• By Eugene Rutabagaya

In his coming here on earth, Jesus’s mission was to bring the Kingdom of God from heaven to earth and re-establish his throne over the whole universe in accordance with his eternal purpose which is to sum up all things in Christ (Ephesians 1:10). For when in Eden, Adam and Eve abdicated from their position of intimate fellowship with God and dominion because of sin, we all fell short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23) and were alienated from him thereof. Yet, this situation was not to thwart his eternal purpose. For “when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under law, to redeem those who were under the law” (Galatians 4:4).

When Jesus started his Ministry, he proclaimed the Kingdom of God before he died, he demonstrated it through his ministry for three and half years, and proclaimed it again after his resurrection (Acts 1:3). In the Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13), Jesus reiterated the need for God’s Kingdom to come upon us and among us.

The meaning of Kingdom of God

The notion of Kingdom was integral to the Jewish society of ancient times. Many Prophecies in the Old Testament refer to the eternal Kingdom of God with the belief that God himself is the King of Israel. No wonder when the Elders of Israel gathered at Ramah and asked Samuel to appoint them a king to lead them, God said that it is him that they rejected (1 Samuel 8:7).

The Hebrew word for Kingdom is “Malkut” and it translates by “rule” or “reign” or “sovereignty” over something. Hence, the Kingdom of God refers to his kingly rule or kingly reign in which God, the King, exercises his sovereignty, his influence, his authority, his will and his purpose over the universe. This is further affirmed in Psalms 103:19, “The Lord has established his throne and his Kingdom rules over all”.
In the New Testament, the subject is the central theme of Jesus’s teachings and as such, widely referred to in the Gospels and in Pauline writings. Since Jesus himself and then Paul were both aware of the Old Testament Law and Prophecies, the usage of the word Kingdom in the New Testament was to a greater extent informed and even determined by its Old Testament usage.
 
The coming of the Kingdom among us

So when we pray : “Thy Kingdom Come” as Jesus taught us, what does it imply ? This powerful prayer has at least three implications :

1) It is an act of full submission to God, our heavenly King, and at the same time serves as an invitation to God so he can establish his sovereign governance over us.

2) It brings down God’s saving rule upon us. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). God rules by redeeming his people in accordance with his eternal purpose that he realized in Jesus. Through his saving rule, he saves his people from sin, delivers them from the oppression of Satan, heals and restores the broken hearts, gives life.

3) It makes our hearts yearn for our Savior, as the psalmist said in Psalm 63:1-3 :
O God, you are my God ; Earnestly I seek you ;
My soul thirsts for you ; My flesh faints for you,
As in a dry and weary land where there is no water.
So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary,
Beholding your power and glory.
Because your steadfast love is better than life,
My lips will praise you.

May the Kingdom of God come upon us and among us in 2022 !