In the first part of the Lord's prayer we come to recognize God as being 'Our Father'. In the next part ('Who art in heaven') we recognize God's superior (higher) position in the Universe to all persons and things - in terms of power, wisdom and goodness. And then, in the next part, we acknowledge our obligation to God as His children to 'hallow thy name' in our hearts and minds - thereby glorifying Him.
Francis, in his prayer/meditation goes to the next part of Jesus' prayer: '"Your Kingdom come" . . . so that You may rule in us through grace and have us get to Your kingdom, where the sight of You is clear, love of You is perfect, association with You is full of bliss and enjoyment of You is eternal.'
What is this kingdom? In the Gospel according to Matthew Jesus often refers to the 'kingdom of heaven'. Scholars have said that Jesus used the phrase 'kingdom of heaven' rather than saying 'God'. (We can see thereby that Jesus was also careful to use God's name in appropriate circumstances and with due reverence and love as discussed in last week's post). So, what Jesus was praying here was that 'You (God) would come' into our world (our lives).
A kingdom is that place, comprised of those towns and cities and the people who live in them, that a King rules over. Where is God's kingdom? We know He reigns in heaven - over the angels and saints - but does He have an earthly kingdom as well? Jesus, His Apostles and Francis affirmed that there was. However, there is nothing apparent in the world to show us His kingdom exists here. If His kingdom is invisible on earth then how do we know that it actually exists here?
One time the people asked Jesus about the Kingdom of heaven and how and when it would appear. He responded, "The kingdom is not coming in a way that you can see it. For the kingdom of God is within." A kingdom has two essential parts: a king and his subjects. Jesus affirmed there is a kingdom of God and asserts that it is already in the world. He implies that God is the king and those who trust Him are His subjects. But what did Jesus mean when He said it was within - within what?
Francis believed that there were two manifestations of the (one) Kingdom of God. First, Francis knew that the kingdom of God was within the heart. The heart is the throne of our heavenly King (Christ) and from there He rules (if we allow Him) and tries to help us rule, our lives. But Francis also refers to the 'heavenly kingdom' (that exists now - in heaven) that all who believe will one day enter as citizens.
Grace is defined as 'the unmerited favor of God'. Francis knew that God has a goal for each of us: to get us into His Kingdom of eternal joy. Francis indicates that God's grace will get us there. God rules by grace (controls and directs all things as a result of His own goodness, not because we are deserving) in that everything that happens to us is designed by Him to draw us to Him and to enable us to experience all of His blessings. In other words, everything that happens to us is a 'gift' (a wonderful surprize!) This means that God intends each of our days to be like Christmas - filled with wonderful gifts! St. Paul said, "All things work together for good to those who love God - for those who are called according to His purposes." 'To have us get to Your kingdom' means that, through God's grace, God's reign will be established within our hearts. With God's rule will also come the riches of His Kingdom (the heavenly Kingdom) - peace, joy and love. And, after our earthly temporal life has passed, His Rule over us, and the fruit of the blessings He has given us, will allow us to enter the actual Kingdom of heaven. Alleluia!
Francis then describes what it is like to recieve the blessings of the kingdom of heaven - what we can expect here and now (in our hearts and lives) and then and there (eternity in heaven) from our heavenly Father. Francis talks about the ever intensifying process of experiencing God in our daily lives!
'Sight of you is clear': To see is to understand. To see clearly is to understand fully and truly. To see God is to recognize Him for who He is, be transformed and become . . . like Him for "then we shall know, even as we are known."
"Love of you is perfect": To see God (know Him) is to love Him. However, this does not mean that our love is 'perfect'. Perfect love is a love that is the gift of all that we are and all that we have. Our love is not perfect now but, if we are walking with Christ, it becomes more perfect each day. When we are in heaven then it will have reached perfection.
What is perfect love and what are examples of it? Remember, the first 'commandment' of our King to us is to, 'love God with all of your heart, soul, mind and body.' The best example of this kind of love is given by our Lord Jesus Himself for He loved God (and us!) to the point of giving up His life. He showed the perfection and depth of His love by enduring horrendous tortures patiently, in faith and love, while being obedient to the will of His Father. Jesus was selfless and completely dedicated to doing what is right, pleasing His Father and helping us who can't help ourselves.
"Association with You is full of bliss": We associate with God when we spend significant amounts of time with Him - hanging out and interacting with Him. (How is it that He is ALWAYS with us and yet, we are not always with Him?!) While in His presence we become aware of how powerfully He loves us. When His perfect and complete love invades our hearts this results in 'bliss' - that state of being enraptured with God and filled with transcendent joy because of Him. This bliss is so powerful and all encompassing, that one is hardly aware of anything else while in the midst of this intoxicating embrace of Christ!.
"And enjoyment of You is eternal": Finally, this bliss turns into pure and powerful enjoyment - divine spiritual pleasure - that is eternal (lasts forever)! Alleluia and Amen! It is no accident that at the heart of the word 'enjoyment' we find the word 'joy'. We associate the word 'pleasure' with sensuality - arising from our five carnal senses. However, joy is a spiritual pleasure that the soul experiences. Pleasure is temporal (of short duration and never truly satisfying) even as our flesh is temporal (which itself is made of dust and destined to pass away!) Joy is eternal - lasting forever - and is fueled by the Spirit, who lives forever and is ever able to satisfy our deepest longings. Alleluia!
PRAYER: Dear Holy Father, Most High King and Lord, we know Your desire to rule us purely benevolent and not with any intention of either oppressing us or making us Your slaves. We know You are God the King but also know that You are our dear Father - and that this relationship means we are princes and princesses in Your Kingdom. Alleluia! We know that You love us and want to bless us with all of the heavenly treasures of Your kingdom. You also want to make us rulers of our own lives, giving us power to control our destructive tendencies and live in peace, joy and harmony. Help us to cooperate with You Lord, turning from foolish, hurtful and ugly things to those things that fill our soul's with life and light. Father, we want to see, love, associate and enjoy You forever. You are the greatest gift we could ever hope to have and You give Yourself freely, in love and with joy, to us. Alleluia! We also give ourselves to You and ask that You rule in our hearts forever! Amen!
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