The Lord's Prayer - Adult SS - Lesson 3: Your Kingdom Come

As we forgive those who sin against us, lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.! For yours is the kingdom, the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen.

So it's that third line I want us to look at. Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. And this is the second petition of the Lord's Prayer, the second thing we ask for in the Lord's Prayer.

So do you remember how we can divide the Lord's Prayer up? You've got three parts. Yeah, I've got it there on your handout. There's the address. That's the first line. That's who we pray to. And then the next two lines are petitions about God, asking things about God.

And then we have petitions for us, asking things specifically about us. And so we're in the petitions about God. And again, we are in the God part of the mini zoo.

And Jesus is teaching us something about God here. But not so much about God in himself, as we saw last week with Hallowed Be Your Name. That was going to think about more about God in himself, his glory.

But Jesus is teaching us more about what God is doing in this world and what his big plan of salvation is. And so I want us to look at this line and break it down into two parts.

I want us to look at God's kingdom and then his will. And I want us to see what this says about God and his work in this world. And I hope we'll see that these two things, God's kingdom and his will, they are very closely related.

But first, let's look at and think about God's kingdom. God's kingdom. I just want to focus just on that first part, your kingdom come. And let's just first realise what this says about God.

This might seem obvious, but this is telling us God has a kingdom. And what is God's kingdom? I've got a kind of a rough definition there for you.

God's kingdom is God's rule and reign. God's kingdom is his rule and reign. So what does any kingdom involve? Just think about any kingdom. It involves a king, right?

You've got the word there, king. This is telling us something essential in the Christian life, something essential about God. God is king. And what does a king do in his kingdom?

He rules and reigns and orders and controls his kingdom, his people, his land. A king rules over his kingdom. And God being king and his kingdom, this is a huge theme in the Bible.

But God's kingdom, when we see that God's kingdom, it can mean different things. And so as we kind of think about what we're praying here when we say your kingdom come, I want us to be clear on what we mean by God's kingdom.

OK, and I want us to kind of see that theme throughout the Bible. Kind of do just a quick glance at God's kingdom in the Bible. I want you to break out into groups.

Have a look at these four questions and use the Bible verses below them, below each question to help you answer them. I'll give you a few minutes for that and see what you come up with.

Go for it. Thank you.

Thank you.

so so here oh

Give you one more minute.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Everything, right? Yeah. The Lord has established his throne in the heavens and his kingdom rules over all. God is the king over everything, right?

Because he is God, he rules over all, right? Every single atom, every person, every place. There is nowhere in creation that God doesn't rule over. In that sense, kind of in a more general sense, the whole of creation is his kingdom.

He is king over it all, right? He's completely sovereign. Okay. We'll tie these questions together in a moment. Let's just go through them. Now let's talk about humanity.

When God created humanity, what was Adam meant to be in this world? What do we have? Hands up. Yeah, John. He has to be a kingdom over the physical world. Right.

Okay. Yeah. Do you see that language of dominion? Adam was to have dominion in this world. Dominion is the language of kingship. He was to be a mini king, an under king, to rule over this world, to rule over the fish and the birds and over the livestock and over everything, right?

He was to be, in a sense, a king. Okay. We'll come back to that in a moment. But in sin, how do we respond to God's rule in this world? And who or what began to rule instead?

What do we have? How do we respond to God's kingship in Genesis 3?

Rebellion, right? And it's, I've only given you a kind of a little snippet of Genesis 3, but kind of sums up what was going on in Adam and Eve's intentions, right?

The serpent says, for God knows that when you eat of this tree that you're not allowed to eat of, your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil. In eating from the tree, Adam and Eve were rejecting God's kingship and said, I want to be like God and I want to determine what's good and evil.

I want to be the real ruler. And that is the heart of sin. And that's actually the origin of sin. That's how it all began. And so how do we respond? Well, you can kind of see it in Psalm 2.

The kings of the earth set themselves against God. We are now in rebellion, opposed to him in our sin, against his kingship. And so who or what's ruling instead?

