Pray for the Whole World With These Three Words
Intercessory prayer always seemed a little unfair to me. So much so that every time I prayed my sense of peace was tinged with guilt. Because no matter how many people and causes I brought before God there were still those I omitted to mention, and no sooner had I said ‘Amen’ then they came to mind. Like the random woman asking for prayers on Facebook or the victims of a recent shooting or persecuted Christians in Muslim countries. Not that I deliberately ignored them, but still. It felt cruel not to include such pressing needs.
People everywhere are suffering. If you point at any country on the map, one thing’s for sure: many living within its borders are desperate for help. Children crying out for their mother, soldiers hoping to survive a vicious attack, the poor yearning for relief, the sick and wounded praying for healing. The least we can do is to ask God to remember them. But how could we lift up everyone in prayer? Is it possible at all? Well, you might be surprised to hear that it is and what’s more, you already know how.
The Lord’s Prayer
When the disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray he taught them the Lord’s Prayer. We’re all familiar with it. So much so, that Christians tend to repeat it almost automatically, without even considering the true meaning of each line. Which is why it’s easy to miss how important three short words like “Your kingdom come” are, especially in difficult times. Those words are laden with meaning. They are like tender hands combing through the thick of the world, gathering up every sorrow, fear and suffering they can find, in order to give them to God.
But what is it that we mean when we pray for the coming of the kingdom of God? Let me explain!
1. First of all when we pray thus, we acknowledge that the world is broken and we attribute that brokenness to sin. At the Fall God’s good world was ravaged by sin. Death previously unknown to humans became a painful reality, creation turned from a peaceful and idyllic environment into a dangerous place and a separation occurred between humanity and God, (one that many years later Christ healed on the cross). The Fall is an event that still has consequences for our lives today. War, illness and poverty have the same origin. Which is relevant because if we pinpoint sin as the root of all our problems, it inevitably leads to Jesus as the only and ultimate solution. Which brings us to our second point.
2. When we pray for the coming of God’s kingdom, we proclaim that what the world needs is not more education or better political decisions (although we could definitely use some of those as well), but a person: Jesus. Only he can transform hearts and minds in a way that leads to truly changed lives.
3. Your kingdom come. By praying these words we confess our trust in God’s promises regarding the future. Jesus hasn’t left us in the dark about his plans. Suffering and pain may rob us of our joy now but we look forward to a day when every tear will be wiped away1, every nation will be gathered2 and death will be finally destroyed3. Christians have always lived between the already and not yet and longed for those promises to be fulfilled. When we pray thus we also tell God to act, to save and yes, to hurry a little bit.
4. Lastly, Your kingdom come means the acceptance of our responsibility regarding the furthering of his kingdom. God graciously invited us to actively take part in his redeeming work by proclaiming the gospel, doing good in his name and by being salt and light in the world. Instead of sitting around and waiting for him to act, Christians are to look for different ways to participate in what God’s doing. It’s an honor to be included in his plans and we should deem it as such.
If you are weary and overwhelmed by what’s going on in the world, perhaps the deepest prayer is also the shortest. Your kingdom come. Nobody is left out. We pray for a world where no man is pierced by bullets, no child goes hungry, no heart is stricken with fear. We pray for a future without chemotherapy, homelessness, rage and envy. We pray for those times when everybody will know God and love him and sin no more.
