Series: Student Ministry: The Sermon on the Mount
- The Blessings of Christ’s Kingdom (Matthew 5:1-12)
- The Blessings of Christ’s Kingdom: Blessings One and Two (Matthew 5:3-4)
- The Blessings of Christ’s Kingdom: Blessings 3-7
- The Blessings of Christ’s Kingdom: You Will Be Persecuted, But Yours Is The Kingdom of God (Matthew 5:10-12)
- Sermon on the Mount: Be Who You Are In Christ (Matthew 5:13-16)
- God’s Word Will Always Stand And It’s All About Jesus: Matthew 5:17-20
- The True Meaning of Adultery (Matthew 5:27-30)
- Adultery and the Seriousness of the Marriage Commitment (Matthew 5:31-32)
- Be People Of Truth (Matthew 5:33-47)
- Giving Grace Instead Of Vengeance (Matthew 5:38-42)
- What Does It Mean To Love Your Neighbor? (Matthew 5:43-47)
- Our Only Hope Is Jesus (Matthew 5:48)
- The Lord’s Prayer: Our Father
- The Lord’s Prayer: Our Father In Heaven, Hallowed Be Your Name
- The Lord’s Prayer: Your Kingdom Come
- The Lord’s Prayer: Your Will Be Done On Earth As It Is In Heaven
- The Lord’s Prayer: Give Us This Day Our Daily Bread
- Forgive Us Our Sins (Matthew 6:12)
- The Lord’s Prayer: Lead Us Not Into Temptation
- The Lord’s Prayer Activity
- Forgiven People Forgive (Matthew 6:14-15
- Fast Toward God, Not Others (Matthew 6:16-18)
- Live For What Will Last (Matthew 6:19-34)
- Judge Not, But Do Judge (Matthew 7:1-6)
- God Gives So That You Can Give (Matthew 7:6-12)
- Which Gate Have You Gone Through? Which Path Are You On? What Is Your Eternal Destination? (Matthew 7:13-14)
- Beware the False Prophet (Matthew 7:15-18)
- You May Think You Know Jesus, But Does Jesus Know You? (Matthew 7:21-23)
- All Other Ground Is Sinking Sand (Matthew 7:24-27)
Sometimes you run into concepts, as a person teaching the Scripture, that are pretty self-explanatory and I think that this is one of them. There isn’t going to be any earth-shattering information to be learned here.
We will begin by thinking about what it means for God’s will to be done in a place. That is what Jesus is calling us to pray for here. What is it that we are to pray for? God’s will to be done. Where? On Earth. In what manner? In the same way that it is in Heaven.
So, what is God’s will?
God’s will, in Scripture, has a few meanings. The first is God’s sovereign will, that is, what happens. God is not out of control, but His sovereign hand is ruling and reigning over the entire universe. All things that happen, happen according to God’s sovereign will (Ephesians 1:11). This means that God allows some things to take place that He does not like, that go against His revealed will.
God’s revealed will is what He tells us in Scripture. That is God’s law. We see this in Psalm 40:8.
“I delight to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart.” (Psalm 40:8 ESV)
What is God’s will? Well, used as it is here, it is God’s law. It is what God has revealed to us to be good and right.
This is the usage of “God’s will” that we find in this passage of Scripture. This is what we are praying for. We are to pray for God’s Word to be obeyed in our lives and to the ends of the Earth.
Personal Application:
As we should always do, let’s make application to ourselves and then move outward. The first thing to ask ourselves when we bow down to pray is this. Am I doing God’s will? Am I obeying God’s Word?
The answer to this question is going to most often be that we are succeeding in some ways and failing in others. I pray for myself here. I ask God to help me to grow in areas that I am weak in. Am I sharing the gospel with others as I should? Am I leading my family as I ought? Am I studying God’s Word as I should? These are the type of questions I consider when I am in prayer. Am I doing God’s Will.
The questions may be different for you. Are you obeying the authorities in your life? Are you sharing the gospel at school? Are you reading God’s Word? Are you doing God’s will?
Personal Influence/Leadership
Now, let’s move outward into the group of people that God has put within our sphere for us to influence. For me, that is my wife, children, the church in my capacity as a music director, you guys in my capacity as a student pastor, former students, and possibly others that I haven’t considered. The question is twofold here. Am I influencing and leading as I ought? Are they growing in their love for Christ and obedience to His Word?
You may not think that you have much influence, but you likely have more than you think. You can help younger siblings to be obedient to God’s Word by teaching them the faith and loving them. You can help friends be obedient to God’s Word in much the same way. As you grow older these spheres of influence will change, but the concept remains the same. Are those people doing God’s will? Are you leading and influencing them well?
As before, in areas that we find that we are failing or need a little help, we ask God for help. And we thank God for the things that are going well.
We Long For And Pray For Christ’s Return
The last thing that we will mention is that we are again praying for and longing for the day when God’s will is completely accomplished on Earth, just as it is in Heaven.
There is coming a day in which all the sing and shame of this world will be gone. Christ will return and finish off Satan, sin, and death completely and for all time. The victory is already won and we await the day when it is consummated and Christ reigns completely. At that time God’s will is going to be done on Earth as it is in Heaven. And for this, we rejoice. We rejoice that there is coming a day when good will reign. We rejoice that there is coming a day when sin will be no more. We rejoice that there is coming a day when death will be no more. We rejoice, long for, and pray for that day to come.
R. Dwain Minor
