In the third petition of the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus teaches us to pray “your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven”(Matt. 6:10). This brings up two immediate questions: 1) What does it mean to pray for God’s will to be done; 2) How is God's will carried out in heaven?

The Will of God
In order to pray for God’s will to be done, we must first consider what God’s will is. God’s will is an aspect of His sovereignty. God’s will can be thought of on two different levels. First, God's will is His eternal purposes. A second way to think of God's will, is to think of it as the expression of His moral demands for His creatures. This two-fold aspect of God’s will has been called the secret will (decretive) and the revealed will (preceptive).
Secret Will
Consider the following passages.
1. Psalm 115:3 – Our God is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases.
2. Eph. 1:11 – In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will.
3. Is. 46:9-10 – for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me,
declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose’
These passages refer to God’s secret will. When the Bible speaks about God’s will in this way, it is referring to the secret things which God has purposed in His eternal counsel and has not made known to man. Deuteronomy 29:29 refers to God’s hidden will when it says “The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.” God’s hidden will refers to His sovereign decree of whatsoever comes to pass. If God ordains something then it will certainly come to pass in history.
So, when we pray “thy will be done” (as it relates to God’s secret will), what we are praying is that the Spirit would assist us, in yielding ourselves over completely and cheerfully to the events of God’s providence. That means that even if God permits us to be visited with sickness or affliction (like Job), we are yielding ourselves over to God so that He will accomplish His purposes in our lives.
We trust that not a hair can fall from our head (Luke 21:18) without His permission. We also trust that all things work together for the good for those who love the Lord (Rom. 8:28). We trust God as “our Father” and we know that He gives us exactly what we need. So, come what may, we know that God has our greater interest in mind, and we know that we can trust in Him.
Revealed Will
That brings us to the second way that the Bible talks about God’s will. Not all of God’s will is hidden. God has graciously revealed to us what is necessary for saving faith and what duty God requires of man.
God has revealed these things to us in His Word. We find God’s revealed will in the Bible. You can think of the 10 commandments. When we look at the positive application of each commandment, we discover the things that are pleasing to God. Take the 8th commandment for example. The positive application of “thou shalt not steal” is “thou shalt be content with what God has given to you.” Therefore, we are to learn to be content in all circumstances.
Consider two other examples below:
1. Micah 6:8 – He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?
2. 1 Thess. 4:3 – For this is the will of God, your sanctification…
When we pray, “thy will be done” (as it relates to God’s revealed will), we are praying that we would conduct ourselves according to that which we know is pleasing to God. That means we are praying like John the Baptist that “He must increase, but I must decrease” (John 3:30). Our own wills must decrease if ever we are to faithfully do His Will. We are praying that God would assist us in doing His commands. We are also praying that God would assist us in doing His commands with the right heart posture and for the right reason. That reason is to glorify Him. Which brings us to the last part of the petition.
On Earth As It Is In Heaven
God’s will in heaven is carried out by both the angels and the saints who have gone on to be with the Lord. The angels in heaven have never sinned and the saints who are in heaven have been made perfect in holiness. There is no sin in heaven. These saints and angels do God’s will perfectly in heaven, but they also do it with the perfect attitudes and motives (humility, cheerfulness, faithfulness, zeal, sincerity, etc.).
Heaven is the ultimate destiny for the people of God. Though we will never attain sinless perfection on this earth, we are praying that God would complete His perfect work in us. Just as our salvation and our union with Christ are a present realities and not something that we have to wait for, we are also asking God that He would conform our will to His even now.
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