Focus: The Dream Of God

Text: Mt.6:10

"Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven."

God has dreams, one of which is to see the earth become the place of His dominion. God desires to take over the kingdoms of this world. The Scripture says, "And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever" (Rev.11:15). The dream of God is to redeem and reclaim the earth as its original maker and rightful owner.

In the Temptation of Christ, Matthew tells us, "The devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him ALL THE KINGDOMS OF THE WORLD, and THE GLORY OF THEM" (Mt.4:8). Luke reports that Satan showed Jesus the kingdoms "in a moment of time" - in a flash. That is Satan's way, luring us with flashes of all that glister or of things that look like glory. Satan trends in the flash, the lusty and the momentary.

God dreams of a moment when He shall take over the earth. He dreams of the time when the government shall be upon His shoulder. That moment is closer each passing day, and the dream of God will be realized in the fullness of time. Paul writes, "Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power" (1Cor.15:24). The end is near. We are living in the last days. John writes, "And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come SALVATION, and STRENGTH, and the KINGDOM of our God, and the POWER of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night" (Rev.12:10).

The kingdom of God is already a reality NOW and will be fully realized SOON. That is why Jesus taught and instructed us to pray: "Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven." When we pray it, it shows we are dreaming God's dream with Him. It means we are joining God in making His dream come true. By praying it we become active participators in the establishment of the kingdom of God on the earth. Remember the words of Christ to Peter in Matthew 16. He says, "And I will give unto THEE the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven" (16:19). Peter is given the keys of the kingdom of heaven to operate on earth. Interestingly, those keys given to Peter are equally given to us. In Matthew 18:18, Christ says, "Verily I say unto YOU, Whatsoever YE shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." In the first scripture it is 'thee,' referring to Peter, but here it is 'ye,' referring to the disciples. 

The keys given to one is now given to all. So while we await the full manifestation of the kingdom in all its glory, we can, in the meantime, function with the keys on the earth.

The church has the full authority of Christ to exercise in every sphere of human existence, and to execute heaven's orders here on earth. The Lord Jesus Christ said to the Jews, "But if I with the finger of God cast out devils, no doubt the kingdom of God is come upon you" (Lk.11:20). Matthew puts it differently, "But if I cast out devils by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God is come unto you" (Mt.12:28). Notice the difference: the 'finger' of God and the 'Spirit' of God. Also, the kingdom has come 'upon' you, and the kingdom has come 'to' you. The prefix 'epi' is used for both 'upon' and 'unto.' The kingdom is upon us. In Luke 17:21, we read, "Behold, the kingdom of God is WITHIN you." The word 'within' implies 'among us' or 'in our midst.'

Every time the believer exercises the authority of Christ and the devil is ousted, then the kingdom comes. The church has been called and commissioned to establish and extend the victory of Christ everywhere in the world. 

We are called to crush and exterminate all demonic forces and to enthrone Christ as Lord and King in all realms of human existence, and God's kingdom comes every time we do our job.

John says, "For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil" (1Jh.3:8). We have the same assignment with our Master Jesus. He is with us in the same kingdom enterprise. "All that Jesus began both to do and teach," He continues to do and teach through us.

O let the kingdom of God come! Let His will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Let us dream God's dream after Him, desire and determine to see Christ reign in the hearts of men all over the world. The kingdom of God is absent wherever God's will is not being done. Wherever God's kingdom comes, right there the will of God is acknowledged and submitted to. We are subjects of Christ and citizens of His kingdom. The dream of God shall surely be actualized.

by Bishop Moses E. Peter