And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.
All Commentaries on Luke 11:1 Go To Luke 11
Cyril of Alexandria
AD 444
God is our King before the worlds. Since God always reigns and is omnipotent, with what view do those who call God “Father” offer up to him their requests and say, “Your kingdom come”?They seem to desire to behold Christ the Savior of all rising again upon the world. He will come. He will come and descend as judge, no longer in a lowly condition like us or in the humility of human nature. He will come in glory such as becomes God, as he dwells in the unapproachable light, and with the angels as his guards. He somewhere said, “The Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father, with his holy angels.”…That judgment seat is terrifying. The Judge is unbiased. It is a time of pleading, or rather of trial and of retribution. The fire, enduring punishment and eternal torments are prepared for the wicked. How can men pray to behold that time?… The wicked and impure lead low and lewd lives and are guilty of every vice. In no way is it fitting for them in their prayers to say, “your kingdom come.”…The saints ask that the time of the Savior’s perfect reign may come, because they have labored dutifully, have a pure conscience and look for the reward of what they have already done. Just as those who, expecting a festival and merriment about ready to come and shortly to appear, thirst for its arrival, so also do they. They trust that they will stand glorious in the presence of the Judge and hear him say, “Come, you blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundations of the world.”… They fully believed what he said about the consummation of the world. When he will appear to them again from heaven, they will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. They correctly say in their prayers, “your kingdom come.” For they feel confident that they will receive a reward for their bravery and attain to the consummation of the hope set before them. Commentary on Luke, Homily
