The Kingdom of Heaven
“Pray, then, in this way: (spoken by Jesus)
‘Our Father who is in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
‘Your kingdom come.
Your will be done,
On earth as it is in heaven.
‘Give us this day our daily bread.
‘And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
‘And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. [For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.’] Matthew 6:9-13
This is the outline Jesus gave as a pattern for prayer when He gave His teachings during the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7. The prayer is addressed to God the Father and begins with a petition for God’s Kingdom in Heaven to come to earth. He begins this sermon with blessing the types of people who will inherit this kingdom. “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.”… “Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.” He goes on tell how the Law of Moses relates to believers and the Kingdom of Heaven. “Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter will pass from the law, until all things have taken place. Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do so will be called least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But whoever obeys and teaches these commandments will be called greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven.” Matthew 5
In Matthew 13, Jesus teaches about the Kingdom of Heaven through parables. The parable of the wheat and the tares, the parable of the mustard seed, the parable of the leaven, the parable of the hidden treasure, the parable of the pearl of great price, and the parable of the dragnet all describe what the Kingdom of Heaven is like. These are definitely worth reading and searching out, but the most amazing thing about the Kingdom of Heaven is that it is an everlasting Kingdom that will ultimately rule over every kingdom on earth, with perfect mercy, grace, and justice.
“I kept watching the night visions, when I saw, coming with the clouds of heaven, someone like a Son of Man. He approached the Ancient One and was led into his presence. To Him was given rulership, glory and a Kingdom, so that all peoples, nations and languages should serve Him. His rulership is an eternal rulership that will not pass away; and His Kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.” Daniel 7:13-14
“The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Messiah, and He shall reign forever and ever!” Revelation 11:15
Maranatha!!!
