Matthew 6:10 – Kingdom Envy

… your kingdom come…

Summary: To begin our mediation on God’s kingdom, let’s look at how the Israelites served God under the old covenant.

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come…

When we get to this part of the Lord’s Prayer, we enter a foreign land. In America, the idea of a king or queen seems strange to us. We watch the news from England with fascination as the English press dotes on their royal family. In our modern world, kings seem somewhat outdated.

In one sense, they are. Human kings and queens, after all, are human.

Humans have the problem of being inherently self-centered, and when a person has unlimited power over other humans, that can lead to trouble. In an ideal world, royal kings and queens aspire to be servants of a higher cause. Their duty to the nation comes before their personal needs and wants. But listen to the words of Samuel when the people of Israel asked for a king:

“He said, ‘This is what the king who will reign over you will claim as his rights: He will take your sons and make them serve with his chariots and horses, and they will run in front of his chariots. Some he will assign to be commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and others to plow his ground and reap his harvest, and still others to make weapons of war and equipment for his chariots. He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive groves and give them to his attendants. He will take a tenth of your grain and of your vintage and give it to his officials and attendants. Your male and female servants and the best of your cattle and donkeys he will take for his own use. He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves will become his slaves.’” (1 Samuel 8: 11-17)

Before this, the Israelites lived as a free people. They depended on godly men called judges to arbitrate disputes between themselves. The problem with this was …

Well, there was no problem except the problems that are common to all people. The Israelites were enticed by Satan to put their faith in something besides God. Instead of trusting in their Lord, they wanted something visible that they could trust. They wanted a king.

“We want a king over us. Then we will be like all the other nations, with a king to lead us and to go out before us and fight our battles.” (1 Samuel 8: 19-20)

Hmmm… What does this remind me of?

When God gave Moses the Ten Commandments, he included this one:

“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.” (Exodus 20:17)

By coveting the neighboring people’s having a king, the Israelites were turning their backs on God’s commandment. As God explains to Samuel when Samuel complains about this, “it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king” (1 Samuel 8:7).

Application: Think of God as our king, and life takes on a different perspective.

Food for Thought: What kind of kingdom did God envision for the Israelites?