"My kingdom is not of this world." (John 18:36) A kingdom that is not of this world? Can you imagine how that sounded to Pilate as Jesus stood before him bound and bloody from a night spent in the court of the high priest? John the Baptist had declared, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."(Matthew 3:2) For this kingdom and this king John was willing to die and he did. Pilate, however, when presented with the a truth of the kingdom of heaven washed his hands of it.
"To you it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given." (Matthew 13: 11) Jesus proclaimed the kingdom, He spoke about it in parables and what had been prophesied came to pass, "I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter what has been hidden since the foundation of the world."(Matthew 13:35, Psalm 78:2) So the the King spoke of His Kingdom but not everyone who heard the words understood. There was a problem, "For this people's heart has grown dull, and with their ears they could barely hear, and their eyes they have closed."(Matthew 13:15) The ones who couldn't hear Jesus had not heard John when he cried, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."
Jesus taught us to pray, " Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven." ( Matthew 6:10) I was thinking about this prayer in connection with Paul praying constantly for the Colossians that they would be filled with the knowledge of God's will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, "so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God."(Colossians 1:3) Why should their life look any different from the lives of those around them? It was because, "He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us from the kingdom of his beloved Son." (Colossians 1:13) If we have been delivered from the kingdom of darkness and we are now saints in light then we should shine as lights in the world. When I pray that God's kingdom comes and His will is done this is part of what I am asking for.
When I read the Scripture I see that what I believe about the kingdom of heaven should make a difference in how I live. When Jesus taught the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven the people whose hearts had grown dull were unable to hear and understand what he was saying. In Colossians Paul tells those who have accepted Christ as their king to put to death whatever belongs to their earthy nature. What I see is that as I grow in a deeper knowledge of the king and His kingdom I should represent Him more clearly to the world around me.
Father, let your kingdom come and your will be done on earth as in in heaven.
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