Jesus is asking us to pray that God’s kingdom would come in a salvific way—that the kingdom of God would be expanded as sinners come to repentance and are brought into the kingdom of God. It also refers to the rule and reign of Jesus Christ when He comes back to set up His kingdom. Believers are to pray for Christ’s return to set up His kingdom as we will rule and reign with Him. The book of Revelation concludes with a prayer for Jesus to come quickly (Rev. 22:20). This prayer and petition should not be taken lightly. Christians who have been martyred over the centuries for their faith have prayed this prayer with great intensity. Believers should examine their hearts before praying this prayer. Believers would be satisfied if Christ would return only after they have received a promotion at work, got married, or experienced more of life. Do believers sincerely hunger and thirst for the kingdom of God to come and for Christ to return? We need to examine ourselves to see if we are praying this prayer with …show more content…
The word for “temptation” can and does mean “testing” or “trials” (cf. 4:1-12). However, testing can have multiple purposes such as maturing in Christ, greater character, or to grow in faith. Jesus asks us to pray “lead us not into temptation” (v. 13). This means we should pray that the Lord would not allow a trial to severe for us to handle. Jesus is not saying that God is the one who leads us to do evil. God is not the author of sin and He does not create evil in our hearts so that we will sin (cf. James 1:13). Jesus is asking us to not be afraid of trials as we should consider them with all joy (James 1:2). However, Christians cannot deal with trials in their own power. Instead, Jesus is asking us to pray that God would help us when we go through them (cf. 1 Cor. 10:13). “Lead us not into temptation” is a prayer to deliver us and help us when we go through trials. Believers should pray, “Do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil” (cf. James 4:7). Jesus asks us to depend on God and not ourselves to deliver us from sin and to help us through the temptations and trials when they come. God is faithful to help the believer when he or she asks for help. God is gracious to provide help when we ask for