Continuing
the Lord’s Prayer series, we come to the last of the four "attunements to
Mind"–statements which remind us of our real relation to God-Mind and which help
us to tune in to our Source.
4. Thy kingdom come... Mind expresses as perfect ideas and is the
creative power which brings them into form.
The root of malkootha–usually translated as "kingdom"–means
"to counsel." God as infinite intelligence expresses through ideas represented
by angels or God’s counsel. Jesus said, "Seek first his kingdom and his
righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well." (Matt 6:33) God’s
desire is for ideas to have perfect expression through the Creative Process represented by
the Trinity. First there is Mind (Father); then there is an idea (son) within Mind of a
thing, action or quality; finally, there is creative movement within Mind through an idea
pressing it out into manifestation. This is the basic concept of the Trinity or creative
process by which ideas are brought forth from the invisible realm of Mind (heaven) into
expressed form (earth). In Revelation 21:1, "a new heaven and a new earth"
represents new ideas and their expression as a new state of consciousness and experience.
Paul wrote, "For it is God who inspires you with the will to do the good things which
you desire to do." (Phil 2:13)
After Attunement: Directing the Power (Mt 6:11-13)
We are three-fold beings; we are God’s spirit expressing through the soul or
consciousness within a physical body. The framework for prayer now addresses each aspect
of the trinity of Spirit-soul-body.
1. Give us this day... All our physical needs are already met.
How like the words of Agur in Proverbs 30:8
when he says, "feed me with the food that is needful for me!" An Easterner will
bake bread only for today and perhaps enough for travelers should they become a host
tomorrow. When the Israelites wandered the wilderness, manna was provided daily and could
not be saved for the next day. After the sixth day of creation, an environment was
provided for mankind and within it was the supply necessary to meet every need of everyone
in every generation and every age. The bread represents true prosperity which is a
sufficient supply of all things necessary for life on this planet. This not only includes
food and shelter and other physical needs, but also life and health of our physical
bodies. Recognize God as the source behind the infinite numbers and types of channels
through which your needs are met. Ask or declare. Speak a word of affirmation from your
spiritual center that what you need now is prepared now and you accept it now. If David
could say to Jonathan’s son, Mephibosheth, "you shall eat at my table
always," (2 Sam 9:7) imagine what the infinite Source has prepared for you.
2. Forgive us our debts... We have the ability to erase error thinking
from consciousness and free ourselves from negativity.
Sin is a sense of separation from God. We
use the word "sense" because there can never be separation in fact. We only
think and feel that God is at a distance, not with and within us. Charles Fillmore said,
"If God were for one instant separated from His creations, they would immediately
fall into dissolution." (DFL 145) We are always one because we exist. It is our
negative thinking that causes us to feel separate and cut ourselves off in consciousness
from the life and power that sustains us. What we hold in mind is a part of us. That
includes all the negative judgments we have made about ourselves and also about others. We
have a choice; we may choose judgment or freedom but not both. To free ourselves from
bondage to negativity we must free others we hold in bondage through our negative thoughts
about them. And we must free them first before we can be free. To the woman caught in
adultery, Jesus said, "Neither do I condemn you." (Jn 8:11) Forgiveness is not
something we do for another; we do it for ourselves. Emmet Fox taught that our negative
thoughts about another bind us to them as if with chains of steel. In order to be free, we
must cut those chains ourselves. And we have the power to do just that. "The Son of
man has authority on earth to forgive sins." (Mt 9:6) The law of giving and receiving
not only works with material things. If we give forgiveness, we receive it; if we free
others, we free ourselves.
3. Leave us not in temptation... We are not bound by outer appearances
but may see with the eye of Spirit.
There has certainly been some confusion in
translation. The King James Version says, "Lead us not into..." while Benjamin
Franklin translated this, "Keep us out of..." temptation. The question which
arises for me is, "Does love lead you into hate?" James said, "Let no man
say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither
does he tempt any man: But every man is tempted by his own lust; he covets and is
enticed." (James 1:13-14) The temptation we all have to face is the outer world of
appearances and the illusions of the senses. The senses are good and provide necessary
information but they do not tell about Reality or the Truth of Being. Remember, the soul
or consciousness is pivotal; it can take in the impressions of the outer world and be
hypnotized by the information provided through the senses or it can turn to Spirit or the
superconsciousness where it is impressed with Truth. The word "evil" in Aramaic
is bisha which means "evil; error; unripe." Jeremiah (24:2 KJV) spoke of two
baskets of figs; "One basket had very good figs...and the other had very naughty figs
...." The naughty figs were simply not edible because they were unripe or immature.
Evil is to live backwards, from outside in, which results in the concealment of good. Do
not wrestle or fight with evil, turn around, rise up in consciousness and recognize God.
The Doxology – A Hymn of Praise
A closing hymn of praise can be called a doxology
which means "to speak praise." This phrase was added later and is not included
in the prayer by some faith communities. However, it provides an effective end for
Jesus’ teaching on prayer.
1. For thine is the kingdom... God is the only presence and power in our
lives now and always.
God consciousness is the goal, the means and
the actual achievement. We are destined to reach a point in our spiritual growth where we
stand in the perfection with which we are created. We find this point of absolute oneness
through seeking the Father within ourselves, and as we do, we find that we are the Father
in expression. This closing doxology also reminds us that God is Omniscience or all
knowledge, Omnipresence or at all points in time and space, and Omnipotence or all power.
Usually people close the prayer with
"amen." This practice has evolved from the appearance of the word in the Hebrew
Bible at the close of commands, blessings, even curses, and prayers. Generally it is used
to confirm all that has been said before. In various forms it can be translated "be
faithful; established; stand firm; sure and believe." It is our declaration that,
"This is the Truth and we accept it now."