Grace and peace to you from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The Word of the Lord which engages us this morning comes from our Epistle lesson (2 Peter 3: 8-14).                 

Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come� Thy kingdom come� When you say those words, do you realize what you are saying? When you say those words do you really mean what you are saying? Thy kingdom come� When we say those words, do we forget to apply them to our daily lives and get distracted from the eternal and too focused on the earthly? Thy kingdom come� What does this mean? Luther said (Small Catechism): The kingdom of God certainly comes by itself without our prayer, but we pray in this petition that it may come to us also. How does God's kingdom come? God's kingdom comes when our heavenly Father gives us His Holy Spirit, so that by his grace we believe His Holy Word and lead godly lives here in time and there in eternity. Thy kingdom come�.                 

When you say "Thy kingdom come" are you really anticipating God's answer to your prayer? God's kingdom has come to you. The royal reign of God was most earnestly begun when God himself saw fit to come to his creation through His Son Jesus Christ. In HIM the royal rule of the Lord was most evident - the creator joined with, became part of his creation. Through becoming one with his creation and giving up his own life for his created on the cross, Christ ransomed us and that creation from the destruction that is sure to come. As Peter said in our text: "But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare." Once sin entered into this portion of God's kingdom, it was destined for death and destruction, but by Christ allowing himself to be destroyed, killed and entombed for 3 days, all who trust in him will be spared the destruction that is to come. We look forward to the new heavens and new earth that He has announced and promised for us.                 

But when we pray "Thy kingdom come", do we consciously anticipate His return and the great and wondrous changes that will happen on the Day of the Lord's return. � We pray for many things and I, like many of you, sometimes grow weary when God seems to be saying "Wait" to my requests. "Lord, why should I have to wait any longer for �" you can fill in the blank: a restoration of health, improved relationships with family and friends, new or better job, whatever. But yet each of us has prayed "Thy kingdom come" thousands of times before. Are we disappointed when our Lord is "slow" at fully answering that prayer? From Peter: "The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance." We keep praying "Thy Kingdom come", anticipating and urging on his final and complete arrival. Yet He waits, patiently waiting for more of his chosen people to hear His calling and turn to him in repentance and faith in Christ Jesus. While we wait, we strive to live holy lives of devotion to God, faithfully using the time and talents he has given us to share the message of Christ who has come and will come again.                 

Our Lord was patient with Jack Eckerd, the owner of the Eckerd Drug Store chain. When an adult Jack Eckerd eventually heard the call to repentance and became a follower of Christ, devoted to Christ's Word.   

When he became a Christian, he knew his life would never be the same. And soon his employees discovered the same thing. He walked one day into one of his stores and spied some soft-porno magazines on the rack. His newly awakened conscience blared an alert, and he ordered his chief of operations to remove all offensive publications from all his stores. "But Mr. Eckerd," the man pleaded, "these magazines bring in a lot of money! Let me get the figures together and show you tomorrow." Early the next morning the chief walked into Eckerd's office and showed him the figures. Indeed the magazines brought in a substantial profit. But Eckerd was unmoved. "Take them out � all of them. That's an order." (modified from Stuart Briscoe, Secrets of Spiritual Stamina. Wheaton: Herald Shaw Publications, 1994, p. 99).                 

Our Lord was patient with Jack Eckerd and he came to be found spotless and blameless before God -- not because he removed adulterous magazines from his store, that was just a result. Jack was found spotless and blameless because he was in Christ and found his peace in Him. Our Lord has also been patient with us and drawn us to himself for eternity. By his Holy Spirit and through his grace we have been drawn to believe his Holy Word about our Lord Christ here in time.

Those names of friends and loved ones that we remembered a few moments ago also heard that Word and were drawn to him as well. It may surprise you to know that while those who trust in Jesus are now with Him in Paradise (Luke 23: 43), they are waiting for his final kingdom to come just as we are. They are now safe from the physical and spiritual dangers and temptations that beset us who are still here, but they have not yet seen the final Day of the Lord. They, like us, wait for the culmination of time, for the physical resurrection of the dead. In the words of Jesus in our Gospel (5: 28-29) "Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out-- those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned." Thos who trusted in Christ, their souls are with in Paradise and we are comforted with that hope. Yet together with them we all look forward to the final day and resurrection.

While we wait we continue to live holy and godly lives, focused on the one who bought our forgiveness and righteousness, Jesus himself. It is so easy for us in this life to forget Him who gave his life for us. Has anyone else ever given his personal life to save yours? Has anyone else ever allowed himself to be beaten and killed so that you might live? But yet we so easily forget him and get distracted by the earthly, created things around us.

In her autobiography, Shirley Temple Black recalls one day when she was at home, mowing the front lawn, and some tourists (with one of those maps of the stars' homes) pulled up and got out of their car to take a picture of her house. One of them, obviously not recognizing her, shouted to Shirley and waved for her to move out of the way so that they could take a picture of her house. (from Joan Libbers, Christ in our Home, July-September, 1997, August 17). Like those picture takers, it is so easy for us to be distracted away from our main purpose in life, the wonder of Christ. We instead tend to focus on created things, what he has built here, rather than the eternal, His Word and Sacraments. But everything here will be destroyed; the elements will melt in the heat (v. 12). "The Day of the Lord will come like a thief, at a time we will not expect and the earth and everything in it will be found for what it is, a temporary dwelling infected by sin. We pray "Thy kingdom come." We look forward to our Lord answering that prayer for those of us who still live in time and those who now live in eternity apart from time. We look forward with great anticipation to a new heaven and a new earth where perfect love and righteousness dwells forever.

While we pray "Thy kingdom come" we continue to live in this world, always remembering to ask for our daily bread and our forgiveness of sins. While we continue to pray "Thy kingdom come" we continue to also pray "Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven." We pray that God will strengthen us, through his Word like that from Peter, so that we will strive to live holy lives that others will see and will therefore be drawn to lives of repentance and faith in our Lord Christ as well. Then we and all who have known his love can look forward to the day when He will fulfill his promise. We can look forward to a new heaven and a new earth, His final kingdom, our final home of righteousness.

And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4: 7)