When Jesus taught the disciples to pray, (The Lord’s Prayer, Matthew 6:9-13) one of the things He taught them (and us) to pray for was that God’s will would be done on earth as it is in heaven. As I was reflecting on this, something dawned on me that I hadn’t given much thought to before. When Jesus prayed, “Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven,” He had an actual frame of reference. He had come from heaven. He knew the power and transformation available in the will of God and he wanted to see that on earth.
He also knew that in a fallen world, it was only the power of the Holy Spirit that could make that happen, and that is why He sent his Spirit to empower those of us that put our faith in Him.
And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. – John 14:16-17
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere… – Acts 1:8
When the redeemed of Christ walk in the Spirit and follow His lead, we are the answer to this prayer. Through the Holy Spirit in us, God’s will can be done on earth as it is in heaven. When we obey the Word of God and live lives that glorify Him, God’s will is being done on earth. When we gather together in praise and worship, God’s will is being done on earth. When we love people and treat them like Jesus would, God’s will is being done on earth. And most importantly, when we share the Good News of Salvation through Jesus, God’s will is being done on earth. We are empowered to accomplish God’s will, so let’s make it happen!
This is powerful stuff! Whenever I’ve prayed that, I’ve always spoken that sentence as a here and there thing, feeling that Gods creative power in his name could work on earth as when he created the earth-but through our words. Sometimes I feel like Jesus was on earth to understand why we just weren’t getting it, reported that it was actually harder than they’d thought and the Holy Spirit was going to HAVE to live in us and not around us or just with us like with Adam. Thanks!