John 8. Sin. Sin is a master, like a king enslaving us. And also 2 Corinthians 4.

The God of this world is talking about Satan. Has blinded the minds of the unbelievers. He is like a... Satan is referred to as the God of this world. Not that he is God or equal to God.

But he has become a ruler in this world. Right? Now, nowhere, nothing like God. But he is a power in this world. Just like sin is a power. And just like our own desires are a power now.

Sinful desires. So actually, you pull these together. It's kind of the three powers you see in Ephesians 2. It's the flesh and the world and the devil. Right? It is...

These are kind of like rulers. Kind of replacing God's kingship and saying, this is going to rule instead. But what does Jesus come to do? How does Jesus relate to all of this?

Rory? You're trying to avoid eye contact with me. That means I pick on you. He comes to deliver us from the dominion of darkness. Right. Okay. So there is kind of this language of two kingdoms now.

There's that sin, flesh, devil, kingdom. Dominion of darkness. And Jesus has come to deliver us, rescue us from that rule.

And bring us into his kingdom. His rule. Right? And so what does that involve? John 12. Now the ruler of this world, the devil, will be cast out. That's what Jesus comes to do.

Cast out the devil. And what does Jesus preach? His first ever sermon. The time is fulfilled. The kingdom of God. The rule of God is at hand. Coming with Jesus.

In fact, Matthew 12. Look. Jesus says, if it is by the spirit of God that I cast out demons, get rid of this evil. Then actually that is the kingdom of God come upon you. That is God's rule.

And it's coming with Jesus, the king. So let's try and tie all this together. Let's think about creation. So God, what do we see in the first question?

God just rules over all things. Okay? This is kind of like an all-encompassing tent of rule.

Right? So God. Oh, how do you write sideways? That says rule. Okay? You might call this God essential rule. This is just God as God rules over all.

But what did he do with Adam? With man? He said, I am going to rule in creation.

But I am setting a man to rule over creation as an under ruler.

A vice regent, you could say. Okay? And that was Adam. Adam. But what happened? And so that's how creation was going to be.

Under control. Ordered. Protected. It was under this type of rule. And that's how God designed it. But what happened in the fall? We. Let's keep that straight because God still rules.

God still rules. He still rules over all things as God. But his. His rule in creation. Was rejected.

We didn't want him. Let's represent this. Here we go. Here we go. Here we go. Let's do this. Kind of like a broken rule.

There we go. Right? But God's rule was rejected. But we didn't want him to rule. And so from what became the power instead? It was sin. And it was Satan.

They kind of. Tried to throw God off the throne. And say actually we're going to rule instead. And so. What happened to creation? It was all plunged into sin and misery.

Now remember God is still ruling as king. This isn't out of his control. But this is a rejection of his rule. And that's what's happened in the fall. What's happening. With the Lord Jesus Christ.

He has come. As a king. He's come as a king.

To rule. Over this world. As it should be. As it should have been the whole time. And so.

God is doing something. About this rebellious. This rebellion on earth. He's doing something about it. In the Lord Jesus. God is restoring his rule.

Through this king. And he is bringing people. Back into obedience. And care. Under God. And overcoming that opposition.

And so. You can kind of think of it like this. You have. With the Lord Jesus. Let's go.

He's coming. He's coming. He's coming. To bring God's rule. And overthrow. The bad rebellion. And this.

What Jesus is doing. And bringing into this world. This is. God's kingdom. Right. So yes. God rules over all like that.

But there is a special. This particular. In terms of redemption. And salvation. There is this kingdom. That is coming. To oppose.

The domain of darkness. And so when Jesus preaches. The kingdom of God is at hand. He is saying. God's rule. Is finally breaking. Into this world of sin.

Into this darkness. And he is the king. Bringing in the kingdom. And so God's kingdom. In the Lord's prayer. It means not just his general rule.

Over all creation. But we can define it as this. Kind of got an expanded definition. God's kingdom. Is God's supernatural. And gracious rule.

