Your Kingdom Come: Running Toward the Kingdom of God

Introduction

At the start of this year, Brendan White opens the Gospel of Matthew and pauses on a phrase you have probably spoken hundreds of times: "Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven" (Matthew 6:10). Behind this familiar prayer lies a choice. Two kingdoms are in conflict: the kingdom of God and the kingdom of darkness. Jesus teaches you to ask that his kingdom come into your life, into your thoughts, into your daily routine in 2026. This is not merely a confession from the lips. It is a shift in allegiance, a change of citizenship, an adventure to run after.

Message Outline

1. Two Kingdoms in Conflict

• Jesus begins the Lord's Prayer with God, not with us: "Your kingdom come, your will be done" (Matthew 6:10). Before your needs, there is his kingdom.
• There is a tension to live in: "If it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you" (Matthew 12:28). Where Jesus reigns, the enemy retreats.
• Three possible postures: my agenda against God's, my agenda alongside God's, or my agenda replaced by his. Brendan calls us to the third.
• Before Pilate, Jesus declares: "My kingdom is not of this world" (John 18:36). This kingdom is greater than all the powers of this world.

2. Transferred from One Kingdom to Another

• "He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves" (Colossians 1:13). The Greek verb behind "brought" means to transfer from one authority to another.
• Brendan tells about his first trip to the United Kingdom in 2000: driving on the left, different currency, different culture, different citizenship. Entering the kingdom of God is a change of the same kind; only far more profound.
• He also compares this reality to Wi-Fi and software updates: the kingdom of God downloads into you and updates the way you think about your relationships, your identity, your finances, forgiveness.
• "God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus" (Ephesians 2:6). From this higher position, you see your situations differently.

3. Three Practical Steps for 2026

• Prepare the way. Just as John the Baptist called people to prepare the way of the Lord (Matthew 3), and just as salt trucks prepared the roads of Paris after the snow, you are invited to prepare your heart. "Seek first his kingdom" (Matthew 6:33). "He must become greater; I must become less" (John 3:30).
• Receive like a child. "Anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it" (Mark 10:15). Curious, dependent, humble, open: Brendan tells about the crystal-growing experiment his daughter Talia did at Christmas; a reaction that grows overnight, but only if the solution is not too diluted.
• Run passionately. "From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been subjected to violence, and violent people have been raiding it" (Matthew 11:12). Brendan recalls himself as a child in Australia, running on the platform to catch a train already in motion. The kingdom is moving; run after it, jump in, pursue it.

Key Takeaways

• The Lord's Prayer begins with God, not with you. Before naming your needs, say with Jesus: "Your kingdom come."
• In Christ, you have been transferred from the dominion of darkness into the kingdom of the beloved Son (Colossians 1:13). Your allegiance has changed.
• The kingdom of God is at once now, near, and still to come. You can experience it today and await its full completion at the return of Jesus.
• The kingdom lets you live from a higher perspective: seated with Christ in the heavenly realms, you see above the circumstances (Ephesians 2:6).
• Three practical postures for 2026: prepare the way, receive like a child, pursue passionately.

Personal Application

1. When you pray, does "Your kingdom come" truly precede your personal requests? What would that order change in your prayer life this week?
2. On which subjects is your agenda still competing with; or running alongside; God's? Name one and place it under his reign.
3. What "update" from the kingdom do you need to receive today: in your relationships, your identity, your finances, your way of forgiving?
4. How can you prepare the way of the Lord this week, like a salt truck preparing the road? A time of prayer, a confession, a letting go?
5. Are you ready to run after the kingdom of God in 2026 the way you would run after a train already in motion; deciding with passion, without dragging your feet?

Verses Cited

• Matthew 6:10 · Your kingdom come, your will be done
• Matthew 12:28 · The kingdom of God has come upon you
• Colossians 1:11-13 · He brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves
• John 18:36 · My kingdom is not of this world
• Ephesians 2:6 · Seated in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus
• Psalm 145:11-13 · Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom
• Matthew 3:1-3 · Prepare the way for the Lord
• Matthew 6:33 · Seek first his kingdom
• John 3:30 · He must become greater; I must become less
• Mark 10:15 · Receive the kingdom of God like a little child
• Matthew 11:12 · The kingdom of heaven has been subjected to violence

Frequently Asked Questions

What exactly does "Your kingdom come" mean in the Lord's Prayer?

It means asking God for his authority, his way of doing things, his kingdom to reign concretely in your life, your family, your church, your country. Brendan White emphasizes that this phrase precedes your own requests. You begin with God, his kingdom, and his will, before speaking about your needs.

Is the kingdom of God already here or is it still to come?

Both. According to Colossians 1:13, you were already transferred into the kingdom of the beloved Son the moment you received Jesus. But Scripture also announces the full completion of this reign at Christ's return. Today, you live in the tension between the "already" and the "not yet", called to ask every day that this kingdom come.

Practically, how do you run after the kingdom of God in 2026?

Brendan proposes three steps: prepare the way (Matthew 3), by seeking the kingdom first (Matthew 6:33) and accepting to decrease so that Christ may increase (John 3:30); receive like a curious, dependent child (Mark 10:15); and pursue with passion, like catching a train already in motion (Matthew 11:12). It is not a slogan; it is a race.