The Petition: Thy kingdom come.

As with the first petition, we joyfully pray the second.

The kingdom of God is all that we learned in the Creed, that God sent His only Son, Christ Jesus, our Lord, to redeem the world and save us from sin, death, and the devil, and to rule us in true, kingly righteousness, and gave us the Holy Spirit to sanctify us and keep us in the true faith.

Our prayer is all these things take root in us and that we daily abide in Him and grow in Him so that His kingdom of salvation and eternal life also go forth throughout the world, that many others gain entrance into it and receive the good and gracious things which we ourselves have received.

The kingdom of God comes in two ways. First through the Word of the Lord and faith, but also in eternity forever. We pray both things, that His kingdom come to those who have not yet received it by faith, and we pray that we all obtain eternal life in the kingdom. In other words, we pray that our heavenly Father first come by His Word and that the Gospel be preached throughout the world, and we pray that it be received in us by faith, work in us, strengthen us and prepare by putting sin and disobedience to death in us, so that we live forever in perfect holiness.

Clearly, we aren’t merely praying for a little morsel of God’s eternal treasure but praying to receive fully His immeasurable goodness and kindness to us. This is no small petition! Our Lord does not teach us to be as foolish beggars who ask for only a copper penny when the wealthy king walks by with his purse open full of gold coins. Our Lord is teaching us to be wise beggars who ask for it all! But unbelief and a lack of faith make us think our Lord will hold back when He sees our shame and sin and so we don’t dare ask for more.

Yet, what does Jesus our Lord say? “Ask and it will be given to you, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened to you” (Matthew 7:7), and “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you” (Matthew 6:33). Thus, we should ask, and ask boldly, fully confident that God’s kingdom will come fully to us, that He has made us citizens of heaven, clothed us in the robe of righteousness, and set a feast before us!

Prayer: Heavenly Father, may Your Kingdom come in my life so that I may confidently trust in Your endless mercies every day, and dare to open my mouth and confess Your name to my neighbor. In Jesus’ name, Amen.