Over his saved people. By forgiving sin. Overcoming Satan. And establishing his righteousness. And so.

Where God's grace is. That's where the kingdom is breaking in. When someone is converted. And puts their faith in the Lord Jesus.

That is the kingdom coming. That is Jesus. In being enthroned. Over someone's life. When our sinful habits.

As Christians. As they get broken. That is the kingdom coming. Deeper into our lives. When we are filled with anxiety. But we just hear God's word.

And it calms us. That is the kingdom coming. And defeating those fears. So what salvation is.

In this world. What God is doing. In this world. And in our lives. That is all God's kingdom. Breaking into this world. That is King Jesus.

Bringing his rule. Into this world. And so. The church. Is central. To the kingdom of God. Now. I have a little side note here.

Now the church. Isn't identical. To the kingdom of God. There. There is. Other evil out there. That's being overthrown. And you could say. That is the kingdom of God.

Coming into this world. But it's not necessarily. The church. That. Where that evil is happening. But where that evil is being overthrown. Or even think. When the gospel goes out.

In your workplace. That isn't necessarily the church. But that is the kingdom advancing. Right. So the church. Isn't identical. It's identical to the kingdom. But it's central.

Right. It is almost identical. But it. But it's not quite. It is central to the kingdom of God. Because it's the church. That is where. We are the focus.

Of God's rule. And this is kind of like. The. The center. Of where sin. And Satan. Is being defeated. And so I just want to notice. Three things about God's kingdom.

Firstly. This means God's kingdom. Is spiritual. So do you remember what Jesus said. John 18. My kingdom. Is not of this world.

The kingdom. Is a supernatural. Breaking in. Of God's rule. Here on earth. It's not something. Kind of built by man. It's not.

It's nothing that we can. We can't make this come in. No. We must pray. For God to do this. Because it is. Supernatural. It's spiritual. Which means.

The only way. To enter this kingdom. Is by God's spirit. That's the second thing. I want us to see. So look again. What Jesus says. John three. Truly. Truly. I say to you.

Unless one is born of water. And the spirit. He cannot enter the kingdom of God. For the kingdom. To come. And for sinners. To come under God's rule.

The spirit. Must do it. The spirit. Must be at work. And so. When. When the spirit. Raises. A sinner. From the dead.

And brings in that faith. That unbelief. And a new heart. Boom. The kingdom has come. And that person. Is now. In the kingdom. A part of the kingdom.

And under God's. Gracious. Saving rule. But all this means. Something else. Really important. If the kingdom. Has come with Jesus. Remember.

Where Jesus is. And what Jesus does. That. That is the kingdom. If it's come with Jesus. Then it's here now. Jesus has come. He's broken in.

But there is still rebellion. There's still Satan. Still sinners. Needing salvation. The kingdom. Needs to come. More and more. And so.

There is a now. And a not yet. To the kingdom. So the third thing. I want us to see. The kingdom is now. And not yet. So the whole plan.

Of salvation. Is that God. Is expanding. His kingdom. Here on earth. And so. It is here now. In fact. It is in this room. Right now.

The kingdom of God. Is here. But it's also. Coming. And this is what Jesus. Means. When he says. The kingdom of God. Is at hand. When he preaches that. He's saying.

It's here. Because I'm here. The king's here. But it's also. Drawing there. At the same time. It's breaking in. More and more. And that's why.

Jesus is teaching us. To pray here. Your kingdom. Come. Jesus. Is saying. Our desire. Should be for God's.

Rule. To come more. And more. Into this world. His plan. Of salvation. To grow more. And more. And be realized. In this world. And. To desire.

For God. To be recognized. As king. In this world. Which if you think about it. It relates. To last week. To hallowed be your name. Doesn't it? Because.

God's name. Is hallowed. In his kingdom. In his kingdom. The glory. Of the king. Is known. And recognized. And submitted to. His power.

