Most of us are very familiar with the Lord’s Prayer. Matthew 6:9-13 “In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.” As we analyze the prayer, we might notice the praise to God, the request for our needs, the forgiveness we ask for as we forgive others, the requested direction in our lives, and the request for deliverance from the evil one. These are all very important aspects of good prayers. But today I want us to notice something else with the following phrases: Your kingdom come; Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven; for Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen. What is Jesus trying to communicate with these phrases?
Is it about you or is it about God? It is easy to think that everything in the world revolves around you. There are your problems and your needs and your desires. Who is going to worry about these things if you don’t? But I want us to consider whether our existence here is about us or about God. It is His creation, His will to be done, His Kingdom, His power, and His glory. While we certainly need to make decisions about things in our lives, ultimately we are here for God.
Jesus is the king; we are the servants. Jesus gave multiple parables about masters and servants. One such parable is the parable of the talents. Jesus taught in Matthew 25:14-15 “For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them. And to one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, to each according to his own ability; and immediately he went on a journey.” The parable continues that after a long time, the lord of those servants came back and settled accounts with them, blessing those who were good and faithful servants and condemning the one who was not faithful. The clear meaning of this parable is that Jesus is the master or king and we are His servants that must give an account to Him. Paul started the letter to the Romans: Romans 1:1a “Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ.” Paul recognized that he was a bondservant of Christ; we are no less bondservants to our Lord and Master. We are saved to serve Him.
Our message is the message of Christ and God. Jesus gave us the great commission in Matthew 28:18-20 “And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, ‘All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.’ Amen.” 2 Corinthians 4:5-6 “For we do not preach ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves your bondservants for Jesus’ sake. For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” The message we carry to the world is God’s message – His gospel. We are but servants to present God’s message to others.
We are God’s representatives; we are his ambassadors. 2 Corinthians 5:18-21 “Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God. For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” We carry to the world His message of reconciliation.
We serve God for His glory. Matthew 5:14-16 “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” We are the light of the world, not so that we receive glory, but so that others may see our good works and glorify God.
It isn’t even our church but His church. Paul spoke to the Ephesian elders in Acts 20:28 “Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.” Elders are but shepherds of the church that belongs to God.
We are engaged in spiritual warfare for God. Ephesians 6:10-11 “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” The battle is not ours but the Lord’s. I like what David said to Goliath when he went to fight him. 1 Samuel 17:46-47 “This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you and take your head from you. And this day I will give the carcasses of the camp of the Philistines to the birds of the air and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. Then all this assembly shall know that the Lord does not save with sword and spear; for the battle is the Lord’s, and He will give you into our hands.” We are soldiers fighting for God. He gives us the armor and the power that we need. We must not forget that it is His battle.
It is God’s message; it is His gospel. It is His vineyard; He is the vine, we are the branches. He is the shepherd, we are the sheep. It is His salvation. It is His reward. It is His church. It is His power. It is all for His glory. Why does it matter? Because it should affect our attitude. We are not serving ourselves but Him. When we have disappointments and things don’t work out like we want, He knows and can turn things to His glory. When we are praised for something we do, we deflect that praise to instead give glory to God. It is not about us; it is about God. I encourage you in your service to God.