Page 29 - Living Light Spring 2024

Monday April 1 - Treating God properly “Hallowed be your name...” Matthew 6:9
‘Hallowed’ is an old-fashioned word which means ‘holy’. Jesus encourages us to know God in a very deep and intimate way, and that we can share anything with him, talking to God openly just like a child with their loving and committed parent. Yet this doesn’t mean we can be disrespectful to God – he above all is the Holy One! So when Jesus talks to God in his great prayer of John 17, he speaks to God as ‘Holy Father’ (v 11).
In heaven, God is constantly acknowledged as holy, indeed ‘the most holy’. We know this because in his vision the Old Testament prophet Isaiah saw the heavenly flaming creatures singing, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty” (Isaiah 6:2-3).
What then does this mean for us? First, that we have a sense of great privilege when we talk to God, or share our thoughts, problems and struggles with him. Then it means that we realise we need to live our lives – at home, at work, with friends, in the shops, and even in our private thoughts – in such a way that they please God and match up with his character of love, generosity and truth.
But beyond this we also long that everyone should know God personally, and that everything that happens in our world should please him.
Heavenly Father, it hurts us that so many people use your name lightly, without knowing that you are the great Creator. Please help us to always respect and reverence you. Amen.
Tuesday April 2 - Living in God’s kingdom
“...your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”
Matthew 6:10
The heart of Jesus’ message was that God’s kingdom was bursting into our human situations. Indeed, on one occasion he indicated that wherever he was, there God’s kingdom was too. Jesus breathed, lived and, in the end, died for God’s kingdom. But Jesus made it absolutely clear that God’s kingdom was not about dominating and crushing others.
God’s kingdom is not about some territory on a map! God’s kingdom is about doing his will, as this verse makes clear. God’s will is perfectly done in heaven; our prayer, as disciples of Jesus, is that we may do all we can to live according to God’s ways. Every time we help someone, especially if it is with no thought of personal benefit being returned to us; every time we forgive someone who has wronged us; every time we turn to God in prayer, whether to give him thanks for his kindness to us or to pray for others – then we are living in God’s kingdom!
Jesus, as the Messiah, came to bring God’s kingdom into our world. It is no surprise then that many opposed him, including Satan, who opposes everything good from God. In the end, this is what brought Jesus to the cross. “Not my will, but yours be done” was his repeated prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane (Luke 22:42).
Heavenly Father, please help me, like Jesus, to seek first your kingdom. Help me to want what you want and to become more like you every day. Amen.
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PRAYER FOR TODAY
PRAYER FOR TODAY