His power. Over evil. Is displayed. His grace. To sinners. His righteousness. His laws. God's name. Is hallowed. His glory. Is shining forth.

In his kingdom. By his kingdom coming. Which is why. Jesus. Leads the Lord's prayer. With these things. These petitions. About God.

This is what is most. Essential. In the Christian life. This is. The big plan. Of salvation. It is God's kingdom coming. And so.

I just want to have us. Have us. To have a think. About. Kind of. Practically. What does it mean. To pray this then. What exactly. Are we asking for. And we'll break out.

Into groups. Do that. But first. Let me just stop. For questions there. Maybe just questions. Of clarification. Before we kind of. Break out into this. Questions about the kingdom. God's rule. Stuff like that. Either.

This makes perfect sense. Or you're all really confused. Well we'll find out. Break out into groups. Have a think. About. Given. This is what the kingdom is. Right. What would it mean then.

To pray your kingdom come. And think about. Just the different areas. Of our lives. Church. Friends and neighbours. When I say friends and neighbours. I mean. Kind of unbelief. Unbelievers around us. Our country. Our world.

And then you've got. An extra question there. Try to get to the extra question. That's a good one. Thank you.

Thank you.

You have to do every single round. If there are some you just want to skip and then get to other ones, go for it. Are you already doing this? Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you. Okie dokie. Let's have keen hands up. Let's all chip in. So what do you think it would mean to pray your kingdom come with respect to our own lives?

What do we have? What do we have? You can volunteer other people in your group if you think they had a good answer. What do we think?

Yeah, yeah, David? Yeah, yeah, David. Oh, sorry. It's a bit more complete submission. Well, okay. Submission. Submission to God, right? Obedience. What would that look like?

Obedience. Obedience, right, yeah. Let's expand that. Let's expand that. What is, practically speaking, obedience? It's following God's law. It's following God's law. It's godliness.

It's holiness, yeah. But we are praying, Lord, would I submit to you more and more in my life? There are loads of areas where we kind of still resist God, aren't there?

There's still sin in our lives. And so we are praying, Lord, your kingdom come more into my life so that I grow in godliness and holiness. Put those sins to death. Obey you better in that area.

David? Same thing. All right. It's the right answer then. There we go. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, this is, there are so many ways you could apply this, right?

Just think about all the commands that we are given, how we are to live as Christians. Help me to love more. Help me to forgive. I'm really struggling to forgive. Lord, your kingdom come. Help me to put to death my pride and stop thinking about myself.

All right. So when we pray this, there's lots out there that we wish the kingdom would come and evil would be defeated. But actually, when we pray this, we should really think, Lord, start with me.

Your kingdom come in this world, but start with me in my life, my heart. How about our church? So it's kind of linked, isn't it?

But how can we apply that to church as well? Yeah. Yeah. It's to be honoured and glorified in church.

Right. And, you know, we're gathering up a lot of people with a lot of personalities and desires. And actually, it helps the church unity as well. We know that actually Jesus is king. Yeah. And we put ourselves that.

Absolutely. Absolutely. Yeah. But your kingdom come, Lord, make Jesus be number one in our church. Don't. Will that never be a lost priority? And would we be a united church, united under the Lord Jesus, united by his blood and united to each other?

Love and serve each other. Right. Because if we think about godliness, it's not just personal godliness in our private lives. It is that. But godliness, it's loving and serving each other. Like, remember, this is, we are praying this as a church, our father in heaven.

How about our friends and neighbours, the unbelievers in our lives? Or would the kingdom come? Kingdom come with respect to that. Yeah.

It's an evangelistic prayer, isn't it? Right. That we would have opportunities for conversation. That there would be a willingness to hear. That they would hear the gospel. And that they would believe, Lord, your kingdom come and overcome this unbelief in my friend's life, in my neighbour's life.

Lord, I pray that the gospel goes out and works and changes lives. And how about our country? Let's think of our country and our world. What would it look like, kind of on the larger global landscape?

