The concentric circles of The Lord’s Prayer chiasm continues with an acknowledgement of God’s authority.
The fundamental choice for all of us is whether we will accept and trust Jesus as our ultimate authority or rely on something else.
We tend to think of “heaven” mainly as a place where God resides. But this verse notes a key characteristic of heaven, that it is a place where God’s will is done. Multiple verses tell us Satan still has access to heaven for a limited time, but he does not have the power to exert his will in heaven. For heaven is a place where God’s will is done. When we take Jesus as our prime authority and do His will, we bring this aspect of heaven down to earth.
It is in obedience to God that we bring reality into the world. One of many reasons to avoid all other gods is because they are not real. Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life. Our reward for accepting and choosing the realities of The Lord’s Prayer is to live the reality of the kingdom of heaven while dwelling upon the earth.
The Lord’s Prayer is about recognizing and properly acting upon reality. There is an acknowledgement of our part to play in making choices, such as forgiving others, walking in obedience to God as the ultimate authority, and resisting temptation. There is acknowledgment that we will face circumstances beyond our control, and must rely on God’s help to obtain our daily bread, and to trust that the temptations we face will not be beyond our ability to resist. The Lord’s Prayer sets our perspective that God is the ultimate authority, and the perfection of heaven rests in the reality that only God’s will is done.
If we embrace these perspectives, it will lead to all the attitudes Jesus tells us in the first part of this most famous of sermons that leads to us being “blessed.” The Lord’s Prayer leads to a shift in perspective, but leads to the greatest of blessings.
This is the fourth in a series of five devotionals centered around The Lord’s Prayer. We hope this series encourages you to examine how and why you pray. We hope it unlocks some clarity around the power and purpose of prayer. And we hope it leads you to the heart of God.