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Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Matthew 6:10

This prayer is part of a larger teaching Jesus gave called the Sermon on the Mount. In this sermon, Jesus described the kingdom of heaven. It doesn’t have borders, flags, or castles like earthly kingdoms. Instead, the kingdom of heaven is found in people’s hearts. God is the king. His home in heaven is the “castle” from where he rules.

Jesus also describes in the Sermon on the Mount who the citizens of God’s kingdom are. They aren’t the wealthy, the powerful, or the experts. Rather, these citizens are the poor in spirit, the defeated, the weak, the mistreated who long for mercy, and the people who work for peace.

These are the ones in need of someone who has all the power, all the riches, and all the answers. That person is Jesus, God’s Son who has come to earth. This is the first step God took in bringing his kingdom to earth. The second way is through his children. Because of our relationship with Jesus, we have the power through prayer to advance his kingdom. Any time we ask for God’s healing, his justice, or his presence in our lives or in the lives of others, we have played a role in bringing God’s kingdom to earth.

God’s kingdom and his will both work for the redemption of his people and his creation. Healing is part of God’s will. Justice is part of his will. Saving people and forgiving them of sin is in his will. When we ask for these things and cooperate with God to bring them about, we are doing God’s will. This phrase of the prayer contains strong words. God’s kingdom is perfect and it will last forever. We are invited to participate in the actions that help it come to earth. When we accept, we enjoy the satisfaction of living according to God’s plans and we see the changes that happen because God’s kingdom is coming.

This, then, is how you should pray: “our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.” Matthew 6:9

To best understand the Lord’s Prayer, we first must put ourselves in the place of the disciples. They followed Jesus from town to town witnessing first hand his power to heal, to cast out demonic powers, and to calm the weather. Jesus’ relationship with his father in heaven enabled him to do this kind of work. The disciples trusted Jesus. They learned to love him and their desire to be like their Teacher may have prompted their plea, “Lord, teach us to pray.” Behind those words breathed the longing to have a close relationship with God like the one Jesus enjoyed.

Jesus offers them this prayer as a pattern to guide their communion with God. This pattern balances God’s will with our needs. The phrases, “hallowed be your name,” and “yours is the kingdom, the power, and the glory forever” stabilize the entire prayer with an attitude of worship. We should revere God’s name. We should look for his kingdom to come, and to wish for his plans to be done instead of ours. This prayer calls us to fix our eyes on eternity.

This pattern for prayer also reminds us that we have a father in heaven who loves us very much. The first line of this prayer addresses God as Father, and not as King or Judge. God is both of those things, but by naming him as our father first, we know we can go to him with all of our troubles, fears, and hurts. He listens and then takes care of us and provides for us as his special children. This is the one Jesus is teaching us how to talk to and be in relationship with. What a wonderful comfort.