Yeah, yeah, Andy. I mean, partly the persecution is God. Yeah. That is a huge part of this prayer, right?

We live in relative comfort here in this country. But Christ's church is suffering around the world. And other nations' leaders are opposing God's rule.

Right. It's Psalm 2, isn't it? Right. That they are setting themselves against God and against his church. And so we are praying. When we say, your kingdom come, that, Lord, overthrow that persecution.

We pray it would end. We pray that our leaders in our own country and the countries around us would not rebel against you. It's praying 1 Timothy 2, isn't it?

Right. Pray for your leaders that they would be saved as well. In your kingdom come, we are praying. We long for Andy Burnham to bow the knee to Christ, don't we?

And for, in our own country, as well as other countries, for the gospel not to be hindered, for leaders not to oppose God and oppose his gospel. But actually for the church to flourish under a righteous rule.

Now, that isn't saying we want the church necessary to be the country or the country to be the church. Right. We're not saying it necessarily in that way.

But we are saying we want your kingdom to come into the lives of our leaders. And for the nations not to rage against you. How about this extra question?

What is the role of the proclamation of God's word in bringing the kingdom? You might need to connect with other Sunday schools. Did anyone get to this?

Alex, you're thinking. Did you have some thoughts? Just the thoughts. Ooh, keys to the kingdom.

Okay, yeah, yeah, yeah. Love that, love that. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Okay, so there's the keys of the kingdom. That's come to mind. And then, yeah, I mean, that's great. So, short answer is, what is the proclamation of God's word in bringing the kingdom?

All this happens through the word. Right. So, lives change. Sin is overcome. Sin is saved by, all by the gospel going out.

And so, remember, this is a spiritual kingdom. This is a supernatural work of the spirit breaking into the world. And no one enters unless they're born again by the spirit.

And what is the tool the spirit uses to do that? The tool in the spirit's hand is God's word. It's the gospel.

And so, you kind of think of it like this. So, if the spirit, the Holy Spirit is like a surgeon on hearts who changes hearts. God's word is like a scalpel in the hands of the Holy Spirit.

Changing our hearts. Bringing in the kingdom. And sinners, and that means by the work of the spirit, with the word, sinners willingly come under the rule of God and obey him.

Which means, in God's kingdom, God's commands are obeyed and followed. Which is to say, in God's kingdom, his will is done.

And so, the final thing I want us to see. I want us to just think about God's will. So, hopefully we'll finish entire, yeah. I'll go quickly through this. So, when we speak of God's will, we are talking about what God wants, right?

That's a will. What God wants. And you can understand God's will in two ways. Okay. You can think about, okay. God's will is, you can speak of God's will of decree and his will of desire.

And these aren't separate things. They're basically two sides of the same coin. And God's will, God's will of decree, that's God's sovereign rule over creation. That's basically kind of the key out of the lines that we initially drew.

This is saying, God has decrees, commands, a plan for all creation. And every atom follows those commands, right? He has complete control.

He has a will and plan for everything. It happens, as he says, from the leaf falling to the whole plan of history, right? To the final day of history. Like a king, he has a decree for all aspects of creation.

And so that's kind of his overall essential rule. But his will of desire is his commands to us, are his commands to us.

This is, his will of desire is what he desires and wants us to be like. So you can kind of, you can sum that up in the Ten Commandments, right? That is God's will for us. My will of desire is that you have no other gods before me.

My will of desire is that you do not murder, right? He's desiring something there. He's willing something there. And in that sense, God's will can be resisted or ignored or disobeyed, can't it, right?

We can submit to God's will or not. It's basically this, an inner picture, right? We can rebel against it, his kingship. And so when we pray your will be done, we are saying, Lord, we want our lives and the lives around us to obey what you have commanded.

Your will of desire, we want that to actually be done and obeyed in our lives and the world. Which, when that happens, that is in effect God's kingdom coming, isn't it?

Right? To submit to God's will is to submit to God as king, which is his kingdom come. And that's why Jesus puts these next to each other.

