We hear the word revolution, and we first think of something like the American Revolution. My first image of this is the famous painting above of Washington crossing the Delaware River. But the revolution I am referring to is different, one that starts with individual lives. I’ve seen the revolution. I’ve tasted it. And I want others to join in.
The most incredible part about this revolution is that it can start anywhere at any time – no army needed. It starts with only fourteen words. And they are words you have probably known all your life. Here they are:
Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Why is this a revolution?
Most of us think of this part of the Lord’s Prayer as a prayer of surrender, letting go of our kingdom-building and agendas and choosing God’s way. And it is certainly that. But it is so much more.
At heart, it is a rebellion against the status quo.
What is the status quo? God’s kingdom is not in place and His will is not being done. Earth is not heaven. Just a casual glance at the news confirms this.
What does it look like when God’s kingdom comes and His will starts being done? That’s the life Jesus lived. It was a revolution as never seen before. Everything changed. The impossible happened. The sick were healed. The outcasts were embraced. The demons fled. Power, wonder, and love radiated from HIm.
Heaven came down to earth.
Then He gave His life so that His Father’s kingdom would continue to come, opening up the way for anyone to become a son of God, with the same rights that Jesus had. If you read the book of Acts, the revolution continued. And down through church history, you see the revolution moving forward in the great revivals and in the stories of ordinary men and women who lived extraordinary lives.
Heaven continued to come down to earth.
Becoming a revolutionary
To be a follower of Jesus is to be a revolutionary. It is to join this revolution.
It is to be a man who refuses to take the world as it is given to him, rebelling against the status quo. Instead he envisions the world more like the way Jesus did, asking the question: What would happen here if God’s kingdom came and His will was done?
This is the defiant heart of faith.
Seeing things this way was the one thing Jesus kept pressing His disciples with: Why do you have so little faith? (see Mark 4:40). The disciples saw blocks and obstacles. Jesus saw opportunities and breakthroughs.
Over and over Jesus gave us promises about faith to embolden us. Here’s one of many: “I tell you the truth: whoever believes in Me will be able to do what I have done, but they will do even greater things, because I will return to be with the Father. Whatever you ask for in My name, I will do it so that the Father will get glory from the Son.” (John 14:12-13). Instead of explaining this away (as I have heard done), what if we choose to wrestle with these words and the incredibly vast consequences it sets in motion?
Start small
But you have to start small with Jesus. Start with yourself.
Ask Jesus: Where is your kingdom not fully present in me? Where is your will not being done? Don’t worry, this is not a guilt-inducing prayer. You are asking God to give you the most delicious freedom you have ever known. That’s His kingdom.
Then look at those closest to you: wife, family, close friends. What needs to be healed in them? What needs to be set straight? That’s where you start with this prayer.
Finally, look around you. What bothers you? What angers you? What injustice riles you? What breaks your heart? Start praying for His kingdom to come there. As you pray, you may feel urged to do something to participate in bringing in the kingdom. You will be pulled into a much larger story than any personal ambition you have ever had.
Often at the end of a spiritual direction session, I will pray something like this: May your kingdom come in this man’s heart, here on earth as it is in heaven. This is my way of joining the revolution.
Final word
This is the adventure of faith in Jesus. But I give you fair warning. To begin to pray this way will take you into spaces and places you could have never dreamed up for yourself. I know this from my own story..
If you like the status quo, do not, I repeat, do not pray this way.
But if your heart longs for more of God, more of His kingdom, more breakthroughs, start here.
Want to hear more? Stay tuned for the next blog post. Or contact me with questions.
Bill
PS. The movie Jesus Revolution is a wonderful treatment of the greatest youth revival in history. God’s kingdom came despite all the obstacles. I became a believer in Jesus in my teens because of it.
One Response
I needed this encouragement right now, today. The upheaval in our nation has caused upheaval in my soul and I have to pray your kingdom come your will, not mine be done often through my day. His way is often not my way so praying this is an act of surrender for me. I am not always happy to choose his way and not mine but the gift of surrender is peace.