When Jesus Prayed, “Thy Kingdom Come” What Did He Mean?

The Lord’s Prayer in Matthew chapter 6 is perhaps the most commonly quoted teaching of Jesus. This prayer is simple and pointed in its focus. “Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name.” This beginning teaches us not only to acknowledge God as Father but to hallow, to reverence, His very name. The next phrase is also simple, perhaps too simple, “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven.” Many take this as a two-part statement. First hoping for God’s kingdom and then hoping for God’s will to be done on earth. But is it actually two parts? Is this a petition of hope for two different things, or is it a petition for one glorious and often forgotten part of God’s plan, His kingdom on earth? The entire Bible shouts out a resounding answer to this question! Are these the same thing? It is easy to get very confused when we look into Jesus’ words regarding the kingdom. After John the Baptist had been put in prison, Jesus announced the “kingdom of heaven is at hand.” In Matthew’s rendering of the Parable of the Mustard Seed, Jesus speaks of the kingdom of heaven being like a mustard seed, but in Luke it reads the kingdom of God is like a mustard seed. Then in the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus teaches us to pray for God’s kingdom to come. So, is it the kingdom of God or the kingdom of heaven? Is the kingdom at hand or is it coming? Yes! The kingdom is all of these things and much more. These seemingly contradictory statements were simply Jesus revealing different aspects of a complex and eternal kingdom. From the very beginning, salvation for all of humanity was in the mind of God. This was the whole reason that Jesus came and died for Adam. His presence on earth as the man Christ Jesus was the initial phase of this kingdom. It was Jesus paying the necessary price and doing the foundational work of calling disciples that enabled the door of the kingdom to open for all. Jesus teaching us to pray for God’s kingdom to come was showing us to look forward to its full establishment. Check out our June 12, 2023 podcast, “When Jesus Prayed ‘Thy Kingdom Come,’ What Did He Mean?” for more. We examine further details of how the work of the kingdom’s first phase is continuing even to this day. We look at prophecies that show us how the kingdom’s developmental phase gives way to a serious time of trouble. As Bible prophecies indicate, this trouble is a necessary transition to what God’s kingdom in its full glory will look like. And what will it look like? Join us for a revealing walk through many Old Testament prophecies. They clearly describe God’s coming kingdom, and sometimes in shocking detail. Don’t miss this opportunity to get a preview of the amazing future God planned all along!