Jesus's Teaching on Prayer, Part 4
Your Kingdom Come
Matthew 6v10a
26th September 2025
This is the fourth in our series of studies of Matthew 6v5-15. We've reached the second petition in the Lord's Prayer:
Matthew 610a
"Your kingdom come"
The kingdom of God has come, the kingdom of God is coming, and the kingdom of God will come.
Mark reports that, just before Jesus started His teaching ministry, John the Baptist said "The time has come, The kingdom of God has come near." (Mark 1v15). After Jesus began to preach He said, "if it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you." (Matthew 12v28). The kingdom of God came when Jesus came. He said "the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God." (Matthew 21v31). Note that Jesus said "are entering", not "will enter". He said "The kingdom of God is in your midst [or within you]." (Luke 17v20-21). Again, Jesus didn't say "will be within you"; He said "is within you". All these passages show that the kingdom of God was instituted on earth when Jesus came to minister on earth.
The kingdom of God is with the church right now: Paul said "The kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit" (Romans 14:17). He didn't write "will be"; he wrote "is". He also wrote "the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power" (1 Corinthians 4:20). Again, he writes this in the present tense, "is", not the future tense.
So we see that the kingdom of God has come, and it is with the church today. And we're praying for the kingdom to come every day, to our neighbours who don't yet know Jesus, for the kingdom of God to change this world.
Jesus is the King now:
Ephesians 1v20b-21a
he [God] raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the
heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every
name that is invoked…
Colossians 2v15
… having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them,
triumphing over them by the cross.
And yet we are still called to pray for the coming of His kingdom. It's been with us for 2000 years, and it's still coming:
Matthew 13v31-33
He told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven [which is the kingdom of
God] is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field.
Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of
garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its
branches."
The kingdom of God is growing. Every time someone gets saved, the kingdom grows.
Matthew 13v31-33
He told them still another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a
woman took and mixed into about sixty pounds of flour until it worked all through
the dough."
The kingdom of God is with you right now, and it's growing, touching more and more lives. The church is growing all the time. If you live in England you might not have noticed that, but if you lived in Africa it would be obvious. The kingdom of God is coming all the time. God is working it like a woman works yeast into a lump of dough, pounding it and kneading it. God is doing this. Sometimes it hurts. Sometimes it's really uncomfortable but God is working the yeast through the dough. The kingdom is coming all the time.
And one day, Jesus will come back. 1 Corinthians 15v25 says, "he [Jesus] must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet."
Jesus is king today. He won the battle when He rose from the dead, but some spiritual and human forces continue in rebellion against Him. Gradually, He is putting all His enemies under His feet. It's taking a long time but God is not an impatient person. At His return, all rebellion against Him will end. Then "every knee will bow, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord" (Philippians 2v10-11).
So we pray, "Your kingdom come". We pray prayers like, "May I and my church have more impact on the area where we live. May our lives be more loving, more wise, and more gentle, so that we have more impact on our friends and families. Lord hear my prayers for the people I know who don't yet know you, that they might be saved and added to your family. Your kingdom come. May Christian morality be re-established in the English nation. Your kingdom come. In Jesus's name. Amen."