Talk

Your Kingdom Come

Mike Distefano

May, 5, 2019

Jesus said the reason he came was to announce that the Kingdom is here, and he called us to pray “Your Kingdom come.”

Why was this so important to him? What does it mean for how we deal with our hopes and disappointments? Continuing the Lord’s Prayer series, Mike Distefano teaches us about the Kingdom of God, and what it means to pray “Your Kingdom come.”

Key Takeaway

The Kingdom is here, now. We know that there is more to come, but we live in the already established Kingdom, but not yet fully fulfilled. The main focus of Jesus while he was on earth was the glory of His Father and the proclaiming of the Kingdom.

When the love of God moves toward you, it's the kind of love that produces an action and response.

Prayer is an invitation to think about the things that occupy the heart of God, to care about what He cares about, and to move with God on His mission. It's an invitation to life and a life well lived. The Lord's prayer is familiar to many of us, but it's like a key to a home that we haven't taken the time to move into. Prayer is the key to life. He is being pulled up into His world.

The more time we spend in His Presence the more we'll see His character.

We see in God, our Father, our rescuer, yet God is not tame. Be ready, you're with a lion! Proximity to our God in Heaven will greatly change your priorities.

In Matthew, Kingdom is paired with repentance. It teaches us that a Kingdom is coming. Its arrival changes everything.

How do we better understand "Your Kingdom Come"? We first must ask two essential questions:

1) What is the Kingdom?

A Kingdom is a place in time, inhabited by a certain people, and ruled by a certain king. The Kingdom takes on the nature of the king.

"God, you come and be the ruler right now." We are saying when we pray, "Your Kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven." We are asking God to have his perfect will in our midst, perfect peace. We can't even conceive how good that is. We live in a broken world and we are a mess, but we know what is coming and have hope. As Christians, this is our message: we need Jesus to invade this place, we need the Kingdom to come, and we need salvation. In the gospels, the good news of the Kingdom was Jesus's main message. He was saying that something Heavenly was at hand, it would change everything, and His Presence marks the inauguration of it.

2) When is it coming?

It's referenced as both past, present, and future. We live in the already/not yet.

In Matthew 4, Satan tries to tempt Jesus. In his last attempt, he offered Jesus the kingdoms of the world if He would worship him. How can the enemy offer kingdoms of the world? Because, according to Scripture, they're currently under his dominion. He is called the ruler of this age. That doesn't mean that God is not ultimately in control or has no power over the enemy, it just means the enemy has a longer leash at the moment. Jesus refuses to worship him and the first thing He does is say that the Kingdom is at hand, something new has arrived. What Jesus said was revolutionary.

When we pray, "Your Kingdom come, Your will be done", we are saying His Kingdom is here, right now, but we are also asking for more because we know more is coming.

When Jesus explained what the Kingdom is like in Matthew 13:1-32, He gave three parables.

1) The Soil: you have to RECEIVE the seed for it to bear fruit.

2) The Wheat and Weeds: there's the work of the enemy and the work of God, and we live in the in-between. LIGHT INVADES THE DARKNESS.

3) The Mustard Seed: the seed of the Kingdom starts small, but it grows and LIFE BURSTS FORTH.

“

“That a good man may have his back to the wall is no more than we knew already, but that God could have His back to the wall is a boast for all insurgents forever."

”

G.K. Chesterton

Discussion Questions

How did Mike Distefano define prayer?
What is prayer an invitation to?
God is our Father, our Rescuer, but He's not tame. How has God proven to be like a lion in your life?
What is a Kingdom?
When you pray "Your Kingdom come", what are you praying for? Why is this so hard for us to comprehend?
What was Jesus's main and central message throughout the gospels?
When is the Kingdom coming? What is the idea behind the already/not yet?
Read Matthew 4:9-13, how can the enemy offer the kingdoms on the earth? What was Jesus's response? Why is this a big deal?
What is the hope that we have of the Kingdom coming?
Read Matthew 13:1-32, what are the three examples that Jesus gives of the Kingdom? What does each parable mean?

Scripture References

“This, then, is how you should pray:

“ ‘Our Father in heaven,

hallowed be your name,

your kingdom come,

your will be done,

on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.

And forgive us our debts,

as we also have forgiven our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from the evil one.

’

For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.

But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.

“When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full.

But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face,

1That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake.

2Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it, while all the people stood on the shore.

3Then he told them many things in parables, saying:

“A farmer went out to sow his seed.

As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up.

Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow.

But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root.

Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants.

Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.

Whoever has ears, let them hear.”

10The disciples came to him and asked, “Why do you speak to the people in parables?”

11He replied,

“Because the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them.

Whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them.

This is why I speak to them in parables:

“Though seeing, they do not see;

though hearing, they do not hear or understand.

In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah:

“ ‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding;

you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.

For this people’s heart has become calloused;

they hardly hear with their ears,

and they have closed their eyes.

Otherwise they might see with their eyes,

hear with their ears,

understand with their hearts

and turn, and I would heal them.’

But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear.

For truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.

“Listen then to what the parable of the sower means:

When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in their heart. This is the seed sown along the path.

The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy.

But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away.

The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful.

But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”

24Jesus told them another parable:

“The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field.

But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away.

When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared.

“The owner’s servants came to him and said, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?’

“ ‘An enemy did this,’ he replied.

“The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’

“ ‘No,’ he answered, ‘because while you are pulling the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them.

Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.’ ”

31He told them another parable:

“The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field.

Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.”

1Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

2After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry.

3The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”

4Jesus answered,

“It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’

”

5Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple.

6“If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written:

“ ‘He will command his angels concerning you,

and they will lift you up in their hands,

so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’”

7Jesus answered him,

“It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’

”

8Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor.

9“All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.”

10Jesus said to him,

“Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’

”

11Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.

Mike Distefano

Mike Distefano is a pastor, a student of Early Christianity, and a long-time advocate for anti-trafficking in the US and beyond. Currently, Mike is writing at Baylor University’s Truett Seminary and serves as a director for Amirah Inc., a domestic anti-trafficking organization. Mike’s heart is to see God’s love for humanity and His passion for justice reflected in the Church. Mike has degrees from Texas A&M University, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, and Baylor’s Truett Seminary. He has pastored in Houston, TX at Faithbridge Church and with Passion City Church, D.C. as the Director of Community + Formation.