Teach Us to Pray · Stop 3
What are we asking for when we pray for God's kingdom and God's will?
The night before he died, Jesus knelt in a garden and asked his Father to take the suffering away. Then he told his Father he wanted God's will more than his own. Today you'll look at the two requests in the middle of the prayer, and why they're harder to mean than to say.
Start this stopKingdom and Will
Jesus talked about the kingdom of God more than almost anything else. He compared it to a tiny mustard seed that grows into a plant birds can nest in, and to yeast working its way through a whole batch of dough.
You won't find the kingdom on a map. It shows up wherever God is in charge: a hungry person fed, an enemy forgiven, a kid who was left out getting a seat at the table.
Luther noticed that God's kingdom comes and God's will gets done whether we pray or not. So why ask? Because we're asking to be part of it. We're asking God to stop whatever would pull us away, and to keep us steady in faith.
Read it in your Bible
- Mark 4:30–32. Jesus says the kingdom of God is like a mustard seed, one of the smallest seeds there is. Planted, it grows into one of the biggest garden plants, with branches wide enough for birds to rest in its shade.
- Luke 22:39–42. On the Mount of Olives, Jesus kneels to pray. He asks the Father to take this cup of suffering away if he's willing. Then he says he wants the Father's will over his own.
The second and third petitions, with Luther's explanations
Thy kingdom come.
What does this mean? The kingdom of God comes indeed without our prayer, of itself; but we pray in this petition that it may come unto us also.
Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
What does this mean? The good and gracious will of God is done indeed without our prayer; but we pray in this petition that it may be done among us also.
Words to know
- Kingdom. Wherever God is in charge, whether it's a whole city or one lunch table. When you pray “Thy kingdom come,” you're asking to see it where you live.
- Mustard. The tiny seed Jesus compared to the kingdom of God. Small starts count. The kingdom usually begins small.
- Gethsemane. The garden on the Mount of Olives where Jesus prayed the night before he died. Jesus prayed there in anguish. Prayer is for your worst nights too.
- Will. What someone wants and chooses. Jesus asked for God's above his own. Praying “Thy will be done” asks God to shape what you want.
- Spirit. Who Luther says the Father gives us, so that God's kingdom comes to us. The kingdom comes to you as a gift: God's own Spirit, helping you believe.