Page 100 - The Prophetic Word Newsletter Archive 2009

IN THIS MANNER, THEREFORE, PRAY: 101

Let us look now at Let us also keep in mind
the three remaining that these last three
statements in the Lord’s
Prayer with the illumination statements, like the four
that they are the exclusive that preceded them, are to
property of God’s people. be more than mere words
They do not belong to the we speak to God, but also
world around us. expressions of how we live
our daily lives before Him.

We can easily see how trite it is for the unsaved world to utter the words, “Hallowed be Your name,
Your Kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” Does the world “hallow” (revere)
God’s name or blaspheme it day by day with cursive expressions whenever they get angry? Does the
world really seek the Kingdom of God or the kingdoms of this world (such as “Life, Liberty and the
Pursuit of Happiness?) Does the world really desire for the will of God to be done on earth or does
each man, apart from God, fervently seek the desires of his own will to be expressed on earth?

How much more of a tragedy is it for God’s people to tritely utter the words, “Hallowed be Your name,
Your Kingdom come, and Your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven,” and all the while live in such a
carnal, worldly or selfish fashion that God’s name is not “hallowed” (revered) in the life of the believer?

Is it right to pray, “Your Kingdom come” and then madly pursue after the kingdom in which we live
(America) as if God had appointed it to be the (new) Kingdom of God on earth? The Puritans believed
this nonsense about America being the “New Israel-the Kingdom of God on earth.” It is quite evident
that the likes of the Religious Right and the Moral Majority believe it too! Why else are they madly
trying to legislate the moral laws of God on an immoral people? It is because they too believe America
is the Kingdom of God on earth, yet they pray the Lord’s Prayer, “Your Kingdom come” without a clue
as to what the real Kingdom of God is all about.

Are Christians really devoted to seeing, “Your (God’s) will be done on earth as it is in heaven”? If so,
why then do so many of God’s people look like, act like, speak like and have the same priorities of the
world around them? Why do they live contrary to the revealed will of God as stated in the Scriptures?
Why is it that although God says He hates divorce (Mal. 2:16), yet the divorce rate among Christians now
exceeds that of unbelievers? Why is it that although God says that marriage is honorable and undefiled
(Heb.13:4), yet multitudes of Christians choose to live together in fornication, unmarried just like the
world around them?

Do we really believe that by just bowing our heads at the appropriate time and uttering the words,
“Hallowed be Your name, Your Kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven”, it
becomes a sanctified prayer in God’s ears or are we in danger of hearing God say to us the same
words He spoke about Israel’s hypocritical prayers:

“WELL DID ISAIAH PROPHESY OF YOU HYPOCRITES,
AS IT IS WRITTEN:

‘THIS PEOPLE HONORS ME WITH THEIR LIPS,
BUT THEIR HEART IS FAR FROM ME.
AND IN VAIN THEY WORSHIP ME…’ ”
Mark 7:6-7

Painfully, I think we can see the severity of the problem of tritely praying the contents of the Lord’s
Prayer from rote memorization without attempting to allow these statements to be at work in our lives in
an ongoing, daily basis. We must come to see that each of the seven statements contained in The
Lord’s Prayer are meant to become vivid declarations of how we choose to live out our lives as
Christians while on this temporal earth. The statements contained in the Lord’s Prayer were meant to
be constant reminders of what are to be our priorities until the return of Jesus Christ.

Let us consider a brief synopsis of the remaining three statements, “Hallowed be Your name,
Your Kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”