The Lord’s Prayer

The most well-known prayers recorded in the Bible is, the “Lord’s Prayer” found in St. Matthew 6:9-13. It should not be thought of as the Lord’s prayer but the Lord’s model for prayer. It was spoken by Jesus in answer to the request from his disciples to be taught how to pray. He had been teaching them of how not to pray in the preceding verses. In verse seven he said, “And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words”. This shows He was not insisting they use the precise words of the prayer every time they prayed but was reminding them of the more important spiritual concepts and truths to be kept in mind when praying.

Considering the multitude of serious issues facing our world today, verse ten is a most significant line. “Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven”. This is where the Gospel becomes such good news for a world in which, the vast majority of people, are living under the stress of heavy worries, cares, and fears. The message of God’s kingdom is the heart of the Gospel Jesus preached and made credible by His resurrection from the dead. Notice the words in Mark 1:14-15. “Jesus came - preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God and saying, the time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.”

The Bible teaches that the visible kingdom of God begins with a second coming of Christ to earth when He shall rule as Eternal King over all nations and forever remove from society, Satan’s power, wickedness, and evil men, who are the cause of all human misery. Over three hundred passages in the New Testament reference this event. One of them is the words of the Lord Jesus recorded just before His death. “I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.” (John 14:2-3)

Against the backdrop of our chaotic world, the question of many is the same as that of Christians in the earthly days of Jesus. When can we expect to experience this visible Kingdom? The answer Jesus gave is the same one we must accept for Jesus said in Matt. 24: 36; “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only”. But, though the question for now has no definitive answer it is a major theme of the New Testament. Preparation for Christ’s coming and the establishment of His Kingdom is most critical but simply and clearly explained in many places of the New Testament. One such explanation given by the apostle Paul is in the Book of Romans (10:9) “if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”

Pastor Gene Holman of Living Word Fellowship in Gardnerville is a member of Carson Valley Ministers’ Association