bows the knee to Jesus, they are ‘rescued from the kingdom of darkness and brought into the kingdom of the Son’ (Colossians 1:13).
The Kingdom comes by prayer
God has been answering that prayer ever since Jesus first taught us to make it a priority in our praying. Countless numbers have tumbled into the kingdom over the centuries and perhaps many, many more centuries will pass before the Kingdom finally comes. But one day we will raise our voices with heaven and declare with triumph and joy that the “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign for ever and ever.”
In the mean time the revolution goes on: we witness, we love, we pray.
In May, we are joining in with a global prayer movement, initiated by the Archbishop of Canterbury, called ‘Thy Kingdom Come’. On Wednesday 16th May, instead of small groups, we are going to meet centrally and devote an evening to pray for the coming of Christ’s Kingdom. And then on the Friday 18th May, at Mutley Baptist Church, we will join with other churches for an evening of prayer and praise for the growth of Jesus’ kingdom in Plymouth. Please come along!
With love in Christ,
Joe Dent
