God's Kingdom Comes Without Our Prayer

In his Small Catechism's teaching on the Lord's Prayer Martin Luther writes,

The kingdom of God certainly comes by itself without our prayer, but we pray in this petition that it may come to us also.

What is the kingdom of God or of heaven? The term occurs in all four Gospels, Acts, Paul's epistles and in the Revelation. Here are the references just in Matthew:

• Matthew 3:2, 4:17, 5:3, 10, 19-20, 6:33, 7:21, 8:11, 10:7, 11:11, 12:28,  13:24,31,33,44-45,47,52, 16:19, 18:3-4,23, 19:12,14,23-24, 20:1-2, 21:31, 21:43, 22:2, 23:13, 25:1. 

Obviously kingdom of God is a primary theme in the New Testament. The foremost meaning of the terms translated as kingdom in both Testaments is the rank, authority and power exercised by a king. The kingdom includes both the realm or territory and  the people who belong to that realm and over whom the king has authority. The principal meaning, however, is always the authority to rule. The king is sovereign. He has the power. 

Satan, as Matthew shows, knew from the outset that Jesus had this power. This is why he attacked Jesus in the wilderness. 

Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to him, "All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me." 

Then Jesus said to him, "Be gone, Satan! For it is written, "'You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.'" - Mat 4:8-10 ESV

Satan laid claim to the kingdoms of the world. Despite his rebellion, he is the god of this world (2 Cor. 4:4), blindly worshipped by the people of the world and under his control. Jesus came to de-throne this false god. Satan's demons know about this. When Jesus drove them out of the two Gadarenes the demons cried,

"What have you to do with us, O Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?" - Mat 8:29 ESV

The demons shudder in fear. The King has come; judgment awaits (James 2:19; Jude 1:6).

On some level the unbelieving people of the world also know this. Notice the constant mockery of our LORD's name by them. Listen as they cry out or curse, "God damn you! Jesus Christ!" Even in this back-handed way they are acknowledging His authority and power. The King has come. He has arrived to set His people free. And this is all His doing. As Luther said, "The kingdom of God certainly comes by itself without our prayer."

The point Luther made was that none of us are able to usher in the kingdom. The initiative was and remains God's doing. As John so beautifully teaches 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. - Jhn 3:16 ESV

In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. ... We love because he first loved us. - 1Jo 4:9-10, 19 ESV

If this is all God's doing through His only Son, why pray, "Your kingdom come?" We'll look at that tomorrow as we consider in more detail how the kingdom comes and how the king continues his gracious rule in our lives.