This is a hefty ask. Praying for God’s will to be done on earth as it is in heaven is praying for heaven to bend low and touch earth. One of my favorite Old Testament passages gives us a glimpse into Heaven. Isaiah had a vision of God, whose glory was so immense that he could only describe seeing the hem of his garment.

In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one called to another and said: Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory. And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke. And I said: “Woe is me! for I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts.

Isaiah 6:1-5, ESV

That’s how God’s will is done in Heaven. He is completely worshipped, totally adored. He is seated, high and lifted up. He is so grand that the train of his robe, the hem of his robe, fills the temple.

When we pray for God’s will to be done on earth as it is in heaven, this is both a personal and corporate prayer. It forces us to answer the question: what or who is on the throne room of our hearts? Does anything need to be unseated from your life so that God can have his proper place? What is high and lifted up? Higher than God?

Tim Keller, in is great work Counterfeit Gods, writes:

When anything in life is an absolute requirement for your happiness and self-worth, it is essentially an ‘idol,’ something you are actually worshiping. When such a thing is threatened, your anger is absolute. Your anger is actually the way the idol keeps you in its service, in its chains. Therefore if you find that, despite all the efforts to forgive, your anger and bitterness cannot subside, you may need to look deeper and ask, ‘What am I defending? What is so important that I cannot live without?’ It may be that, until some inordinate desire is identified and confronted, you will not be able to master your anger.

Tim Keller

On earth as it is in heaven requires that God reign supremely. When he does, we not only see him for who he is, we see ourselves for who we are. Before this vision, Isaiah had spent several chapters calling people out for their sin. Now he’s calling out to God because if his sin!

Again Keller:

If you want God’s grace, all you need is need, all you need is nothing. But that kind of spiritual humility is hard to muster. We come to God saying, “Look at all I’ve done,” or maybe “Look at all I’ve suffered.” God, however, wants us to look to him.

Tim Keller, counterfeit Gods

Here’s a great way to personalize the prayer. In my marriage, as it is in heaven. At my workplace, as it is in heaven. On my sports team, as it is in heaven. In my dating relationship as it is in heaven. In my family, as it is in heaven. At Grace Community Church as it is in heaven.