Posted on 03/19/2023 2:51:46 AM PDT by metmom
"Thy kingdom come" (Matt. 6:10).
Relinquish your will to Christ’s sovereign rule.
Attempting to explain all that is involved in the phrase "Thy kingdom come" is like a child standing on a beach attempting to scoop the entire ocean into a little pail. Only in eternity will we grasp all that it encompasses, but the poem "His Coming to Glory" by the nineteenth-century hymnwriter Frances Havergal captures its essence:
Oh the joy to see Thee reigning, Thee, my own beloved Lord! Every tongue Thy name confessing, Worship, honor, glory, blessing Brought to Thee with glad accord; Thee, my Master and my Friend, Vindicated and enthroned; Unto earth's remotest end Glorified, adored, and owned.
Psalm 2:6-8 reflects the Father's joy on that great day: "I have installed My King upon Zion, My holy mountain. I will surely tell of the decree of the Lord; He said to Me, 'Thou art My Son, today I have begotten Thee. Ask of Me, and I will surely give the nations as Thine inheritance, and the very ends of the earth as Thy possession." God will give the kingdoms of the world to His Son, who will reign as King of kings and Lord of lords (Rev. 19:16).
With that promise in mind, beware seeing prayer primarily as an opportunity to inform God of your own plans and to seek His help in fulfilling them. Instead, pray "Thy kingdom come," which is a request for Christ to reign. In its fullest sense it is an affirmation that you are willing to relinquish the rule of your own life so the Holy Spirit can use you to promote the kingdom in whatever way He chooses.
That kind of prayer can be difficult because we tend to be preoccupied with ourselves. But concentrate on conforming your prayers to God's purposes. Then you will be assured that you are praying according to His will.
Suggestions for Prayer
Praise God for the hope of Christ's future reign on earth.
Ask Him to use you today as a representative of His kingdom. For Further Study
According to Ephesians 4:17-5:5, how should citizens of Christ's kingdom behave?
From Drawing Near by John MacArthur Copyright © 1993. Used by permission of Crossway Books, a division of Good News Publishers, Wheaton, IL 60187, www.crossway.com.
Studying God’s Word ping
Yes, it’s easy to pray focused on my own needs. Thanks for the reminder of the priorities!
Tha KS, that is a good reminder! I often forget to pray that way- infsct I rarely pray unselfishly. Folks will ask for “healing for so and so” but my thought is “what if God doesn’t want so and so to be healed? Ehzt if greater blessing will come from the lerson dying or remaining sick? Shouldt we instead pray “Lord, thy will be done regardless of what Your will is?” But I sure do forget to pray for God’s will for my life and instead pray for myself to be healed all the time.
Praying “as we should” isn’t easy- it takes practice and discipline to understand that His will and ours is much different usually, and that Hos will may involve things that we don’t want in our lives because they hurt, dismay, or cause us to doubt His love for us.
My prayers need to start “Lord please forgive me for being self-centered- whatever your will is shouod be what I want as well, but sadly I do not- teach me to understand that Your will is what I should be praying for, not my will”
There is also this.....
Romans 8:26-27 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.
Which I always took as it could be interpreted that if we are praying *wrong* about something, the Holy Spirit takes the intent of our heart and prays the correct prayer for that person for us.
[[the Holy Spirit takes the intent of our heart and prays the correct prayer for that person for us.]]
That is true- I didnt mean ot make it seem like the prayer for ‘what is best’ for the person didn’t mean healing, either physically or spiritually or both- but rather that we are learning to leave it it God’s hands rather than just willing God to heal when that isn’t His personal best for the situation
I have seen many very godly people die from things like cancer and brains tumors, and dementia.
It’s hard to wrap our minds around how that could be God’s will for someone, but He knows everything and what is best. We don’t. Sometimes It takes more faith to say *Thy will be done*, than not.
I heard a sermon once where the preacher put forth two people who had cancer who prayed for healing. One was healed and the other not.
His question was, *Who had the greater faith?*
The one who was healed, because they had faith for healing?
Or the one who wasn’t healed and still lived their lives loving and serving God and trusting in Him?
i would say perhaps both had an equal amount- those who preach works salvation though or who are ‘healers’ woudl claim the one who was healed had faith- the other didn’t- which is a terrible thing to say about someone- the ‘healer religions’ are a true blight on this world- Paul asked and had faith three times to be healed, but God said “Nope”-
I’m so thankful for the Holy Spirit.
And there’s Timothy who Paul told to take a little wine for his stomach’s sake and his frequent ailments.
What? Paul couldn’t heal Timothy? Orr Timothy didn’t have enough faith to be healed? Or maybe he didn’t know enough to make *positive confessions8* over his body to coerce God into healing him.
And Trophimus, whom Paul left sick in Miletus? Left him sick? Didn’t heal him?
Exactly. As well, “healers” in today’s world often die of the same maladies that everyone else dies of,, or their family members do- its all a scam really. God can and certainly does heal as he wills, but I’ve not seen anyone able to restore a lost limb or ear, or restore eyesight, or raise anyone from the dead legitimately (there are some outmthere that claim to,have done so, but they have not legitimately done so)
Sometimes sickness is more of a blessing than being well. Joni mitchel is a prime example- as a young woman she was diving and broke her neck- quadriplegic for rest of her life- she has a book out that describes the emotional and mental and spiritual journey she went on as a result- often breaking down because of,the extreme discomforts, sores, open wounds caused by sitting too much and. It being able to move.
She had a great statement about breaking down in anger and disappointment towards God, but i can’t remember it right now, but it really showed how human she was, and how God understood that and came to her aid through others. .she was like Elijah, ready to give up,and die, but God fed her spiritually right when she needed it.
And I can’t tell you how many people who preach that accursed “gospel” need glasses either to see or read.
If they can’t heal themselves of something that simple, how do they expect others to heal themselves of worse?
Lol yep! They accuse others who fail to be healed of “not having enough faith to believe they can be healed”, yet they walk around “unhealed” with terrible vision lol.
They are spiritually blind as well, otherwise they would see the obvious hypocrisy that they live
Me too. Without him, we are left to face sin alone, and that is not a state we want to be in.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.