Main verse: Matthew 6:9-13, Luke 22:39-46, John 17

Book Reference: The Disciples’ Prayer by John MacArthur

Good morning

            The second stanza of the Disciples’ prayer intrigues me because I did not understand what it meant. To a worldly person, he/she might think, “So these Christians are praying for God to rule the world, and we must surrender my mind to an unknown god? What about the lofty notion of ‘Separation of Church and State’? Nowhere in God’s word will you find it written, “Serve me or I will blow you to smithereens.” What you will see written is God’s work amidst His or Her creation (Exodus 3:6-12). When we ask for God to rule our hearts, we are admitting to God and to ourselves that the world’s way of rulership has left us enslaved to debt, promiscuity problems, incurable addictions, families, businesses, and/or kingdoms destroyed irrevocably then, and only then, will we see with unvarnished eyes what must be done. Jesus did not have to die on the cross he could have told God, “Sorry old man the price is just too much and too little to show for it because Israel is already destroyed. So, if you do not mind, I think I will join the crowd”; if he had, we would never know God’s love for humanity and we would be continually separated from the God of our ancestors (Psalms 49:5-9).

            The night before the kangaroo court and the execution, Jesus saw the disciples and wanted more for them then the base elements of the world and he saw in them what they did not see in themselves. Because Jesus knew the world did not need a worldly king, the world needed an eternal King for, “Whosoever” so, with help from the sanctuary Jesus resolved to honor the father even though it meant being impaled to a tree with the common criminals (Ezra 6:11-26, Matthew 17:1-3, Psalms 20). Today as you pray for your family, job, city, state, and country, I encourage you to look at the bigger picture and ask the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob to reign in your heart and then resolve to follow through with obedience and faithfulness when you need help, remember Jesus’ words, “Ask and you will receive, knock and the door will be opened, seek and you will find” (Matthew 7:7-11, Luke 18:1-8, Ezekiel 22:23-31).

I.H.S.

MK

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