So, what does this petition from the Lord’s Prayer, ‘Thy will be done’, have to teach us about what our God is like? To answer that, we’ll have to first clarify something. What is this ‘will of God’? There actually are a few ways that this phrase is used in the Bible. I think that you can see that it’s important to be clear on the way that it is used in this petition.
Sometimes ‘the will of God’ is about what God has decided to do.
Sometimes ‘the will of God’ is about what God has decided to do.
all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, and he does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand or say to him, ‘What have you done?’ Daniel 4:35
In this passage, God has decided what is going to happen and that’s the end of that because it’s His will.
But then, there are other times when ‘the will of God’ has to do with something different.
But then, there are other times when ‘the will of God’ has to do with something different.
Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Matthew 7:21
Doing the will of God here is about obeying His commands.
Now, in the petition that we are looking at, ‘Thy will be done’, we know that Jesus is calling us to pray in terms of this second sense of ‘the will of God’. We know this is true because we don’t have to pray about God's decisions, but it's obvious that we should pray that He be obeyed.
Now, we’re ready for the next issue. What kind of obedience is God looking for? All too often, people only think about behavior, what they do and say. But is that all that God is interested in? Is that all that obedience, doing the will of God, is about? The answer to that is clear once you remember this tidbit that Jesus taught.
Now, in the petition that we are looking at, ‘Thy will be done’, we know that Jesus is calling us to pray in terms of this second sense of ‘the will of God’. We know this is true because we don’t have to pray about God's decisions, but it's obvious that we should pray that He be obeyed.
Now, we’re ready for the next issue. What kind of obedience is God looking for? All too often, people only think about behavior, what they do and say. But is that all that God is interested in? Is that all that obedience, doing the will of God, is about? The answer to that is clear once you remember this tidbit that Jesus taught.
And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ Mark 12:30
Loving God with the heart, soul and mind goes way beyond just your actions and words. This has to do with what’s going on inside of you. God is calling for the obedience of the inner you.
So, obedience to God’s will is not merely (or even primarily) about your behavior. It’s also about your attitudes, desires, yearnings and motivations. I think that you can see that what Jesus is calling for is the complete submission of the whole person to the will of God.
This is where a comment about the phrase that comes after the first three petitions of the Lord's Prayer fits: ‘on earth as it is in heaven’. This explains further what God is calling for. So, the angels’ submission to God’s will (in heaven) is to be the model - and the goal - for the submission of all people (on the earth).
So, this is what you're to pray for: complete submission to the will of God by everyone on earth and this in such a way that it imitates the angels in heaven. This is what Jesus wants you to pray for.
Well, what do you think? I mean, everyone's wholehearted submission to all of God’s commands? Really? I’m sure that this would earn a little pushback from some people. ‘This can be! What about my freedom? God can’t demand this! It’s not right!’
And yet, that is exactly what He is demanding. And here's the reason why.
So, obedience to God’s will is not merely (or even primarily) about your behavior. It’s also about your attitudes, desires, yearnings and motivations. I think that you can see that what Jesus is calling for is the complete submission of the whole person to the will of God.
This is where a comment about the phrase that comes after the first three petitions of the Lord's Prayer fits: ‘on earth as it is in heaven’. This explains further what God is calling for. So, the angels’ submission to God’s will (in heaven) is to be the model - and the goal - for the submission of all people (on the earth).
So, this is what you're to pray for: complete submission to the will of God by everyone on earth and this in such a way that it imitates the angels in heaven. This is what Jesus wants you to pray for.
Well, what do you think? I mean, everyone's wholehearted submission to all of God’s commands? Really? I’m sure that this would earn a little pushback from some people. ‘This can be! What about my freedom? God can’t demand this! It’s not right!’
And yet, that is exactly what He is demanding. And here's the reason why.
For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen. Romans 11:36
All things come from Him because He is the Creator. All things will come to their proper result through Him, through what He does. And the goal of all of this is to point to Him in all His glory. This universe - everyone everywhere, including us - exists for His sake. So, our goal is to submit to this God in such a way that we highlight His beauty (His glory) and to pray that everyone else also submits in this way too.
‘So,’ - comes the reply - ‘we’re stuck in this oppressive creation, forced to submit to some egotistical God?!?’ Absolutely not! It’s true that God’s commands have as their prime goal His glory. But they also have a secondary goal: our well-being. God’s commands are His guide to living well in His creation. Obedience is not oppression. It is freedom, freedom to thrive and flourish as we live in accord with creation as He made it - with Him at the center of it all. Submission to God, doing His will from the heart, is the way to life. Actually, it’s disobedience to His will that results in oppression. That’s trying to live in a way that just doesn’t fit with creation as He made it.
So, Jesus calls you to pray ‘Thy will be done’.
Now that we’ve taken a look at what this says about who God is, you can offer up that request with a better understanding of what you’re asking for: everyone’s wholehearted submission to God because He is the point of all of this. And praying for that submission is easy if you’re convinced that He is worthy of it.
‘So,’ - comes the reply - ‘we’re stuck in this oppressive creation, forced to submit to some egotistical God?!?’ Absolutely not! It’s true that God’s commands have as their prime goal His glory. But they also have a secondary goal: our well-being. God’s commands are His guide to living well in His creation. Obedience is not oppression. It is freedom, freedom to thrive and flourish as we live in accord with creation as He made it - with Him at the center of it all. Submission to God, doing His will from the heart, is the way to life. Actually, it’s disobedience to His will that results in oppression. That’s trying to live in a way that just doesn’t fit with creation as He made it.
So, Jesus calls you to pray ‘Thy will be done’.
Now that we’ve taken a look at what this says about who God is, you can offer up that request with a better understanding of what you’re asking for: everyone’s wholehearted submission to God because He is the point of all of this. And praying for that submission is easy if you’re convinced that He is worthy of it.
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