That's why we're doing this all in one Sunday school. God's kingdom coming is his will being done. But Jesus highlights your will be done because we really need to articulate this.

Because what is so often our natural desire, not your will be done, but my will be done. We so often just live our lives doing what I want.

But here in this prayer, Jesus is ordering our desires in the right way and telling us, you know, this is what matters. This is what is essential to the Christian life. God's will done in your life.

And that is God's will for all our lives. God hasn't revealed to us where we're going to be in five years time. He hasn't revealed to us who we're going to marry or what next week will look like.

Those things are a secret thing belonging to the Lord and part of his decree. He has planned it. He hasn't revealed that to us. But he has told us what his will of desire is for our lives.

He wants us to live for him. Look at what 1 Thessalonians 4. For this is the will of God, your sanctification, your obedience, your growing in godliness.

He wants us to follow his commands more and more. He wants a godly, holy church. One that isn't disobedient, but one that truly follows his will. Which is why Jesus says, on earth as it is, in heaven.

And here, it's actually speaking of the place of heaven. So heaven is a place in creation. It's not in this universe that we know of.

In our universe that we know of. No, heaven is another realm in creation. It's in creation, but it's another realm. And it's where God manifests his glory most intensely.

It's where the angels are. It's where Jesus is right now in his resurrected body. It's where believers go, where we go when we die. And look what heaven is like, Psalm 103.

Bless the Lord, O you his angels, you mighty ones who do his word. Obeying the voice of his word. Bless the Lord, all his hosts, his army of angels. His ministers who do his will.

In Isaiah 6, what's happening? The angels are worshipping him as they should. Recognising his holiness. Hebrews 12. This is speaking of, when it says the spirits of the righteousness.

It's the spirits of the righteousness. Speaking of dead believers. But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God. The heavenly Jerusalem and to innumerable angels.

And to the spirits of the righteous made perfect. When we die and go to heaven. Sin. God gets rid of all sin in our lives.

We are made perfect in that sense. And so in heaven there is no disobedience. No sin. And God is recognised and worshipped as king. And in that sense his will of desire.

Is obeyed perfectly in heaven. And to pray your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. We are recognising there is rebellion down here. There is work to be done down here.

But Lord, we long for it to be like heaven. In fact, we know that you can do it here on earth. Because it is like that in heaven. And so you can think of it like this.

And what have we got? Alright, one minute to draw a picture. Here we go. So heaven. Heaven is here. His will. His will is done.

Perfectly in heaven, right? But on earth. There's rebellion, isn't there? His will is not done. That's what happened in the fall.

Okay. Will. Not. Done. Okay. And so we are longing for his will to be done here on earth.

Just like it is in heaven. But also have a think. When will his will be done on earth? It's when Jesus returns, isn't it? Right?

That's when all sin we've done away with. And everything will be according to God's will. Obedient to him. And so we are praying.

When we say your will be done. We are saying, Lord, we long for this future age to break into the age now. Which is what is happening.

So one day. At the end of this age. There will be the age to come. God's will is done.

For that, it's already beginning to happen now. So there will be sin until the end of this age. But actually, right now.

With Christ. There is a breaking in of the age to come. Like a bit of an overlap, you say. With Christ.

Let's do it with Christ here. And then that's the second coming. Second coming of Christ. Christ. And we are praying for that future age.

Which is actually when the kingdom comes fully in this age. We're saying, we want that breaking in more and more now. We are effectively praying, your kingdom come.

But with a more personal focus when we say your will be done. Because this future age is the kingdom come fully. Breaking into the world now. And so we are praying for sanctification.

We are praying for conversion and evil to be ended. But in this prayer, we are praying also for Jesus to return. This is when God's will will be followed perfectly. It's when his kingdom will come fully.

And so in this prayer, Jesus is ordering our desires. And saying, long for the world to come. Long for Jesus to return.

As well as his kingdom breaking in now. So this is what is essential to the Christian life. It is God and his kingdom and his will. Sorry, I overran again.