And He said to them, “When you pray, say: Father, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come.” – Luke 11:2

Two primary things jump out of this verse. First of all, we ought to always prayerfully think on Christ’s literal return. The child of God will always have a resonating theme of, “Even so, come, Lord Jesus!” As we know Him more and walk with Him in this spiritual pilgrimage, something inside of us longs for His coming. We know that this world is not our home. We truly desire the wonder, the beauty, and the joy of when the Creator King returns and sets all things aright.

Secondly, as we pray we should remember our commitment to the local church, because the church is God’s primary means of His rule being known and seen in the earth. The glory of God is Jesus Christ. So, where is the Son most greatly manifested? He is most vividly seen in His work of building His church. The church is so much the expression of Christ and His work, power, and beauty, that He calls the church His very bride. So, as we pray for His kingdom to come, we are basically asking God to let us be a true, or biblically healthy, body of Christ because that is the place where His rule and His reign is powerfully seen on the earth.

Now, of course, He is seen in our individual lives. He is seen in our work life. Young people, He is seen in your school life. He is seen in all of those ways and many more. But, God has ordained that when a community of believers (local churches) is doing what God has called them to do by the power of the Spirit with true hearts and attitudes, then He is truly made manifest to the rest of the world. So the rule and the reign of God centers in His local church.